SOAS Library provides access to many databases which support research into Africa. SOAS students and staff can cross-search a range of databases relevant to the study of the Africa via EBSCO Discovery

Below is a list of our major databases available for Africa. Most databases can be accessed by all Library users on-campus. For a full list of our databases please see A-Z list databases .

Africa Bibliography
Is “an authoritative guide to works in African studies published under the auspices of the International African Institute annually since 1984”.
On-campus use / Off-campus use

Africa-Wide Information
contains details about books and articles relating to Africa and especially South Africa as well as some full text articles (chiefly news reports). Records have been taken from various  institutions' catalogues including SOAS. Off-campus access available to SOAS staff and students using their SOAS ID and password .
On-campus use / Off-campus use

allAfrica.com
Collects, produces and distributes 2000 news items daily from over 130 African news organizations and their own reporters. Available to all Library users on-campus. Off-campus access available to SOAS staff and students using their SOAS ID and password .

Digitalback Books
Is a virtual library platform offering readers instant digital access to a wide range of titles from across Africa and its diaspora. Notable collections include titles from the Africa Writers Series, Caribbean Modern Classics, Caine Prize for African Writing, Africa Now and Africa Arguments.
On Campus / Off Campus

If accessing the database off-campus please choose 'Sign in with Single Sign-On', confirm SOAS, University of London, and login with your SOAS ID and password.

See DigitalBack Books user guide (pdf; 1013kb) for further information.

You can download the Digitalback Books App to your device before downloading your e-book:

App for iOS devices and Android devices.

Index to Theses of Great Britain and Ireland
Index of theses with abstracts accepted for higher degrees by universities in Great Britain and Ireland since 1716, many with abstracts.  Available to all Library users on-campus. Off-campus access available to SOAS staff and students, using their SOAS ID and password .
On-campus use / Off-campus use

Brill Online Reference
Provides access to a number of reference works. The most relevant for Africa are:

  • African Studies Companion Online Contains over 1800 entries covering guides and resources for African Studies. Many entries describe and evaluate resources and many link directly to the internet.
    On-campus use / Off-campus use

  • Africa Yearbook Online Covers major domestic political developments, foreign policy and socio-economic trends in sub-Saharan Africa.
    On-campus use / Off-campus use

Cambridge Histories Online Reference
Online editions of the Cambridge Histories series. Includes the Cambridge History of Africa and the Cambridge History of South Africa .
On-campus use /

Ethnographic Video Online
Searchable database of ethnographic film. Available to all Library users on-campus. Off-campus access available to SOAS staff and students, using their SOAS ID and password .
On-campus use / Off-campus use

IREON - The International Relations and Area Studies Gateway
The German Information Network International Relations and Area Studies is a network of libraries and documentation departments of 12 research organisations. Includes bibliographic references and a number of full-text documents.

Oxford Reference
Access to over 100 Oxford University Press encyclopaedias, dictionaries and other reference works across a wide range of relevant subject. Includes ‘A dictionary of African mythology’ and ‘The Concise Oxford Companion to African American Literature’.
On-campus use
/ Off-campus use

Proquest Theses and Dissertations: Humanities and Social Science Collections
Database of US theses and dissertations dating from 1861 to the present day, with full-text access to most theses added since 1997, plus a growing retrospective full-text coverage.
On-campus use / Off-campus use

Smithsonian Global Sound
An online encyclopaedia of the world's musical and aural traditions. Including over 35,000 individual tracks of music, spoken word, and natural and human-made sounds.
On-campus use / Off-campus use

UK Data Service
Access to key economic and social data, both quantitative and qualitative. Including World Development Indicators, OECD, ILO, IMF and UN data. Available to SOAS staff and students only, on or off-campus.
On-campus use / Off-campus use

Zetoc
Online version of the British Library's Electronic Table of Contents (ETOC) which contains details of approximately 20,000 current journals and 16,000 conference proceedings published per year. Available to all Library users on-campus. Off-campus access available to SOAS staff and students, using their SOAS id and password.
On-campus use / Off-campus use