Overview

The Department of Distinctive Collections uses a number of controlled vocabularies to describe archival collections. For most topical subjects, use Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). To describe functions and topics specific to the Institute and other colleges and universities, use the Thesaurus for Use in College and University Archives (TUCUA). When describing forms and genres, the preferred vocabulary is the Getty Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT). The Virtual International Name Authority (VIAF) should be consulted for name forms. If a name form cannot be found in VIAF – Social Networks and Archival Context (SNAC), Wikidata, the Union List of Artist Names (ULAN) or the British Book Trade Index may be used.

Subjects

LCSH Syntax

Headings in LCSH are usually created by adding subdivisions to a main element. Section H 1075 of the Library of Congress Subject Headings Manual spells out the basic syntax that governs the four types of subdivisions in LCSH: topical, geographic, temporal, and form/genre. There are two basic patterns for combining headings with subdivisions: [Place]—[Topic] and [Topic]—[Place]. Most—but not all—topical terms may be subdivided by place. When in doubt, consult the printed LCSH list, which specifies whether a term may or may not be subdivided geographically (this information may also appear in the 06 position of an authority record’s MARC 008 field, but the printed list seems to be more reliable).

The pattern for [Place]—[Topic] headings is usually [Place]—[Topic]—[Temporal period]—[Form/Genre]. For example:

United States—Social conditions—1980—Juvenile literature

The pattern for [Topic]—[Place] headings is usually one of the following: [Topic]—[Place]—[Topic]—[Temporal period]—[Form/Genre] or else [Topic]—[Topic]—[Place]—[Temporal period]—[Form/Genre]. For example:

Education—United States—History—19th century—Periodicals

Tuberculosis—Patients—Massachusetts—History—20th century—Bibliography

These examples are provided only to illustrate proper LCSH syntax. As stated under “Local best practices,” below, actual collection-level headings should generally not be this complex. For example, United States—Social conditions, Education—United States, or Tuberculosis—Massachusetts would be appropriate headings by themselves.

The use of genre terms such as Periodicals and Bibliography is also addressed under “Local best practices.”

Guidelines for Description

The Subject Headings Manual provides the following general guidance (based on LC practice) for judging how many headings to include in a record. These are general guidelines that should be adapted to local requirements.

Assign to the work being cataloged one or more subject headings that best summarize the overall contents of the work and provide access to its most important topics. Assign headings only for topics that comprise at least 20% of the work. [. . .] The number of headings that are required varies with the work being cataloged. Sometimes one heading is sufficient. Generally a maximum of six is appropriate. In special situations more headings may be required. Do not assign more than ten headings to a work. (H 180)

In assigning subject headings, it is helpful to keep the following basic questions in mind:

Local Best Practices

The following list of local best practices addresses specific requirements for adding or creating subject headings in ArchivesSpace.

1.   Keep subject headings to two subdivisions or fewer whenever possible. 

For our archival records, the degree of specificity that LCSH allows for is usually not necessary—in fact, it may even be a hindrance to discovery and retrieval. For our purposes, a “lite” approach to LCSH seems preferable, using it more as a set of keywords than as a system for synthesizing complex pre coordinate headings. At the same time, it is still important to follow LCSH guidelines in order to ensure internal consistency and interoperability with other institutions.

2.   Keep genre/form headings separate from subject headings.

The Encoded Archival Description (EAD) contains a separate <genreform> element to identify “the types of material being described, by naming the style or technique of their intellectual content (genre); order of information or object function (form); and physical characteristics.”

Form/genre terms should be assigned as standalone headings using an appropriate controlled vocabulary or thesaurus. The current default thesaurus to be used for form/genre terms is the Art and Architecture Thesaurus (AAT). However, when necessary, terms may also be drawn from other thesauri, including the Thesaurus for Graphic Materials (TGM) or the Genre Terms Thesaurus of the ALA Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS).

For example, for a collection containing letters from Emily L. Wick, the personal name heading Emily L. Wick— as established in the Library of Congress Name Authority File—should be entered by itself. It should not be followed by the LCSH subdivision —Correspondence. Instead, the genre term Correspondence, taken from AAT, should be entered as a standalone heading.

However, for photographic or general image collections representing a particular place (for example, Cambridge (Mass.) or Massachusetts Institute of Technology), a heading with the LCSH subdivision —Pictorial works should be assigned. Specific form/genre terms should also be added to reflect the different types of materials in the collection (e.g., Photographs, Aerial photographs, Slides, Postcards).

3.   The creator of a collection should also be added as a subject.

Add the creator of a collection as a name heading (agent), unless they only served as a compiler.

4.   Avoid temporal subdivisions unless they are vital to discovery.

Temporal subdivisions may be used to describe specific events such as wars, conflicts, or revolutions:  United States—History—Civil War, 1861-1865—Sources

Temporal subdivisions may be used to facilitate research on particular historical events or political periods in the US. For example:

United States—Politics and government—1969-1974

United States—Economic conditions—1918-1945

5.   Avoid using the subdivision —History by itself.

It can usually be assumed that archival collections contain material that has historical value or interest. Instead of assigning subject headings of the form [Main heading]—History, look for other subdivisions that will provide a more specific description of a collection’s content. See the list of topical subdivisions, below, for some commonly used terms.

In LCSH syntax, temporal subdivisions usually cannot follow a main heading directly (except for certain cases such as those involving art and literature). When a collection focuses on a particular historical period or event, the —History subdivision may be used to link a main heading to a temporal subdivision. For archival material, headings with —History should be followed by the subdivision —Sources.

For example:  Cambridge (Mass.)—History—Sources. The subdivision —Sources is needed when the materials being described are primary (archival) sources. Without the —Sources subdivision, headings with —History would apply only to works of history or historiography (secondary sources). Please note, this is the only time we recommend the use of —History.

6.   Avoid adding temporal subdivisions for centuries.

For example, use United States—Social conditions rather than United States—Social conditions—20th century. 

7.   Avoid using broad geographic headings by themselves.

Headings for places at or above the country level should be subdivided by topic. For example, United States or North America should not be used as stand-alone headings. See section on Geographic Headings.

8.   Make sure all subject headings are relevant to the broad themes of the collection.

Subject Guides

• Genre/Form Terms — Use Genre/Form terms to indicate types of materials that are predominant within collections. These subjects are generally indicated at the collection or series level. All collections containing digital materials should have a genre/form term applied indicating the type of material.
• Geographic Headings
• Name Authorities — Name authorities (agent records in ArchivesSpace) uniquely identify persons, families, corporate entities, or software that have a specified relationship to archival materials. Agent records can be used to show relationships among agents and to record variant name forms for an agent.
• Commonly Used Topical Headings
• Commonly Used Subdivisions