Comparative Politics: Cultures & Political Background
Why Cultural Information?
Understanding a nation's culture and political background is essential for researching in comparative politics. The resources on this page are places where you can find good background information about a nation's political system, political history, political parties, cultures, and more.
Reference Books
Cultural & Minority Information
- World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous PeopleThis resource comes from Minority Rights Group International.
Non-US Data Sources
- OECD iLibraryProvides full text access to books, journals, and statistical databases produced by Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) online library.
- World Health OrganizationFind publications, reports, data, and statistics compiled and written by the World Health Organization.
- Population Reference BureauProvides international data on population, health, and the environment.
- International Statistical Programs - Census BureauList of links from the U.S. Census Bureau to international statistical agencies and websites.
Country Profiles
- EIU Viewpoint (Economist Intelligence Unit)Reports on country commerce, country finance, and doing business in various countries. Now called EIU Viewpoint
- Country StudiesDetailed studies of countries with a focus on economic conditions, geography, government & politics, history, national security, society, & transportation & telecommunications. Compiled by the US Library of Congress.
- Europa World and/or the Regional Surveys of the WorldCovers political and economic information about countries and territories, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.
- BBC Country ProfilesProfiles the history, politics, media, economic conditions, & statistical data for nations.
- CIA World FactbookProvides information from the US Central Intelligence Agency on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities.
- Background NotesInformation on economic conditions, geography, government & political conditions, history, people, & U.S. relations for all nations. Compiled by the U.S. Department of State.
- Foreign Information by CountryInformation and links organized by country.
- Nations of the World - Library of CongressAn annotated guide to sources of information on government and law. Includes selected links to useful and reliable sites for legal information for different nations.