An encyclopedia (also spelled encyclopaedia or encyclopædia) is a comprehensive written compendium that holds information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge. Encyclopedias are divided into articles with one article on each subject covered. The articles on subjects in an encyclopedia are usually accessed alphabetically by article name and can be contained in one volume or many volumes, depending on the amount...
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An encyclopedia (also spelled encyclopaedia or encyclopædia) is a comprehensive written compendium that holds information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge. Encyclopedias are divided into articles with one article on each subject covered. The articles on subjects in an encyclopedia are usually accessed alphabetically by article name and can be contained in one volume or many volumes, depending on the amount of material included. Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia.
The word "encyclopaedia" comes from the Classical Greek "ἐγκύκλιος παιδεία", transliterated "enkyklios paideia"; "enkyklios" meaning "cyclical, periodic, or ordinary", and "paideia" meaning "education". Together, the phrase literally translates as a "[well-]rounded education", meaning "general knowledge". Copyists of Latin manuscripts took this phrase to be a single Greek word, "enkuklopaedia", with the same meaning, and this spurious Greek word became the New Latin word ...
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