Researching Ethnicity, Ethnic Groups and Immigration



Reference Tools

General Sources

American Families: A Research Guide and Historical Handbook. Edited by Joseph M. Hawes and Elizabeth I. Nybakken. (New York: Greenwood Press, 1991). 
Mortola Ref  HQ535 .A585 1991 

American Immigrant Cultures: Builders of A Nation. David Levinson and Melvin Ember, editors in chief. (New York: Simon & Schuster Macmillan, 1997). 
Mortola Ref  E184.A1 A63448 1997 

Atlas of World Cultures: A Geographical Guide to Ethnographic Literature. David H. Price. (New bury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1989). 
Mortola Ref  G1046.E1 P7 1989 

The Color of Words: An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Ethnic Bias in the United States. Philip H. Herbst. (Yarmouth, Me., USA: Intercultural Press, 1997)
Mortola Ref E184.A1 H466 1997

Dictionary of American Immigration History. Edited by Francesco Cordasco. (Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1990). 
Mortola  Ref  JV 6450.D3 1990 

Encyclopedia of American Immigration. James Ciment, ed. (Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe, 2001)
Mortola Ref JV6465 .E53 2001 v.1- v.4

Encyclopedia of American Social History. Edited by Mary Kupiec Cayton, Elliott J. Gorn and Peter W. Williams. (New York: Scribner, 1993). 
Mortola  Ref  HN57 .E58 1993 v.1-3 

Encyclopedia of Minorities in American Politics: African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans and Native Americans. Jeffrey D. Schultz, ed. (Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 2000)
Mortola Ref E 184 .A1 E574 2000

Encyclopedia of Rural America: the Land and People. Gary A. Goreham, editor. (Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, c1997). 
Mortola Ref  E169.12 .E5 1997 v.1-v.2 

Ethnic Groups Worldwide: A Ready Reference Handbook. David H. Levinson. (Phoenix, Ariz: Oryx Press, 1998) 
Mortola  Ref GN325 .L46 1998 

From Many Strands: Ethnic and Racial Groups in Contemporary America. Edited by Stanley Lieberson and Mary C. Waters. (New York: Russell Sage Foundation, c1988). 
Mortola  Ref  E184.A1 L48 1988 

Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America. Edited by Judy Galens, Anna Sheets, Robyn V. Young. (Detroit, MI: Gale Research, c1995). 
Mortola Ref  E184.A1 G14 1995 v.1 - v.2 

Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups. Edited by Stephan Thernstrom.  (Cambridge, Mass: Belknap Press, 1980). 
Mortola Ref  E184.A1 H35 

Identities and Issues in Literature. David Peck, ed. (Pasadena, Calif.: Salem Press, c1997)
Mortola Ref PS153.M56 I34 1997

The Law of Immigration. Margaret C. Jasper. (Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.: Oceana Publications, 1996). 
Mortola  Ref KF4819.6 .J3 1996 

Multiculturalism in the United States: A Comparative Guide to Acculturation and Ethnicity. Edited by John D. Buenker and Lorman A. Ratner. (New York: Greenwood Press, c1992). 
Mortola Ref  E184.A1 M85 1992 

The New Chosen People: Immigrants in the United States. Guillermina Jasso and Mark R. Rosenzweig.  (New York: Russell Sage Foundation for the National Committee for Research on the 1980 Census, 1990).
Mortola Ref  JV6455.5 .J37 1990 

Racial and Ethnic Relations in America. Carl L. Bankston III [et al.], eds. (Pasadena, Calif.: Salem Press, c2000)
Mortola Ref E49 .R33 2000, v.1-3 

Specific Ethnic Groups

NOTE: This is merely a sampling of materials available, browse the Reference collection in the Call Number areas listed below to locate additional titles.

Africana: the Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience. Kwame Anthony Appiah, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., eds. (New York: Basic Civitas Books, c1999)
Mortola Ref DT14 .A37435 1999

Dictionary of Asian American History. Edited by Hyung-Chan Kim. (New York: Greenwood Press, 1986). 
Mortola Ref E184.O6 D53 1986 

Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. Edited by Jack Salzman, David Lionel Smith, and Cornel West. (New York: Macmillan Library Reference, 1996).
Mortola Ref E185 .E54 1996 v.1-v.5

Encyclopedia of the Chinese Overseas. Lynn Pan, ed. (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1999)
Mortola Ref DS732 .E53 1999

Handbook of North American Indians. William C. Sturtevant, general editor. (Washington, DC: Supt. of Docs, 2001).
Mortola Ref E77 .H25

Reference Library of Asian America. Edited by Susan B. Gall and Irene Natividad. (Detroit, Michigan: Gale Research, 1995). 
Mortola Ref  E184.06 R45 1995 v. 1-3 

Reference Library of Hispanic America. Edited by Nicolás Kanellos. (Detroit: Distributed by Educational Guidance Service, 1993). 
Mortola Ref  E184.S75 R44 1993b v.1-3 

Statistical Record of Hispanic Americans. Edited by Marlita A. Reddy. (Detroit: Gale Research, c1995)
Mortola Ref E184.S75 S74 1995

Demographics and Statistics

American FactFinder http://factfinder.census.gov
General population information from the U.S. Census Bureau. Includes some (not all) of the data from the 2000 Census.

Population Reference Bureau http://www.prb.org/
This site provides articles on U.S. population trends. See especially the areas devoted to migration and race/ethnicity. Use the DataFinder to search for statistics.

Racial and Ethnic Diversity: Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, and Whites. Cheryl Russell (Ithaca, N.Y.: New Strategist Publications, c2002).
Mortola Ref E184.A1 R78 2002

Statistical Abstract of the United States
Mortola Ref Desk HA202
Annual publication of the U.S. Census Bureau giving the highlights of statistics gathered on a regular basis by both government and private sources. In some cases, relevant web sites are given. A wide range of topics such as: health, population, education, crime, travel and foreign country information are covered. The Statistical Abstract is also available on the web at: http://www.census.gov/statab/www/.

Finding Books

You can find books on your topic by searching the Pace Library Catalog by subject or keyword.

To find general books on immigration, perform a Subject search in the Catalog such as:
“emigration and immigration”
"United States - emigration and immigration"

To find books about a certain immigrant population, perform a Keyword search, such as:
“Italian Americans”
“Polish Americans”
“German Americans,” etc.

OR
Perform a Subject search such as:
“Puerto Rico – Emigration and Immigration”
“Germany – Emigration and Immigration”

Subject searches target the specific Library of Congress Subject Headings that have been assigned to the books that the Pace Library owns. Unless you know the subject headings that pertain to your topic, you may want to begin with a Keyword search. Once you have found a source that you find useful, look at the Library of Congress Subject Headings towards the bottom of the catalog record to determine the best terms to use in a Subject search for further materials. Some additional examples of subject headings include:

Pluralism (Social Sciences) -- United States
Ethnic Groups -- United States
Immigrants -- United States
United States -- Ethnic Relations
United States -- Race Relations
Minorities -- United Stated

For additional tips on searching the catalog, see the library's guide to Using the Pace Library Catalog.

Finding Journal Articles

America: History and Life - Indexes and abstracts literature on the history and culture of the United States and Canada from prehistoric times to the present. 
TIP:
Limit your searches to the English language.

Academic Search Premier - Provides full text for more than 3,430 scholarly publications covering academic areas of study including social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences, and ethnic studies.

Historical Abstracts - Annotated references to journals, dissertations & books covering the years 1450 to the present. Over 499,000 entries from more than 50 languages. Excludes the United States and Canada, which are covered in America: History and Life (see above).
TIPS:
Limit your searches to the English language. Try searching for the population you are researching, and "emigration or immigration," for example: German Americans and (emigration or immigration) or try searching on the name of the country and "emigration or immigration," for example: Germany and (emigration or immigration).

Research Library - Contains citations, with abstracts, to more than 1,800 general-interest periodicals. Included are over 500 periodicals related to the social sciences, nearly 400 related to the humanities, more than 150 in the general sciences field, and approximately 200 business titles. More than 200 of the journals are available in Full Text.

Public Affairs Information Service (PAIS) - More than 200,000 records representing articles, books, conference proceedings, government documents, book chapters, and statistical directories about public affairs. Covers the most recent 10 years.

Sociological Abstracts - English-language journals in sociology, social work, and other social sciences. Covers 1963 to the present.

 

Still need help? Ask a librarian!

Created by Pace University Library
Revised 1/05
Sarah Burns Feyl
sburnsfeyl@pace.edu