A succinct data structure is a representation of a combinatorial object that requires space close to the logarithm of the number of such objects of the given size and permits the expected query (and perhaps update) operations to be performed quickly. Examples of such structures include representations of tree in about 2n bits supporting most navigation operations in constant time. We will introduce the general area, discussing representations of trees and other combinatorial objects. The presentation will cover a mix of "older" and new results.