Provides information on 500 cultures of the world, covering twenty different areas of daily life including clothing, food, language, and religion. "These volumes will explain how Rwandans, Mayans, and Uzbeks live; and characteristics of Hmong Americans, Choctaws, Iroquois, and Ojibwas are described. The articles are written by over 150 contributors and are divided into four geographically arranged volumes: Africa, the Americas, Asia and Oceania, and Europe. Instead of covering nation-states like its sister set, the Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations, this work focuses on the traditions, living conditions, food, language, religions, and recreation of over 500 of the world's major culture groups. Entries emphasize how people live today. The articles on a particular culture group follow a 20-heading outline and include a bibliography. Each volume contains a cumulative general index and a glossary of terms. This major new work is a must for ail types of libraries".--"Outstanding Reference Sources : the 1999 Selection of New Titles", American Libraries, May 1999. Comp. by the Reference Sources Committee, RUSA, ALA.