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[[Image:HK Wan Chai Library Inside Bookcase a.jpg|thumb|A library book shelf in Hong Kong arranged using the Dewey classification]]
A '''library classification''' is a system used within a [[library]] to organize materials, including books, sound and video recordings, electronic materials, etc., both on shelves and in catalogs and indexes. Each item is typically assigned a call number, which identifies the ___location of the item within the system. Materials can be
== Description ==
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After the [[Printing press#The Printing Revolution|printing revolution]] in the sixteenth century, the increase in available printed materials made such broad classification unworkable, and more granular classifications for library materials had to be developed in the nineteenth century.<ref name=shera>{{cite book|last1=Shera|first1=Jesse H|title=Libraries and the organization of knowledge|url=https://archive.org/details/librariesorganiz00sher|url-access=registration|date=1965|publisher=Archon Books|___location=Hamden, Conn.}}</ref>
In 1627 [[Gabriel Naudé]] published a book called ''Advice on Establishing a Library''. At the time, he was working in the private library of
Although libraries created order within their collections from as early as the fifth century BC,<ref name=shera /> the Paris Bookseller's classification, developed in 1842 by [[Jacques Charles Brunet]], is generally seen as the first of the modern book classifications. Brunet provided five major classes: theology, jurisprudence, sciences and arts, belles-lettres, and history.<ref name=sayers>{{cite book|last1=Sayers|first1=Berwick|title=An introduction to library classification|date=1918|publisher=H. W. Wilson|___location=New York}}</ref> Classification can now be seen as a provider of subject access to information in a networked environment.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Matveyeva|first=Susan|date=2002-06-14|title=A Role for Classification: The Organization of Resources on the Internet|journal=MLA Forum|volume=1|issue=2}}</ref>
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There are many standard systems of library classification in use, and many more have been proposed over the years. However, in general, classification systems can be divided into three types depending on how they are used:
; Universal schemes: Covers all subjects, e.g. the [[Dewey Decimal Classification]] (DDC), [[Universal Decimal Classification]] (UDC
; Specific classification schemes: Covers particular subjects or types of materials, e.g. [[Iconclass]] (art), [[British Catalogue of Music Classification]], and [[Dickinson classification]] (music), or the [[NLM Classification]] (medicine).
; National schemes: Specially created for certain countries, e.g. [[Swedish library classification system]], SAB (Sveriges Allmänna Biblioteksförening). The [[Library of Congress Classification]] was designed around the collection of the US [[Library of Congress]] and has an American, European, and Christian bias. Nevertheless, it is used widely in large academic and research libraries.
In terms of functionality, classification systems are often described as:
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* [[Dewey Decimal Classification]] (DDC)
* [[Library of Congress Classification]] (LCC)
* [[Colon classification]] (CC)▼
* [[Universal Decimal Classification]] (UDC)
Other systems include:
* [[BISAC Subject Headings|Book Industry Standards and Communications]] (BISAC), originally developed for use by U.S. booksellers, has become increasingly popular in libraries.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Martínez-Ávila |first=Daniel |date=2016 |title=BISAC: Book Industry Standards and Communications |url=https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/index.php?doi=10.5771/0943-7444-2016-8-655 |journal=Knowledge Organization |volume=43 |issue=8 |pages=655–662 |doi=10.5771/0943-7444-2016-8-655 |issn=0943-7444|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
* [[Harvard-Yenching Classification]], an English classification system for Chinese language materials▼
* [[Garside classification]] used in most libraries of [[University College London]]<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/subject-support/garside-classification-scheme | title=Garside classification scheme | Library Services - UCL – University College London| date=8 August 2018}}</ref>▼
* [[Bliss bibliographic classification]] used in some British libraries
▲* [[Colon classification]] (CC)
*Gladstone Library Classification, devised by [[William Ewart Gladstone|W.E. Gladstone]] and used exclusively at [[Gladstone's Library]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Gladstone Foundation Collection|url=https://www.gladstoneslibrary.org/reading-rooms/the-collections/special-collections/gladstone-foundation-collection|access-date=2022-01-18|website=Gladstone's Library|language=en-GB}}</ref>▼
▲* [[Garside classification]] used in most libraries of [[University College London]]<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/subject-support/garside-classification-scheme | title=Garside classification scheme | Library Services - UCL – University College London| date=8 August 2018}}</ref>
▲* Gladstone Library Classification, devised by [[William Ewart Gladstone|W.E. Gladstone]] and used exclusively at [[Gladstone's Library]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Gladstone Foundation Collection|url=https://www.gladstoneslibrary.org/reading-rooms/the-collections/special-collections/gladstone-foundation-collection|access-date=2022-01-18|website=Gladstone's Library|language=en-GB}}</ref>
▲* [[Harvard-Yenching Classification]], an English classification system for Chinese language materials
===Non-English universal classification systems===
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Newer classification systems tend to use the principle of synthesis (combining codes from different lists to represent the different attributes of a work) heavily, which is comparatively lacking in LC or DDC.
==Practice==
Library classification is associated with library (descriptive) cataloging under the rubric of ''cataloging and classification'', sometimes grouped together as ''technical services''. The library professional who engages in the process of cataloging and classifying library materials is called a ''cataloger'' or ''catalog librarian''. Library classification systems are one of the two tools used to facilitate [[subject access]]. The other consists of alphabetical indexing languages such as Thesauri and Subject Headings systems.
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Some classification systems are more suitable for aiding subject access, rather than for shelf ___location. For example, [[Universal Decimal Classification]], which uses a complicated notation of pluses and colons, is more difficult to use for the purpose of shelf arrangement but is more expressive compared to DDC in terms of showing relationships between subjects. Similarly [[faceted classification]] schemes are more difficult to use for shelf arrangement, unless the user has knowledge of the citation order.
Depending on the size of the library collection, some libraries might use classification systems solely for one purpose or the other. In extreme cases, a public library with a small collection might just use a classification system for ___location of resources but might not use a complicated subject classification system. Instead all resources might just be put into a couple of wide classes (travel, crime, magazines etc.). This is known as a "mark and park" classification method, more formally called "reader interest classification".<ref>Lynch, Sarah N., and Eugene Mulero. [https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/14/us/14dewey.html "Dewey? At This Library With a Very Different Outlook, They Don't"] ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 14, 2007.</ref>
==Comparing library classification systems ==
{{See also|Comparison of Dewey and Library of Congress subject classification}}
As a result of differences in notation, history, use of enumeration, hierarchy, and facets, classification systems can differ in the following ways:
* Type of Notation: Notation can be pure (consisting of only numerals, for example) or mixed (consisting of letters and numerals, or letters, numerals, and other symbols).
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{{reflist}}
==
{{commons category|Library cataloging and classification|Library classification}}
{{Libraries and library science}}
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