Encyclopedia

An encyclopedia (also encyclopaedia) is a reference work that summarises knowledge across many subjects or within a specialised domain, organised for look-up rather than narrative reading. Classic print sets (e.g. Encyclopædia Britannica) co-exist with collaboratively edited online projects such as Wikipedia and theme wikis like Foreverpedia.

Characteristics

Encyclopedic writing typically aims for:

• Neutral point of view and verifiability via Citations
• Stable article structure (lead, sections, see-also)
• Distinguishing primary evidence from secondary synthesis

Durability

Online encyclopedias face the same web risks as other sites—Link rot in footnotes, Content drift on cited URLs, and platform shutdowns—so serious projects pair editorial policy with Digital preservation habits (archives of revisions, archived citations, mirrors).

See also

• Citation
• Primary source
• Web archiving

Sources

• Histories of encyclopedias in reference publishing (general).
• Editorial practice notes for wiki-style reference projects.