publications that provide various types of information, for example, scientific or practical information. The type of information presented determines the style and composition of the given publication. Reference books are meant to be read selectively rather than systematically and in their entirety. They cover a wide range of subjects and attempt to provide complete information on specific topics. Reference books are written in a very concise manner and their material is arranged to facilitate rapid location of the required information.
Many reference books consist of articles whose content, size, and form are determined by the type of work and the manner of its arrangement, alphabetical or by subject matter. In the area of scientific information, in which information from scientific documents is collected, processed, stored, retrieved, and distributed, reference literature is an authoritative and traditional reference source, and many scientific reference works serve as secondary sources.
The many types of reference books of varying content and form include specialized and general-purpose works as well as those treating complex topics or series of topics. Reference books vary greatly in content and size, ranging from systematic compilations of knowledge in the form of multivolume encyclopedias to small booklets of a purely informational nature. Most reference books are published only once or irregularly; those published periodically include such works as encyclopedia yearbooks and statistical yearbooks—for example, The National Economy of the USSR in 19—.
Although reference literature is classified in an arbitrary manner, some of its principal types may be identified. For example, in the USSR, reference literature includes general and specialized encyclopedias, encyclopedic dictionaries, language and terminology dictionaries, political, geographical, and statistical reference books, and such varied reference books as publishers’ catalogues and travel guides. Professional manuals for workers in various fields are a type of reference literature as well.
Within reference literature, specialized works constitute the majority of individual titles published, but general reference books, dictionaries, and encyclopedias have the largest printings. For example, each volume of the third edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia is published in an edition of 630,000 copies. In 1974, the USSR published 111 encyclopedias and general reference books in editions totaling 22.2 million copies and 538.6 million printer’s sheets, and 150 dictionaries in editions totaling 6.2 million copies and 119.2 million printer’s sheets. In comparison with 1913, the pressruns of encyclopedias published have increased by a factor of 15.3, and the pressruns of dictionaries, by a factor of 26.8.
The proportion of reference literature in relation to the total volume of published works is small. For example, in 1974, reference literature in the USSR represented 6.1 percent of the total number of titles published, 4.1 percent of the total number of copies published, and 5.3 percent of the volume of book production. Some 5,300 books and brochures were published in editions totaling 70.3 million copies and 924.4 million printer’s sheets.
Nevertheless, reference literature is one of the most promising types of publication. Its rapid growth results from the need to publish data about scientific and scholarly achievements in specialized reference works that act as repositories of information. The development of reference literature is connected with the increased volume of information generated as a result of the scientific and technological revolution, with the selective demands of specialists and other readers, and with the rise in the level of culture and education. Various demographic factors, such as the increase in population, markedly affect increases in the publication of large editions of reference works, including encyclopedias, dictionaries, and reference books dealing with politics, economy, and geography.
The manufacture of specialized reference books is being improved in various ways. Removable bindings make it possible to add periodic supplements to reference books. New types of aids have been developed: records, films, tapes, and stereoscopic equipment, as well as microfilms and microfiches equipped with reading attachments. These developments are related to the growth of the entire system of scientific information, which is a focus of worldwide attention.
As international economic cooperation and scientific and cultural relations expand, international reference books have become widely distributed. These include general works such as the Statistical Yearbook, the Demographic Yearbook, and The Statesman’s Year-book. Specialized reference works include the Production Yearbook, a statistical yearbook published by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, and The World of Learning, an annual reference book on scientific, higher educational, and cultural institutions. Other specialized reference books are the publications of the UN’s economic commissions on such major regions of the world as Europe, Asia, the Far East, Africa, and Latin America.