Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic (ASNC)

Searching for resources

There are two key library catalogues you will use when studying at Cambridge:

Girton Library catalogue (Heritage Cirqa) – to search Girton Library’s collection and see if items are available or already on loan (see our eGuide for further information).

iDiscover – to search across the University’s print and electronic collections (including books, eBooks, journals, newspapers, articles and much more, from other colleges, faculty and department libraries, and the University Library). Most, but not all, of Girton’s collection can also be found here. See our Searching iDiscover eGuide for further information.

You will be able to borrow from Girton Library, the University Library, and the ASNC departmental library, housed on the first floor of the English Faculty Library. Within Girton Library you will find our ASNC resources on the top floor of the Extension. Please feel free to recommend for purchase anything you need for your studies that we don't have.

You may also find it helpful to visit and use the MML (Modern and Medieval Languages) Library and the Seeley Library. There may also be other libraries within Cambridge that stock useful resources: for a full list of libraries in Cambridge, see the directory, where you can also check each library for access guidelines.

Search Spacefinder to find places to study outside of College.

Subject-specific resources

The ASNC LibGuide contains many links to subject-related information and assistance, including a guide to referencing for ASNC students. You can also find and search for databases that might help you on the Database A-Z LibGuide (please note that you will need to be logged in to your University account to access many of these). Key online resources for your subject include:

• Archive of Celtic-Latin Literature (ACLL). A full-text database of the corpus of Latin literature produced in Celtic-speaking Europe, together with the Latin works of the Continental ‘peregrini’, from the period 400-1200 CE. The database contains over 500 Latin works by over a hundred known and unknown authors, spanning the fields of theology, liturgy, grammar, hagiography, poetry and historiography, and including legal texts, charters, inscriptions, etc.
• Bibliography of British and Irish History. Provides bibliographic data on historical writing dealing with the British Isles, and with the British Empire and Commonwealth, from 55 BCE to the present.
• Brill’s New Pauly. A reference collection offering encyclopaedic coverage and high academic standards with an interdisciplinary and contemporary approach and clear and accessible presentation, focusing on the classical world.
• Cambridge Histories Online. A globally respected series of over 300 volumes spanning 15 subject areas across the humanities and social sciences, concentrating on political and cultural history, literature, philosophy, religious studies, music and the arts. Searchable by author, title, and subject.
• Dictionary of Old English A to Le. A comprehensive dictionary of Old English, gradually being expanded with the aim of eventually covering the entire language.
• Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus. A database containing every surviving Old English text.
• Early Indo-European Online. Introductions to the languages of Old English, Old Irish, Old Norse, and many more. Also includes thoroughly glossed and parsed texts for help learning to read the languages.
• English Poetry. A searchable online collection containing over 160,000 poems, comprising the complete canon of English poetry of the British Isles from the 8th century to around 1900.
• Indo-European Etymological Dictionaries. A rich and voluminous online reference source for historical and general linguists. Dictionaries can be cross-searched, with an advanced search for each individual dictionary enabling the user to perform more complex research queries. Each entry is accompanied by grammatical info, meaning(s), etymological commentary, reconstructions, cognates and often extensive bibliographical information.
• Manchester Hive Medieval Studies Collection. A collection of eBooks and other resources related to the medieval period. It covers a wide selection of topics, including both introductory and more advanced material.
• Monumenta Germaniae Historica. A vast trove of primary source material relating to ASNC, including critical editions of historical documents and other related research. The resources cover much of the history of Europe and are easily searchable.
• Patrologia Latina Database. Comprises the works of the Church Fathers from Tertullian in 200 CE to the death of Pope Innocent III in 1216. The database contains the complete Patrologia Latina, including all prefatory material, original texts, critical apparatus and indexes.
• The Skaldic Project. An international project to edit the corpus of medieval Norse-Icelandic skaldic poetry.
• Step Bible. Tool for study and analysis of the Bible. It enables the search and comparison of many different versions of the Bible, and contains detailed grammar and vocabulary information for the original languages.
• Vetus Latina Database. Contains a huge panoply of citations of Latin biblical texts, which were in existence and used from the 2nd century CE until the time when the Vulgate became predominant. The VLD contains every citation, listed by book, chapter and verse of the Bible. The application allows the scholar to search citations individually or as a whole, following the biblical structure to print the results.
• Viking Society for Northern Research. All the publications of the Viking Society for Northern Research from 1893 to the present. Includes a mixture of primary texts in translation, critical research, and introductions to language.
• Welsh Prose. A searchable corpus of medieval Welsh prose texts.

Finding relevant material if you don't have a reading list

As well as the resources linked above, the databases below cover a wide range of disciplines and can be very helpful when you don't have a reading list or are starting out. More suggestions can also be found in our Bibliographic Information Sources eGuide.

• Arts & Humanities Citation Index (including the Web of Science Core Collection). An online index that covers journal articles published in the physical and life sciences, health sciences, social sciences, and arts and humanities.
• BrowZine. Search a large range of online journals in all subjects Cambridge University provides.
• HathiTrust. A searchable collaborative collection of academic and research libraries preserving 17+ million digitized items.
• JSTOR. Provides access to over 12 million academic journal articles, books, and primary sources in 75 disciplines.
• WorldCat. Lets you search for collections of libraries in your community and thousands more worldwide.

Help within college

Library staff can provide support and assistance. You can book an appointment with us or ask a question via library@girton.cam.ac.uk.