Searching the ATLA Religion Database Knox Theological Seminary Darcy Gullacher, Reference Librarian

Goals of this brief tutorial Introduce the ATLA Religion Database and the ATLA Serials Project Show Basic Searching Techniques Using Boolean Operators Show how to read the citation and access Full Text articles

What is the ATLA Religion Database? Comprehensive Index of Journal Articles, Essays, and Book Reviews in Religion Records go back to 1949 Currently Indexes over 600 journals in over 36 languages Over 1.2 million records

What is the ATLA Serials Project? Project designed to give access to scanned, full text copies of journal articles. Currently there are about 90,000 articles available Linked to the ATLA Database

Boolean Operators When searching for information, Boolean Operators are used to broaden or narrow a search The terms “and” and “or” are used to link search terms together

“And” Will only give results where both the terms are in the record I.e “Barth” and “Christology”

“Or” Will give results when either one of the terms is in the record I.e. “Barth” or “Christology”

Let’s Try an Example! Let’s say you need to find articles on…

Luther and His Thought on Communion

Get into the ATLA Database Go to the University of Alberta’s Website at Click on “Databases” Type “ATLA” in the search box –Note: If you are off campus you will need your computing ID and password Click on the ATLA link and… You should be in!

Blank Search Screen (in Basic Search Mode)

Entering Terms (Remember to think of other terms for communion, such as eucharist and Lord’s Supper) Enter terms here

Results List

Narrow By Adding Luther, Martin (note: you get less results)

Narrow to Full Text Only (Note: Click on Search Options First)

Full Text Results

Full Citation Record Click here for full text

Full Text

Where is More Information? “A Guide to the ATLA Religion Database” pdf PowerPoint Tutorial

Contact Information Darcy Gullacher Reference Librarian Phone: (780)