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Table of Contents

Guidelines on Subject Thesauri

General Guidelines

The subject vocabularies indicated here are intended for use as a supplement to, not in lieu of, the Library of Congress Subject headings. The vocabularies are designed to provide additional access points relevant to specific communities, cultural identities, and areas of practice. 

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A comprehensive list of codes can be found at the Library of Congress' Subject Headings and Term Source Codes page.

The Homosaurus

Vocabulary NameMaintained by‡2 codeList of TermsBackground Information
The HomosaurusThe Homosaurus Editorial Board‡2 homoitHomosaurus VocabularyHomosaurus: About

The Homosaurus is a specialized vocabulary for describing LGBTQIA+ materials in libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions. The Homosaurus vocabulary uses the current language of the LGBTQIA+ community, and is congruent with best practices for its description. It also includes a number of historical LGBTQIA+ terms with instructions on the subjects and periods to which these terms can be applied. It includes both narrower terms and more culturally-appropriate terms than are available in the Library of Congress Subject Headings. 

Example: Supplementing an LCSH term with a more culturally-appropriate term from the Homosaurus

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Note: If LCSH and the Homosaurus use identical terms to express the same concept, such as Bears (Gay culture), use the LCSH term in a 650 _0 field. If the terms are similar but not exactly identical, use cataloger's judgment to determine if adding a Homosaurus term is necessary.

Subject Headings for Chinese rare books

Vocabulary NameRomanized title‡2 codeList of TermsApplication
中國古籍善本書總目分類表Zhongguo gu ji shan ben shu zong mu fen lei biao ‡2 skChinese language vocabulary (rare materials)pre-1795 publications
中國古籍總目Zhongguo gu ji zong mu ‡2 skbbChinese language vocabulary (rare materials)

post-1795 publications

The bibliographic description of Chinese rare books requires the addition of more detailed, specialized Chinese subject headings to be integrated with the application of more general Library of Congress subject headings. The two resources above are used exclusively for Chinese subjects of rare materials, and are added with  parallel fields in vernacular and in Romanized form. Ex.:

650_7 ‡a Zi bu x Zhu jia lei x Jidu jiao zhi shu 2 skbb

650_7 ‡a 子部  ‡x 諸家類  ‡x 基督教之屬  ‡2 skbb

and

650_7 ‡a Zi bu  ‡x Tian wen suan fa lei  ‡x Li fa.  ‡2 sk

650_7 ‡a 子部x 天文算法類x 曆法.2 sk

The second indicator of MARC field 650 must be 7, paired with subfield 2 with the appropriate vocabulary's approved code. Both vocabularies can be applied together.

Guidelines on Form and Genre Thesauri

Assign Form/Genre terms according to cataloger judgment and/or project guidelines. The policy attempts to establish uniformity in the description of similar materials, while also accommodating description of the broad range of rare materials held in PUL’s collection. Catalogers’ application of form/genre terms should take into consideration the research needs/interests of PUL Special Collections users: curatorial and public services staff, faculty, students and other researchers.

CaMS professional catalogers should apply MARC 655 form/genre terms from the thesauri indicated, in order of preference, in the table below. 

Table of Form/Genre Thesauri

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Name of Thesaurus

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Source Code

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Chronological Subdivision

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Geographic Subdivision

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Website

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RBMS Controlled Vocabulary for Rare Materials Cataloging

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rbmscv

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Do not subdivide

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Do not subdivide

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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LC Genre/Form Terms

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lcgft

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Do not subdivide, as per LC policy

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Do not subdivide, as per LC policy

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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Art & Architecture Thesaurus

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aat

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Subdivide item-specific terms by century, if known

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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Thesaurus for Graphic Materials II: Genre and Physical Characteristic Terms (TGM II)

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gmgpc

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

Indicators and Source Codes

When applying thesauri terms from the list above, catalogers should add the source code of the specific thesaurus, using MARC format 655 _7 ‡2 [source code]. For example,

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Item-Specific Terms

Form terms used to describe aspects of materials that are specific to the item (copy) at hand, such as inscriptions, presentation autographs, or bespoke bindings, should be coded ‡5 NjP at the end of the 655 field.  For example: 

  • 655_7 ‡a Presentation inscriptions ‡2 rbmscv ‡5 NjP

Form terms that refer to aspects of the broader manifestation (issue or edition, in bibliographic terms), such as printed paper wrappers in an edition or a publisher's edition binding, should not be coded as ‡5, since these are not unique to the item at hand.

Subdivisions for Item-Specific Terms

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  • Getty AAT [See FAQ]
  • Thesaurus for Geographic Materials II (GMGPC) [See Subdivisions]

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  • 655 _7 a ... z United States y 20th century. 2 aat ‡5 NjP

Retired Vocabulary Sets (Do Not Use)

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titleClick to see legacy practices

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Organization

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Name of Thesaurus

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Source Code

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Parenthetical Qualifier

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Chronological Subdivision

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Geographic Subdivision

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Website

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RBMS

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Genre Terms

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rbgenr

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[none]

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Do not subdivide

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Do not subdivide

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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RBMS

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Binding Terms

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rbbin

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(Binding)

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Subdivide item-specific terms by century, if known

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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RBMS

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Paper Terms

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rbpap

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(Paper)

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Subdivide Item-specific terms by century, if known

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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RBMS

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Printing & Publishing Evidence

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rbpri
rbpub

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(Printing)
(Publishing)

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Subdivide item-specific terms by century, if known

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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RBMS

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Provenance Evidence

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rbprov

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(Provenance)

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Subdivide item-specific terms by century, if known

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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RBMS

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Type Evidence

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rbtyp

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(Type evidence)

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Subdivide item-specific terms by century, if known

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Subdivide item-specific terms by country, if known

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Introduction

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Thesaurus

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PUL

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Local terms

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Do not use; update legacy terms if possible

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Do not use

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Do not use

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Do not use

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Consult above vocabularies for controlled headings

1) RBMS thesauri

RBMS Controlled Vocabularies, previously comprising six distinct thesauri, have been integrated into the RBMS Controlled Vocabulary for Rare Materials Cataloging.

2) PUL Local Terms

Previously, a select number of Local Form/Genre terms were developed by Special Collections curators and catalogers, for application to specific subsets of material. As their application and MARC encoding has been sporadic, the use of local terms by PUL cataloging staff has been discontinued. 

  • Please do not add local genre/form terms when creating or updating catalog records.

You may encounter legacy local terms in our catalog such as "655 _7 $a Photographs, Original. $2 local" If so:

  • Replace the local term with an equivalent term from a preferred controlled vocabulary. For instance, "Photographs, Original" is equivalent to "655 _7 $a Photographs. $2 lcgft"
  • Leave the term as-is if no alternative can be found.

Appendix

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