The Cataloguing Department

The Cataloguing department makes records of the bibliographic data for all resources, data that individualize the monographic documents of the library.
Cataloguing is a branch of the library science that establishes the rules for the creation of the necessary instruments to find the publications in the collections of the library.
The process of elaboration of the bibliographic descriptions of the documents and their order is accomplished according to certain standard principles.

Cataloguing considers the following:

  • the bibliographic description of the document on some well-established rules and norms;
  • the establishing of the specific elements that ensure the catalogue entry records (authorized access points and non-controlled access points, location);
  • the establishing of the identification elements of the documents using the specific means required by the automation process (codes)

The specific cataloguing activities are the following:

  • write the bibliographic descriptions of library documents according to the updated norms;
  • identify and apply the standard cataloguing rules;
  • continuous research for complementary bibliographic information regarding the document;
  • identify, choose and establish the access points of the resources and check if they are according to the bibliographic information in the database;
  • create and fill in the authority records;
  • continuous control of the quality and coherence of the library database;
  • counselling and cooperation activity in the process of cataloguing with other departments or sub libraries
  • permanent updating of the cataloguing standards according to the used softwares.

The main item of the automated cataloguing activity is represented by the online catalogue (the database of the library). The electronic catalogue, in comparison with the traditional one, makes it easier to find the information, as there are many keys/research criteria and the possibility to combine them.

The library database includes bibliographic information about all the categories of documents held by the library. The functions that create and organize the catalogue are fully undertaken by the software used to create and update the central database of the system.

The cataloguing description is made in the UNIMARC format, using the integrated library system Aleph, 20th version, which includes a web interface for the public allowing the access on the Internet or through the library web page. The library online catalogue is a network which brings together the current and retrospective bibliographic records from all the resources in the central library and the branch ones. The online catalogue (since 2008) also makes it possible the visualizing of the digital bibliographic description from the library traditional catalogue (representing the library funds until 1995).

The history of the cataloguing rules

The cataloguing rules have undertaken a constant process of revising and updating, from the first norms established by Sir Anthony Panizzi (1839) or Charles Ami Cutter (1876) up to the present, when they employed the ISBD norms – 2007 edition according to the Universal MARC format – the 3rd/2008 edition and according to the International.

Cataloguing Principles (2009), based on the FRBR conceptual model. Regardless the type of document they address, the ISBD norms treat only the body of the description that is divided into eight areas. It establishes the order of the compulsory or optional bibliographic elements belonging to each area and it designates a system of specific punctuation.

The Universal MARC Format is conceived according to the ISO 2709 standard and its main purpose is to facilitate the international exchange of the bibliographic data. The first Universal MARC Format textbook was printed in 1987 and it reached the 3rd edition in August 2008

Each area and subarea of ISBD corresponds to a MARC field (for an area) and several subfields (for the subareas) and they form a template (the format file in which there are written the fields and subfields) in the cataloguing program.

The purpose of the International Cataloguing Principles is to make possible a coherent approach of descriptive cataloguing and subject cataloguing of the bibliographic resources of all types. The new principles contain the rules that should be included in the international cataloguing guides as well as recommendations on the retrieval possibilities.

The content of the record (bibliographic description):

  • the bibliographic description of the publication (including the elements that individualize the material, according to the established rules (ISBD): title, title information, statements of responsibility, publication, series, notes, ISBN
  • the access points (indicating the place of the record in the catalogue). The elements which settle the entrance in the catalogue are the controlled (authorized) access points and the supplementary access points (the second, the third and the fourth cataloguer, the secondary responsibilities, variants to the title of the work or of the collection, and so on)

In the database (the online catalogue), the access points are common, they do not depend on the typology of the catalogues (alphabetical or systematic, as in the case of the traditional catalogues, on cards).

  • the location, another access element in the catalogue represents the position of the publication in the library depository (the place of the publication on the library shelves).

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The professional resources

  • Standards:

UNIMARC bibliographic
UNIMARC bibliographic (varianta franceză)
UNIMARC authorities
ISBD
The IFLA cataloguing principles
The RDA cataloguing norms
FRBR
FRANAR
FRBR (pt. doc. vechi)
Names of persons
ISO 3166 (cod de ţări)
ISO 631 (cod de limbi)
List_of_ISO_639-2_codes
List_of_ISO_639-3_codes
List_of_ISO_639-5_codes

  • ASRO - The Association of Standardization from Romania

SR ISO 639-1: 2009 English version - Code for the representation of language names. Part 1: Alpha Code-2: This part of ISO 639 offers a code for the representation of language, made of the elements of the language which include two-letter identifiers.
SR ISO 630-2: 2009 English version - Code for the representation of language names. Part 2: Alpha code-3: This part of ISO 639 offers two sets of alphabetical codes of three letters for the representation of the language, a set of terminology and another one for bibliographic applications.
SR ISO 639-2:2009 English version - Code for the representation of language names. Part 2: Alpha code-3: This part of ISO 639 offers two sets of alphabetical codes of three letters, a set of applications for terminology and another one for bibliographic applications.
SR ISO 639-3:2009 English variant - Code for the representation of language names. Part 3: Alpha Code-3 for a wide cover of languages: This part of ISO 639 offers a code published by the Authority of records for ISO 639-3, for the representation of the language name, a code made of the elements of the language code which includes three-letter identifiers.
SR ISO 639-5:2009 English variant - Code for the representation of language names. Part 5: Alpha code-3 for language families or groups: This part of ISO 639 offers a code for the representation of language families and groups, dead or still in use, a code made of the elements of the language code which includes three-letter identifiers. The language created exclusively for machines, for example the programming languages for the computers are not included in this code.
SR ISO 9: 1997 - Information and documentation. The transliteration of Cyrillic letters into Latin letters. Slavonic and non-Slavonic languages: The standard establishes a system of transliteration into Latin letters of the Cyrillic letters.
SR ISO 233-2: 1996 - Information and documentation. The transliteration of Arab letters into the Latin ones. Part 2: Arab language. Simplified transliteration: the standard establishes the principles required for the conversion of two writing systems and the transliteration tables for the Arab letters in a simplified version.
SR ISO 259-2:1996 - Information and documentation. The transliteration of Hebrew into Latin. Part 2: Simple transliteration: the standard establishes a simple standard of transliteration of the Hebrew letters into Latin
STAS 5309/5-87 - Conversion of non-Latin writing. Transcript of Chinese letters
STAS 5309/2-78 - Transliteration of the Latin alphabet. Transliteration of Greek letters
STAS 5309/3-87 - Conversion of non-Latin writing. Transliteration of Arab letters into Latin letters
SR ISO 690-2:2001 - Information and documentation. Bibliographic references. Part 2: Complete electronic documents or parts of documents: The standard presents the elements which should be mentioned in the bibliographic references for electronic documents. It establishes an obligatory order for the elements of the references and prescribes the rules for the transliteration and presentation of the information coming from the source as electronic document
SR ISO 832:1996 - Information and documentation: Description and bibliographic references. Rules for the abbreviation of the bibliographic terms: The Standard establishes rules for the abbreviation of words and word combination in descriptions and bibliographic references in the languages which use the Latin
STAS 8256-82 - Information and documentation. Shortening of the typical Romanian and foreign expressions in bibliographic references
STAS 8301-81 - Information and documentation. Terminology.
STAS 8636-70 - Information and documentation. Order of the authors, titles and indexes in the alphabetical catalogue
STAS 12629/7-89 - Bibliographic description of documents. Audio-visual materials
Bibliographic description of documents. Old monographic publications
STAS 12629/1-88 - Bibliographic description of documents. General scheme
STAS 12629/2-88 - Bibliographic description of documents. Current monographic documents
STAS 12629/5-88 - Bibliographic description of documents. Publications of printed music
STAS 12629/6-88 - Bibliographic description of documents. Cartographic materials
STAS 12629/3-88 - Bibliographic description of documents. Serial publications

  • The collective catalogues:

BIBSYS - The Collective Catalogue of Norwegian Libraries, in English
BiBSYS - The Collective Catalogue of Norwegian Libraries
NUKAT - The Collective Catalogue of Polish Libraries, in Polish and English
SUDOC - Collective Catalogue of University Libraries in France
CCF - The Collective Catalogue of French Libraries 
Libris - The Collective Catalogue of Academic Libraries in Sweden, in English
Libris.ro
CCHAL - Collective Catalogue for Hellenic Academic Libraries
COPAC - The Collective catalogue of Academic, National and Specialized Libraries in UK and Ireland
WORLDCat
The European Library
KVK - Karlsruher Virtueller Katalog
Bibliotecas Virtuales
ICCU - Catalogo Unico delle Biblioteche Italiane
CHVK - Swiss Virtual Catalogue
UNESCO Libraries
The Collective Catalogue of Berlin-Branderburg Libraries (KOBV)
The Collective Catalogue of Libraries in seven German Federal Lands (GVK)
The Collective Catalogue of German Public Libraries (Verbundkatalog Öffentlicher Bibliotheken)

  • The library Catalogues

The National Catalogue of Austria
The Catalogue of the National Library of Australia
The Catalogue of the National Library of France
The Catalogue of the National Library of Holland
The Catalogue of the National Library of Poland
The Catalogue of the National Library of Portugal
The Catalogue of the National Library of Russia
The Catalogue of the National Library of Spain
The British Library Catalogue (British Library)
The Library of Congress Catalogue  (Library of Congress)
The Catalogue of the National Library of Germany  (DNB)

  • ssociations, federations:

International Federation of Library Association  (IFLA)
Association of European Research Libraries
Federation of European Publishers

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