Introduction to MARC 21

MARC
• Machine-Readable Cataloging
• Standard used for the representation and communication of
bibliographic and related information in machine-readable form
(MARBI, 1996).
• Developed by Henriette Davidson Avram in 1968.
MARC record elements
• A MARC record involves three elements: the record structure, the
content designation, and the data content of the record.
• The structure of MARC records is an implementation of national and
international standards, e.g., Information Interchange Format (ANSI Z39.2)
and Format for Information Exchange (ISO 2709).
• Content designation, the codes and conventions established to identify
explicitly and characterize further the data elements within a record and to
support the manipulation of those data, is defined in the MARC 21 formats.
• The content of most data elements is defined by standards outside the
formats, e.g., Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, Library of Congress Subject
Headings, National Library of Medicine Classification. The content of other
data elements, e.g., coded data section 9 below), is defined in the MARC 21
formats.
MARC 21 formats
• Bibliographic Data – for encoding data elements needed to describe,
retrieve, and control various forms of bibliographic material.
• Holdings Data – for encoding data elements pertinent to holdings and
location data for all forms of material
• Authority Data - for encoding data elements that identify or control the
content and content designation of those portions of a bibliographic record
that may be subject to authority control.
• Classification Data - for encoding data elements related to classification
numbers and the captions associated with them. Classification records are
used for the maintenance and development of classification schemes.
• Community Information - for records containing information about events,
programs, services, etc. so that this information can be integrated into the
same public access catalogs as data in other record types.
Sections of a MARC record
1. Leader – the first field in a MARC record fixed at 24 characters
which provides information for processing the record, data, type,
base address of data and encoding level.
2. Directory – a computer-generated index to locations of the variable
control and data fields within a record.
3. Variable fields – contain the actual data of the record in the form of
variable control fields and variable data fields.
Variable fields and tags
• The data in a MARC record is organized into fields, each identified by
a three-character tag.
• Variable fields are grouped into blocks according to the first character
of the tag, which identifies the function of the data within a record,
e.g., main entry, added entry, subject entry. The type of information
in the field, e.g., personal name, corporate name, or title, is identified
by the remainder of the tag.
Summary of tags for MARC 21 Format for
Bibliographic Data
• 00X – Control Fields
• 01X-09X – Numbers and Code Fields
• 1XX – Main Entry Fields
• 20X-24X – Title and Title-Related Fields
• 25X-28X – Edition, Imprint, Etc. Fields
• 3XX – Physical Description, Etc. Fields
• 4XX – Series Statement Fields
• 5XX – Note Fields
• 6XX – Subject Access Fields
• 70X-75X – Added Entry Fields
• 76X-78X – Linking Entry Fields
• 80X-83X – Series Added Entry Fields
• 841-88X – Holdings, Location, Alternate Graphics, Etc. Fields
Variable control fields
• The 00X fields in the MARC 21 formats are variable control fields.
• Variable control fields consist of data and a field terminator. They
contain neither indicators nor subfield codes.
• Variable control fields contain either a single data element or a series
of fixed-length data elements identified by relative character position.
Variable data fields
• All fields except 00X are variable data fields.
• Four levels of content designation are provided for variable data fields
in ANSI Z39.2:
1. A three-character tag, stored in the directory entry.
2. Indicators stored at the beginning of each variable data field, the number of
indicators being reflected in Leader/10 (Indicator count).
3. Subfield codes preceding each data element, the length of the code being
reflected in Leader/11 (Subfield code count).
4. A field terminator following the last data element in the field.
Example of a MARC data field

245 10 $aAdams and Victor’s principles of neurology

/$cAllan H. Ropper, Martin A. Samuels, Joshua P. Klein.
Selected MARC bibliographic data
tags, indicators, and subfield
codes
definition, scope, and guidelines for applying content designators
01X-09X – Numbers and Codes
• 020 – International Standard Book Number
• 022 – International Standard Serial Number
• 040 – Cataloging Source
• 050 – Library of Congress Call Number
• 082 – Dewey Decimal Classification Number
020 – International Standard Book Number
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – International Standard Book Number
• $c – Terms of availability
• $q – Qualifying information
• Ex.: 020 ##$a0914378260$qpbk.$qv. 1$c$5.00
022 – International Standard Serial Number
• First indicator – Level of international interest
• # - No level specified
• 0 – Continuing resource of international interest
• 1 – Continuing resource not of international interest
• Second indicator – undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – International Standard Serial Number
• Ex.: 022 ##$a0376-4583
040 – Cataloging Source
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Original cataloging agency
• $b – Language of cataloging
• $c – Transcribing agency
• $d – Modifying agency
• $e – Description conventions
• Ex.: 040 ##$aDLC$cDLC$erda
050 – Library of Congress Call Number
• First indicator:
• # - No information provided
• 0 – Item is in LC
• 1 – Item is not in LC
• Second indicator:
• 0 – Assigned by LC
• 4 – Assigned by agency other than LC
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Classification number
• $b – Item number
• Ex.: 050 00$aHF5549.5.R44$bM35
082 – Dewey Decimal Classification Number
• First indicator: Type of edition
• 0 – Full edition
• 1 – Abridged edition
• Second indicator: Source of classification number
• # - No information provided
• 0 – Assigned by LC
• 4 – Assigned by agency other than LC
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Classification number
• $b – Item number
• $2 – Edition number
• Ex.: 082 00$a888/.0108$222
1XX – Main Entries
• 100 – Main Entry – Personal Name
• 110 – Main Entry – Corporate Name
• 111 – Main Entry – Meeting Name
100 – Main Entry – Personal Name
• First Indicator: Type of personal name entry element
• 0 – Forename
• 1 – Surname
• 3 – Family name
• Second indicator: undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Personal name
• $b – Numeration
• $c – Titles and words associated with a name
• $d – Dates associated with a name
• Ex.: 100 0#$aJohn$bII Comnenus,$cEmperor of the East,$d1088-1143.
110 – Main Entry – Corporate Name
• First indicator: Type of corporate name entry element
• 0 – Inverted name
• 1 – Jurisdiction name
• 2 – Name in direct order
• Second indicator: undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Corporate name or jurisdiction name as entry element
• $b – Subordinate unit
• Ex.: 110 2#$aInternational Labour Organisation.$bEuropean Regional
Conference
111 – Main Entry – Meeting Name
• First indicator: Type of meeting name entry element
• 0 – Inverted name
• 1 – Jurisdiction name
• 2 – Name in direct order
• Second indicator: undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Meeting name or jurisdiction name as entry element
• $c – Location of meeting
• $d – Date of meeting
• $n – Number of part/section/meeting
• Ex.: 111 2#$aInternational Symposium on Quality Control (1974- )$n(3rd
:$d1978 :$cTokyo, Japan)
20X-24X – Title and Title-related fields
• 245 – Title statement
• 246 – Varying form of title
245 – Title Statement
• First indicator: Title added entry
• 0 – No added entry
• 1 – Added entry
• Second indicator: Nonfiling characters
• 0 – No nonfiling characters
• 1-9 – Number of nonfiling characters
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Title
• $b – Remainder of title
• $c – Statement of responsibility
• $h – Medium
• Ex.: 245 10$aOn call$h[electronic resource] :$bprinciples & protocols
/$cShane A. Marshall, John Ruedy.
246 – Varying Form of Title
• First indicator: Note/added entry controller
• 0 – Note, no added entry
• 1 – Note, added entry
• 2 – No note, no added entry
• 3 – No note, added entry
• Second indicator: Type of title
• # - No type specified
• 1 – Parallel title
• 4 – Cover title
• 8 – Spine title
• Ex.: 246 31$aLes Miserables
25X-28X – Edition, Imprint, Etc. Fields
• 250 – Edition Statement
• 260 – Publication, Distribution, etc. (Imprint)
250 – Edition Statement
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Edition statement
• $b – Remainder of edition statement
• Ex.: 250 ##$a4th ed. /$brevised by J.G. Le Mesurier and E. McIntosh,
Repr. with corrections.
260 – Publication, Distribution, etc. (Imprint)
• First indicator: Sequence of publishing statements
• # - Not applicable / No information provided / Earliest available publisher
• 2 – Intervening publisher
• 3 – Current/latest publisher
• Second indicator: undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Place of publication, distribution, etc.
• $b – Name of publisher, distributor, etc.
• $c – Date of publication, distribution, etc.
• Ex.: 260 ##$aNew York, N.Y. :$bElsevier,$c1984.
264 – Production, Publication, Distribution,
Manufacture, and Copyright Notice
• First indicator: Sequence of publishing statements
• # - Not applicable / No information provided / Earliest available publisher
• 2 – Intervening publisher
• 3 – Current/latest publisher
• Second indicator: Function of entity
• 0 – Production
• 1 – Publication
• 2 – Distribution
• 3 – Manufacture
• 4 – Copyright notice date
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Place of production, publication, distribution, manufacture
• $b – Name of production, publication, distribution, manufacture
• $c – Date of production, publication, distribution, manufacture, or copyright notice
• Ex.: 264 #1$a[Place of publication not identified] :$bERA Publishers,$c2014.
3XX – Physical Description, Etc. Fields
• 300 – Physical description
• 336 – Content Type
• 337 – Media Type
• 338 – Carrier Type
300 – Physical Description
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Extent
• $b – Other physical details
• $c – Dimensions
• $e – Accompanying material
• Ex.: 300 ##$a271 p. :$bill. ;$c21 cm. +$e1 atlas (37 p., 19 leaves : col.
maps ; 37 cm.)
336 – Content Type
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Content type term
• $2 – Source
• Ex.: 336 ##$aperformed music$2rdacontent
337 – Media Type
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Media type term
• $2 – Source
• Ex.: 337 ##$aunmediated$2rdamedia
338 – Carrier Type
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Carrier type term
• $2 – Source
• Ex.: 338 ##$avolume$2rdacarrier
4XX – Series Statement Fields
• 440 – Series Title (Obsolete since 2008)
• 490 – Series Statement
490 – Series Statement
• First indicator: Series tracing policy
• 0 – Series not traced
• 1 – Series traced
• Second indicator: undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Series statement
• $v – Volume/sequential designation
• $x – International Standard Serial Number
• Ex.: 490 1#$aMémoire du BRGM,$x0071-8246 ;$vno 123
5XX – Note Fields
• 500 – General Note
• 504 – Bibliography, etc. Note
• 505 – Formatted Contents Note
• 520 – Summary, etc.
500 – General Note
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – General note
• Ex.: 500 ##$aIncludes index.
504 – Bibliography, etc. Note
• Undefined indicators
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Bibliography, etc. Note
• $b – Number of references
• Ex.: 504 ##$aIncludes bibliographical references (p. 235-248) and
index.
505 – Formatted Contents Note
• First indicator: Display content controller
• 0 – Contents
• 1 – Incomplete contents
• 2 – Partial contents
• Second indicator: Level of content designation
• # - Basic
• 0 – Enhanced
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Formatted contents note
• $r – Statement of responsibility
• $t – Title
• Ex.: 505 00$tQuark models /$rJ. Rosner --$tIntroduction to gauge theories of the
strong, weak, and electromagnetic interactions /$rC. Quigg --$tDeep inelastic
leptognnucleon scattering /$rD.H. Perkins --$tJet phenomena /$rM. Jacob --$tAn
accelerator design study /$rR.R.Wilson --$tLectures in accelerator theory /$rM.
Month.
520 – Summary, Etc.
• First indicator:
• # - Summary
• 0 – Subject
• 1 – Review
• 2 – Scope and content
• 3 – Abstract
• 4 – Content advice
• Second indicator: undefined
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Summary
• Ex.: 520 ##$aAn illustrated collection of nursery rhymes set to music.
6XX – Subject Access Fields
• 600 – Subject Added Entry – Personal Name
• 610 – Subject Added Entry – Corporate Name
• 650 – Subject Added Entry – Topical Term
• 653 – Index Term – Uncontrolled
650 – Subject Added Entry – Topical Term
• First indicator: Level of subject
• # - No information provided
• 0 – No level specified
• 1 – Primary
• 2 – Secondary
• Second indicator: Thesaurus
• 0 – Library of Congress Subject Headings
• 2 – Medical Subject Headings
• 4 – Source not specified
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Topical term or geographic name entry element
• $v – Form subdivision
• $x – General subdivision
• $y – Chronological subdivision
• $z – Geographic subdivision
• Ex.: 650 #0$aRacetracks (Horse-racing)$zUnited States$xHistory.
653 – Index Term - Uncontrolled
• First indicator: Level of index term
• # - No information provided
• 0 – No level specified
• 1 – Primary
• 2 – Secondary
• Second indicator: Type of term or name
• # - No information provided
• 0 – Topical term
• 1 – Personal name
• 2 – Corporate name
• 3 – Meeting name
• 4 – Chronological term
• 5 – Geographic name
• 6 – Genre/form term
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Uncontrolled term
• Ex.: 653 #0$aShabu
70X-75X – Added Entry Fields
• 700 – Added Entry – Personal Name
• 710 – Added Entry – Corporate Name
700 – Added Entry – Personal Name
• First Indicator: Type of personal name entry element
• 0 – Forename
• 1 – Surname
• 3 – Family name
• Second indicator: Type of added entry
• # - No information provided
• 2 – Analytical entry
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Personal name
• $b – Numeration
• $c – Titles and words associated with a name
• $d – Dates associated with a name
• Ex.: 700 1#$aLundeberg, Helen,$d1908-.
710 – Added Entry – Corporate Name
• First indicator: Type of corporate name entry element
• 0 – Inverted name
• 1 – Jurisdiction name
• 2 – Name in direct order
• Second indicator: Type of added entry
• # - No information provided
• 2 – Analytical entry
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Corporate name or jurisdiction name as entry element
• $b – Subordinate unit
• Ex.: 710 2#$aIndian Council for Research on International Economic
Relations.
80X-83X – Series Added Entry Fields
• 800 – Series Added Entry – Personal Name
• 810 – Series Added Entry – Corporate Name
• 811 – Series Added Entry – Meeting Name
• 830 – Series Added Entry – Uniform Title
830 – Series Added Entry – Uniform Title
• First indicator: undefined
• Second indicator: Nonfiling characters
• 0-9 - Number of nonfiling characters
• Subfield codes:
• $a – Uniform title
• $v – Volume/sequential designation
• $x – International Standard Serial Number
• Ex.: 830 #0$aBibliographies of modern authors (San Bernardino,
Calif.) ;$vno. 27.
References:
• Network Development and MARC Standards Office, Library of
Congress (1996). The MARC 21 formats: Background and principles.
Retrieved from http://www.loc.gov/marc/96principl.html
• Network Development and MARC Standards Office, Library of
Congress (2016). MARC standards. Retrieved from
http://www.loc.gov/marc