Others are original scholarship in their own right. While still others represent primary sources. Some entries are short, for identification purposes only. Others, of medium length, are intended to cover a topic more thoroughly yet succinctly. Overview entries treat a large topic in a general way and refer readers to specialized entries on particular aspects.
Specialized entries are of any length needed to cover the subject.
Entries of considerable length expound especially important topics. Volumes are bound in red library-grade cloth and stamped in gold on spine and front cover. Each volume contains a list of contributors to that volume with their institutional or other affiliations as appropriate. A list of entries and their authors, editors, or translators appears at the back of each volume. The Publisher Academic International Press was founded in 1964, a house specializing in Russian, Soviet, and East European affairs.