This guide authored by Adrienne Seeley, MPAL Graduate Assistant, Spring 2015.

Updated by Katherine Ramsey, MPAL Graduate Assistant, Spring 2017.

Updated by Thom Jencks, MPAL, Graduate Assistant, Fall 2018.

Welcome to the MPAL Sacred Music and Hymnology Guide! What exactly is hymnology, you ask? Hymnology is a field of musicology that systematically studies the history and use of hymns. While most religious traditions have a corpus of sacred music or congregational song, the realm of scholarship known as "hymnology" evolved primarily in Great Britain, Western Europe, and America, and thus has typically focused on Judeo-Christian traditions.

This LibGuide will acquaint you with basic resources for research; places to look for more in-depth information such as journals and archives; and some of the many web resources available for scholars and performers interested in sacred music. Look for further libguides on global traditions of sacred music to come in the future!