Keywords are words or phrases that can appear anywhere in the item (citation data or full text of a book or an article). Keyword searching is how you typically search web search engines and it is a good start to find relevant subject headings in databases.
Subject headings are formally assigned, standardized set of terms (also called descriptors) within a database to identify the primary topics of a book or an article.
Here are some examples of subject headings that can be used when searching for books on Islam in Southwestern's library catalog or in other library catalogs via WorldCat. Use the filters on the left hand side of the search results page to further refine results.
| Islam | Islamic Studies |
| Islam--History | Muhammad,—Prophet,—-632 |
| Islamic Empire—History | Islam and Politics |
| Islam and State | Muslims |
Some of the many books on Christianity available in the Southwestern University Library:
Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim world
Encyclopedia of Islam in the United States
New Encyclopedia of Islam by 
