DISCUSSION PAPER NO. 108

DATE: May 1, 1998
REVISED:

NAME: Recording language of heading in USMARC Authority records

SOURCE: Library of Congress

SUMMARY: This paper discusses the possible addition of a subfield for language of heading to Authority records, indicating possible uses and problems, along with techniques.

KEYWORDS: Language of heading (AD)

RELATED: DP100 (June 1997)

STATUS/COMMENTS:

5/6/98 - Forwarded to USMARC Advisory Group for discussion at the June 1997 MARBI meetings.

6/29/98 - Results of USMARC Advisory Group discussion - Concern was expressed about situations where there are multiple languages in headings, as was illustrated by several examples, and about marking language rather than cataloging/thesaurus rules. Because headings are established and live in an environment set by the cataloging or thesaurus rules used to formulate the heading, the linked record approach used by the Canadians and others is a good method (Model B) in multilingual situations. While marking can be interpreted as being needed to distinguish a language, it is probably more accurately described as being needed to distinguish a thesaurus, with the thesaurus having a base language. NLC authority file can be viewed as an english-based thesaurus and a French-based thesaurus, with many records appropriate for either and so indicated at the record level.

It was noted taht the IFLA Working Group referred to in section 1 is now moving away form the all-in-one record concept and to linked-but-separate authority files. They are still concerned about marking language, however, perhaps partly as a substitute for marking thesaurus.

Yet some databases that have served multiple language groups have used language markers to assist in displays and for validation needs. These users have a need to identify certain language forms, even while working in a single cataloging rule environment. A system vendor and major network indicated the need for markers for work multilngual with multilingual subject thesauri.


DISCUSSION PAPER NO.108: Language of heading in Authority records

1 INTRODUCTION

The USMARC Authority record is multifaceted and flexible, accommodating agencies that require records for established headings, subdivisions of headings, references, and node labels. It supports various models for creating authority records, but in particular the general model of established heading with associated reference tracings. There has been discussion over the last few years about the need to identify various characteristics of headings and references in authority records in order to support cataloging and retrieval activities. The characteristics include language of catalog, language of heading, script, transliteration scheme, nationality, and rules. DP 100 in June 1997 explored all these characteristics, noting that MARC already supports recording of this information in some situations, and suggesting ways that data not recorded now might be included. This DP discusses only language of heading for the authority record.

An IFLA Working Group on Authority data elements feel that adding language of heading to records would result in reduced cost of cataloging, since authority records could be shared and better understood by the receiving agency. They see field level information on language of heading as especially important.

1.1 DP 100 Discussion

The following is a summary of the part of the discussion of DP 100 concerning language of heading:

Several saw uses for language of heading, when one agency is trying to serve different language groups from one record. Some saw that as an application problem and not a communications format concern. Others felt the difficulty in making a determination of which language, increasing cataloging expense. One participant reported that a European project to provide access to authority records from different countries considered combining all records for an entity into a master record, identifying languages, etc. They decided to take a more decentralized approach, leaving records in their "own environments" and providing access to records in those environments. That is a little more like Model B (see next section), except that the records are not necessarily linked.

1.2 Record Models

Two basic models for authority records are illustrated in Appendix A, labeled Model A and Model B. Model A takes the approach of including a heading and all related and variant reference tracings in one record, regardless of language differences. In Model B separate records are made for parallel headings needed for different language catalogs, and the records are linked via the 7XX fields.

1.3 Notes

Although the discussion applies equally to subject thesauri, to simplify it is presented in terms of name authorities, with a note on subjects and classification schedules at the end.

Diacritics and special characters have been normalized to ASCII in the following examples.

2 DISCUSSION

2.1 Language of heading

Appendix A discusses language in terms of language of catalog, rather than identifying the actual language or languages found in the heading field. The two may differ because of rules that prescribe use of the original language for certain headings without regard to the language of catalog. The language of the catalog, not the heading, establishes the foundation for the accompanying reference structure.

The language of the heading is not currently being specified in USMARC. In 1985, LC's Office of Descriptive Cataloging Policy tried to formulate guidelines for coding the language of heading positions that then existed in the 008 field, but abandoned the task with the following comment:

At the time of the development of the format, even though this code was finally included, we wondered about its utility, particularly in view of non-uniform application. In formulating the guidelines, we find the initial pessimism reinforced. Given the difficulties with ambiguous cases that are bound to arise, no matter the guidelines, we cannot recommend an application of the code to anyone.
As a result the 008 positions were made obsolete in the format in 1986. Some of the problems stem from the fact that many headings are mixed language as the following examples from an English catalog illustrate, and many others are either not language based, or language of heading is ambiguous. Examples:

     Ludovicus IV, Emperor of Germany, 1287-1347
              [Latin and English]
     Deutsche Bibliothek (Frankfurt am Main, Germany)
              [German and English]
     Siege d'Orleans (Mystery play)   [French and English]
     Nabokov, Vladimir  [English or Russian?]
The significant information about these headings is the language of the catalog into which they fit, not the languages that are used in their formulation.

But difficulties aside, some librarians believe that it may be useful to also indicate at the heading level the language(s) of a heading. A repeating subfield $7 could be used to indicate the languages used to formulate each heading. The following section looks at the examples used in Appendix A, making them for language of heading and looking at possible decisions that would need to be made concerning application.

2.2 Language of Heading under Model A

Ex.1     
    040 $beng
    100  10$aMarx, Karl,$d1818-1883$7eng$7ger
    400  10$aMarukusu,$d1818-1883$7jpn
    400  10$aMarx, Carlos,$d1818-1883$7spa
    400  10$aMarks, Karl,$d1818-1883$7rus
    400  10$aMarks, Karol,$d1818-1883$7pol
    400  10$aMarksas, Karolis$d1818-1883$7lit
    400  10$aMac, Cac$d1818-1883$7vie
Personal names may be difficult to mark for language in many cases, although the example shows there could be uses for having some headings marked. A catalog that did not need extensive cross references could programmatically eliminate from records those in languages it did not need (or eliminate them from displays). The field 100 heading has used the repeating $7 to indicate that the name is the same in English and in German. The headings below use the repeating $7 to indicate the mix of languages in a heading. Which use is needed?

Ex.2 
    040 $beng
    110  2#$aNational Library of Canada$7eng
    410  20$aBibliotheque nationale du Canada$7fre

Ex.3 
    040 $beng
    110  2#$aDeutsche Bucherei (Germany)$7ger$7eng
    410  20$aGermany (East).$bDeutsche Bucherei$7ger$7eng
    410  20$aGermany (East).$bGerman National Library$7eng
    410  20$aLeipzig.$bDeutsche Bucherei$7ger$7eng
    410  20$aGerman National Library$7eng
    410  20$aBibliotheque allemande (Germany)$7fre$7eng
    410  20$aNemetskaia biblioteka (Germany)$7rus$7eng
In Examples 3, 4, and 5, fields use the repeating $7 to indicate the various languages found in the heading. Is this useful (see also annotation under Ex.1) or should the language of the "core" part of the heading only be indicated? Is there a recognizable "core" part (see Ex.4)?

Ex.4 
    040 $beng
    110  10$aSoviet Union.$bPosolstvo (Egypt).$bMaktab
           al-sihafal$7eng$7rus$7ara
    410  10$aRussia (1923-  U.S.S.R.).$bPosolstvo (Egypt).
           $bMaktab al-sihafal.$7eng$7rus$7ara
An option for multiple language headings would be to code subfield $7 as mul (Multiple). If a "core" part approach were used would the core be the second (last) subfield $b, so the 4XX would be coded:

    410  10$aRussia (1923-  U.S.S.R.).$bPosolstvo (Egypt).
           $bMaktab al-sihafal.$7ara

Ex.5
    040 $beng
    151  ##$aMoscow (Russia)$7eng
    451  ##$aMoskva (Russia)$7eng
    451  ##$aMoscou (Russia)$7fre$7eng
    451  ##$aMoskau (Russia)$7ger$7eng
    451  ##$aMoscova (Russia)$7lit$7eng
    451  ##$aMo-ssu-k'o (Russia)$7chi$7eng
It should be noted that if designation of language of heading is adopted for a file, then all headings would need to be indicated in some way. An option might be to call the language of catalog (040 $b) the default language of heading and omit subfield $7 unless multiple languages apply to a heading. If a heading was not in the default language, but its language is unknown, it would need to be marked $7und (Undetermined) or else it would be interpreted as the default language. The above example might then be coded (changing the 4th reference to undetermined):

    040 $beng
    151  ##$aMoscow (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoskva (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoscou (Russia)$7fre$7eng
    451  ##$aMoskau (Russia)$7ger$7eng
    451  ##$aMoscova (Russia)$7und
    451  ##$aMo-ssu-k'o (Russia)$7chi$7eng

Ex.6     
    040 $beng
    151  ##$aGermany$7eng
    451  ##$aDeutschland$7ger
    451  ##$aFederal Republic of Germany$7eng
    451  ##$aBundesrepublik Deutschland$7ger
    451  ##$aGermanyah$7heb
2.3 Language of Heading under Model B

Model B records would similarly use $7 in heading fields to indicate language of heading.

2.4 Subject Headings Subject headings would have many of the same characteristics as names. Some are in a non-English language but intended for an English language catalog (e.g., Singspiele, Ojo de Dios (Talisman), and Commedia dell'arte). Some are transliterations (e.g., Haiku, Waka, and al-Jum'ah). With subjects there is the need to link different thesauri that are in the same language (e.g., LCSH and MESH) and in different languages (e.g., Canadian Subject Headings/LCSH, and Repertoire des vedettes-matiere).

2.5 Other Formats

At this time there is not a need to identify language at the field level for other formats, but the subfield $7 has only been used in the Linking entry fields and the 533 fields, so it could be defined for a generalized field level language marker if needed.

3 QUESTIONS


APPENDIX A: LANGUAGE OF CATALOG AND AUTHORITY RECORD MODELS

Two authority record models are presented below vis-a-vis, built around the language of catalog, as that is a fundamental characteristic of a file of authority records that constitutes a catalog (all headings interrelated), rather than a simple resource file (records essentially independent of each other).

Language of Catalog

The language(s) of the expected users of a catalog is fundamental to an authority file. Most rules for construction of catalogs specify the language(s) to be used for additions to headings and notes in the record. For example, AACR2, when used in an English-speaking country, specifies that uniform headings be established in the "original language" of the entity's name (transliterated as needed, and with some exceptions) and that qualifiers and notes be in English. The cross-reference structure for the uniform heading is affected by the rules and the languages used to formulate the heading. The following are the models used for constructing authority files.

Model A:

Each record is constructed around one heading for an entity (the 1XX uniform heading) and that heading is appropriate for a catalog in the language designated at the record level by the 040$b field. The 4XX and 5XX traced reference headings constitute the reference structure for the 1XX heading in that catalog.

All parallel forms of the 1XX heading in other languages are treated as variant headings and traced in the 4XX fields. Headings that would belong in a reference structure of a parallel form may also be among the 4XX variant headings.

Ex.1
    001  n79006935
    040 $beng
    100  1#$aMarx, Karl,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarukusu,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarx, Carlos,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarks, Karl,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarks, Karol,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarksas, Karolis$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMac, Cac$d1818-1883

Ex.2
    001  n83201056
    040 $beng
    100  1#$6880-01$aZemtsovskii, I. I.$q(Izalii Iosifovich)
    400  1#$6880-02$aZemtsovskii, Izalii Iosifovich
    400  1#$aZemtsovskiy, I.
    880  1#$6400-02$a<name in Cyrillic>
    880  1#$6100-01/cyrillic$a<name in Cyrillic with
           initials>$q(<qualifier in Cyrillic>)

Ex.3  
    001   n82020426
    040 $beng
    110  2#$aNational Library of Canada
    410  2#$aBibliotheque nationale du Canada

Ex.4
    001  n50057296
    040 $beng
    110  2#$aDeutsche Bucherei (Germany)
    410  2#$aGermany (East).$bDeutsche Bucherei
    410  2#$aGermany (East).$bGerman National Library
    410  2#$aLeipzig.$bDeutsche Bucherei
    410  2#$aGerman National Library
    410  2#$aBibliotheque allemande (Germany)
    410  2#$aNemetskaia biblioteka (Germany)

Ex.5    
    001  n80020373
    040 $beng
    110  1#$aSoviet Union.$bPosolstvo (Egypt).
           $bMaktab al-sihafal
    410  1#$aRussia (1923-  U.S.S.R.).$bPosolstvo (Egypt).
           $bMaktab al-sihafal.

Ex.6
    001  n79076156
    040 $beng
    151  ##$aMoscow (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoskva (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoscou (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoskau (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoscova (Russia)
    451  ##$aMo-ssu-k'o (Russia)

Ex.7
    040 $beng
    151  ##$aGermany
    451  ##$aDeutschland
    451  ##$aFederal Republic of Germany
    451  ##$aBundesrepublik Deutschland
    451  ##$aGermanyah
Model B:

Each record is constructed around one heading for an entity (1XX uniform heading) and that heading is appropriate for a catalog in the language designated at the record level by the 040$b field. The 4XX and 5XX traced headings constitute the reference structure for the 1XX heading in that catalog.

For specified languages, however, a cataloging agency constructs parallel records that contain parallel 1XX uniform headings that differ in language of the catalog into which they fit, e.g., English catalog and French catalog. (If the heading and its reference structure would be the same for the different language catalogs, then one record may serve, but that is an implementation decision. For the model there are parallel records.) These parallel uniform headings have separate authority entry records in which they are the 1XX heading and where their reference structures and other information are recorded in the 4XX and 5XX reference tracing and 6XX note fields.

The parallel language records may be linked through the 7XX record linking fields. In each authority entry record, the parallel 1XX headings (and their associated record numbers (subfield $0)) may be recorded in 7XX linking fields.

Ex.1
    040 $beng$bger [Note: one record for both catalogs)
    100  1#$aMarx, Karl,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarukusu,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarx, Carlos,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarks, Karl,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarks, Karol,$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMarksas, Karolis$d1818-1883
    400  1#$aMac, Cac$d1818-1883

Ex.2
    040 $beng
    110  2#$aNational Library of Canada
         <Tracings and notes for an English language catalog>
    710  25$aBibliotheque nationale du Canada

    040 $bfre
    110  2#$aBibliotheque nationale du Canada
         <Tracings and notes for a French language catalog>
    710  26$aNational Library of Canada

Ex.3
    040 $beng
    110  2#$aDeutsche Bucherei (Germany)
    410  2#$aGermany (East).$bDeutsche Bucherei
    410  2#$aGermany (East).$bGerman National Library
    410  2#$aGerman National Library
    410  2#$aBibliotheque allemande (Germany)
    410  2#$aNemetskaia biblioteka (Germany)
    710  24$aDeutsche Bucherei (Deutschland)

    040 $bger
    110  2#$aDeutsche Bucherei (Deutschland)
    410  2#$aLeipzig.$bDeutsche Bucherei
    410  2#$aDeutschland (Ost).$bDeutsche Bucherei
    410  2#$aBibliotheque allemande (Deutschland)
    410  2#$aNemetskaia biblioteka (Deutschland)
    710  20$aDeutsche Bucherei (Germany)

Ex.4
    040 $beng
    151  ##$aMoscow (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoskva (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoscou (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoskau (Russia)
    451  ##$aMoscova (Russia)
    451  ##$aMo-ssu-k'o (Russia)
    751  #4$aMoscou (Russie)

    040 $bfre
    151  ##$aMoscou (Russie)
    451  ##$aMoskva (Russie)
    451  ##$aMoscow (Russie)
    451  ##$aMoskau (Russie)
    451  ##$aMoscova (Russie)
    451  ##$aMo-ssu-k'o (Russie)
    751  #0$aMoscow (Russia)

Ex.5
    040 $beng
    151  ##$aGermany
    451  ##$aFederal Republic of Germany
    451  ##$aGermanyah
    751  #4$aDeutschland

    040 $bger
    151  ##$aDeutschland
    451  ##$aBundesrepublik Deutschland
    451  ##$aGermanyah
    751  #0$aGermany
Note that even when these parallel uniform headings are in a different script, in addition to being in a different language of catalog, the above models can be used.


APPENDIX B: VOCABULARY

The following standard vocabulary is used below. It is adapted from an IFLA document that specifies displays of name authority data, Guidelines of Authority and Reference Entries. The headings are defined with respect to their relationship to other headings:

Uniform heading -- A heading established in a form to be followed without variation whenever the heading appears in a bibliographic record. (e.g., 1XX heading)

Parallel heading -- An alternative form of the uniform heading based on another language form of the name or title. (e.g., some 4XX or 7XX headings)

Related heading -- One of two or more uniform headings, each of which is bibliographically related to the other(s). (e.g., 5XX heading)

Variant heading -- A heading in a form other than that established as the uniform heading. Generally such a heading is either based on a variant name sometimes used by the person or corporate body itself, or sometimes used by others to identify the person, corporate body, or work; or constructed on a pattern different from that used to establish the uniform heading. (e.g., 4XX and 7XX headings)


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