Entries in a Dictionary Catalogue
In a Dictionary Catalogue we normally provide.
- Main Entries (under the author or title; if the author is not known; authorship is diffused; or if the item is produced under editorial direction that item will be entered under the heading for the title of the book)
- Collaborator Added Entries (for persons or institutions, or organizations or societies, etc., associated with the creation of the work).
- Subject Added Entries (for the subject or subjects dealt with in. the document).
- Title Added Entries (for title of the work and also for alternate title if there is one). Sometimes added entry is also provided for a sub-title of the work if there is a sub-title and it is so distinct that an added entry for it may be helpful.
In addition to these types of entries 'Reference Entries' and 'Analytical Entries' are also provided in a Dictionary Catalogue. Particularly Reference Entries are very useful. Though we say that in a Dictionary Catalogue we give the Main Entry under the author we may find it difficult to decide the heading or entry element for the Main Entry.
For example, instead of a single person writing a book, two, three or sometimes several persons may jointly write a book. Or, the book may be a collection of works of different persons. Short, stories or essays or poetry of different persons may be published together in the form of what are known as anthologies.
How to give the Main Entry in such cases may be a problem.
An organisation, institution, a government body, a society, an association or similar others is known as a corporate body. Such corporate bodies bring out publications. In such cases again we are confronted with the problem of giving the Main Entry. The choice of the access point for the Heading Section in an entry (either main or added entry) is known as 'Choice of Heading'. The particular catalogue code that we follow in our library will give us the prescription for the above questions. It also tells us what to do in doubtful cases. For example; the second part of AACR-2 offers the guidelines for choice of the headings in the form of rules. Usually a catalogue code envisages the problem of choice of heading and provides the answers. Block 3 of this course tells you more about all these issues and their solutions.
Once we make the main entry under the name of a person or corporate body as per the guidance given by the catalogue code, we must also provide additional entries for the other possible headings. Only then the catalogue can help a user. Similarly, added entries are provided for persons or bodies associated with the creation of the work.