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HIST 248S: Decolonization (2020)

Specialty Databases

Use these databases to focus your search:

Looking for a Journal?

Got a citation?

Use the Journal Search to find a specific journal.

If Hollins does not have the journal, use Interlibrary loan.

Smart Searching Tips

Try different key words in your searches:

  • People, types or names (who is writing your document? Who are important figures in this nationalist movement?)
  • Places (Germany, etc...)
  • Time periods or events (18th century - use numbers as opposed to writing out time periods!)
  • Movements (nationalism, Fascism)
  • Groups (Zionists)

Add to your list by looking for:

  • Subject terms in the catalog and databases 
  • related terms (king - leader)
  • synonyms (property - land)

No results? Search more broadly: 

Try your search using fewer terms, or change to broader terms: for example, use the term artist (broad), instead of just painter (narrow).

Too many results? Narrow down by adding something:

Try combining  search words, using "and" in between: nuns and education

Search Tools

Try a Boolean Operator: AND, NOT, OR (you MUST CAPITALIZE those words in OneSearch)

(France OR French) AND independence

Use the *  (asterisk) wildcard, to search several terms at once.

educ* = educated, education, educator, etc.

Use quotation marks to enclose a phrase:

"home rule"

SUBJECT TERMS:

  • When you find a book that looks good, scroll down and look at the subject terms.  This can lead you to other good sources and help you generate keywords. 

  • Now you know that searching "customs" or "social life" might be useful to your research.