73979831

DACS
The Development of Archival Describing Contents
Standard: Based on DACS as Core Discussion Topics

Hsueh, Li-Kuei

Professor, Graduate Institute of Library, Information and Archival Studies,

National Chengchi University
E-mail:lkshiue@nccu.edu.tw

Wang, Li-Chiao

Executive Officer, Institute of Taiwan History, Academia Sinica.

PhD. Candidate, Department of Library and Information Science,
National Taiwan University
E-mail:lcwang@gate.sinica.edu.tw

Describing Archives: A
Content Standard
1920
APPMRADISADGISAAR
DACS
DACS
MARC 21EADDACS

DACS

8 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

Abstract
This paper mainly discussed the development of archival describing standards
based on one of the latest standard in North American, i.e. Describing Archives: A

Contents Standard (DACS). First, it was to discuss the developments of archival

contents standards in Europe, America, and other international ones, and later on
analyzed the meanings of the Dutch Manual that was developed in the 19th century.
Moreover, we also discussed APPM, RAD, ISAD (G) and ISAAR, etc. that were
developed in the contemporary archival management environment of the 20th century.
Besides, this article not only discussed the structures and rules of the 8 principles in
DACS, but also analyzed with all aspects of them. Afterwards, we mapped them into
the standards and application of MARC21 and EAD. Finally, the authors tracked down
how to implement DACS regarding long-term development issues in practice. The
authors expect that the retrospective review of archival describing content standard
and exploration of DACS on this article will be referred to help developing our archival
describing standards in the eld of archival sciences.

Keywordsarchival description, content standard and DACS

MRAC record1990

metadata

finding aids

inventory/

register1980

1988

7 3 2008.9

Society of American

ArchivistsSAA

Working Group

on Standards for Archival Description

International Council

WGSAD

on ArchivesICAISAD

GISAARCPF

WGSAD

1990InternetWorld

David Bearman

Wide Web

matrix

MRAC 21

WWWEAD

13

David Bearman

4-

2001

Information system

Data structure standards

2004DACS

Data content standards

Data value standards

Describing Archives: A Con-

MARC 21

tent Standard DACS

EAD

19

APPMRAD

20

APPMRAD

ISADGISAAR

10 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

DACS

3 S .

DACS

MullerJ. A. Feith R. Fruin 1898

MARC 21EAD

Handleiding Voor Het Or-

DACS

denen En Beschrijven Van Archieven

1920 1968

Manual

DACS

for the Arrangement and Description of

Archives

Inventory

100

193

20

APPMRAD2

2ICA

ISADGISAARCPF

inventory

7 3 2008.9

11

MARC

Format for Archival and Manuscripts

Control, MARC AMC

Archives, Personal Paper, and Manu-

scripts Cataloging Manual, APPM

1989SAA

Archives, Per-

sonal Paper, and ManuscriptsA Cata-

loging Manual for Archival Repositories,

Historical Societies , and Manuscript

LibrariesAPPM

APPM22

T. R. Schellen-

berg

A Bible of Modern Archivists

APPM

MARCAACR2

APPM19831989

4
1983

12 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

APPM

RAD19932003~2007
5

12

20

1993

Rules for Archival Description,

RADRAD

General

International Standard Archival

1998

Description, ISADG

Canadian Committee on Archival

Description, CCADRAD

26

APPMEAD2001

International

CUSTARD2003

Standard Bibliographic Description

CUSTARDDACSRAD

General, ISBDG

RAD2

ISADG21

5ICA

ISADGISAARCPF

Commission on Descrip-

tive Standard,CDS

9
ICA1994

ISADG[ 19942000]

2000ISADG2
26

ISADG

7 3 2008.9

13

10
ISADG

Allied Material Area

11

12
Multilevel Description
M u l t i l e v e l
Description Rules

Identity Statement
Area

Context Area

Note Area

Description Control
Area

ISAARCPF[1996
2004]13
ICA

Commission on De-

scriptive Standards, ICA/CDS1993-

1995

1996

C o n t e n t a n d
Structure Area

1
International

Standard Archival Authority Record for

Corporate Bodies, Persons, and Fami-

lies, ISAARCPF2000-

2004ISAAR

Conditions of
Access and Use Area

14 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

CPF20042
5
ISAARCPF

ISAAR
CPF

Area

3
19

ISAARCPF21

19961996

3Authority Con-

trol AreaInformation Area

Notes Area24

APPM

Identity Area

RAD1980

1Description

AreaRela-

MARC

tionships AreaControl

7 3 2008.9

15

15
APPM

RAD

ISAD(G)

ISAAR(CPR)

1993 1994 1 9 9 6
2003~2007 2000 2 0 0 4

RAD

1898
1920

1968

1983
APPM
1989

S. MullerJ.
A. Feith
R. Fruin3
()

(
)

WWWMARC 21EAD

2001SAA

ICA1990

Canadian-U.S. Task

2000

Force on Archival Description,

ISADGISAARCPR

CUSTARD1

1APPMRAD

ISADGISAARCPF

14

DACS

CUSTARD3

1990Internet

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contextcontent

structure

15

De-

scribing Archives: A Content Standard

DACS16DACS

17DACS4

CUSTARD 2004

7 3 2008.9

17

18 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

SAADACS

DACS

DACS

18

D e -

scribing Archival Materials

DACS

7 3 2008.9

19

DACS

I S A D G

fondsseries

fileitemDACS

DACS

20 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

DACS

D e scribing Creators

AACR2

DACS

DACS

ICAISADGISAAR

CPF

ISAARCPF

F o r m o f

DACS

DACSAACR2

Name

AACR2

7 3 2008.9

21

DACS

APPMDACS

APPM

DACS

DACS

200

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D ACS

DACS

APPM

David Bearman

DACS

DACS

EADMARC21

EADMARC21

MRAC 2180

DACS

MARC AMC

MARCMARC 21

APPM

MARC 21SAA

EAD90

WWW

7 3 2008.9

23

Inventory/Register

DACS

EADMARC 21

EAD
XML

DACS

DTDSAAEAD
20071SAA

19
DACS

DACSDACS WG

EAD

DACS

MARC 21

SAA

DACS

MARC 21EAD

20
DACS WG

DACS
2

2MARC 21EADDACS
MARC21

EAD

DACS

041 Language

< > 4.5

100 Main entry--personal name

<><>
<><>

110 Main entry--corporate name

<><>

2.6

111 Main entry--meeting name

<><>

130 Main entry--uniform title

<>

2.3

240 Uniform title

<><>

2.3

245 Title statement

<>

2.3

245 $f Title statement/inclusive dates

< 2.4
="inclusive">

24 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

MARC21

EAD

DACS

245 $g Title statement/bulk dates

< 2.4
="bulk">

254 Musical presentation statement

<>

255 Cartographic mathematical data

<>

256 Computer le characteristics

<>

260 $c Date

<>

300 Physical description

<> < 2.5

><><
><>

340 Physical medium

<>

351 Organization and arrangement

<>

351 $c Hierarchical level

< > 3.2

355 Security classication control

<>

500 General note

<>
<>

7.1

506 Restrictions on access note

<> <>

4.1
4.2

510 Citation/references

<>

520 Summaryetc.

<>

3.1

524 Preferred citation of described

materials

<>

7.1

530 Additional physical form available

<>

6.2

535 Location of Originals/Duplicates

<>

6.1

536 Funding information

<>

538 System Details

<>

4.3

540 Terms governing use and

reproduction

<>

4.4

541 Immediate source of acquisition

<>

5.2

544 Location of other archival materials

<> <>

6.3

545 Biographical or historical data

<>

2.7/

546 Language

<>

4.5

555 Cumulative index/nding aids

561 Ownership and custodial history

2.4

3.2

4.6
<>

5.1

7 3 2008.9

25

MARC21

EAD

DACS

581 Publications about described

materials

<>

6.4

583 Action

<> <>

5.3

8.1

584 Accumulation and frequency of use

<>

5.4

600 Subject--personal name

<><

="subject">
<><
="subject">

610 Subject--corporate name

<><
="subject">

611 Subject--meeting

<><
="subject">

630 Subject--uniform title

<><
="subject">

650 Subject--topical

<><>

651 Subject--geographic name

<><
="subject">

655 Genre/form

<><
>

656 Occupation

<><>

657 Function

<><>

69x Local subject access

<><
="local">

700 Added entry--personal name

<><>
2.6
<><>

710 Added entry--corporate name

<><>

711 Added entry--meeting name

<><>

720 Added entry--uncontrolled

<>

730 Added entry--uniform title

<><>

740 Added entry

uncont./related anal. title

<>

752 Added entry

hierarchical place name

<>

852 Location

<>
<>

2.2

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421

BSC

D A C S

Manuscripts Work-

DACS WG

DACS
finding aids EAD

ing GroupDACS

DACS
S A A

FAQ

DACS

DACS WG

DACS

ography

WG 2BSC

MARC

DACS A DACS bibli-

DACS

DACS

52009

SAA

DACS

NARA

APPM

DACS

APPM

DACS

DACS

ISADGAPPM

SAA

DACS

20076Bill Landis
ACRL/ALARBMS

RBMS Bibliographic
Standards CommitteeBSC

item level
DACS

19

7 3 2008.9

27

DACS

20

MARC 21

EAD

MARC

MARC AMC

APPMRAD

DACS

ICA

ISADGISAARCPR

21

DACS

2001

DACS

DACS

DACS

DACS
Patrick Wilson1968

Descriptive control
Exploitative control

28 ARCHIVES QUARTERLY

1WGSAD,Recommendations of
the Working Group on Standards
for Archival Description, American
Archivist 52 (Fall 1989): 473.

cilarchives.ca/archdesrules.html,
22 Jan. 2008

Standard, ISAD(G): General

International Standard Archival

& Describing Archives and

Description, 2nd ed. (Ottawa:

Manuscripts, (Chicago: SAA,

International Council on Archives,

2005), 96-97.

1999).

3T. R. Schellenberg., The Appraisal

10ICA Committee on Descriptive

of Modern Public Records. (Wash-

Standard, ISAD(G): General

ington: National Archives and Re-

International Standard Archival

cords Service, 1956), 175

Description, 2nd ed. (Ottawa:

Personal Papers and Manuscripts,

2nd ed., (Chicago: Society of
American Archivists, 1989).
5Rules for Archival Description,
(Ottawa, Bureau of Canadian
Archivists, 1990).
6

30:2(9310)63
7Canadian Committee on Archival
Description, Toward a Second
Edition of RAD: A Report, June
2005, 3-4.
8Canadian Council of Archives,
Rules for Archival Description,
Retrieval from http://cdncoun-

9ICA Committee on Descriptive

2K a t h l e e n D R o e , A r r a n g i n g

4Steven Hensen, Comp., Archives,

International Council on Archives,

1999): 8.
11Roe, Kathleen D., Arranging
& Describing Archives and
Manuscripts, (Chicago: SAA,
2005): 95-96.
12ICA Committee on Descriptive
Standard, ISAD(G): General
International Standard Archival
Description, 2nd ed. (Ottawa:
International Council on Archives,
1999): 8-9.
13International Council on Archives,
ISSAAR (CPF), 2nd (Paris: ICA,
2004).
14A Content Standard, Society of
American Archivists, Describing
Archives (Chicago: Society of

7 3 2008.9

29

American Archivists, 2004): v.

15CUSTARD Project; Society of
American Archivists (
9364)
1614
17A Content Standard, Society of
American Archivists, Describing
Archives (Chicago: Society of
American Archivists, 2004): xi-xv.
1817
19Roe, Kathleen D., Arranging
& Describing Archives and
Manuscripts, (Chicago: SAA,
2005): 95-96.
20L a n d i s , B i l l , D A C S W o r k i n g
Group: Interim Report. (Society
of American Archivists, 12 August
2007).
2120

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