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What is an encyclopedia? »Its definition and meaning

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An encyclopedia is a literary resource that collects together, knowledge that may correspond to a scientific, artistic, social, legal, religious, philosophical, among others, which can help facilitate learning about them, and at the same time cooperate with the culturalization of different cities. However, the term "encyclopedia" is mostly known as that group of written works (that is, books) in which these topics on human knowledge are found.

What is an encyclopedia

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The definition of encyclopedia states that this is a publication or series of publications containing detailed and specific information on a topic of scientific, artistic or other interest in nature. This material can be consulted to carry out some research, since its content has truth and credibility.

It is important to mention what an encyclopedia is for, and it is to support with objective and verified content, some research that is being carried out; Likewise, it is a vitally important resource for students entering primary school, since it is the first text that will open the doors to knowledge of the world.

There are encyclopedias that are organized alphabetically, such as the dictionary; and in fact, the Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy is considered one of them. They can also be presented with a central theme, that is, a particular science, such as an encyclopedia of medicine, and more specifically, one of cardiology.

The encyclopedia concept encompasses a summation of various types of knowledge in a single text, which are more common in books designated for primary school education, as they have information about different subjects such as mathematics, language, nature or biology, history, among others.. Normally, they are ordered and specialized by subject; and it is due to that order that the search for information is facilitated, this being its most practical purpose.

Its etymology comes from the Greek expression "enklyklios paideia", which translates as " round education ", and in ancient times with this term they referred to the collection of books necessary for the comprehensive education of a child, to achieve essential knowledge about life.

This word originates from the Greek "enicycles" which means "wheel or circle" and "paideia", whose meaning belongs to education.

What kind of information does an encyclopedia contain?

Depending on the specialization of your content, you can present from varied topics in the same issue (history, health, social sciences, mathematics, language, among others); to specific topics, which, in turn, break down all the knowledge and research that has been generated in the same field (encyclopedias of biology, history, philosophy, among others).

In ancient times, these texts were grouped into several volumes. But nowadays, this kind of books can be published digitally, centralizing all its content on a disk or website, which is the online encyclopedias (online) where it can be located accurately and quickly. In this way, the information can be constantly updated without the need to republish or have multiple editions of the same content. In this way, unnecessary use of paper and greater practicality are avoided.

Over the years, many of these books have been developed on a wide range of topics. Likewise, there are specialized books on medical topics, astronomy, botanicals, encyclopedias related to art, bioaesthetics, economics and even religion.

It should be noted that one of the most important today is the Encyclopedia Britannica or Britannica. This includes information on art, culture, biology, geography, gastronomy, medicine, health, languages, literature, history, music, religion, science, popular culture, sociology, recreation, sports, technology and miscellaneous.

How information is located in an encyclopedia

It is easy to determine how the information is located in an encyclopedia, since they contain an index that can be in alphabetical order or according to the topics contained in it. Accordingly, it can be used to facilitate the search, since these literary resources usually contain a large volume of information, so without an index it would be cumbersome to search for information.

Characteristics of an encyclopedia

Its fundamental characteristics are the following:

  • Its topics are summary and specific, but the content tries to cover the greatest amount of information necessary to obtain knowledge and solid basic bases on them.
  • Its topic is of universal interest, since the knowledge contained in the volumes of an encyclopedia is attractive to anyone, so you will want to obtain objective and reliable data and information on the topics they handle.
  • The content of these books must be maintained over time, so it must not be ephemeral or contextualized in the time in which said information was recorded.
  • These texts must be updated as their research field advances, as new discoveries could displace and invalidate what was held to be true until now.
  • Its content is written in a concise way, in the form of a synthesis, so that the greatest possible amount of important information can be collected for the knowledge and mastery of the subject matter.
  • The content classification ranges from the most common and generalized to the most specialized and precise, since this seeks to make the book as complete as possible. In this way, the reader will not have the need to consult secondary, complementary or additional content in other encyclopedias or sources of information.
  • Equanimity must be a position, however, if there is an adhesion of different terminologies, it must be presented in the most objective way possible and without removing a portion of any of them, so as not to affect said position or interpretation. As it is not related to primary sources of information, the source that was consulted must always be shown, so that credibility can be given to the content of the encyclopedia.
  • Generally, several authors participate in these texts, so the way of writing may vary. In these cases subjective opinions can be found; however, it will always be tried to reach the objectivity of the subject to achieve a balance in it.
  • It is also important to know that thanks to technological advancement and the great use that is made of the internet, there is a virtual encyclopedia that can be accessed through the web. The best known of these is the online encyclopedia or the free Wikipedia encyclopedia.

Examples of encyclopedias

According to their subject, there are many examples of specialized encyclopedias in some academic area. Some of the best known encyclopedias are the following:

Didactic Encyclopedia

These types of texts are those used by primary school children for their comprehensive training, and they contain the basic subjects taught in a pedagogical way for the understanding of young students.

The didactic encyclopedia contains knowledge in the areas of language and literature, mathematics, social sciences, sexuality, environmental education, physical education, natural sciences and technology, aesthetic education, environmental education, education and road safety, among others.

Legal encyclopedia

This type of encyclopedia applies to the field of Law, and according to the Italian author Francesco Filomusi Guelfi (1842-1922), the legal encyclopedia has a double character:

  • As a science of law, where three aspects are covered, which are philosophical, since all research to unify its content is possible on philosophical grounds; the historical, since everything studied has an antecedent, and the past of the institutions must be investigated for its better study; and the dogmatic, since it is focused on the current law, which needs to be known.
  • As an introductory study, since through it there is an introductory method to the study of law. In this sense, this legal dictionary serves as a systematic method of studies and theories related to law, although in practice each particular case must be studied in detail, since not all of them will fit with a single concept of encyclopedia.

Medical encyclopedia

It is a literary resource that gathers information and scientific research in the medical field. Among the topics are the anatomical composition of the body, conditions, analysis, symptoms, injuries, among other topics related to health.

It contains additional elements that help the study of its content, such as photographs and infographics, essential resources for understanding concepts, and descriptive texts about writing, such as how the heart or the parts of the ear are made.

The 6 most famous encyclopedias in the world

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