Early English Language Cataloguing Codes

British Museum Rules

• The first major English-language cataloguing code was that developed by Sir Anthony Panizzi for the British Museum catalogue. Panizzi’s 91 rules were approved by the British Museum in 1839, and published in 1841[1].
• The British Museum rules were revised up until 1936.
• The library departments of the British Museum became part of the new British Library in 1973.

Cutter’s Rules for a Dictionary Catalog

• The first edition of Charles Ammi Cutter’s Rules for a Dictionary Catalog was published in 1876 [2].
• Cutter’s rules set out the first principles of cataloguing, and included a statement of the objectives of the catalogue.
• The code covered rules for dictionary catalogues including both entry (for authors, titles, subjects, and form headings), and description.

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Anglo-American Code

Developments in the United States

• The American Library Association (ALA) cataloguing rules “Condensed Rules for an Author & Title Catalog” were first published in the Library Journal in 1883 [3].
• In 1900 ALA appointed a committee led by J.C.M. Hanson of the Library of Congress to revise these rules. Of particular focus was agreement of the ALA rules and the rules of the Library of Congress due to the upcoming introduction of Library of Congress printed cataloguing cards.
• In 1902 an advance edition of the revised ALA rules was produced by the Library of Congress.
• Efforts were made to bring about uniformity between the ALA rules and the fourth edition of Cutter’s rules (published in 1904).

Developments in the United Kingdom

• In 1893 the “Cataloguing Rules” of the Library Association (LA) were published [4].
• In 1902 a Committee was formed to revise these rules, and in its work drew heavily on the British Museum rules, and the advance edition of the revised ALA rules.
• A draft revision of the LA rules was discussed at the 1904 meeting of the Library Association.

Co-operation

• In light of the similar work being done on both sides of the Atlantic, Melvil Dewey suggested that there should be co-operation to produce an Anglo-American code. The American Library Association and the Library Association formally agreed to co-operate in 1904. Consultation between the two bodies occurred by correspondence.
• The first international cataloguing code was published in 1908 in an American edition (Catalog Rules, Author and Title Entries [5]) and a British edition (Cataloguing Rules, Author and Title Entries [6])
• Both editions contained 174 rules covering both entry and heading for authors and titles, and description.
• Areas of disagreement between the two editions centred on authors and publications that changed names or titles.
• In both editions disagreements were explained either in a note or by printing two versions of the rule. Library of Congress supplementary rules were also included where necessary.

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A.L.A. Cataloging Rules

1941 edition

• In the 1930s committees of American Library Association and the Library Association discussed revision of the 1908 rules. The two bodies co-operated until 1939 when the Second World War ended British involvement.
• A preliminary second edition of the American edition of the 1908 rules was published by the American Library Association in 1941, and contained 324 rules in two parts: Part I, Entry and Heading; Part II, Description of book; as well as various appendices, including one on “authority cards.” [7].

1949 edition

• The 1941 edition was criticised for being too detailed and complex, and in 1949 A.L.A. Cataloging Rules for Author and Title Entries was published [8]. This edition contained only rules for entry and heading.
• American alternative rules in the 1908 code were reflected in the 1949 code.

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Rules for Descriptive Cataloging in the Library of Congress

• As the 1949 ALA code did not contain rules for descriptive cataloguing, the Library of Congress took responsibility for documenting rules of this nature. As Library of Congress catalogue cards were widely used by American libraries, there was interest in the rules used by the Library of Congress.
• Rules for Descriptive Cataloging in the Library of Congress was published in 1949, and the rules were adopted by the American Library Association [9]. Included were rules for separately published monographs, serials, and some non-book materials.
• Supplementary rules were subsequently issued for additional non-book formats.

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Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules

AACR 1967

• In 1951 the American Library Association asked Seymour Lubetzky, of the Library of Congress, to analyse the 1949 ALA code. An approach was also made to the Library Association regarding co-ordination of revision of the 1949 code.
• In 1953 Lubetzky’s report (Cataloging Rules and Principles [10]) was published. This work advocated a move towards a principle-based rather than case-based code.
• In 1956 Lubetzky was appointed editor of the revised code, and in 1960 he produced the draft Code of Cataloging Rules; Author and Title Entry [11].
• The International Conference on Cataloguing Principles was held in Paris in 1961 to examine the choice and form of headings in author/title catalogues. The outcome was a statement of 12 principles known as the Paris Principles [12].
• In 1962 C. Sumner Spalding, of the Library of Congress, became the new editor of the code.
• The American Library Association and Library Association co-operated by exchanging minutes and working papers, and attending each other’s meetings. In addition, the Library of Congress assisted with revision of the descriptive cataloguing rules, and the Canadian Library Association was involved in reviewing drafts of the rules.
• In 1967 two versions of the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR) were published, a North American text [13] and a British text [14].
• Both texts of AACR contained three parts:

  Part I, Entry and Heading
  – Based on the Paris Principles, the 1949 ALA rules, and Lubetzky’s 1960 draft.
  
  Part II, Description
  – Consisted of revised rules from the 1949 Library of Congress rules.
  
  Part III, Non-book materials
  – Contained rules for both entry and description of non-book materials.
  – Consisted of revised rules from the 1949 Library of Congress rules, and supplementary Library of Congress rules.

• Each text contained an appendix listing rules for entry and heading that differed in the other version.
• In 1966 there was a “memorandum of agreement” for continued revision of AACR between ALA and LA. In light of their earlier involvement, the Library of Congress and the Canadian Library Association were also formally represented in the revision process.
• Amendments and changes from 1969-1975 were published for the North American text in the Library of Congress Cataloging Service and for the British text in the Library Association Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules Amendment Bulletin.

ISBD and AACR Revisions

• At the International Meeting of Cataloguing Experts in Copenhagen in 1969, a program of International Standard Bibliographic Description (ISBD) was developed. The objective was to identify components in a bibliographic description, their preferred order, and the necessary punctuation.
• The first ISBD standard to be produced was that for Monographs (ISBD(M)) in 1971 [15].
• AACR chapter 6 was revised in line with ISBD(M), and published in two versions in 1974 [16, 17]. The revised chapter contained rules for printed monographs and reproductions of printed monographs (including microform reproductions).
• Other ISBDs were developed, leading to the publication by the American Library Association of revisions to AACR chapter 12 (AV and Special Instructional Materials) [18], and AACR chapter 14 (Sound Recordings) [19].
• In 1975 work began on developing a general framework, known as ISBD(G) [20].

AACR2 1978

• In 1974 the Joint Steering Committee for the Revision of AACR (JSC) was established, with membership from the American Library Association, the British Library, the Canadian Library Association (represented by the Canadian Committee on Cataloguing), the Library Association, and the Library of Congress.
• The JSC was charged with incorporating the North American and British texts into a single version. The JSC appointed two editors for the revised code, Michael Gorman of the British Library, and Paul W. Winkler of the Library of Congress.
• The Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, Second edition (AACR2) was published in one version in 1978 [21].
• AACR2 was divided into two parts:

  Part I, Description
  – Based on the ISBD(G) framework.
  – Included a general chapter (chapter 1), and chapters for individual formats, including new chapters for machine-readable data files (chapter 9) and three-dimensional artefacts and realia (chapter 10).
  – The rules for non-book materials were based on alternative codes that were published in the 1970s.

  Part II, Entry and Heading
  – Rules were brought more closely into line with the Paris Principles.

• AACR2 was adopted by the Library of Congress, the National Library of Canada, the British Library, and the Australian National Library in January 1981.
• In 1981 an abridged version, the Concise AACR2 was published [22].
• Revisions to AACR2 were adopted in 1982, 1983 (published 1984), and 1985 (published 1986).
• A draft revision of AACR2 chapter 9 (renamed: Computer Files) was published in 1987 [23].
• From 1981 an Australian Committee on Cataloguing (ACOC) representative was sent to JSC meetings, and from 1986 ACOC became a full JSC member.

1988 Revision

• The 1988 Revision of AACR2 incorporated the 1982, 1983, and 1985 revisions plus subsequent unpublished revisions [24].
• The 1988 Revision was published in both book and loose-leaf format.
• One set of amendments was published in 1993.

1998 Revision

• The 1998 Revision of AACR2 incorporated the 1993 amendments, and revisions approved between 1992 and 1996 [25].
• The 1998 Revision was published in book and CDROM format.
• Amendments packages were published in 1999 and 2001. The 2001 amendments included a complete revision of chapter 9 (renamed: Electronic Resources).

2002 Revision

• The 2002 Revision of AACR2 incorporated the 1999 and 2001 amendments, and changes approved in 2001, including complete revisions of chapter 3 (Cartographic Materials) and chapter 12 (renamed: Continuing Resources) [26].
• The revision of chapter 12 arose from a recommendation of the International Conference on the Principles and Future Development of AACR, and IFLA-led efforts to harmonize ISBD(CR), ISSN practice, and AACR2.
• In 2002 AACR was published only in loose-leaf format.

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Notes

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