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English 110 - Davis - Culture and Immigration: Keywords

This guide provides search strategies and recommended resources for research in English 110 with Cynthia Davis.

Search Keywords

Keywords are the words you type into a search box to search for information on your topic. The words you use to describe your topic may be different from the words used in the library catalog (OneSearch) and library databases. For example, another way to describe teenagers might be adolescents.

Watch the video below for a short tutorial on keywords, including some good strategies for combining them effectively. If you have trouble finding information on your topic, ask a librarian for help choosing successful keywords.

Keywords Related to Immigration

Try some of the search terms below to find information about immigration waves.

Tip: "Immigration" refers to people arriving in a new country, while "emigration" refers to people leaving their country. 

  • Immigration
  • Immigrants
  • Immigration United States
  • Emigration
  • Emigration [Spain]
  • Emigration [Iran]
  • Emigration [India]
  • [Chinese] Americans
  • [Mexican] Americans
  • [Irish] Americans
  • Ellis Island Immigration Station (New York)
  • Angel Island Immigration Station (San Francisco)

A note about dates: while we might think in terms of centuries (the 1800s, the 20th century, etc.) or decades (the 1950s, the 2010s, etc.), historians often use terms related to historical events or eras. For example, they might refer to the early 1950s as the Postwar Era, or the 1960s as the Cold War Era. A Librarian can help you find the best terms to use for the time period you're researching.