Description
Book SynopsisLibrary of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) are increasingly seen as 'the' English language controlled vocabulary, despite their lack of a theoretical foundation, and their evident US bias. In mapping exercises between national subject heading lists, and in exercises in digital resource organization and management, LCSH are often chosen because of the lack of any other widely accepted English language standard for subject cataloguing. It is therefore important that the basic nature of LCSH, their advantages, and their limitations, are well understood both by LIS practitioners and those in the wider information community.
Information professionals who attended library school before 1995 - and many more recent library school graduates - are unlikely to have had a formal introduction to LCSH. Paraprofessionals who undertake cataloguing are similarly unlikely to have enjoyed an induction to the broad principles of LCSH. This is the first compact guide to LCSH written from a UK viewpoint.
Key topics include:
background and history of LCSH
subject heading lists
structure and display in LCSH
form of entry
application of LCSH
document analysis
main headings
topical, geographical and free-floating sub-divisions
building compound headings
name headings
headings for literature, art, music, history and law
LCSH in the online environment.
Readership: There is a strong emphasis throughout on worked examples and practical exercises in the application of the scheme, and a full glossary of terms is supplied. No prior knowledge or experience of subject cataloguing is assumed. This is an indispensable guide to LCSH for practitioners and students alike.
Trade Review"I would recommend this book to both new cataloguers and lone librarians who find themselves cataloguing with no formal training. I would also recommend it to anyone who feels that they could do with a fresh and fun reminder of the basics of subject headings."
-- CILIP Cataloguing and Indexing Group Newsletter
Table of Contents1. History and principles of LCSH 2. Subject heading lists and the problems of language 3. Format and display of LCSH 4. The choice and form of headings 5. Content analysis 6. Assigning main headings 7. Structured headings 8. Topical subdivisions 9. Geographic subdivisions 10. Free-floating subdivisions 11. More complex headings: combining the different types of subdivisions 12. Chronological headings and subdivisions 13. Name headings 14. Literature and the arts 15. Headings for music 16. Classification Web 17. LCSH in the online world 18. Bibliography.
