Home›Sources›The Oxford Dictionary of World ReligionsSourcesThe Oxford Dictionary of World ReligionsCitation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextDivinity Atlas. "The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/the-oxford-dictionary-of-world-religions.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextDivinity Atlas. (n.d.). The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/the-oxford-dictionary-of-world-religionsCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{divinityatlas-the-oxford-dictionary-of-world-religions, author = {Divinity Atlas}, title = {The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions}, year = {2026}, url = {https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/the-oxford-dictionary-of-world-religions}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXJohn Bowker's dictionary covers concepts, figures and practices across the full range of the world's religious traditions in a single volume, a scope that requires drawing on specialist literature well beyond any one editor's own field, which is itself the book's real undertaking rather than a claim about its press. This record has not independently traced a documented history of corrections across its printings. It is a strong source for defining a term or concept and for basic cross tradition orientation. Because it covers the whole of world religion in one volume, an entry is necessarily a summary, and a claim needing depth on one specific tradition or a live scholarly controversy is better supported by a specialist source on that tradition alongside this one.FactsClaims Backed By This Source (1,466 claims)Comments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)FactsAssessmentReliability TierWell-attested1A single-volume dictionary of world religions from a major academic press, edited by a recognised scholar in religious studies and drawing on specialist contributors across traditions; this atlas's top tier for broad, reliable reference orientation, with the caveat noted on its own entity page that a claim needing depth on one tradition or a live scholarly dispute is better supported alongside a specialist source.NotesWell-attestedBroad scholarly reference for religious-studies terminology.CitationAuthorWell-attestedJohn Bowker (ed.)PublisherWell-attestedOxford University PressPublication YearWell-attested1997URLWell-attestedhttps://archive.org/details/oxforddictionary0000johnSource TypeWell-attestedreferenceClaims Backed By This Source (1,466 claims)This source backs 1,466 claims across the atlas. As facts: 863 well-attested, 3 scholarly debate, 1 open question. As cited relationships: 150 holds, 8 connected. Plus 441 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.Disposition By TopicCities, 227 claims: 101 well-attested, 28 holds, 1 connected, 97 general references.Articles, 190 claims: 169 well-attested, 1 holds, 3 connected, 17 general references.Regions, 165 claims: 82 well-attested, 1 holds, 82 general references.Practices, 124 claims: 100 well-attested, 9 holds, 2 connected, 13 general references.Doctrines, 119 claims: 48 well-attested, 10 holds, 61 general references.Figures, 109 claims: 82 well-attested, 27 general references.Rituals, 97 claims: 58 well-attested, 20 holds, 19 general references.Religions, 89 claims: 53 well-attested, 1 open question, 12 holds, 23 general references.Religious Dress & Vestments, 60 claims: 39 well-attested, 11 holds, 10 general references.Religious Roles & Titles, 48 claims: 25 well-attested, 1 scholarly debate, 5 holds, 17 general references.Sacred Objects & Ritual Items, 47 claims: 11 well-attested, 19 holds, 17 general references.Sacred Sites, 38 claims: 19 well-attested, 12 holds, 7 general references.Deities, 24 claims: 14 well-attested, 3 holds, 7 general references.Open Questions, 17 claims: 13 well-attested, 2 connected, 2 general references.Organizations, 17 claims: 11 well-attested, 4 holds, 2 general references.Holidays & Festivals, 14 claims: 6 holds, 8 general references.Scriptures & Texts, 13 claims: 8 well-attested, 3 holds, 2 general references.Subcategories, 12 claims: 7 well-attested, 5 general references.Sources, 8 claims: 8 well-attested.Religious Offices, 7 claims: 5 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.Beliefs & Restrictions, 6 claims: 3 well-attested, 2 holds, 1 general references.Mantras, 6 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 holds, 3 general references.Pilgrimage Routes, 5 claims: 5 general references.Hymns & Liturgical Texts, 4 claims: 4 general references.Plants, 4 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.Prayers, 4 claims: 2 well-attested, 2 general references.Religious Organization & Structure, 4 claims: 4 general references.Historical Figures, 3 claims: 2 scholarly debate, 1 general references.Categories, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.Religious Symbols, 2 claims: 1 holds, 1 general references.Denominations, 1 claims: 1 general references.Well-attested863ArticlesA Chain of Teachers, and a Chain of RulersA City Where New Religions Take RootA Cloak Over Whatever You Are WearingA Coronation in Addis Ababa and the Faith It Started in JamaicaA Court Office That Became a Global Video Game FranchiseA Crossing Point, a Seminary, and a Desegregation OrderA Hymnal Built to Hold That Much DifferenceA Merger of Two Traditions Built on Not Requiring AgreementA Messenger Shared Across Three TraditionsA Modest Local Title That Became a Political LabelA Patient Job: The Quranic Ayyub and His Biblical CounterpartA Philosophy More Than a ChurchA Religious Authority Created by DecreeA Rival to Timbuktu's BooksA State, Not a CostumeA Word of Honour with Many UsesAbstaining from FleshAfterlivesAn Answer to One QuestionCalculating the MomentCasting OutChinese Ethical-Religious TraditionChinese philosophical-religious traditionComparing Religious Roles Across TraditionsCoptic Cairo and the Geniza StoreroomCovenant, Torah and CommandmentDharmic traditions of one GodDharmic traditions with many godsDharmic Traditions Without a Creator GodDissent, Resettlement and a Plural CityDuty with a Number AttachedElection By The Community WorldwideEsoteric and Occult TraditionsEthnoreligious monotheismFolk polytheismsFrom a Rooftop Voice to a Recorded BroadcastFrom a Scholar's Robe to Everyday WearFrom Alms to InstitutionsFrom the Buddha's Alms Bowl to the Western TableGratitude and Ingratitude at the Scale of NationsGratitude, and What It Is the Opposite OfHarlem, and What Arrived After 1965Historical PolytheismsHospitality as a Pillar of PashtunwaliHow Many, and Why Nobody KnowsHow the Rabbis Remade ItIsa, the Incarnate Word, and the Traditions That Divide Over HimJonah's City, and the Shrine on the MoundLeft-Hand-Path TraditionsLength, the Ankle, and the National CutsShowing 1 to 50 of 455 entities carrying this claim. NextScholarly debate3Historical FiguresBasavaReligious Roles & TitlesSaintOpen question1ReligionsDeismHolds150ArticlesThree Folk Saints the Catholic Church Has Never RecognizedBeliefs & RestrictionsThe Pig Is Impure and Forbidden as FoodCitiesAjmerAleppoDjenneEdessaGaoGomorrahMandalayMazar-i-SharifNazarethQufuSamarkandThessalonicaVeniceYangonDeitiesDragon KingSanta MuerteThe NavagrahaDoctrinesProphecyHolidays & FestivalsDas Lakshana ParvaDay of ArafahIslamic New YearLag BaOmerLaylat al-Bara'ahTu B'AvMantrasTakbirOrganizationsCouncil of Senior ScholarsEuropean Council for Fatwa and ResearchPlantsThe Betel VinePracticesBlessingConsecrationOrdinationSermonSpiritual DirectionThe Quaker Sense of the MeetingTheosis (the Pursuit of Deification)RegionsGlobal (Cross-Cultural)ReligionsBahá’í FaithBuddhismChristianityConfucianismIslamJainismJudaismLatter Day Saint MovementSikhismTaoismThe SabiansZoroastrianismShowing 1 to 50 of 92 entities carrying this claim. NextConnected8ArticlesFrom a Scholar's Robe to Everyday WearOne Word, Many European TailorsTwentieth Century Quranist Movements and Their ReceptionCitiesDjenneOpen QuestionsHow many people today hold deist views, whether or not they use the label, and can a philosophical position without an organised membership be reliably counted at all?Is sainthood a usable cross-cultural category, or does it import Latin Christian assumptions into traditions that do not share them?PracticesSermonGeneral References441ArticlesA Coronation in Addis Ababa and the Faith It Started in JamaicaA Rival to Timbuktu's BooksComparing Religious Roles Across TraditionsFrom a Scholar's Robe to Everyday WearOne Ground, Held Sacred by Three FaithsOne Word, Many European TailorsQuranism's Rejection of Scholarly Consensus as a Source of LawStudying Sacred Objects From OutsideSuccession and Authority: How Religious Offices Are FilledThe Comparative Study of PrayerThe Study of Islamic Legal Schools: History and MethodThree Folk Saints the Catholic Church Has Never RecognizedTwentieth Century Quranist Movements and Their ReceptionWhat a City Page CoversWhat a Doctrine Is and How the Atlas Groups ItWhat a Passage IsWhat a Scripture Portion IsBeliefs & RestrictionsThe Pig Is Impure and Forbidden as FoodCategoriesDenominationsCitiesAbomeyAcreAjmerAleppoAmmanAmsterdamAntiochAntwerpAnyangAssisiBabylonBangkokBaselBasraBeijingBethlehemBostonCaesareaCairoChang'anChicagoCologneCordobaCorinthCuscoDamascusDelhiDjenneDurhamDwarkaEdessaShowing 1 to 50 of 441 entities carrying this claim. NextComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearThe atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.Show This Year