13 Isolates and auxiliaries: common and special isolates; standard subdivisions
Dr M P Satija
1.Library Classification:
2.Standard Subdivisions in DDC:
2.1.Urrent Situation:
2.2. Other tables:
3.Common Isolates in the CC:
3.1. Kinds of Common Isolates:
3.1.1.(ACIs):
3.1.2.Posterorising Common Isolates (PCIs)
3.2.Physical media
4. UDC: Common Auxiliary Tables
4.1.Tables 1a-1k:
4.1.1.Some Examples
4.2.Special Auxiliaries:
4.2.1.Zero Auxiliaries
4.2.2. Hyphen Auxiliaries:
4.2.3. Apostrophe Auxiliaries:
5.Library of Congress Classification (1904-2004+)
6.Bibliographic Classification, 2nd edition, 1977-
6.1.Details of its schedules:
6.2.Adding common subject subdivisions in the BC-2
7.Summary
8.Glossary
9.Bibliography and References
10.Test questions:
- Library Classification:
Knowledge,which is the predominant basis of library classifications, is an abstract entity. It cannot have any form by itself. It requires some physical medium for its capturing, dissemination, and preservation. A document which is a source of knowledge has always some physical form and some subtle form created by the author. According to Ranganthan(1974) a document is a trinity of Gross body+ Subtle body+Soul. Soul refers to its subject and the way it has been presented in the book. Subtle body refers to its Language and the view point of the author. Gross body refers to its media such as Book, Journal, CD, Microform, etc. Library classification deals with documents. It, in effect, deals with information as recorded in documents. Therefore, library classification has to take into full account the outer and inner attributes of these physical objects embodying knowledge. It maybe described by the following equation:
Library Classification = Knowledge Classification + Viewpoint of the presentation of the text + Physical attributes of the document = Subjects + Internal form + External form.
1.1. Documentary Forms:
As depicted in the equation,these documentary forms are both internal and external. For example, it may be expedient in a library to separate a microfilm, or a CD-ROM, from a book, though the specific subject of these three may precisely be the same. It is equally expedient to distinguish between a dictionary and a periodical of a subject; as well as the philosophical viewpoint from the historical one of the same subject. Form is a secondary feature. That is why in the UDC these are included in the auxiliary tables. If we classify by subject and then by form, we may note that the term ‘form’ covers different things. Outer form is the term which denotes dictionaries, essays, serials; it is a physical form or a mode of presentation that we can immediately recognize. Inner form, on the other hand, is a term used to denote forms such as Philosophy, History and Theory. Here the form, being closely interwoven with the subject of the book,is difficult to separate from it.“Outer form may thus be regarded as the literary shape in which a volume is presented; inner form is subjective, the method by which the subject is presented, or the viewpoint from which an author regards a subject in his text. Inner form restricts or helps to define subject content, but outer form does not”, writes Maltby (1975).
- Standard Subdivisions inDDC:
To account for such physicaland intangible attributes of the documents, Melvil Dewey (1851-1931) in the second edition (1885) of his scheme separated such non-subject forms of the documents and listed them in the beginning of each division. These tables could be added to class number, and always remained the same in name and notation. These were termed as Form divisions, as these mostly stood for the forms of the documents. In the second edition they were listed at the beginning of each of the 100 Divisions. In the succeeding editions of the DDC form divisions were expanded, and given once for all in a table at the beginning of the schedules. In the seventeenth edition (1965) these form divisions were renamed to “standard subdivisions”, as the recurring non-subject divisions listed there had obviously outgrown the form divisions. Now, these include some recurring viewpoints, and even facet indicators as they stand now. What started truly as “form divisions” have evolved (with the complexities and varieties of incoming documents) to an agglomeration of some complex but recurring concepts termed as standard subdivisions.
2.1. Current Situation:
The standard subdivisions as they stand today in the DDC23 (Volume 1, pp. 179-209) may broadly be categorized as under:Viewpoints such as philosophy, history, research; Physical (Bibliographic) forms of the document, such as serials, pictures, maps;Facetindicators such as 04,08 and 09to introduce a new facet.
The scope of the standard subdivisions has been widened so much that it is advisable to go through Table 1 (in volume 1) to know their scope and variety. Knowledge of their nature and scope will surely add to the efficiency of classifiers.
Rules for adding standard subdivisions to a class number have been provided in the Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification in Volume 1. Some brief instructions to apply them and the order of preference also precede the Table 1. Many instructions regarding standard subdivisions(ss) are found in the Manual included in the Introduction. Rules for adding an ss are summarised as follows:
- The standard subdivisions usually represent recurring non-primary aspects of the subject and the document.
- They start with 0 which acts as a facet indicator. In some cases, on instructions, a standard subdivision may require more than one 0 for adding to a class number.
- A standard subdivisions by itself has no meaning; it gets meaning when attached to the class number.
- A Standard subdivision is added to the ultimate schedule number of the document in question.
- Having reached the most specific class number, we do not necessarily need an invitation to add a standard subdivision fromthe Table.
- A standard subdivision is applicable to any class number, however broad or minute, unless they are disallowed.
- These are not applied mostly in two cases namely, when the subject has no unique place of its own but has been placed with some other subject as a guest. The other reason for not applying it is its redundancy.For example, Dictionary of English language does not require ss-03; History of India 954 will not require the ss-09 for obvious reasons.
- These may be further extended by any number from the schedules or tables.
-01 Theory and philosophy
-02 Miscellany
-03 Dictionaries, encyclopedia
-04 Facet indicator
-05 Serial publication/ Journals
-06 Institutions, Associations, etc.
-07 Study, teaching and research
-09 Historical and geographical treatment
-08 Collections
2.2. Other tables:
At present there are five more other auxiliary tables in the DDC. These mostly pertain to subject recurring aspects. These are:
| T2 | Geographical areas |
| T3 | Subdivisions applicable mostly to literature |
| T4 | Subdivisions applicable to linguistics |
| T5 | National and ethnic groups of people |
| T6 | Languages of the world |
The T2 and T5 are applicable throughout the schedules either on invitation or added with a facet indicator by the classifier, if needed. T6 is strictly applicable on instructions. These tables have increased the synthetic power of the DDC and made it more faceted.
- Common Isolates in the CC:
An isolate in the CC is a fundamental and ultimate unit of knowledge. By itself it cannot stand; so alone it cannot make a subject. Isolates enumerated specially and exclusively for a particular main class are termed Special Isolates. In contrast to these, isolates enumerated once for all and which remain the same for every main class are veritably termed as Common Isolates. It may be stated that the Common Isolates (CIs) represent mere auxiliaries, and are not part of the subject proper. They are recurring concepts and mostly pertain to the form of presentation, or the extra textual aspects of a document. Since they are listed once for all, their names and notational symbols remain the same wherever they occur. Of the common isolates Ranganathan maintains that they are attachable to most of the classes, though not all. They stand for divisions such as encyclopedia, dictionary, periodical, bibliography, biography, statistics or forms of presentation such as history, commission report and conference proceedings. Institutions,centres, research,and criticism are also Common Isolates. To arrange the subjects in a real Apupa pattern much depends upon these Common Isolates. These Common Isolates denote shades of subject intensity of the core of a document.Without Common Isolates there cannotbe anyApupa pattern. Not only this, with even one kind of Common Isolates, as in the case of DDC, there cannot be the real Apupa pattern.
3.1. Kinds of Common Isolates:
Ranganathan divided the Common Isolates into two categories and further sub-categories, which may be best represented diagrammatically. Broadly speaking they are of two kinds: 1. Anteriorising Common Isolates (ACIs) 2. Posteriorising Common Isolates (PCIs)
3.1.1. (ACIs):
When attached to a subject they give it an anterior position over other subjects of the same class. Their another feature is that they do not require any connecting symbol in the CC-6. Documents attached with AnteriorisingCommon Isolates (ACIs) form the approach documents on the shelves in the CC-6 they are of three kinds:
Some of the common isolates in the CC-6 are:
ACIs:
a Bibliography
k Encyclopedia
m Periodical
p Conference
v History
r Report
s Statistics
w Biography
3.1.2. Posterorising Common Isolates (PCIs).
These require a connecting symbol and are filed after the core documents:
Energy PCIs:
b2 Designing
f Research
g Critical Study
Personality PCIs
d Institutions
e Educational institutions
g Associations
It may be noted that in addition to the so called CIs there are common schedules of Space and Time Categories. Also there is a separate comprehensive schedule of Languages of the World (Chapter 5, CC-6) thatcan be used at various places.
3.2. Physical media
Form of the document is also a facet in his long formula for book number. These mostly represent the media of the document.Some forms of the document going with the Book Number as given in chapter 02 CC-6 are as:
b Index
d Data book
f Picture book
g Parody
p1 Lecture
q Code
w1 Verse
x Quotation
x4 Press Cutting
3.3. Criticism
Common Isolates as devised by Ranganathan help to specify every document but Ranganathan is bit presumptuous to think that all the (ACIs) form approach documents to the core subject. Nobody reads periodicals or conference reports before he/she has a sufficient basic knowledge of the subject. Therefore, these should have been placed in a posterior position.
- UDC: Common Auxiliary Tables
In the early days it is the auxiliaries which set apart the UDC from its mother the DDC. It is the auxiliaries, more than the wealth of details, that made the UDC the first truly bibliographic classification. Any number from the Main Tables, 0/9 can be extended by notation from auxiliary tables, which are of two types:
(i) Common auxiliaries: universally applicable to all classes; and (ii) Special auxiliaries: applicable restrictively or locally to a given class.
4.1. Tables 1a-1k:
More than 10,000 common auxiliaries are given in Tables 1a to 1k.
Concept Tables 1a and 1b : Addition, coordination Relations, + / : [] ::
Table 1c Languages =0/9
Table 1d Forms (0/09)
Table 1e Places (1/9)
Table 1f Race,Ethnicand Nationality (=…)
Table 1gTime “ ”
Table 1h Non-UDC numbers * and A/Z
Table 1kGeneral characteristics -0, Properties -02 Materials -03 Relations, Processes, – 04 Operations, etc. Persons and personal -05 characteristics
These auxiliaries can be added to a number of any specificity without any specific instruction.Common auxiliaries are to be added first in aspecific to general order. A mechanical formula for the citation order is that the auxiliary tables should be added in the order 1k to 1c.
4.1.1. Some Examples
3+5 Social Sciences and Natural Sciences
5/6 Science and Technology
2:5 Religion and Science (Relation)
[5+6](05) Journal of Science and Technology
512=111 Algebra in English.
02(03) Dictionaryof Library Science.
02(03) =411.21 Dictionary of Library Science in Arabic Language.
5 “19” Science in 20th Century.
551.5 “2014.12.25” Weather on X-Mas day of 2014.
[5+6]“20” (540) 21st Century Science and Technology in India.
523.6*81P Halley’s Comet (Number 81P).
7 Tagore Artworks of RabinderNath Tagore.
821.111 Shak. Works of William Shakespeare
004.38*P4 Pentium IV Personal Computer.
61-051 Medical Personnel.
645.4-035.3Wooden Furniture.
Two or more auxiliaries can be added simultaneously: Foreign relations between
Pakistan and India: An Urdu text 327 (540: 549) =214.22.
Hindi-Urdu journal of Indian foreign policy 327(540) (05) =214.21=214.22.
Birds of India and Nepal: A textbook in Bengali 598.2 (540+541.35) (075) =214.32.
Weather on 1st January 2010 in India: A report 551.5 “2011.01.01” (540) (047)
Critical study of the tragic plays of William Shakespeare 821.111Shak-21.09 Psychology of single parents 159.9 – 055.52 –058.832
Unemployed medical librarianship graduates in India in 2014: A motion picture in Hindi
26: 61-577.19 (540) “2014” (084.122)=214.21
4.2. Special Auxiliaries:
The following three auxiliaries are applied to a restricted but clearly specified range of numbers. Their functions overlap. These are recognised by sidelining the numbers in the Main Table. These are denoted by .0 Point naught ‘Apostrophe and – Hyphen
4.2.1. Zero Auxiliaries
53 Physics
53.02 General laws of phenomena
53.081 Units and constants [Physics] It entails that the special auxiliaries .02 and .081 shown by sidelining 53 are applicable to all the subdivisions of 53 Physics, e.g. 531.02 General Laws of Mechanics 531.5.02 General Laws of Gravity 531.55.02 General Laws of External Ballistics 531.55.081.Units in External Ballistics. 534.6.081. Units of Acoustic Measurement
4.2.2. Hyphen Auxiliaries:
546 Inorganic Chemistry
546-31 Oxides
546.26 Carbon element
546.26-31 Carbon Oxides 546.47 Zinc
646.47-31 Zinc Oxides
4.2.3. Apostrophe Auxiliaries:
81’282 Dialects
811.111’282 Dialects of English language.
811.134’282(8) Dialects of Spanish language in South America.
811.134-26’282(8) Dialects of written Spanish in South America
However, no formulated order has been prescribed for the special auxiliaries. The UDC being a flexible classification the order canbedecided locally
- Library of Congress Classification (1904-2004+)
The LoCis the best example of an enumerativegeneral classification schemes.
There is no synthesis of number even through the use of commonform , geographical and other common divisions.LoCprovides foreach country and subject its own unique list of geographical and form divisions.Therefore instead of a common table, we have many lists of such divisions:A listof common subdivisions is provided every time one is needed.” It has been argued that, for example, a schedule for the Constitutional History of Russia would be quite inappropriate to that of India that a schedule forthe History of Banking could not be made to suit the Insurance. This provision of separate sets of form divisions and geographical tables which are peculiar to the needs of particularclasses has made the schedules too bulky – running to 11000 pages. Its bulk is due to the tendency to enumerate a special set of sub-divisions for Forms and Countries each time wherever it is deemedrequired. It does notprovide a single common table once for all that could be used to synthesiseany class-number. Maltby (1975) comments “On the other hand, the compilers of LC might well defend themselves by drawing our attention to the trouble of devising a set of common sub-divisions which would be comprehensive enough to cover all circumstances and situations which might arise in a classificationof such proportions.”
The examples below show the different Form and Geographical divisions enumerated in the various classes of the LoC.
This repetition of languages, countries and recurring forms of presentationresults in bulky schedules; on the other hand, it saves thetime of classifiers by avoiding frequent referencesto auxiliary tables.
- Bibliographic Classification, 2nd edition, 1977-
This one of the most modern general classifications has fully developed common auxiliary schedules in the first volume entitled Introduction. These cover a number of differentcommon facets. The total of six common schedules are as follows:
Schedule 1 is for Forms of presentation, etc., e.g. – 3U Case studies
Schedule 1A is for Persons in the subject, e.g. -4XD Helpers, assistants
Schedule 2 is for Place, e.g. -8E Great Britain
Schedule 3 is for Language, e.g. –F in French
Schedule 3A is for Ethnic groups, e.g. –K American Indians
Schedule 4 is for Periods of time, e.g. – 7QS 1900/1970
All these auxiliaries may be used to qualify any class if necessary. Schedules 3 and 3A are added on explicit instructions (e.g. IQX B Racial psychology). The others are available at the discretion of the classifier without particular instruction; these begin with a number and may be added direct to any BC class number unless otherwise instructed, e.g. IAK 6C Research and experiment in psychoanalysis (in which 6C is taken from Schedule 1). The following table giving some details of the auxiliary schedules has been taken from Lois Mai Chan (2007)
6.1. Details of its schedules:-
Schedules Divisions
CP Relations to community, subject
JD Minority groups
NS Families
RC Refugees
AS Regions by climate
BAJ Regions by land and resource use
BC Urban
D Europe
O Asia
RB China
X America
Y U.S.A.
3.Language G America aboriginal languages
PB Indo-European languages
WB Germanic
X German, Dutch, English
Digit 9 is reserved for phase relations.
6.2. Adding common subject subdivisions in the BC-2
Persons (auxiliary schedule 1A). This allows qualification of persons and their profession and training and so on, to any main class where such concepts might occur. They can be added directly to any class number using the numeral 4.
Places (auxiliary schedule 2). Unless otherwise instructed, these divisions are normally synthesized with main classes using the numeral 8 in the same manner as the other auxiliary schedules. Usually this is used to distinguish countries other than one’s own, e.g. Universities JRM- in America 8Y- will be JRM 8Y. Often instructions are found in the schedules of a main class to add directly to a given class number omitting the numeral 8. At JVF ‘Students by country’, there is an add instruction to this effect. Thus ‘American students’ would be JVF Y.
Schedule 3 and 3A Language and ethnic groups may be specified using auxiliary schedule 3 and 3A respectively, and are only added on explicit instructions (eg QJP B/Z ‘Race relations’).
Periods (auxiliary schedule 4). These are introduced by the numeral 7 as well as being used directly wherever specifically instructed. Three alternative methods are given, permitting standard 4A, broad 4B and precise 4C specification. Retroactive synthesis applies here.
- Summary
In library classification, apart from the subject content, we have to take into account some physical features of the document or the way the subject has been formatted or presented therein. These documentary features are internal (forms and format of content) and external physical. These are recurring features of all documents and most of the subjects. In all library classification systems, except the LoC, these varied features are identified and listed once for all in the beginning of main schedules. These common subdivisions are named differently in different classification systems. These subdivisions can be added to almost all the classes either on instruction, or freely at the discretion of the classifier. The DDC did it first in 1885 when it provided a list of such subdivisions called “Form Divisions” at the beginning of each of the 100 Divisions. Now in the DDC there are six such tables. The UDC in its very first edition (1905) with its fully developed lists of common and special auxiliaries made a revolutionary development. Any class number for the Main Table 0/9 could be specified by the auxiliary tables. S R Ranganathan in his CC ingeniously divided common isolates (CIs) into two kinds of ACIs and PCIs to create APUPA pattern of documents on the shelves or entries in a classified catalogue. The Library of Congress according to its strict enumerative policy lists time and again Form and Geographic divisions under various classes, and their notation differ from class to class. Repeated listing of common Form and geographic divisions has made the schedules quite bulky. The most modern formulation and addition of such division can be found in the six common schedules of BC-2 (1977+) revised by Jack Mill (1918-2010). Notations from these well developed schedules can be added on instructions or with some numerical 4/8 as the facet indicator.
These common subdivisions, which are required only in library classification, help to bring together documents of same categories on the subject together on the shelves. These make the system synthetic and notation mnemonic. These common tables also help to create different sections in the library for better management of stacking and display of documents in the library.
- Glossary
Anteriorising Common Isolates: In the CC some forms of approach documents are designated by what are called anteriorising common isolates. These ACIs when applied to a class number decrease its ordinal value and bring it to the fore position. Such documents such as bibliographies, glossaries, syllabi, biographies etc. are considered as approach documents to study the subject proper. The anteriorising position is obtained by fixing the ordinal value of ACI digits. For example, Ba Bibliography of Mathematics files before B Mathematics on the shelves.
APUPA Pattern: Using two types of common isolates in the CC Ranganathan is able to achieve somewhat pedagogical sequence of documents on the library shelves. Here U stands for core documents for the study of the subject, while Ps on both the sides denote documents of lesser subject density. P on the left of U is zone of approach documents to reach the core U, while P on its right is for advanced studies say, research, critical studies or advanced centers for study of the subject. A on both the sides are closest neighbouring subjects. Thus a learner makes his/her way from preliminary documents to core documents and finally to advanced documents. APUPA pattern is considered as an aid to self learning. This could only be achieved by dividing common isolates of two categories of anteriorising and posteriorising common isolates.
Common Auxiliaries: In the UDC there are tables1c-1k of auxiliary subdivisions applicable throughout the schedules wherever needed without any instruction. Each auxiliary table has its own indicater digits.
Common Isolates: Some recurring non subjects divisions for the forms of documents are applicable across the schedule. Examples are bibliographies, dictionaries, glossaries, journals, research, professional associations etc. They get meaning only when get attached to a class numbers. By themselves they do not make any class numbers.
Isolate: In the CC, it is the smallest unit of knowledge which cannot be further subdivided and cannot stand of its own, for example, child, wheat, oxygen, research are a few examples of isolates. All the isolates have been divided into two kinds: special and common. Special isolates are exclusive or unique to a given main class.
Posteriorising Common Isolates(PCIs): Some documents such as research in or critical studies of the subject, its research centers or professional associations are better read after the full study of the core subject. Such aspects are denoted by posteriorising common isolates and get placed after the core subjects. In the CC-6 these are again of twokinds: personality, and energy.
Special auxiliaries: In the UDC, under some classes there are some recurring concepts exclusive to that class, which may be of any size, to which these are applicable. Range of these special auxiliaries varies from a whole main class say 7 Arts to a small area. These are again of three kinds denoted by the symbols – 1—/9, .01/.09 and ‘1/‘9.
Special isolates: In the CC subject subdivisions of a main class under various facets are called special isolates. Each main class has its own unique isolates under P, M and E categories. These have no meaning in other main classes. For example, rice, wheat, maze etc. are special isolates in the personality of J Agriculture in the CC.
Standard subdivisions: In the DDC, it is the first (T1) of the six (auxiliary)tables which mostly lists notation for forms and other aspects of documents. All the subdivisions begin with 0 and sometimes are added with more than one 0. These can be applied at any level without instructions. These are called standard as their names and notations remain the same wherever applied.
Tables: In the DDC, apart from Table 1 (of standard subdivisions) there are five other tables which are commonly applicable in most of the classes. These are T2 Area/Geographical table, T3 Subdivisions for literature, T4 Language subdivisions, T5 National and Ethics Group and T6 Languages of the world. Use of T3 and T4 is obviously confined to their respective classes while rest of the tables namely T2, T5 and T6 are applicable throughout the schedules.
- Bibliography and References
- Chan, Lois Mai: 2007. Cataloging and Classification: An Introduction. Lanham, MD: The Scarecrow Press, p.441.
- Hunter, Eric J.2009.Classifcation Made Simple, 3rd ed. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing, pp.61-62,67-68.
- Krishan Kumar. 2004. The Theory of Classification. New Delhi: Vikas, pp. 273-290.
- Maltby, A.1975.Sayers’ Manual of Classification for Librarians, 5th ed.London: Andre Deutsch, pp.95-97
- Maltby, A and Lindy Gill. 1979. The Case for Bliss. London: Clive Bingley, pp. 91-94.
- Mills, J. 1962. A Modern Outline of Library Classification. Bombay: Asia, pp. 21-22,115-117.
- Ranganathan, S.R. 1974. PhysicalBibliography for Librarians, 2nd ed. /assisted by A
- Neelameghan. Mumbai: Asia Publishing House, pp.18-19.
- Ranganathan, S.R. 1967.Prolegomenato Library Classification, 3rd ed. Bombay, Asia, pp.432-434.
- Satija, M.P. 2008. Universal Decimal Classification: Past and Present. Decidoc Jl. of Lib & Info. Tech. 28 (6): 3-10
- Satija, M.P. 2004.A Dictionary of Knowledge Organization. Amritsar : Guru Nanak Dev University, 248 p.
- Satija, M.P.2011.A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Colon Classification,5thed. New Delhi: EssEss, pp. 64-72.
Learn More:
Module LIS/KOP – C/10: Isolates and Auxiliaries
- Do you know
- Auxiliary means something non-essential or peripheral.
- Auxiliaries are only required in a library classification as contrast to knowledge classification.
- Points to remember
- An Isolate is the smallest unit/subdivision of knowledge.
- Common auxiliaries, as the UDC terms them, are for the forms of the document, or viewpoints of the author and to specify the context of time and space of the subject, and language of the document.
- In the DDC the standard subdivisions represent both the external and internal forms of the document.
- It is Ranganathan’s CC which has invented two types of common isolates (CI), namely anteriorising (CIs) and posteriorising (CIs)
- With the help of ACIs and PCIs the CC is able to arrange documents in the APUPA pattern – latter is a pedagogical order.
- In the UDC special isolates are recurring subject aspects of the topic.
- In the Library of Congress Classification these common subdivisions and also aspects of Time and Place are embedded in the subject and its class number.
- The BC-2 by J Mills, et al presents the most sophisticated auxiliaries in the form of six common schedules.