The ''Lexikon des Mittelalters'' ("Lexicon of the Middle Ages", LMA, LexMA) is a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

encyclopedia An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

on the history and culture of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

. Written by authors from all over the world, it comprises more than 36,000 articles in 9 volumes. Historically the works range from the

Late Antiquity Late antiquity is the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages, generally spanning the 3rd–7th century in Europe and adjacent areas bordering the Mediterranean Basin. The popularization of this periodization in English ha ...

to about 1500, covering the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

and the

Arab world The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

. The first six volumes were published by

Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...

(later Artemis & Winkler),

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and

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

; volumes seven through nine by LexMA, Munich. In 2000, an electronic (standalone) edition of the ''Lexikon'' was published on

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Praise and criticism

The first volume was widely praised upon publication; G.A. Holmes, in ''

The English Historical Review ''The English Historical Review'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal that was established in 1886 and published by Oxford University Press (formerly Longman). It publishes articles on all aspects of history – British, European, and wo ...

'', foresaw that the entire encyclopedia would be "a valuable reference work of a kind which medievalists hitherto lacked." H. Chadwick, in ''

The Journal of Theological Studies ''The Journal of Theological Studies'' is an academic journal established in 1899 and now published by Oxford University Press in April and October each year. It publishes theological research, scholarship, and interpretation, and hitherto unpubli ...

'', called the lexicon "a necessary and valuable work of reference." Its coverage of subjects related to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

was praised, though the same reviewer called the coverage of topics related to

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

"comparatively modest." The CD-ROM edition was chosen as one of the "Selected Reference Books of 2001-2002" by ''

College & Research Libraries ''College & Research Libraries'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal published by the Association of College and Research Libraries. History It was established in December 1939 and was published quarterly for its first 18 years, then b ...

''.

Editions

* ''Lexikon des Mittelalters''. Munich: LexMA-Verlag, 1980ff. . * ''Lexikon des Mittelalters Online''. Turnhout: Brepols, 2009. .

References

External links

* Christian Heitzmann
Discussion
in: Information Media for Libraries (IFB) 7(1999) 1/4.

Review of the CD-ROM edition

Artikel
in GenWiki 20th-century encyclopedias German encyclopedias German-language encyclopedias Encyclopedias of history Medieval studies 1979 non-fiction books {{encyclopedia-stub

Praise and criticism

Editions

See also

References

External links