The ''Encyclopedia Galactica'' is the name of a number of fictional or hypothetical encyclopedias containing all the
knowledge
Knowledge can be defined as Descriptive knowledge, awareness of facts or as Procedural knowledge, practical skills, and may also refer to Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called pro ...
Kardashev scale
The Kardashev scale ( Russian: Шкала Кардашева, ''Shkala Kardasheva'') is a method of measuring a civilization's level of technological advancement based on the amount of energy it is able to use. The measure was proposed by S ...
)
civilization
A civilization (or civilisation) is any complex society characterized by the development of a state, social stratification, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyond natural spoken language (namely, a writing system).
...
. The name evokes the exhaustive aspects of the real-life ''
Encyclopædia Britannica
The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...
''.
The concept of a "future encyclopedia" has become "something iconic among many lovers of the science fiction", and has been reused by numerous other writers.
Asimov's ''Encyclopedia Galactica''
''Encyclopedia Galactica'' first appeared in Isaac Asimov's short story "Foundation" ('' Astounding Science Fiction'', May 1942), later republished as "The Encyclopedists" in the short-story collection ''
Foundation
Foundation may refer to:
* Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization
** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S.
** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...
'' (1951). Asimov's ''Encyclopedia Galactica'' was a compendium of all knowledge then available in the
Galactic Empire
Galactic empires are a common trope used in science fantasy and science fiction, particularly in works known as 'space operas'. Many authors have either used a galaxy-spanning empire as background or written about the growth and/or decline of s ...
, intended to preserve that knowledge in a remote region of the galaxy in the event of a foreseen galactic catastrophe. The ''Encyclopedia'' is later revealed to be an element in an act of misdirection, with its real purpose being to concentrate a group of knowledgeable scientists on a remote,
resource
Resource refers to all the materials available in our environment which are technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally sustainable and help us to satisfy our needs and wants. Resources can broadly be classified upon their ...
-poor planet named Terminus, with the long-term aim of revitalizing the technologically stagnant and scientifically dormant empire. Originally published in a physical medium, it later becomes computerized and subject to continual change.
Asimov used the ''Encyclopedia Galactica'' as a
literary device
A narrative technique (known for literary fictional narratives as a literary technique, literary device, or fictional device) is any of several specific methods the creator of a narrative uses to convey what they want
—in other words, a stra ...
throughout his ''Foundation'' series, beginning many of the book sections or chapters with a short extract from the ''Encyclopedia'' discussing a key character or event in the story. This provides the reader with a hazy idea of what is to come.
The first citation, in the chronological order is present in ''
Prelude to Foundation
''Prelude to Foundation'' is a novel by American writer Isaac Asimov, published in 1988. It is one of two prequels to the ''Foundation'' series. For the first time, Asimov chronicles the fictional life of Hari Seldon, the man who invented psy ...
''. It is about Emperor Cleon, First of the Name, and last of the Entun Dynasty.
Theodore Wein considers the ''Encyclopedia Galactica'' as possibly inspired by a reference in
The Shape of Things to Come
''The Shape of Things to Come'' is a work of science fiction by British writer H. G. Wells, published in 1933. It takes the form of a future history which ends in 2106.
Synopsis
A long economic slump causes a major war that leaves Europe dev ...
'' (1933). The future world envisioned by Wells includes an "Encyclopaedic organization which centres upon Barcelona, with seventeen million active workers" and which is tasked with creating "the Fundamental Knowledge System which accumulates, sorts, keeps in order and renders available everything that is known". As pointed out by Wein, this Wells book was at its best-known and most influential in the late 1930s – coinciding with "the period of incubation" when the young Asimov became interested in science fiction, reading a lot of it and starting to formulate his own ideas.
Patricio Manns analyzed the ''Encyclopedia Galactica'' as a paratextual element of Asimov's work, intended to contextualize the action, to bring the trilogy closer to the historical novel and to inform the reader about a possible palimpsestic reading.
Later instances in fiction
Various authors have invoked the ''Encyclopædia Galactica'' in both
science
Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...
and
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
. The first may have been author
Frank Holby
Frank or Franks may refer to:
People
* Frank (given name)
* Frank (surname)
* Franks (surname)
* Franks, a medieval Germanic people
* Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang
Curr ...
's short story "The Strange Case of the Missing Hero" in the July 1942 issue of ''Astounding Science Fiction'' which featured Sebastian Lelong, editor of the ''Encyclopedia''. It was also a common fixture in previous incarnations of the Legion of Super-Heroes comic books, and has appeared in the ''Star Wars'' expanded universe and Superman comics set in the future. The "Encyclopedia Galactica" was also mentioned as being a collection of all the knowledge of a galactic Empire in the science fiction short story called "
The Originist
"The Originist" is a short story by Orson Scott Card. First published in the short story collection ''Foundation's Friends'' (1989), it also appears in his short story collection ''Maps in a Mirror''. This story is set in Isaac Asimov's ''Found ...
", which was written by American novelist
Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card (born August 24, 1951) is an American writer known best for his science fiction works. He is the first and (as of 2022) only person to win both a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award in consecutive years, winning both awards for both ...
Robert A. Heinlein
Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...
mentioned the Encyclopedia in chapter three of ''
To Sail Beyond the Sunset
''To Sail Beyond the Sunset'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, published in 1987. It was the last novel published before his death in 1988. The title is taken from the poem " Ulysses", by Alfred Tennyson. The stan ...
'' (1987): "... the computer that led the Lunar Revolution on time line three, code 'Neil Armstrong.' Let's skip the details; it's all in ''Encyclopedia Galacta'' (sic) and other books."
In Arthur C. Clarke's and Gentry Lee's novel ''
Rama II
Phra Phutthaloetla Naphalai ( th, พระพุทธเลิศหล้านภาลัย, 24 February 1767 – 21 July 1824), personal name Chim ( th, ฉิม), also styled as Rama II, was the second monarch of Siam under the Chakri ...
'' (1989), Nicole des Jardins says to Richard Wakefield, "Just think, the sum of everything all human beings know or have ever known might be nothing more than an infinitesimal fraction of the ''Encyclopedia Galactica''."
"Encyclopedia Galactica" is mentioned by Charlie Sheen's character in '' The Arrival'' (1996), and by Jodie Foster's character in '' Contact'' (1997).
The
Orion's Arm
Orion's Arm (also called the Orion's Arm Universe Project, OAUP, or simply OA and formerly known as the Orion's Arm Worldbuilding Group) is a multi-authored online science fiction world-building project, first established in 2000 by M. Alan Kaz ...
worldbuilding project uses a fictional database called the Encyclopaedia Galactica as its primary framing device, each page presenting itself as an individual article of the Encyclopaedia and focusing on a specific aspect of the Orion's Arm universe.
Other uses
There was a series of five video documentaries in 1993, collectively called ''Encyclopædia Galactica'', with the episode titles “The Inner Solar System”, “The Outer Solar System”, “Star Trekking”, “Discovery”, and “Astronomy and the Stars”. The videos were produced by York Films of England and distributed by Encyclopædia Britannica (Australia). Other entities associated with the production of the video series were Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation,
The Learning Channel
TLC is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. First established in 1980 as The Learning Channel, it initially focused on educational and instructional programming. By the late 1990s, after an acquisition by the ow ...
Cosmos
The cosmos (, ) is another name for the Universe. Using the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity.
The cosmos, and understandings of the reasons for its existence and significance, are studied in ...
Future history
A future history is a postulated history of the future and is used by authors of science fiction and other speculative fiction to construct a common background for fiction. Sometimes the author publishes a timeline of events in the history, whil ...
*
False document
A false document is a technique by which an author aims to increase verisimilitude in a work of fiction by inventing and inserting or mentioning documents that appear to be factual. The goal of a false document is to convince an audience that what ...
*
Library of Trantor
The Galactic Empire is an interstellar empire featured in Isaac Asimov's ''Robot'', ''Galactic Empire'', and ''Foundation'' series. The Empire is spread across the Milky Way galaxy and consists of almost 25 million planets settled exclusively b ...
*
Web archiving
Web archiving is the process of collecting portions of the World Wide Web to ensure the information is preserved in an archive for future researchers, historians, and the public. Web archivists typically employ web crawlers for automated captur ...
*
Recorded history
Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...