A
compendium (plural: compendia) is a concise compilation of a body of
knowledge. A compendium may summarize a larger work. In most cases the body of knowledge will concern a specific field of human interest or endeavour (for example:
hydrogeology,
logology,
ichthyology,
phytosociology or
myrmecology), while a general
encyclopedia can be referred to as a
compendium of all human knowledge.