2003

B4 -- Europe

Who’s Who in European Politics. 3d ed. London; München [et al.]: Bowker-Saur, 1997. xxiii, 1,016 p. 29 cm. ISBN 1-85739-163-2: DM 568 [99-B09-238]

This third edition of Who’s Who in European Politics covers the four-year period ending Sept. 1996. The first edition (1990) and the second edition (1993) each covered a three-year span. The data were assembled via questionnaires. The work lists 8,000 political figures, the same number as in the previous editions (although the prospectus promises “more than 9,000”). Because, according to the preface, over 1,500 new names are included, the considerable change in content makes it advisable to retain previous editions. The criteria for inclusion are also the same as previously: heads of state, members of the government, members of legislative bodies selectively, labor leaders, and prominent politicians on the regional level (e.g., heads of German Länder). Political figures from 48 European countries are included, although the numbers from each country do not reflect their relative importance. For example, Finland and France have equal representation, as do Greece and the Netherlands. The United Kingdom, where it seems every member of both houses of Parliament is included, has the broadest coverage. The UK has more than twice the number of entries of Germany, Russia, and the European Union [13.5 to 5, 5, and 4, respectively]. Th ese numbers can be easily ascertained from the second part of the work, which contains a country-by-country overview of the main political institutions (with the name of incumbent office holders) and the names and functions of all persons listed in Part 1. Despite the disproportionate emphasis on British politicians , this is a useful biographical reference work on international political figures of Europe. [sh/jc]

Scandinavian Biographical Archive (SBA). Section A, Denmark, Norway and Iceland: A single-alphabet cumulation on microfiche of 193 of the most important biographical reference works for Denmark, Norway and Iceland, originally published between the early 18th and mid-20th centuries. Ed. David Metherell. London; München [et al.]: Saur, 1989– . ISBN 3-598-32650-5 (complete set: A and B, diazo fiches): EUR 9,800 [99-B09-240]

Scandinavian Biographical Archive. Section B, Sweden and Finland: A single-alphabet cumulation on microfiche of 231 of the most important biographical reference works for Sweden and Finland, originally published between the early 17th and mid-20th centuries. Ed. Paul Guthrie. London; München [et al.]: Saur, 1990– . ISBN 3-598-32650-5 (complete set: A and B, diazo fiches): EUR 9,800 [99-B09-241]

Scandinavian Biographical Index. Comp. Helena Henderson and Georgina Clark-Mazo. Ed. Laureen Baillie. 4 vols. London; München [et al.]: Saur, 1994. 28, 2,432 p. 30 cm. ISBN 0-86291-829-4: EUR 790 [99-B09-242]

Both the prospectus and the work itself state that the number of persons covered is ca. 150,000. The prospectus states “ca. 429 authoritative works” were evaluated, while the work itself states “ca. 360 authoritative works.” The lists of sources in Parts 1 and 2 of the work itself contain 195 and 132 titles respectively, for a total of 327, suggesting that the lower number is the more accurate. Because numerous collective biographies have appeared in Scandinavian countries since 1950 (the closing date for evaluated sources), the preparation of a second series seems called for. This work could examine the Norwegian national biography, Norsk biografisk leksikon, volume 1 (1823) to volume 19 (1983). A new edition of the latter is planned, so the publishers of the original might be ready to permit its reproduction in a Scandinavian Biographical Archive II. [sh/jc]

British Biographical Archive. Series 2 (BBA II). Ed. Anthony Esposito. München [et al.]: Saur, 1992–1994. ISBN 3-598-33628-4 (diazo fiches): EUR 9,800 (complete set) [99-B09-244]

British Biographical Index (BBI II). Ed. David Bank and Theresa McDonald. 2d cumulated and enlarged ed. 7 vols. München: Saur, 1998. xxvii, 3,179 p. 31 cm. ISBN 3-598-33630-6: EUR 1,548 [99-B09-245]

The first series of the British Biographical Archive evaluated 384 biographical sources. This second series adds 268 additional works for a total of 652, from which altogether 324,240 persons have been extracted. The British Biographical Index, Series 2 (BBI II) provides access to all of these names and thus supersedes the first index. The content of BBI II has also been part of the CD-ROM Internationaler biographischer Index since the 5th ed. of 1998. Unfortunately the additional sources in the British Biographical Archive, Series 2 do not provide greater currency, as they include numerous older works, especially those from the 19th century, and the majority of the 20th century works are from before the Second World War. Titles from after 1950 are very rare. There is a clear need for a third series of the British Biographical Archive, which should examine the numerous new collective biographies that are often the only sources of authoritative biographies for groups underrepresented in traditional national biographies: economic leaders, labor leaders, “radicals” of various kinds, and last not least, women. [sh/jc]

A Handlist of the Latin Writers of Great Britain and Ireland before 1540. Richard Sharpe. Turnhout: Brepols, 1997. xxxvii, 912 p. 25 cm. (Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin, 1). ISBN 2-503-50575-9: $119 [99-B09-249]

The broad field of Latin literature of the Middle Ages and the early modern period is extremely unevenly researched and holds promise of many new discoveries. Richard Sharpe’s weighty reference work provides an outstanding aid to accessing the rich Latin literature of the British Isles and to discovering works previously ignored by researchers or not yet available in printed editions.

The main part of this bio-bibliographical reference work consists of over 2,200 alphabetically arranged articles on known authors of more than 5,200 Latin texts that originated in Britain from the Roman period until the 16th century. Also included are British and Irish authors whose works were written on the continent. Italian humanists active in England near the end of the Medieval period are included, as are authors whose assumed connection with the British Isles is now disputed. Anonymous works that cannot be attributed to a specific author are excluded, as are vernacular works.

Texts are arranged alphabetically under each author and are clearly identified with references to other lists, such as Walther’s Initia carminum or Stegmüller’s Repertorium biblicum. Incipits are included if necessary to avoid confusion among similar or littleknown works. For manuscripts, Sharpe provides data on transmission, date of origin, and exact foliation. For published works, he lists the authoritative edition(s).

This work provides the researcher with quick access to texts, whether published or in manuscript. It distinguishes itself from other author lists by its concentration on central and, in many cases, new data. It is an impressive accomplishment that a single scholar has provided virtually complete access to the broad field of the Latin literature of the British Isles for the entire medieval period. This essential reference work provides a broad and solid basis for future research. [ch/jc]

Biography Database, 1680–1830. Ed. John Cannon and Frank Robinson. Newcastle upon Tyne: Avero Publications, 1995– . £1,500 per issue, £10,000 for the complete set, £6,750 if pre-paid (Avero Publications Ltd., 20 Great North Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4PS, UK, fax [44 191] 261 1209, e-mail: NSTC@newcastle.ac.uk) [99-B09-250]

The Biography Database is a major project of Avero Publications. Unlike traditional biographical reference works, which are composed of (brief ) biographies, this work accesses biographical data from a wide array of heterogeneous sources. The work is designed in several phases. The first phase, which begins with this 1995 CD-ROM, was projected to be complete in five non-cumulating CD-ROMs by 1999.

The first phase provides data from the following sources: all British and American directories from ca. 1750–1830; all book subscription lists of the period; society membership lists of the period; birth, marriage, death, promotional, and bankruptcy announcements from Gentleman’s Magazine (from 1731), Scots’ Magazine (1739– 1870), Annual Biography and Obituary (from 1817), and Annual Register (from 1758); and works of individual researchers. The next phase will provide data from biographies, county histories, voting rolls, and rank lists of the army and the navy.

An essential characteristic of this resource is that data are given exactly as they appear in the sources and that multiple entries for a person are not brought together in a single entry, as the often sparse sources do not always permit exact identification. Names of institutions are not normalized, nor are abbreviations expanded. (A subsequent CDROM will provide a list of societies). As an aid to research, designations of occupation are listed both as they appear in the source and with modern equivalents. For subscription books, additional access is provided in 24 subject categories ranging from “agriculture” to “voyages.” Women mentioned in sources only by their husbands’ names are given separate entries and searches permit qualification by gender and limitation by decade.

All searches must be executed by means of indexes. Using one or more of 17 indexes, searches can be limited by the following categories: (1) keyword, (2) names (personal and corporate), (3) names of nobility or office, (4) corporate/society name, (5) personal titles, (6) occupation/trade, (7) office, (8) address, (9) specific directory, (10) book subscription list, (11) all other source documents, (12) authors of the source documents, (13) place of publication of the source documents, (14) the 24 occupational categories (as noted above), (15) year(s) mentioned in source documents, (16) decade, (17) sex. More than one index or several iterations of a single index can be opened. Boolean searching is only possible using the results of list searches. First one or more lists must be searched. Then, in the Boolean search window these results can be combined using the operators to form more complicated searches. There is also a “name match” function enabling comparison of the results of two list searches. This function operates by comparing all the brief entries in one list against those of the other, but it is extremely slow. The main criticism of this product’s functionality is that all searches must be done via the lists. Free search formulation is not possible, and the Boolean search is very cumbersome. The online help is merely the generic help for the BookMarc software this product uses. Support for installation and searching is only available in the handbook.

The value of this product lies in its bringing together and providing easy access to sources of primary information on persons who would not be covered in traditional biographical reference works. It is a valuable information source for historians, genealogists, and sociologists. However, the sparse nature of much of the data and the lack of any normalization (e.g., different spellings of place names) limits its usefulness somewhat. As noted above, the product requires that the user assemble the data from the sources. Positive features include the provision of supplementary data such as modern occupational equivalents, subject classification of book subscriptions maintained by an individual, fields of economic activity, and the sex of the persons listed. [sah/jc]

The Dictionary of 19th-Century British Book Illustrators and Caricaturists. Simon Houfe. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Antique Collectors’ Club, 1996. 367 p. ill. 28 cm. ISBN 1-85149-193-7 [99-B09-252]

The Dictionary of 20th-Century British Book Illustrators. Alan Horne. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Antique Collectors’ Club, 1994. 456 p. ill. 28 cm. ISBN 1-85149-108-2: $89.50 [99-B09-253]

The 19th-century volume, which actually ends in 1914, is a new but not meaningfully updated edition of a work first published in 1978 and reissued with slight revisions in 1981. An 11-chapter introduction to the history of book illustration has been eliminated, reducing the book from 520 to 367 pages. Although 20 pages longer than the previous edition (and ostensibly updated by 150 or 250 new articles according to the introduction and the overleaf, respectively), the dictionary section contains serious bibliographic gaps. There is a notable lack of recent citations (some references are no more current than 1978), and some important works are missing altogether. A comparison with the Dictionary of British Cartoonists and Caricaturists 1730–1980 (Aldershot, 1994) revealed factual unreliability as well, already noted in earlier negative reviews in the Times Literary Supplement and The Library. The 20th-century volume begins in 1914, and there is overlap and cross-referencing between the volumes. Both contain introductions and brief bibliographies, but the second volume includes color plates and has no appendices. [sh/mm]

Dictionary of British Comic Artists, Writers and Editors. Alan Clark. London: British Library, 1998. ix, 196 p. ill. 26 cm. ISBN 0-7123-4521-3: $80 [99-B09-255]

Despite recent interest in comics, the persistent image of the medium as cheap and disposable impedes our familiarity with comic artists. The introduction to this dictionary, whose author has published related works, provides a historical sketch, but does not explain why coverage begins with 1867. Many of the 744 entries (counting the few pure cross-references) are only one or a few lines long, some providing only estimated birth and death dates or lacking them altogether, and frequently containing little more than a reference to the subject’s employment at a newspaper. Primary literature is mentioned, but secondary literature is mostly lacking, even where it must exist. The two-page bibliography is limited to summaries and reference works. Numerous black-and-white illustrations provide an impression of the artists’ styles. [sh/mm]

Dictionary of Twentieth Century British Business Leaders. David J. Jeremy and Geoffrey Tweedale. London; München [et al.]: Bowker-Saur, 1994. ix, 250 p. 24 cm. ISBN 0-86291-594-5: EUR 49.80 [99-B09-256]

Dictionaries of business leaders exist because of the narrow scope of national biographies. Half of the entries in the present title are excerpts from two recent works; the others, particularly those on people still living, are original. Included are 750 individuals active either in one of the 100 biggest employers for each of the years 1907, 1935, and 1955, or in one of 120 firms selected (partly on the basis of their sales) for 1960–1990, with some additional prominent figures. The biographical articles are brief and similar in style to those of a Who’s Who/Who Was Who, although the subjects profiled in the Dictionary did not provide the articles themselves as is the practice with a Who’s Who approach. In cases of inheritance, personal assets are given where possible, though earnings are the more important criterion for inclusion. Additional entries provide information on the sales and personnel development of each firm. The few secondary sources are mostly books; abbreviated titles of periodicals are not explained. The personal index, arranged by company, should have included more precise information on the firms and the person’s years in leadership positions. [sh/mm]

Dictionary of Scottish Art & Architecture.Peter J. M. McEwan. Woodbridge, >Suffolk: Antique Collectors’ Club, 1994. 626 p. ill. 30 cm. ISBN 1-85149-134-1: $99.50 [99-B09-264]

Although they are not listed in Walford (vol. 3, 6th ed.), generally the most comprehensive directory of reference works on the United Kingdom, other dictionaries of this sort exist. The author of this dictionary of Scottish art runs a gallery in Scotland, among other things. Some of the more than 11,000 entries treat topics and organizations, but most are biographical, covering artists and architects from the mid-17th century to the present who were either born in Scotland or worked or exhibited there. Articles are limited to career information and range in length from one line for artists who have only exhibited once to medium-length articles of 10–30 lines, with a few longer ones. Only the longer articles have bibliographic references, mostly with unexplained abbreviations (there is, however, a list of the abbreviations for organizations). [sh/mm]

Dictionary of Scottish Painters: 1600 to the Present. Julian Halsby and Paul Harris. 2d ed. Edinburgh: Canongate, 1998. 240 p. ill. 30 cm. ISBN 0-86241-778-3 (hbk.), 0-86241-809-7 (pbk.): £20 [99-B09-265]

This second edition, with 60 new biographical entries and more color illustrations than the previous one (1990), includes 2,000 painters active in Scotland from the 16th century to the present (including those still living). Most entries are extremely brief (averaging 2–5 lines, with none exceeding one column) and provide years of birth and death (no dates), memberships, and important information concerning artistic development and style. The only bibliographical references are in a one-and-a-half-page bibliography at the beginning of the volume. The numerous high-quality illustrations and signature reproductions are a good addition. The painters appear to be covered in the Dictionary of Scottish Art & Architecture (see RREA 9:297), which provides longer articles for the better known ones. [sh/mm]

A Dictionary of Irish Biography.Henry Boylan. 3d ed. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan, 1998. xviii, 462 p. ill. 24 cm. ISBN 0-7171-2507-6:Ir£20 [99-B09-266]

The third edition of this one-volume dictionary provides brief biographical sketches of persons who were either born in Ireland or else influenced Irish history in some way. Coverage is from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century but excludes persons who are still living. The first line of each entry includes the year of the person’s birth and death but not the exact dates; the latter information is sometimes included in the text. The bibliographies at the end of each entry list works that the person wrote, but no secondary literature. The bibliography at the end of the dictionary lists comprehensive biographical works as well as individual biographies, but the latter are not linked to the biographical entries. There are no indexes. [sh/ldb]

Modern Irish Lives: Dictionary of 20th-Century Irish Biography. Ed. Louis McRedmond. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan, 1996. xix, 328 p. 24 cm. ISBN 0-7171-2198-4: Ir£20 [99-B09-267]

Quite similar to the publisher’s Dictionary of Irish Biography (see RREA 9:299), this dictionary contains brief biographical sketches of approximately 1,500 people who were either born in Ireland (including Northern Ireland), acquired Irish citizenship, or else were active in Ireland. The individual entries contain no personal information, such as the person’s marriage partner, children, or hobbies (which one can find in Who’s Who in Ireland: the Influential 1,000, 3d ed. Dublin, 1999). There are no indexes. [sh/ldb]

Who’s Who in the Irish War of Independence and Civil War, 1916–1923. Padraic O’Farrell. Dublin: Lilliput Press, 1997. xxiv, 232 p. 22 cm. ISBN 1-874675-85-6: Ir£9.99 [99-B09-268]

The 1980 Who’s Who in the Irish War of Independence, 1916–1921 contained some 1,000 names. This expanded version covers approximately 3,000 people and is divided into sections for the War of Independence and the Civil War. In addition to the biographical sketches there are lists of British and Irish casualties and their death dates, lists of supporters and opponents of the treaty with England, and lists of those who were executed. Each biographical sketch provides the subject’s name and address, but no death date or any indication of the person’s significance within Irish history. The sources for the biographical information are found at the end of the book, rather than at the close of individual entries. [sh/ldb]

Women of Ireland: A Biographic Dictionary. Kit and Cyril Ó Céirín. Newtownlynch, Kinvara: Tír Eolas; Minneapolis, Minn.: Irish Books and Media, 1996. 247 p. ill. 21 cm. ISBN 1-873821-06-9; ISBN 0-937702-16-1 (Irish Books and Media): Ir£9.95 [99-B09-269]

This work consists of brief biographies of 251 Irish women from all periods of Irish history, although living persons are excluded. Individual entries list no secondary literature; there is only a brief selected bibliography at the end of the book. There are some useful indexes, including an index of occupations and a comprehensive index that includes personal names, subjects, and corporate bodies. [sh/ldb]

Archives biographiques françaises: fusion dans un ordre alphabétique unique de 180 des plus importants ouvrages de référence biographiques français publiés du 17e au 20e siècle = French Biographical Archive. Ed. Susan Bradley. London; München: Saur, 1989–1991. ISBN 3-598-32564-9 (diazo fiches): EUR 9,800 [99-B09-271]

Archives biographiques françaises. Series 2: fusion dans un ordre alphabétique unique de 122 des plus importants ouvrages de référence biographiques français publiés du 17e au 20e siècle = French Biographical Archive. Series 2. Ed. Tommaso Nappo. London; München: Saur, 1993–1996. ISBN 3-598-33555-5 (diazo fiches): EUR 9,800 [99-B09-272]

Index biographique françaises = Französischer biographischer Index [French Biographical Index]. Ed. Tommaso Nappo. 2d ed., cumulated and augmented. 7 vols. München: Saur, 1997. xxiii, 3,310 p. 30 cm. ISBN 3-598-33581-4 (set): EUR 1,548 [99-B09-273]

Together these first two archives contain “around 300,000 biographical entries” from 302 “of the most important French biographical reference works published between the 17th and the 20th centuries.” Many newly added biographical sources date from the 19th century through the early 1990s. The scope of this archive is the worldwide French-language area. [Ed. note: Series 3 is also currently available: Archives Biographiques Françaises jusqu’à 1999 (ABF III) = French Biographical Archive to 1999. Ed. Tommaso Nappo and Isabelle Davy. 2001–2002. ISBN 3-698-34751-0 (silver fiches): EUR 10,800; ISBN 3-598-34750-2 (diazo fiches): EUR 9,800] [sh/ldb]

Le dictionnaire des peintres belges du XIV siècle à nos jours: depuis les premiers maîtres des anciens Pays-Bas méridionaux et de la Principauté de Liège jusqu’aux artistes contemporains [Dictionary of Belgian Painters from the 14th Century to the Present: Ranging from the Principal Masters of the Former Southern Netherlands and the Principality of Liège to Contemporary Artists]. Ed. Carine Dechaux et al. 3 vols. Bruxelles: La Renaissance du Livre, 1995. 1,207, 466 p. ill. 30 cm. ISBN 2-8041-2012-0: EUR 311.38 [99-B09-290]

Containing approximately 6,300 entries for painters born and/or working in Belgium (or in its pre-1830 territory), and covering the Middle Ages up through the generation born just before 1950, this work serves to replace the 1950 Dictionnaire des peintres (Bruxelles: Larcier), which limited its coverage to painters born before 1900. The brief (H. Bosch’s eight-column entry notwithstanding) signed articles list each artist’s name, birth and death years and places, specialization, and career highlights, as well as secondary literature and museums owning the artist’s works. Th e numerous black-and-white illustrations are conveniently placed, and graphic symbols in the articles direct the reader to the color reproductions in the third volume. While existing period-based works on the subject, such as J. De Maere and M. Wabbes’ Illustrated Dictionary of 17th-Century Flemish Paintings (Brussels, 1994), offer greater depth of information (or more current coverage), the breadth of coverage of this work makes it the standard general reference for Belgian painters. Despite the high price and the expected longevity of this new dictionary, it has been printed on poor-quality paper that already is showing signs of deterioration. [sh/gw]

Dictionnaire biographique illustré des artistes en Belgique despuis 1830 [Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of Belgian Artists Since 1830]. Ed. Arthur Tommelein and Iris D. Tommelein. Bruxelles: Editions Arto, 1995. 492 p. ill. 26 cm. ISBN 2-9600088-0-4: FB 2,950 [99-B09-291]

Very brief biographical entries for over 7,000 visual artists (mostly painters) active in Belgium since 1830, including non-Belgians, offer name, birth and death years and places, medium, career highlights, and page references for reproductions (either poor-quality black-and-white within the text or color plates on the last 48 pages). This work is useful primarily for finding contemporary artists, who are well represented, including many of middling or even marginal importance. [sh/gw]

Directory of Photographers in Belgium: 1839–1905. Steven F. Joseph, TristanSchwilden, and Marie-Christine Claes. 2 vols. Antwerpen; Rotterdam: Vries-Brouwers, 1997. 485, 86 p. ill. 31 cm. ISBN 90-6174-837-2: FB 5,400 [99-B09-292]

Not many reference works provide information about early photographers other than the few famous names; even fewer attempt comprehensive coverage at the national level. This directory is the product of 15 years of research involving newspapers, records of professional organizations, address directories, patent documents, and local and regional archives. Some 5,400 individuals are represented here, most of whom were active between 1839 and 1905 in photography and related endeavors in Belgium and the former Belgian Congo, and also including Belgians working abroad. Entries vary greatly in their amount of detail; some contain only a last name, a place, and approximate dates of activity, while others offer more information as available. A complete entry includes name; status (amateur or professional, field of activity); birth and death years; periods of membership in relevant organizations; times and places of activity; and references to mentors, pupils, associates, and relevant literature. The text volume includes numerous photographs—many of them poorly reproduced but all carefully documented—and the “album” volume contains 86 additional reproductions, some in color. The work also offers an index of persons organized by place, a list of sources, and a bibliography. [sh/gw]

Historici in de Oostenrijkse Nederlanden (1715–1794): proeve van repertorium [Historians in the Austrian Netherlands (1715–1794): Samples from the Collection]. Tom Verschaffel. Brussel: Facultés Universitaires Saint-Louis, Studiecentrum 18de-eeuwse Zuidnederlandse Letterkunde, 1996. 112 p. 25 cm. (Cahier / Studiecentrum 18de-eeuwse Zuidnederlandse Letterkunde, 15). FB 475 (Facultés …, Kruidtuinlaan 43, B-1000 Brussel) [99-B09-293]

Originally intended as an appendix to the compiler’s dissertation, this biographical dictionary of historians also serves as a preview of a project of the University of Louvain’s Historical Institute, which will cover the area of present-day Belgium between 1500 and 1830 and offer more kinds of information than are presented here. Entries include name, years of birth and death, education and career highlights, very brief citations (short title and year only) of selected works, and references to sources of further information. This work is useful enough for its limited time, place, and subject area. [sh/gw]

Oosthoek lexicon Nederlandse & Vlaamse literatuur [Oosthoek Lexicon of Dutch and Flemish Literature]. Ed. Christine Brackmann and Marijke Friesendorp. Utrecht: Kosmos-Z & K Uitgevers, 1996. 390 p. 25 cm. ISBN 90-215-2701-4: Hfl. 59.90 [99-B09-295]

This work begs comparison with the 1986 Elsevier publication, Lexicon van der Nederlandse letterkunde. Both consist of updated and expanded articles from their publishers’ general encyclopedias: Grote Winkler Prins Encyclopedie for the Elsevier work, De grote Oosthoek: encyclopedie en woerdenboek for the work reviewed here. Whereas the earlier Elsevier Lexicon contains around 1,960 entries for authors, anonymous works, and literary journals, the Oosthoek lexicon has 1,600—a gap only partially accounted for by the latter’s exclusion of children’s and young-adult literature from its scope. The Oosthoek lexicon also lacks citations to secondary literature and an index. But unlike the Elsevier work, the Oosthoek covers South African writers, as well as some Dutch-language-area authors who wrote in languages other than Dutch (for example, Erasmus). Choices of earlier authors and works follow the traditional canon, but more recent authors are included based on objective criteria such as literary awards. The 1986 Lexicon remains the more valuable work, but the Oosthoek’s greater currency and differences in coverage make it a useful supplement. [sh/gw]

Quick-lexicon Nederlandse beeldende kunstenaars [Quick Reference Guide to Dutch Visual Artists]. Ed. H. Visser. Assen: Servo, 1997. 568 p. 23 cm. ISBN 90-71918-85-9: Hfl. 150 [99-B09-296]

As “quick” as this dictionary proclaims itself is also how one can describe it. It covers some 42,000 Dutch painters, with Part 1 devoted to those active before about 1950, and Part 2 (about 40% of the whole) to more contemporary artists. The very brief entries offer last name, first name or (more usually) initial, birth and death dates (often just years), genre or school, and a single information source reference. Compounding the irritation of the one-source limitation is the small number of sources referred to overall. As most of the entries in Part 1 refer to Peter A. Scheen’s Lexikon Nederlandse beeldende kunstenaars 1750–1950, libraries owning the Scheen work will find this part of the Quick-lexicon less useful. Part 2, however, is much more interesting for the multitude of little-known contemporary artists it references. [sh/gw]

Neue biographische Sammelwerke [New Biographical Anthologies]. Bernhard Ebneth. In: Blätter für deutsche Landesgeschichte, vol. 133 (1997), p. 659–726 [99-B09-297]

This is a bibliography of recent biographical compilations, potentially useful for libraries wishing to update or develop their collections. The last such bibliography was published in the same series more than five years ago. This edition is expanded to 168 titles and includes footnotes to secondary literature. The author, a contributor to the Neue Deutsche Biographie (see RREA 9:314), publishes his updates on the Internet at http://www.ndb.badw-muenchen.de. The only disadvantage of this work is the separation of the text and the list of reviewed titles, forcing the reader to page back and forth, which reduces the publication’s usefulness. [sh/hsb]

Deutscher biographischer Index = German Biographical Index. Ed. Axel Frey. 2d cumulative and expanded ed. 8 vols. München: Saur, 1998. 4,017 p. 30 cm. ISBN 3-598-32848-6: EUR 1,748 [99-B09-298]

This index (DBI II) is the companion set to the Deutsches biographisches Archiv I and II [German Biographical Archive, DBA I and II), which on 2,931 microfiches provides biographical information about 451,000 persons from the 19th (DBA I) and the 20th (DBA II) centuries. The index includes names, birth and death dates, and professions, as well as fiche and field numbers of the source material contained in the Archive. DBI II replaces the four-volume DBI published in 1986. Meanwhile the index is also available on CD-ROM. [sh/hsb]

Neue deutsche Biographie[New German Biography]. Ed. Historische Kommission bei der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Berlin: Duncker & Humblot. 26 cm. ISBN 3-428-00181-8 (set) [99-B09-299]

Vol. 18. Moller–Nausea. 1997. xvi, 816 p. ISBN 3-428-00199-0: EUR 102

According to an article in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the Historical Commission in charge of the Neue deutsche Biographie (NDB) recently decided to reduce the still-outstanding volumes of this set from 17 to 10 (the set was originally planned to be complete in 35 volumes, now it will be 28). Coverage will be reduced to 8,500 biographies from more than 13,000 planned, and the individual entries will be shortened. It can be assumed that those affected by the cuts will be less important persons. This is in opposition to the purpose of NDB mentioned in the preface to volume 1, which indicates that the main use of such a work is to find biographical information about men and women of significance who are not covered elsewhere or who are covered in hard-to-find sources. Another decision by the Commission, namely to speed up the frequency of publication of the individual volumes from 30 to 24 months, is also problematic, as it may reduce the quality of research. It would be highly desirable to publish the NDB on CD-ROM, which of course would entail digitizing the volumes published so far. The advantages would include the ease of adding corrections and updating bibliographies, and publishing articles already written but slated for later volumes. Experiences with other such projects make it appear unlikely that a CD edition would impact sales of the print version, which needs to continue in any case. [sh/hsb]

Die grossen Deutschen unserer Epoche [Great Germans of Our Era]. Ed. Lothar Gall. Berlin: Propyläen-Verlag, 1995. 965 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-549-05447-5: DM 128 [Ed. note: 2002, ISBN 3-89836-216-7: EUR 19.95] [99-B09-301]

This work has a long history. In 1935–1937, Willi Andreas and Wilhelm von Scholz compiled a five-volume collection called Die grossen Deutschen, containing 230 biographies. In 1936, an illustrated volume was added, called Die grossen Deutschen im Bild. In 1985 followed a volume called Die grossen Deutschen unserer Epoche, containing 39 biographies of Germans who had died since 1956. The new edition reprints all of the biographies contained in the 1985 edition, and adds 14 new ones of people who died from 1984 to 1994. The entire work now numbers 283 biographies. These lengthy biographies are meant to be read as stories, not used for reference. Basic biographical facts are hidden in the text. There are no bibliographic notations for secondary literature. However, the books are popular among users who need more information than the basic facts as they are listed in Neue Deutsche Biographie (see RREA 9:314). [sh/hsb]

Die Achtundvierziger: Lebensbilder aus der deutschen Revolution 1848/49 [The Forty-eighters: Biographical Sketches from the German Revolution 1848–49]. Ed. Sabine Freitag. München: Beck, 1998. 354 p. ill. 23 cm. ISBN 3-406-42770-7: DM 48 [99-B09-306]

This collection, to which 22 primarily German-speaking biographers have contributed a like number of biographies, includes both well- and lesser-known figures. Th e goal is to draw “the many-sided picture of the Revolution filtered through the perspective of individual fates.” The introduction indicates that the selection of subjects is based on the broadest possible meaning of the term “Forty-eighter” as “participant in the Revolution of 1848–49;” in reality, the figures included were most likely those for whom biographers willing to work on the project could be found. This is, after all, characteristic of such volumes. The spectrum extends from opponents of the status quo such as Friedrich Hecker or Karl Blind to the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. The inclusion of women is not overwhelming, but it is noticeable: Mathilde Franziska Anneke and Malwida von Meysenburg are treated individually, and three other women appear in articles covering them along with their husbands. Every article includes a portrait (or portraits, in the case of the joint articles). The few footnotes and short bibliography for each biography are inconveniently relegated to an appendix. There is a name index of persons treated or mentioned. [sh/vh]

Biographisches Lexikon zur Weimarer Republik [Biographical Dictionary of the Weimar Republic]. Ed. Wolfgang Benz and Hermann Graml. München: Beck, 1995. 392 p. 24 cm. ISBN 3-406-32988-8: DM 28 [99-B09-307]

This dictionary, available in an unrevised special edition, first appeared in 1988. Articles by 59 scholars cover approximately 500 of the most prominent figures from Weimar era politics, administration, economy, and culture. Each article includes a comprehensive description of the person; each ends with a brief selection of primary and secondary sources, including information on the location of the relevant archive. An appendix includes a list of the cabinets of the federal government and a chronology. A name index would have been a helpful addition, as would a list of entries by category (politician, economist, artist, etc.). The articles are generally very readable and informative; the dictionary is still useful, especially for students and other novices in the history of the period. However, as research on the Weimar Republic is progressing rapidly, the work (particularly the bibliographies) does appear somewhat outdated. [ab/vh]

Biographisches Lexikon zum Dritten Reich [Biographical Dictionary of the Third Reich]. Ed. Hermann Weiss. 2d printing. Frankfurt am Main: Fischer, 1998. 502 p. 22 cm. ISBN 3-10-091952-4: DM 58 [Ed. note: 2002, ISBN 3-596-13086-7: EUR 14.90] [99-B09-309]

Nineteen contributors, primarily from the Institut für Zeitgeschichte in Munich, have written short biographies of “more than 500” figures from the period, including “the political and intellectual elite of Germany during the years 1933–1945”—thus not only the leading National Socialists and their fellow travelers, but also opponents of the regime. The average length is one-and-a-half columns; the article on Hitler, which fills 21 columns, is clearly the exception to the rule. The articles cover the period before and after the Third Reich as well, and include “critical judgments and assessments.” Some writings of the subjects are cited at the end, but there is no bibliography of secondary literature. [sh/vh]

Prominente ohne Maske—Drittes Reich: 1000 Lebensläufe der mächtigsten Personen 1933–1945 [Prominent People without Masks—The Third Reich: 1,000 Biographies of the Most Important People 1933–1945]. München: FZ-Verlag, 1998. 398 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-924309-39-6: EUR 24.90 [99-B09-310]

This volume can be characterized by naming the publisher who produced it: FZ-Verlag belongs to the media empire of Gerhard Frey, the head of the German Peoples Union political party. This volume, one of several which have appeared under the collective title Prominente ohne Maske, covers figures from the Third Reich. Innumerable highly decorated soldiers of the Wehrmacht form the majority of entries, but others, such as Konrad Adenauer, Sepp Herberger, and Carl von Ossietzky, are also included. The preface bemoans the “ignorance about facts, dates, and relationships” that these articles aim to correct, and in the attempt they almost always posit either an incriminating or an exonerating relationship between the subjects of the biographies and the National Socialist state. [ok/vh]

“Für Deutschland”: die Männer des 20. Juli [“For Germany:” The Men of July 20th]. Ed. Klemens von Klemperer, Enrico Syring, and Rainer Zitelmann. Unabridged ed. Frankfurt am Main; Berlin: Ullstein, 1996. 392 p. ill. 19 cm. (Ullstein-Buch, 33207: Zeitgeschichte). ISBN 3-548-33207-2: DM 19.90 [99-B09-311]

Lexikon des Widerstandes 1933–1945 [Dictionary of the Resistance, 1933– 1945]. Ed. Peter Steinbach and Johannes Tuchel. 2d rev. and expanded ed. München: Beck, 1998. 251 p. 18 cm. (Beck’sche Reihe, 1061). ISBN 3-406-43861-X: EUR 9.90 [99-B09-312]

The main title of the collection on the men who staged an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler on July 20, 1944, represents Major General Hellmuth Stieff ’s answer to the question of Roland Freisler, the President of the People’s Court, as to the motive for his resistance to Hitler: “For Germany.” The work can be viewed as a companion volume to Die Militärelite des Dritten Reiches [The Military Elite of the Third Reich] (see IFB 99-B09-419). An introduction attempts to place the resistance effort in the history of National Socialism, and also tries to evaluate the phenomenon after 1945, extending its view beyond the borders of Germany. The 20 biographies were all written by German historians. Each is followed by a bibliography that cites both primary sources and a limited selection of secondary literature. There is an index of names that includes the subjects and others mentioned in the articles.

Beck’s Lexikon des deutschen Widerstandes differs from one with a similar title published by Fischer in 1994 primarily in the large number (approximately 300) of biographical entries among the total collection of 400. The biographical articles are generally brief, with those on the central figures of July 20th no longer than those for others less central to the events. The bibliographies following the articles are very short. It would have been helpful had the second edition of the Lexikon also included citations from Für Deutschland. [sh/vh]

Demokratische Wege: deutsche Lebensläufe aus fünf Jahrhunderten [Democratic Paths: German Biographical Sketches from Five Centuries]. Ed. Manfred Asendorf and Rolf von Bockel. Stuttgart; Weimar: Metzler, 1997. xi, 746 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-476-01244-1: DM 148 [99-B09-324]

The editors of this volume seek to provide brief, scholarly, interesting biographical sketches of Germans over five centuries who were active in furthering the cause of democracy. Although there is a good gender balance among the 420 persons represented, the selection of individuals is too traditional, and there are far too many significant proponents of democracy who have been omitted. The former German Democratic Republic is poorly represented; there is not even a sketch of Robert Havemann, and several other noteworthy persons from the 19th and 20th centuries are omitted. There is also no satisfactory index. [fsr/ldl]

Biographisches Lexikon zur Geschichte der demokratischen und liberalen Bewegungen in Mitteleuropa [Biographical Encyclopedia of the History of Democratic and Liberal Movements in Central Europe]. Helmut Reinalter, Axel Kuhn, and Alain Ruiz. Frankfurt am Main; Bern: Lang. 23 cm. (Schriftenreihe der Internationalen Forschungsstelle “Demokratische Bewegungen in Mitteleuropa 1770–1850,” …). [99-B09-325]

Vol. 1. 1770–1800. 1992. xix, 224 p. (…, 7). ISBN 3-631-44356-0: SFr 33

The history of democratic traditions within German-speaking countries has not been well researched. This volume contains approximately 400 biographical sketches of leading proponents of democracy in Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and Switzerland who were active between 1770 and 1800. Individual entries contain information about the person’s family, education, occupation, and political activities, together with an overview of the primary and secondary literature pertaining to the person. The emphasis is on lesser-known figures who were active in central Europe before the advent of democratic governments. The most serious weakness of this book is that many of the entries are quite dated and fail to reflect the large body of significant scholarship that was published in conjunction with the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. [fsr/ldl]

Lexikon des Konservatismus [Encyclopedia of Conservatism]. Ed. Caspar von Schrenck-Notzing. Graz; Stuttgart: Stocker, 1996. 608 p. ill. 24 cm. ISBN 3-7020-0760-1: EUR 44.90 [99-B09-334]

This encyclopedia contains approximately 300 entries concerning writers, journalists, concepts, and organizations that are associated with political conservatism. The focus is on conservatism in Germany. There is much fascinating material here, and many well-written, comprehensive entries on relatively unknown persons, but regrettably no clear definition of conservatism. Furthermore, the authors consistently fail to adopt a critical, distanced attitude toward their subject material. The reception history of many of the persons is either passed over or else presented in a tendentious, distorted manner. The treatment of anti-Semitism is often superficial. The value of this encyclopedia lies in its comprehensive treatment of conservatism from a clearly conservative point of view. [kuw/ldl]

Mitgliedergesamtverzeichnis der Deutschen Mathematiker-Vereinigung 1890– 1990 [Comprehensive Directory of the Members of the German Mathematical Society, 1890–1990]. Comp. Michael Toepell for the Institut für Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften der Universität München. München: Deutsche Mathematiker-Vereinigung, 1991. 440 p. 20 cm. (Deutsche MathematikerVereinigung e. V., Mohrenstr. 39, D-10117 Berlin, fax [49 30] 4637061) [99-B09-336]

The German Mathematical Society has issued annual directories of its members since it was founded in 1890, but the information about individual members has varied considerably in comprehensiveness. This publication draws on additional sources and contains biographical entries on all of the Society’s 5,500 former and present members, providing a member’s name, birth date, education, academic activities, period of membership in the Society, and death date. The typographical presentation should have been improved, for this is a very important source of information concerning mathematicians in German-speaking countries. [sh/ldl]

Die Hochmeister des Deutschen Ordens 1190–1994 [The Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order, 1190–1994]. Ed. Udo Arnold. Marburg: Elwert, 1998. vii, 367 p. ill. 23 cm. (Quellen und Studien zur Geschichte des Deutschen Ordens, 40; Veröffentlichungen der Internationalen Historischen Kommission zur Erforschung des Deutschen Ordens, 6). ISBN 3-7708-1104-6: EUR 36 [99-B09-338]

This collection of biographies was originally planned for the 800th anniversary of the founding of the Teutonic Order in 1190 during the Third Crusade, but it was actually published in 1998. It is divided into three unequal parts: the leaders of the Hospital Society of Acre, 1190–1198; the Grand Masters of the Knightly Order, 1198–1923; and the Grand Masters of the Clerical Order, 1923–1994. The articles on the early Grand Masters are brief, due to the sparse source material. Sources are listed at the end of each biography. The volume closes with an index of persons and places. Especially noteworthy are the numerous illustrations, mostly full-page. [sh/gh]

Biographisches Lexikon der Deutschen Burschenschaft [Biographical Dictionary of German Fraternities]. Helge Dvorak. Ed. Christian Hünemörder for the Gesellschaft für Burschenschaftliche Geschichtsforschung (GfbG). Heidelberg: Winter. ill. 25 cm. [99-B09-346]

Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches: 1448 bis 1648: ein biographisches Lexikon [The Bishops of the Holy Roman Empire,1448 to 1648: A Biographical Dictionary]. Ed. Erwin Gatz with Clemens Brodkorb. Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 1996. xcvi, 871 p. ill. 26 cm. ISBN 3-428-08422-5: EUR 149 [99-B09-351]

With this third volume of a planned four-volume set, the biographical dictionary of bishops in the German-speaking countries is moving closer to completion. Only the volume covering the period from 1198 to 1448 is yet to be published. Th e previously published volumes, Die Bischöfe der deutschsprachigen Länder, 1785/1803 bis 1945 (1983) and Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches, 1648 bis 1803 (1990), have been available for some time.

The entries vary in length, from detailed “biographical portraits,” often several columns long, to “biograms,” i.e., brief biographies. All entries are signed and contain bibliographies of sources and secondary literature. The writings of the bishops are less thoroughly documented. A substantial appendix contains a listing of dioceses, a chronology, and listings of rulers and papal pronouncements of the period.

The usefulness of this specialized biographical dictionary is underscored by the fact that only 109 of the 1,000 persons covered here have individual entries in the standard Neue deutsche Biographie. [sh/rs]

Priester unter Hitlers Terror: eine biographische und statistische Erhebung [Priests under Hitler’s Terror: A Biographical and Statistical Survey]. Ed. Ulrich von Hehl with the cooperation of the Diocesan Archives. 3d substantially rev. and expanded ed. 2 vols. Paderborn: Schöningh, 1996. viii, 1,968 p. 25 cm. (Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Zeitgeschichte: Reihe A, Quellen, 37). ISBN 3-506-79839-1: EUR 128 [Ed note: 4th ed., 1998, now available] [99-B09-352]

This book lists Catholic priests who came into conflict with the Third Reich. For the first time using national archives in addition to regional church archives, this edition includes over 12,000 persons, instead of the ca. 8,000 in earlier editions. Th e biographical volume is arranged geographically in 29 sections, by 24 bishoprics, plus two that came into existence after 1937 (Danzig and the Sudetenland), and three smaller church units: Schneidemuhl, Branitz, and Glatz. The biographical information is brief, giving name, order, birth date, place of work, title, and death date. Volume 2 has an index of personal names and place names. There are also indexes of priests who were in concentration camps, and those who died there. Th e statistical section has numerous tables. [sh/mrh]

Biographisches und bibliographisches Lexikon der Fremdsprachenlehrer des deutschsprachigen Raumes, Spätmittelalter bis 1800 [Biographical and Bibliographical Lexicon of Foreign-Language Teachers in the German-Speaking World, from the Late Middle Ages to 1800]. Konrad Schröder. Augsburg: Universität. 24 cm. (Augsburger I-&-I Schriften, …). (Lehrstuhl Didaktik Englisch, Philosophische Fakultät II, Universität Augsburg, D86135 Augsburg, fax [49 821] 5985501) [99-B09-353]

1. Buchstaben A bis C, Quellenverzeichnis [A to C, Source Index]. 2d improved and expanded ed. 1991. xxiv, 343 p. (…, 40). ISBN 3-923549-41-5: EUR 19
2. Buchstaben D bis H, erste Nachträge zum Quellenverzeichnis [D to H, First Addendum to the Source Index]. 1989. xvii, 344 p. (…, 51). ISBN 3-923549-33-4: EUR 19
3. Buchstaben I bis Q [I to Q]. 1992. xiii, 347 p. (…, 63). ISBN 3-923549-45-8: EUR 22
4. Buchstaben R bis Z, zweite Nachträge zum Quellenverzeichnis [R to Z, Second Addendum to the Source Index]. 1995. 469 p. (…, 68). ISBN 3-923549-51-2: EUR 25
5. Nachträge und Ergänzungen Buchstaben A bis K [Addenda and Supplements to Letters A to K]. 1996. xv, 484 p. (…, 73). ISBN 3-923549-56-3: EUR 29
6. Nachträge und Ergänzungen Buchstaben L bis Z [Addenda and Supplements to Letters L to Z]. 1996. xv, 420 p. (…, 74). ISBN 3-923549-57-1: EUR 24.54

The selection of persons to be included in this work was not qualitative; alongside the most important and prolific teachers are authors of instructional material and persons about whom little is known. The source material listed in Volumes 1, 2, and 4 is extensive, most prevalent being invitations to school programs. Not surprisingly, about 80% of the people listed in this work are not in the Deutsches Biographisches Archiv. Modern language specialists make up fewer than 10% of the entries there.

The greatest failing of this work is that the biographies have been pieced together from other sources, without the quoted passages being specifically attributed. [sh/mrh]

Bio-bibliographisches Handbuch zur Sprachwissenschaft des 18. Jarhunderts: die Grammatiker, Lexikographen und Sprachtheoretiker des deutschsprachigen Raums mit Beschreibungen ihrer Werke: BBSH [Bio-bibliographical Handbook of 18th-Century Linguistics: Grammarians, Lexicographers, and Language Theorists of the German-Speaking Countries, with Descriptions of their Works]. Ed. Herbert E. Brekle. Tübingen: Niemeyer. 28 cm. ISBN 3-484-73020-X (set) [99-B09-354]

Vol. 5. J–L. 1997. xvii, 412 p. ISBN 3-484-73025-0: EUR 124
Vol. 6. M–Pa. 1998. xvii, 425 p. ISBN 3-484-73026-9: EUR 124
[Ed note: Vol. 7. Pe–Schr. 2001. ISBN 3-484-73027-1: EUR 124]

Volumes 1 to 4 were reviewed in RREA 2:93. Deficiencies that were noted earlier still remain: lack of consistency in arrangement, unnecessary repetition, subdivisions without content. The BBHS, although difficult to use, includes many lesser-known but interesting authors. Only after the index volume appears will one be able accurately to judge the utility of this work. The set will be complete in eight volumes. [sh/mrh]

Anglistenlexikon 1825–1990: biographische und bibliographische Angaben zu 318 Anglisten [Specialists in English Language and Literature, 1825–1990: Biographical and Bibliographical Information about 318 Scholars]. Gunta Haenicke and Thomas Finkenstaedt. Augsburg: Universität, 1992. 389 p. 24 cm. (Augsburger I-&-I Schriften, 64). ISBN 3-923549-46-6: EUR 26] [99-B09-355]

This bio-bibliography lists German specialists in English literature and the English language from the beginning of the formalized subject in the 19th century until 1990. Details about their lives, professional careers, and writings have been gleaned from necrologies and personal papers as available. Living specialists who are no longer professionally active are also included.This is a richly factual source of information, which would be useful to someone writing a history of the study of English literature and language in Germany. [sh/mrh]

Verfolgung und Auswanderung deutschsprachiger Sprachforscher 1933–1945 [Persecution and Emigration of German-Speaking Linguists, 1933–1945]. Utz Maas. Osnabrück: Secolo-Verlag. 23 cm. [99-B09-356]

Vol. 1. Einleitung und biobibliographische Daten A–F [Introduction and Bio-bibliographic Data, A–F]. 1996. 288 p. ISBN 3-929979-23-3: EUR 50.11

The various humanities disciplines, except for German philology and history, have generally realized their obligation to study the role of their disciplines under National Socialism only fairly recently. There have been studies in classics, education, philosophy, psychology, Romance philology, sociology, anthropology, and librarianship, and therefore the most important contexts are known, and themes can gradually be recognized. One of the foremost researchers of the history of linguistics in the first half of the 20th century is the Osnabrück linguist Utz Maas, a part of whose research is presented here. Maas originally wanted to focus only on the period 1933–1945, but he found the categories “exile,” “emigration,” and “expulsion” too narrow and expanded “German” to “German-speaking.” Finally he decided to encompass the whole development of linguistics from 1900 to 1950.

What has now been published is necessarily fragmentary, and the biographical part includes only the letters A–F. Maas’ compendium is divided into two parts. He begins with methodological considerations about the choice of persons and about the concepts of exile, emigration, banishment, and anti-Semitism. He discusses the state of linguistics under National Socialism, the countries of immigration, the effects of persecution and emigration on the field, and the state of research. Part 1 ends with a bibliography. Separating parts 1 and 2 are five appendices—a chronology of repression, a statistical overview of university personnel, and three indexes.

The bio-bibliographical section follows. Maas reaches the sobering conclusion that, in spite of the quantitatively great persecution and expulsion by the Nazis, one cannot speak of a “decapitation” of linguistics. The individual linguistic disciplines were much more affected by the politicization of the universities after 1933 and particularly by the restrictions of wartime. The banished scholars managed to contribute to the continuity of the field, but created no new seminal works during their exile.

In addition to the numerous portraits and the actual paradigms and case studies, this volume is attractive because of the methodological considerations, the statistical evaluations, and the institutional history. The traditional positivist-philological lingustics continued, and new race theory initiatives were started, although these remained the exception.

In spite of the advantages of Maas’ approach, the work leaves an ambiguous impression. The author recognizes that the concept of language researcher is problematic because it includes so many fields, with the subject of language being the common bond. The scholars included had to have at least one linguistic monograph, that is, one work in which problems of linguistic form were in the foreground. With such a liberal approach, one cannot expect a coherent answer to the question of what (which linguistics or language research) was banished but only who (which linguists). This uncertainty is increased by the inclusion of some literary scholars, such as Erich Auerbach and Walter Benjamin. A second weakness of the book is that some relevant new publications were not consulted, and occasionally wrong or contradictory dates are given. The manuscript was apparently finished in 1991 but not printed until 1996. Still one may await the second volume with anticipation, in order to gain a total overview of the persecuted, expelled, and exiled linguists. [frh/gh]

Linguisten-Handbuch: biographische und bibliographische Daten deutschsprachiger Sprachwissenschaftlerinnen und Sprachwissenschaftler der Gegenwart [Handbook of Linguists: Biographical and Bibliographical Data on Contemporary German-Speaking Linguists]. Ed. Wilfried Kürschner. 2 vols. Tübingen: Narr, 1997. xxx, 1,191 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-8233-5001-3 (pbk.): EUR 49 [99-B09-357]

The first edition was positively reviewed in RREO 1994, section BC-93-2/4, nr. 94-3/4-424. The number of linguists included (about 1,600, all living) and the extensive listing of their publications and literature about them were especially praised. There were apparently enough unbound copies left over to make this special paperbound edition possible, so that libraries deterred by the earlier exorbitant price of EUR 299 now have the opportunity to acquire this excellent specialized biographical dictionary. It is worth it, as the publisher is not planning to issue a new edition. [sh/gh]

Deutsches Literatur-Lexikon. Ergänzungsband: biographisch-bibliographisches Handbuch [Dictionary of German Literature. Supplement: Biographical-Bibliographical Handbook]. Founded by Wilhelm Kosch. Ed. Hubert Herkommer (Middle Ages) and Carl Ludwig Lang (Modern Age). 3d rev. ed. Bern; München: Saur. 25 cm. Vol. 1–2 ed. Heinz Rupp (Middle Ages). ISBN 3-907820-00-2 (set) [99-B09-358]

Vol. 2 Bernfeld–Christen. 1994. xiv p. 606 col. ISBN 3-907820-00-17-7: EUR 228
Vol. 3. Christener–Fowelin. 1997. xiv p. 657 col. ISBN 3-907820-00-19-3: EUR 228
Vol. 4. Fraenkel–Hermann. 1997. xiv p. 644 col. ISBN 3-907820-00-21-5: EUR 228
Vol. 5. Hermann–Lyser. 1997. xiv p. 770 col. ISBN 3-907820-00-22-3: EUR 228
Vol. 6. Maag–Ryslavy. 1998. xiv p. 635 col. ISBN 3-907820-00-76-2: EUR 228

A review of the series of supplementary volumes for the new Kosch was published in RREO 1994, section BD-94-3/4, nr. 94-3/4-434, when the first volume came out. Now the series has been completed with volume 6, although only three supplementary volumes were originally announced. It should be emphasized that the division between the basic set and the supplement was closed amazingly quickly, in December, 1996, in only three years.

Volumes 2–6 do not give cause to change one’s opinion substantially. This set is the German literary encyclopedia that includes by far the most names, due to its comprehensiveness and the broadness of its definition of literature. Because its biographical entries are sketchy, it does not replace more detailed literary encyclopedias such as Killy’s 15-volume Literaturlexikon (Gütersloh, 1988–1993). The supplements include many names that adhere to the criteria of the work, and, fortunately, many more anonymous works have been added. Occasionally, however, the standards are breached, for example by the inclusion of authors of ghost-written works, political propaganda, and public relations. The Kosch supplement also fails in one category, just as many bio-bibliographical dictionaries do: translators are given no place in the literature of the language into which they translate.

The bibliographical notes are often limited to citations to other works (e.g.,Goedeke, Killy, the Verfasserlexikon, and major histories of literature), which makes sense in view of the flood of reference works. [hak/gh]

Lexikon der deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur seit 1945 [Dictionary of Contemporary German-Language Literature Since 1945]. Founded by Hermann Kunisch, continued by Herbert Wiesner. Ed. Dietz-Rüdiger Moser. Fully rev. and updated ed. of Neues Handbuch der deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur seit 1945. 2 vols. München: Nymphenburger, 1997. 1,322 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-485-00756-0: EUR 124 [99-B09-363]

The new title may be trendy, but it describes the content much better than the old one did, and while this new edition was delayed several times, the quality it displays makes it worth the wait. The work covers some 750 authors, as compared to 600 in the previous edition, and the inclusion of more recent authors is even greater in scope, as nonfiction authors (chiefly philosophers and theologians) and many pre-World-War-II authors have been removed, resulting in coverage as clearly focused as it is comprehensive. Many of the younger authors included, such as Thomas Hettche and Harald Grill, are not yet to be found in any other reference work.

The articles, ranging from one to four pages, contain brief biographical information and a characterization of the author’s overall output; the longer articles touch on individual works as well. With brief entries, each bibliography covers the author’s complete works and a selection of critical writings, including, in some instances, recent newspaper articles. Though one may question some of the coverage choices (why is Heinrich Mann included, whereas Hans Raimund and Roswitha Quadflieg are not?) and wish that contributors of individual articles were identified, the strength of concept, the editorial standards, and even the packaging are all impressive.[hak/gw]

Kritisches Lexikon zur deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur: KLG [Critical Dictionary of Contemporary German Literature: KLG]. Ed. Heinz Ludwig Arnold. München: Edition Text + Kritik. Looseleaf. 22 cm. [99-B09-364]

New volumes of this important author dictionary now seem to appear regularly at one-year intervals, and the earlier volumes have been extensively reviewed (see 1:194 and RREA 2:34). Beginning with volume 6, published in 1998, the set has a new layout and design and a clearer typeface. However, the information presented continues to be excessively detailed, article content is not standardized, and a plethora of abbreviations makes reading difficult.

The set in 1999 included information about 582 authors: 349 in volumes 1–4; 75 in volume 5; 91 in volume 6; and 67 in volume 7. In volumes 5, 6, and 7, authors for whom articles exceed 20 pages include: Ernst Cassirer, Paul Celan, Alfred Döblin, Carl Einstein, Lion Feuchtwanger (with the longest article at 42 pages), and Sigmund Freud. [sh/baw]

Lexikon deutschsprachiger Mundartautoren [Dictionary of German-Language Dialect Authors]. Bernhard Sowinski. Hildesheim [et al.]: Olms, 1997. xxvii, 797 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-487-10381-8: EUR 74 [99-B09-369]

This bio-bibliographical dictionary covers over 10,500 authors “without regard to literary merit” (p. vii). Bernhard Sowinski, professor emeritus of German philology at the University of Cologne and a specialist in German dialect literature, collected names and details over the course of years by reviewing bibliographies, anthologies, and other sources of information, and by interviewing living authors. With few exceptions, only those authors are included whose dialect writings “have been published in book form, or at least as contributions to literary anthologies” (p. vi). An author’s dialect rendition of a standard literary text is also a valid criterion for inclusion here. (It would have been helpful if a separate index of such titles had been included in the work.)

Biographical data include personal and group names, pseudonyms, year of birth (and death if applicable), birthplace and places of main residence, occupation, and other pursuits (e.g., radio broadcasting). Sometimes brief qualitative attributes are mentioned (e.g., “unhappy life, knowledgeable collector, numerous publications”). Like the biographical details, the respective bibliographies are predominantly (though not always) brief—title, place and year of publication, genre, and editor (if any).

Sound recordings are also noted, but series are not, which is regrettable, as they would have led Sowinski to many more authors. The work concludes with an index of dialect authors by their respective region, and an appendix for dialect authors in “languageislands” outside the German-speaking countries. The authors represent a north-south gradient, with 3,004 coming from northern Germany, 2,892 from central Germany, 1,912 from southern Germany, 1,258 from Switzerland, 1,244 from Austria, and 194 from other dialect regions. [sh/ga]

Autorenlexikon 1996/1997, P.E.N.-Zentrum Bundesrepublik Deutschland [Directory of Authors, 1996–1997, P.E.N. Center of the Federal Republic of Germany]. Ed. Bernard Fischer. Göttingen: Steidl, 1996. 462 p. 18 cm. (Steidl-Taschenbuch, 65). ISBN 3-88243-381-7: DM 24 [99-B09-371]

Autorenlexikon: Zwischenbilanzen; Deutsches P.E.N.-Zentrum (Ost) [Directory of Authors: Interim Assessment; German P.E.N. Center (East)]. Ed. Christel Dobenecker. Berlin: Klarsicht-Verlag, 1996. 269 p. 21 cm. DM 24 [99-B09-372]

The west-east separation of the two German P.E.N. centers lasted well beyond German unification in 1990; it was only at the 1998 P.E.N. general membership assembly in Dresden that the members voted to merge. Thus, these two separate directories are useful as historical documents. Both are similar in organization, presenting brief bio-bibliographies of their 512 and 234 respective members. Entries (submitted by the individual members) list name and address (and sometimes telephone numbers), date and place of birth, curriculum vitae, memberships, and honors and recognitions. Bibliographical citations are generally limited to title and date, but in some cases information on publication length and number of editions is given.

The West German directory has an index of members by place of residence (and by foreign country for non-German members), as well as a list of P.E.N. center presidents in the Federal Republic since 1951 and a chronological list of members deceased between 1952 and 1996; it does not specifically list dates of death, as the East German volume does. The latter also lists the various name-changes of the Center during the GDR period, as well as those members who left the organization between 1990 and 1996. It gives a good deal of space to essays that discuss the reasons for the continued separation of the two centers after reunification. [Ed. note: since 2000, a unified directory has been published, the most recent being the Autorenlexikon 2003/2004 (Wuppertal, 2003).] [sh/ga]

Metzler Kunsthistoriker Lexikon: zweihundert Porträts deutschsprachiger Autoren aus vier Jahrhunderten [Metzler Encyclopedia of Art Historians: Two Hundred Portraits of German-Speaking Authors from Four Centuries]. Peter Betthausen, Peter H. Feist, and Christiane Fork. Stuttgart; Weimar: Metzler, 1999. 523 p. 24 cm. ISBN 3-476-01535-1: EUR 49.90 [99-B09-374]

Biographisches Handbuch deutschsprachiger Kunsthistoriker im Exil: Leben und Werk der unter dem Nationalsozialismus verfolgten und vertriebenen Wissenschaftler [Biographical Handbook of Exiled German-Speaking Art Historians: Lives and Works of Scholars Persecuted or Driven into Exile during the National Socialist Period]. Ulrike Wendland. 2 vols. München: Saur, 1999. xlii, 813 p. 24 cm. ISBN: 3-598-11339-0: EUR 128 [99-B09-375]

Beginning with Joachim von Sandart (1606–1688), the 200 biographies in the Metzler volume include prominent writers on art up to the middle of the 19th century, for example Winckelmann, Goethe, and both Schlegels; but the work’s main emphasis is on art historians—in a broad sense—in the German-speaking lands from the second half of the 19th century onward, including of course those forced to emigrate after 1933. Not only professors, but also museum workers, monument conservators, and art journalists are covered. The entries range from one to three pages in length, with both a factual biography and a narrative statement and tribute to the person’s special achievements and significance. Each entry concludes with a chronologically arranged selective bibliography. Any such bibliography will inevitably omit certain key titles in its lists of sources; in this case, however, one wishes that more effort had been made to include the most recent references possible. The work ends with a bibliography of general titles and a personal name index.

The second title under review is the “reworked and updated catalog portion” of the author’s 1996 Hamburg University dissertation. It covers 253 art historians who lived and wrote in Germany and Austria (including some originally from other countries, for example Hungary and Russia) whom the Nazis persecuted or expelled. All were born before 1915, held a doctorate in art history, and were professionally active between 1933 and 1938. Significant, exceptional individuals who did not meet these criteria are included in an appendix. The selection criteria dictated the inclusion also of some art historians who did not emigrate physically from Nazi Germany but who were considered to have lived in a situation of “inner emigration,” as well as some who were educated as art historians but wrote in other fields.

Each entry contains information on the individual’s family; religion; education; why, when, and where emigrated; career; published works; area(s) of specialization; tributes; and location of personal archives; as well as a bibliography of secondary literature and a list of sources.

Considering its extensive bibliographical section, a more precise title for this work would have been “Bio-bibliographical Handbook… .” The bibliography of secondary literature is more detailed and comprehensive than that in the first work, and is also more current; in some cases, works cited appeared very close to the handbook’s date of publication. [sh/ga]

Grüne Biographien: biographisches Handbuch zur Landschaftsarchitektur des 20. Jahrhunderts in Deutschland [Green Biographies: Biographical Handbook of 20th-Century Landscape Architecture in Germany]. Gert Gröning and Joachim Wolschke-Buhlman. Berlin; Hannover: Patzer, 1997. 508 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-87617-089-3: EUR 90 [99-B09-376]

The title emblazoned on the cover playfully leads one to think that this is a collection of biographies of Green Party politicians. Instead, it contains brief biographies of German gardeners and landscape architects, as well as non-Germans who had a major influence on German landscaping practices. The emphasis is on persons no longer living who were influential especially in the first half of the 20th century. In this latter period the German gardening and landscaping profession came into its own through the establishment of professional associations (e.g., the League of German Landscape Architects) and special training centers.

The 2,736 entries vary widely in length, from very spare texts (name, vocation, professional associations, and place of main activity) to a few very long articles with personal histories, documents, and illustrations of the person’s work. Most entries also give data on the person’s level of education, professional activities, and publications, as well as a list of secondary literature. The work concludes with indexes of place names and subject headings; an appendix of abbreviations and acronyms (here IFLA stands for the International Federation of Landscape Architects); and a bibliography of sources consulted. Unfortunately a list of professional journals is lacking.

Grüne Biographien is a useful reference work for a specialized field that has hitherto been little researched. [sh/ga]

Griechische Antike und deutsche Geschichtswissenschaft in biographischen und bibliographischen Daten: von der Französischen Revolution 1789 bis zum 2. deutschen Kaiserreich 1871 [Greek Antiquity and German Historical Scholarship in Biographical and Bibliographical Detail: From the French Revolution in 1789 to the Second German Empire in 1871]. Ed. Christoph Ulf. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, 1995. 225 p. 20 cm. ISBN 3-05-002540-9: DM 58 [99-B09-413]

This bio-bibliography represents preparatory work for a history of German-language scholarship in the field of Greek antiquity, a lacuna still waiting to be filled. Th anks to the work of Karl Christ in particular, its counterpart for Roman history already exists. The entries in the bibliographic section of the volume, the largest part of the publication, conform to merely minimal bibliographic standards (abbreviated first names, only main titles, place and year of publication, no information concerning length). The biographical section lists nearly 1,200 authors chronologically by their year of birth and gives brief information for about a third of them, covering mainly— in addition to birth and death dates and parents’ names—their scholarly careers and relations to other researchers. Only an insufficient index to the biographical portion of the work is included, with no references to authors’ works that are listed in the bibliographic section. [sh/nb]

Biographisches Wörterbuch zur deutschen Geschichte [Biographical Dictionary of German History]. Hellmuth Rössler and Günther Franz. 2d rev. and enlarged ed.: Karl Bosl, Günther Franz, and Hanns Hubert Hofmann. 3 vols. München: Saur, 1995; licensed reprint: Weltbild-Verlag, 1973–1975. xvi p. 3,330 col. 105 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-907820-83-5 (hbk., Saur): DM 220; ISBN 3-89350-708-6 (pbk., Weltbild-Verl.): DM 98 [99-B09-414]

Completed in 1975, this work was taken over, along with the Francke publishing house, by the Saur-Verlag. Thanks to Saur, this practical reference work is still available in an affordable edition, and also even in paperback by means of a license to the Weltbild publishing house. Although political history remains the emphasis, social and economic history are covered “to a much greater extent than in the first edition” (p. vi) by the inclusion of entrepreneurs and labor leaders. Not included are persons who were active in other areas, such as the arts, literature, sciences, and medicine, unless, like Goethe, they were also influential in political and social life. Because it deals with “German” history, persons from Switzerland until 1648, and Bohemia, Moravia, and Austria until 1918 are covered. Different from most retrospective biographical works, individuals living at the time of publication are included “if their political activities seem to have ceased and can thus be given at least a preliminary evaluation” (p. v). Indeed, it was the editors’ aim to present evaluative characterizations along with biographical facts, and to place an individual’s activities into their historical context. The inclusion of numerous articles on entire families is intended to demonstrate the continuity of elite groups and thus provide a basis for future prosopographical work. For this reason, too, genealogical information and family trees are included. A detailed index in volume 3 lists all names and territories that appear throughout the work, providing further help for the development of a prosopography. [sh/nb]

Die Kollaboration: 1939–1945 [Collaboration: 1939–1945]. Franz W. Seidler. München; Berlin: Herbig, 1995. 575 p. ill. 22 cm. [Ed. note: rev. and expanded ed., 2000, ISBN 3-7766-2139-7: EUR 39.50] [99-B09-417]

Following an introduction that briefly discusses the causes and forms of collaboration in the Third Reich and covers in greater detail the purges of Nazis that took place after the war, the lexical section of this work portrays 177 collaborators, “men and women whose activities during the Second World War had political consequences for their countries.” This aspect, rather than the biographical, represents the emphasis of the articles. All of them contain brief bibliographies of pertinent works in German and in the languages of the relevant countries. An index covers nationalities and professions. [sh/nb]

Lexikon deutscher Bryologen [Encyclopedia of German Bryologists]. J.-P. Frahm. Bonn: Botanisches Institut der Universität, 1995. 187 p. 25 cm. (Limprichtia, 6). DM 25 (Botanisches Institut …, Kirschallee 1, D-53115 Bonn) [99-B09-421]

This volume covers approximately 600 German moss researchers (including those working in other countries, as well as those from other nations but active in Germany), from the 18th century to the present, excluding those still living. Depending on the available sources, the information presented here ranges from merely a scholar’s name and birth and death dates, to long articles with detailed biographical and scholarly information and bibliographies of primary and secondary literature, as well as the location of the scholar’s herbarium. This specialized encyclopedia covers an area in which German researchers were “not only numerous, but also very successful” (p. 3). [Ed. note: A considerably expanded new edition, illustrated with photographic portraits, was published in 2001, edited by Jens Eggers, under the title Lexikon deutschsprachiger Bryologen.] A supplementary volume offering the biographies and bibliographies of living German bryologists would be desirable, as well. [sh/nb]

Biographisches Handbuch zur Geschichte des Pflanzenbaus [Biographical Handbook for the History of Plant Cultivation]. Wolfgang Böhm. München: Saur, 1997. ix, 398 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-598-11324-2: DM 198 [99-B09-422]

Die führenden Medizinforscher: Das Who’s Who der deutschen Medizin [Leading Medical Researchers: The Who’s Who of German Medicine]. Ed. Siegfried Lehrl. Ebersberg: Vless, 1995. 712 p. ill. 31 cm. ISBN 3-88562-068-5: EUR 25 [99-B09-424]

Warum gerade ich …?: Leben lernen in Krisen — Leiden und Glaube; Schritte mit Betroffenen und Begleitenden; mit Bibliographie der über 1000 Lebensgeschichten seit 1900 bis zur Gegenwart … [Why Me? Learning to Live in Crisis— Suffering and Faith; Steps to Take with Victims/Patients and Caregivers; with a Bibliography of over 1,000 Life Histories from 1900 to the Present]. Erika Schuchardt. 9th ed. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1996. 336 p. ill. 21 cm. [Ed. note: 11th rev. and expanded ed., 2002, ISBN 3-525-62370-4: EUR 12.90] [99-B09-428]

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