The Library of Congress >> Especially for Librarians and Archivists >> Standards

MARC Standards

HOME >> MARC Development >> Discussion Paper List


MARC DISCUSSION PAPER NO. 2021-DP09

DATE: May 27, 2021
REVISED:

NAME: Recording Record Equivalent Relationships in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format

SOURCE: Canadian Committee on Metadata Exchange; Library and Archives Canada; OCLC

SUMMARY: Library and Archives Canada creates equivalent English and French records for a resource when the manifestation contains expressions in more than one language for the same or different works. This paper explores options to allow the linkage between the paired equivalent records in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format.

KEYWORDS: Field 777 (BD); Issued with entry (BD); Field 787 (BD); Other relationship entry (BD); Language of cataloging (BD); Language of expression (BD); Equivalent description (BD); Collection aggregate (BD); Parallel aggregate (BD)

RELATED:

STATUS/COMMENTS:
05/27/21 – Made available to the MARC community for discussion.

06/29/21 – Results of MARC Advisory Committee discussion: Most MAC members strongly preferred a new MARC field 788 to record the equivalent relationships, but with an improved label for the field and additional clarity in the field definition and scope. Some suggested field 787, which was questioned by the ISSN Network due to the long history of usage of this field in continuing resource legacy description. In the WEMI context, it was clarified that RDA allowed more than one preferred title, which can all be valid in their respective language applications/preferences. Some MAC members expressed their interests in broadening the scope of this paper to support multilingual communities beyond Canada, and applying the technique for monolingual resources. The interested communities are encouraged to further explore options in future discussion papers. This paper will return as a proposal, pursuing new field 788.


Discussion Paper No. 2021-DP09: Recording Record Equivalent Relationships

1. BACKGROUND

English and French are the two official languages in Canada. Tête-bêche (or flip-flop) formats are common in Government of Canada analog publications, to serve English or French speaking Canadians with a single physical item. These publications are the aggregates of the same work issued simultaneously in two official language expressions. They often include two title pages, one in English, one in French, and are bound in a single unit with the pages in one language inverted relative to the other.  In addition to tête-bêche bilingual publications, aggregates of English and/or French, and/or other language expressions of more than one work can also be found in trade publications.

Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is a Canadian federal agency and subject to Canada’s Official Languages Act.  The legislation requires that all federal institutions "ensure respect for English and French as the official languages of Canada and ensure equality of status and equal rights and privileges as to their use … in communicating with or providing services to the public and in carrying out the work of federal institutions". As the national library, LAC has the mandate to "preserve the documentary heritage of Canada for the benefit of present and future generations", and to be "a source of enduring knowledge accessible to all, contributing to the cultural, social and economic advancement of Canada as a free and democratic society". To fulfill the requirement of the legislation, LAC has established the Bilingual cataloguing policy to create bilingual English and French records to serve users with different language profiles. In the case of tête-bêche bilingual publications, LAC creates paired English and French records for the same resource. Each record describes the whole document, but uses the title page corresponding to the language of cataloging as the basis for the description. Specifically,

Recording the relationships between records cataloged in different languages of cataloging for resources including expressions published simultaneously in two or more languages would benefit libraries serving multilingual users. It would also help libraries find records in one language or the other based on their language of cataloging.  In LAC's context, it would help us support Canadian libraries by providing original cataloging with clear relationship links for federal government publications.

The linking of paired equivalent records would also facilitate discovery and user requests.  Providing access for these tête-bêche and other bilingual aggregates poses a greater challenge because users are accessing the same physical item regardless of the language of description.  A MARC solution to link the equivalent relationships in bibliographic records and display an actionable link in the public interface will benefit not only LAC, but also Canadian federal agencies and bilingual cultural institutions.

2. DISCUSSION

MARC 21 supports the linking of bibliographic descriptions in the block of 76X-78X Linking entries in the Bibliographic format. It defines that

"Each of the linking entry fields specifies a different relationship between the target item described by the record and a related item. These relationships fall into three classes: 1) related items that assist the user in continuing to search but are not physically required to obtain the target item (e.g., former entries for continuing resources, translations of the target item); 2) related items that have to be obtained physically in order to use the target item (e.g., the host item for a component part: a journal issue containing a specific article); 3) related items that are constituent units of a larger whole (e.g., the individual photographs contained in a visual material collection)."

Traditionally, the MARC linking entry fields are used to link records in the same language of cataloging. The equivalent relationships are a stretch of these above conventions, but the linking of records cataloged in different languages is not strictly prohibited in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format. Due to our need to link the equivalent records, we examined the above linking entry block 76X-78X fields, and came up two options in the initial review: field 777 (Issued With Entry), and field 787 (Other Relationship Entry).

Field 787 (Other Relationship Entry) has a very broad scope as "Information concerning the work related to the target item when the relationship does not fit any of those defined in fields 760-785." It seems promising as an option to resolve our concern to link the equivalent records for bilingual or multilingual publications. However, the second indicator value "#" clearly specifies the linking entry for "related item", which makes it almost impossible to expand this field to link records describing the same resource. Field 787 is also heavily used in serials cataloging, and therefore a modification to this field could potentially bring unintended risks.

Field 777 (Issued With Entry) then became the only option left in the linking entry block 76X-78X to consider. As the reciprocal equivalent relationships are unique enough from other relationships, a new MARC field has become another option to explore. This paper will explore these two options to record the equivalent relationships in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format.

3. OPTIONS FOR ENCODING EQUIVALENT RELATIONSHIPS

3.1. OPTION 1: Broaden Field 777

Broaden the Field Definition and Scope in field 777 (Issued With Entry), to record the equivalent relationships, with a new second indicator value.

In the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format, field 777 (Issued With Entry), allows the linking of separately cataloged records when the publication "is issued with or included in the target item (horizontal relationship)." In LAC's context, these paired equivalent records are separately cataloged records in different language of cataloging for the same resource. To accommodate this use case, we suggest broadening the Field Definition and Scope, as follows (proposed changes in bold brackets):

FIELD DEFINITION AND SCOPE

Information concerning the publication that is separately cataloged but that is issued with or included in the target item (horizontal relationship). [Alternatively, this field may be used to link to a separate bibliographic record having a different language of cataloguing to describe the same bilingual (or multilingual) publication.]When a note is generated from this field, the introductory phrase Issued with:  [or Equivalent description:] may be generated based on [the second indicator] field tag for display.

This field is not used for bound with notes (field 501 (With Note)) that refer to local binding practices nor for component parts (analytical relationships).

[When this field is used for the alternative linking, the language of cataloging usually matches the language of publication in each linking record.]

To distinguish the differences between the "issued with" situations and the paired equivalent descriptions, we suggest a new value in the second indicator in field 777:

1st Indicator -- Note controller

0 - Display note
1 - Do not display note

2nd Indicator -- Display constant controller (proposed value in bold brackets)

#  - Issued with
[0 - Equivalent description]
8 - No display constant generated

3.2. OPTION 2: Define a New Field

Define a new MARC 21 field to record the equivalent relationships.

A new MARC field in this linking entry block could be another option to consider for the unique use case of equivalent relationships. Currently the following fields have been defined in the Linking entry fields block 76X-78X:

760       Main Series Entry (R)  
762       Subseries Entry (R)      
765       Original Language Entry (R)    
767       Translation Entry (R)  
770       Supplement/Special Issue Entry (R)   
772       Supplement Parent Entry (R) 
773       Host Item Entry (R)     
774       Constituent Unit Entry (R)       
775       Other Edition Entry (R)             
776       Additional Physical Form (R)  
777       Issued With Entry (R)
780       Preceding Entry (R)     
785       Succeeding Entry (R)  
786       Data Source Entry (R) 
787       Other Relationship Entry (R)

Among the available fields in this linking entry block, the following fields are not used and are available to record the equivalent relationships:

In 76X block: 761, 763, 764, 766, 768
In 77X block: 771, 778
In 78X block: 781, 782, 783, 784, 788

The equivalent relationships link records cataloged separately in different languages of cataloging for the same bilingual or multilingual resource. As discussed above, in tête-bêche publications, the two language expressions are bound together, and is close to the scope of field 777 (Issued with entry). When considering a new field to express the relationships, a good analogy would be a new field 778 next to the 777 field.

However, when considering the language of cataloging in the paired equivalent records, the equivalent relationships are not firmly within the traditional linking entry boundaries. It is thus logical to alternatively consider the last available field, 788, in this block to express the relationships.

We propose defining a new field in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format, as follows:

778 or 788 - Equivalent Description (R)

FIELD DEFINITION AND SCOPE
Information concerning an aggregate that embodies more than one language expression of a single work or multiple works that are separately cataloged to describe the same publication in different languages of cataloging. The language of cataloging usually matches the language of publication in each linking record. When a note is generated from this field, the introductory phrase Equivalent description: may be generated based on the field tag for display.

First Indicator - Note controller
      0 - Display note
      1 - Do not display note

Second Indicator - Display constant controller
      # - Equivalent description
      8 - No display constant generated

Subfield Codes

$a - Main entry heading (NR)
$b - Edition (NR)
$c - Qualifying information (NR)
$d - Place, publisher, and date of publication (NR)
$g - Related parts (R)
$h - Physical description (NR)
$i - Relationship information (R)
$k - Series data for related item (R)
$m - Material-specific details (NR)
$n - Note (R)
$o - Other item identifier (R)
$r - Report number (R)
$s - Uniform title (NR)
$t - Title (NR)
$u - Standard Technical Report Number (NR)
$w - Record control number (R)
$x - International Standard Serial Number (NR)
$y - CODEN designation (NR)
$z - International Standard Book Number (R)
$4 - Relationship (R)
$6 - Linkage (NR)
$7 - Control subfield (NR)
     /0 - Type of main entry heading
     /1 - Form of name
     /2 - Type of record
     /3 - Bibliographic level
$8 - Field link and sequence number (R)

4. EXAMPLES

The following records are taken from WorldCat to illustrate the two options to link the equivalent relationships in English and French records.

OPTION 1

English record:

001  on1083611777
003  OCoLC
010 $a ce2009703083
015 $a 2009703083XE $2 can
040 $a NLC $b eng $c NLC $d OCLCO $d OCLCF $d OCLCA $d OTZ $d OCLCO
041 0# $a eng $a fre
110 1# $a Canada. $b Industry Canada.
245 10 $a Achievement report. $p Implementation of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act...
246 15 $a État des réalisations. $p Mise en oeuvre de l'article 41 de la Loi sur les langues officielles
546 ## Text in English and French on inverted pages.
777 00 $a Canada. Industrie Canada. $t État des réalisations. Mise en oeuvre de l'article 41 de la Loi sur les langues officielles $x 1921-0868 $w (DLC)cf2009703083 $w (OCoLC)1083586022

Note: this example generates the display content "Equivalent description" based on the proposed second indicator value "0".

French record:

001  on1083586022
003  OCoLC
010 $a cf2009703083
015 $a 2009703083XF $2 can
040 $a NLC $b fre $c NLC $d OCLCO $d UQ1 $d OCLCA $d OCLCQ
041 0# $a fre $a eng
110 1# $a Canada. $b Industrie Canada.
245 10 $a État des réalisations. $p Mise en oeuvre de l'article 41 de la Loi sur les langues officielles.
246 15 $a Achievement report. $p Implementation of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act
546 ## $a Texte en français et en anglais disposé tête-bêche.
777 08 $i Notice équivalente anglaise $a Canada. Industry Canada. $t Achievement report. Implementation of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act $x 1921-0868 $w (DLC)ce2009703083 $w (OCoLC)1083611777

Note: this example specifies the equivalent relationship in the subfield $i.

OPTION 2

French record:

001  ocn957054515
003 OCoLC
010 $a cf2014703332
015 $a 20147033322F $2 can
040  ## $a NLC $b fre $e rda $c NLC $d OCLCQ $d NLC $d OCLCO $d OCLCQ $d OCLCA $d OCLCQ
041 0# $a fre $a eng
110 2# $a Gendarmerie royale du Canada. $b Direction générale des services d'arbitrage, $e auteur, $e organisme de publication.
222 #0 $a Annual report, management of the RCMP disciplinary regime
245 10 $a Rapport annuel, gestion du régime disciplinaire de la GRC.
246 15 $a Annual report, management of the RCMP disciplinary regime
546 ## $a Texte en français et en anglais disposé tête-bêche.
778 08 $i Notice équivalente anglaise $t Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Adjudicative Services Branch. $t Annual report, management of the RCMP disciplinary regime $x 2293-2240 $w (DLC)ce2014703332 $w (OCoLC)957054514

OR

788 08 $i Notice équivalente anglaise $t Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Adjudicative Services Branch. $t Annual report, management of the RCMP disciplinary regime $x 2293-2240 $w (DLC)ce2014703332 $w (OCoLC)957054514

English record:

001   ocn957054514
003 OCoLC
010 $a ce2014703332
015 $a 20147033322E $2 can
040 ## $a NLC $b eng $e rda $c NLC $d OCLCO $d OCLCQ $d OCLCA $d NLC $d OCLCQ $d OCLCF $d OCLCO $d OCLCQ
041 0# $a eng $a fre
110 2# $a Royal Canadian Mounted Police. $b Adjudicative Services Branch, $e author, $e issuing body.
222 #0 $a Annual report, management of the RCMP disciplinary regime
245 10 $a Annual report, management of the RCMP disciplinary regime.
246 15 $a Rapport annuel, gestion du régime disciplinaire de la GRC
546 ## $a Text in English and French on inverted pages.
778 08 $i French equivalent record $t Gendarmerie royale du Canada. Direction générale des services d'arbitrage. $t Rapport annuel, gestion du régime disciplinaire de la GRC $x 2293-2240 $w (DLC)cf2014703332 $w (OCoLC)957054515

OR

788 08 $i French equivalent record $t Gendarmerie royale du Canada. Direction générale des services d'arbitrage. $t Rapport annuel, gestion du régime disciplinaire de la GRC $x 2293-2240 $w (DLC)cf2014703332 $w (OCoLC)957054515

5. BIBFRAME DISCUSSION

The "issuedWith" property is quite generic in BIBFRAME 2.0. Unlike RDA, BIBFRAME has not provided an inverted element for “issuedWith”, though the reciprocal relationship exists in the broader element "accompanies" and its inverse "accompaniedBy".

BIBFRAME provides flexibility in the property of "relatedTo" to record relationships. The relationship in BIBFRAME could be determined in the proposal if a preference is chosen.

6. QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

6.1. Is the need to link equivalent relationships sufficiently demonstrated?

6.2. If yes to 6.1., which option is preferred: broaden the field 777 to include the use case of the equivalent relationships with a new second indicator value, or a new MARC linking entry field for the equivalent relationships?

6.3. If the preference is option 2, a new MARC linking entry field, which field is more appropriate to express the relationships: field 778 or field 788?

6.4. If the preference is option 2, a new MARC field, is the name of the field clear enough?

6.5. Is there another solution to meet the need to record the equivalent relationships?

6.6. Is there anything else that this paper needs to take into account?


HOME >> MARC Development >> Discussion Paper List

The Library of Congress >> Especially for Librarians and Archivists >> Standards
(10/22/2021)
Legal | External Link Disclaimer Contact Us