LIBRARY
CATALOGUE
(meaning, definition, scope,
purpose, & Objectives)
Dr.S.L.Sangam
Professor and Chairman
Department of Library & Information Science,
Karnatak University Dharwad
slsangam@yahoo.com
Introduction
The main principle of the library is that
“books are for use”. It will be waste of time,
money, and man power if the readers cannot
get the desired materials and which already
in the stock of a particular library.
A Library catalogue is an essential tool,
especially when a library has a large
collection. It serves as a key to the resources
of a library. Without library catalogue, it
would be difficult to know what is available
and where it can be located.
Meaning of catalogue
The word ‘Catalogue” derived from Late Latin catalogus, from
Greek katalogos, from katalegein to list, from kata- completely
+ legein to collect.A catalogue arranged according to set of plan.
Kata means “according to” Logos means “Order or
reason”.Reasonable manner in a particular order.
1. A complete, usually alphabetical list of items, often with note
Giving details
2. (Business / Commerce) a book, usually illustrated, containing
details of items for sale, esp. as used by mail-order
1. (Library Science & Bibliography) to compile a catalogue of (a
library)
2. To add (books, items, etc.) to an existing catalogue
Definition
Cutter: “A catalogue is a list of books which is arranged
on some definite plan. As distinguished from a
bibliography it is a list of books in some library or
collection”
Brown: “An explanatory logically arranged inventory
and key to the books and their contents and it is
confined to the books in a particular library”.
According to oxford English Dictionary “The catalogue
is a now usually distinguished from a mere list or
enumeration by systematic or methodical arrangement,
alphabetical or other order, and often by the addition of
brief particulars, descriptive or aiding identification
indicative of locality, position, date, price or the like”
Ranganathan: has defined a library catalogue as a
“methodically arranged record of information about its
bibliographical resources.
Scope
The catalogue contains information about
documents available in a particular library
and in some cases about a number of
libraries. Ordinarily, it is not restricted
with regard to subject, material,
language, geographical area of
coverage, place of publication and time.
Need
A library catalogue is an essential
tool, especially when a library has a
large collection. It serves as a key to the
resources of a library without a library
catalogue, it would become difficult to
know what is available and where it can
be located. Hence there is a need for a
catalogue in every library.
Objectives of Library
catalogue
Charles Ammi Cutter made the first explicit statement regarding the objectives of a
bibliographic system in his Rules for a Printed Dictionary Catalog in 1876.
According to Cutter, those objectives were
1. To enable a person to find a book of which either (Identifying objective)
the author
the title
the subject
the category
is known.
2. To show what the library has (Collocating objective)
by a given author
on a given subject
in a given kind of literature
3. To assist in the choice of a book (Evaluating objective)
as to its edition (bibliographically)
as to its character (literary or topical)
Purpose of library
cataloging
Library collections house a wide variety of
materials on many different topics and in
many different formats. The challenge in
making these things available for the use of
library patrons is letting those patrons
know what is in the library collection. This
is the reason for having a library catalog
and for taking the time to correctly catalog
library materials.
Five Laws Vs Lib
Catalogue
S.R. Ranganathan has discussed the purpose and
function of library catalogue on the basis of his Five
laws of Library Science they are as follows
1. To promote the use of books
2. To disclose to every reader his or her document.
3. To secure for every document its reader.
4. To save the time of the reader, and staff.
5. Cataloguing is a growing organism.
Conclusion
It is most important and indispensable
tool for the library to locate its existing
resources.
The emphasis is on use rather than
preservation of books/documents.
