U.S -- Middle East Relations

Course Number:

HST 446/527

Sources for Historical Analysis.

Starting Points

Specialized encyclopedias are useful for getting a quick overview of a topic. Use these resources to familiarize yourself with the important issues, terms, dates, and trends in the subject area. You can also use the bibliographies at the end of the articles to find additional resources.

Book-length bibliographies are excellent resources for identifying key literature published over a long span of time and over a wide range of publication types.

United States in the Middle East : a historical dictionary

American foreign relations since 1600 : a guide to the literature

United States/Middle East diplomatic relations, 1784-1978 : an annotated bibliography

Articles & eResources

Use these databases and journal indexes to search for articles in journals and magazines.

America: History & Life

US & Canadian history. Indexes periodicals published since 1954.

Historical Abstracts

Indexes and summarizes article and reviews about world history since 1450 published since 1954 in over 1, 700 journals.

JSTOR

Full-text searching of an archive of over 40 history and 25 political science journals. Typically excludes the latest 3-5 years of publication.

LexisNexis Academic

Provides full text for hundreds of newspapers, typically from the late 1970s to the present. Congressional Search provides indexing for Congressional documents back to 1789.

Public Affairs Information Services (PAIS)

The PAIS Archive database contains references to monographs, periodical articles, government and Non-governmental agency reports about public affairs, public and social policies and international relations. The archive database contains references from 1915 to 1976.

WorldCat

The union catalog of over 9,000 member libraries. Over one billion bibliographic records for books, periodicals, videos, manuscripts, maps, sound recordings, and internet resources. Includes information on which libraries own an item, and links to the Randall Library Interlibrary Loan system (ILLiad).

Using the Library Catalog

Click here to search the Library Catalog

Subject Headings

The library catalog uses Library of Congress Subject Headings. The list of authorized subject headings is available in the 5-volume set at the Reference Desk. However, you can start with keyword searches to gather some relevant titles, then look at their subject headings to discover the official terms to use.

Here are some subject headings related to U.S. Middle East Relations:

United States -- Foreign relations -- Middle East
United States -- Foreign relations -- Arab countries
United States -- Foreign relations -- [country]
Middle East -- Peace -- International cooperation

Consider using narrower terms, such as:

Eisenhower doctrine
Iraq-Kuwait Crisis, 1990-1991

More on Subject Searching:

Libraries and database creators try to structure language in a way to make browsable lists. Subject terms tend to be set up in a hierarchical manner. United States -- Foreign relations is an excellent example of this principle. To understand this better, try a Keyword search in the Randall Library Catalog for "United States -- Foreign relations" Then, repeat the search as a Subject search.

You may also wish to browse the Reference Collection to see what special sources are available. For more detail, see the outline from the Library of Congress: http://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco/lcco.html

Websites

History in the News: The Middle East

Links are provided to Middle Eastern history, culture, society, religion, economics, politics, maps and news & media. Developed by the History Department, SUNY Albany.

Primary Sources

Search the Randall Library catalog and WorldCat for policy makers' names as authors. This should retrieve their memoirs, diaries and correspondence.

As you search subject topics in the catalog and WorldCat, note that the following subdivisions indicate primary source material:

correspondence*
diaries*
interviews*
personal narratives
pictorial works
songs and music
sources
speeches, addresses, etc.*
treaties

Be sure to look in broad-based documentary collections, collections covering the time period you are researching and public papers of the Presidents in office during the period (please see linksbelow.)

Newspapers and Popular Magazines can provide both factual information and insight on the prevailing views of the period.

Newspapers on Microfilm (Index availability)
Times of London (Palmer's Index to the Times Index Collection AI21.T458)
New York Times (New York Times Index Index Collection AI21 .N45)
You may want to use this index to make sure you find articles you can retrieve through the online version.
United States Congressional Record (Index at beginning of the first reel for each session of Congress.
Filed with periodicals on microfilm)

Print Indexes to Periodical Literature
International Index to Periodicals ( Index Collection AI3 .R5) Indexes selected scholarly periodicals.
Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature (Index Collection AI3 .R48) Indexes selected popular magazines.

Lyndon B. Johnson national security files. The Middle East

The Middle East: national security files, 1963-1969 Microfilm

Middle East

The Middle East. (OSS/State Department Intelligence and Research Reports) Microfilm

Middle East (Microform): 1950-1961 supplement

3 microfilm reels ; 35 mm. + 1 guide (includes index)

Selected documentation pertaining to U.S.-Arab relations

Foreign Relations of the United States (University of Wisconsin Digital Collections)

Official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions that have been declassified and edited for publication.

Public papers of the Presidents of the United States - GPO

Research presidential writings, addresses, and remarks of a public nature. Compiled and published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration.

Digital National Security Archive

Comprehensive set of declassified government documents.

Historic Documents Series Online Edition

Volumes of primary sources covering the most significant events of the year.

ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2006)

The New York Times (1851-2006) offers full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue