Historical dictionary of South Africa /

Edited by Saunders (emer., Univ. of Cape Town, South Africa) and Limb (Michigan State Univ.), this third edition of the Historical Dictionary of South Africa--first published in 1983--has been expanded to include the many changes in South Africa's post-apartheid development. The dictionary opens with a chronology of South Africa that spans the Stone Age to the present, including extensively detailed entries for the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. A narrative introduction follows, outlining the trends and problems that have developed over the whole course of South Africa's history, with particular attention to recent decades. More than 600 A-Z entries describe people, events, politics, social issues, institutions, foreign relations, religion, culture, and policies, and entries are cross-referenced for ease of browsing. The volume includes a bibliography that is divided into general subject areas, including culture, economy, history, politics, religion, and society. This extensive bibliography provides an entry point to the vast literature on which the dictionary is based, and will be especially useful for undergraduate and early career graduate students who are just beginning their research. Supplemental information includes maps and a list of relevant academic and general websites. Summing Up: Recommended. General readers through faculty. --Janelle Werner, University of California Berkeley

New editions of titles in the African Historical Dictionaries series.