• INDEXING AND ABSTRACTING

REVIEW
 SCOPE WEIGHT IN NO. OF
PERCENTAGE QUESTIONS
Abstracting 4 30
Indexing 4 35
Application 3 15
of
Abstracting
and Indexing
Data
Automated 2 10
Indexing and
Abstracting
Trends in 2 10
Abstracting
and Indexing
Total 15 100
• BASIC CONCEPTS IN INDEXING
AND ABSTRACTING
Information system
• Collection, processing, storage,
dissemination and use of information
Information retrieval
• Process of searching some collection of
documents in order to identify those
documents which deal with a particular
subject
Information retrieval system
• Set of operations and associated
equipment, procedures, algorithms and
documentation by which documentary
units are the resulting records are stored
and displayed so that selected records can
be retrieved
Collection
• Used to denote any body of
materials indexed, i.e., a single or
composite text, e.g., treatise,
anthology, encyclopedia, periodical
Document
• Any item that presents
information, including machine-
readable records, microforms, print
and non-print media
Index
• Come from the Latin word indicate
which means to point out
• Systematic guide to items contained
in, or concepts derived from, a
collection. These items or derived
concepts are represented by entries
in a known or stated searchable
order such as alphabetical,
chronological or numerical
Index heading
• Term chosen to represent in the index an
item or concept in a document
Index subheading
• Heading that is subsumed under a
heading to indicate a modifying or
subordinate relationship
Qualifier
• Term chosen to represent in the index an
item or concept in a document
Scope note
• Explanation added to a heading to clarify the
range of the subject matter encompassed or
the usage of the heading within an index
Indexing
• Process of analyzing the information content of
records of knowledge and expressing the
information content in the language of
indexing system. It involves:
– Selecting indexable concepts in a document
– Expressing these concepts in the language
of the indexing system as index entries
Indexing system
• Set of prescribed procedures, manual
and/or machine, intended for
organizing the contents of records of
knowledge for purposes of retrieval
and dissemination
Index entry
• Single record in an index, consisting of
a heading, qualifier or scope not if
required, subheading/s if required,
and either locator/s or cross
reference/s or both
Indexing language
• Language used in the
compilation of an index for the
representation of subjects,
topics, or features of
documentary units and for
their from an index or an
information storage and
retrieval system
NATURE OF INFORMATION
Information Cycle
Creation of a new
knowledge

Read and Editor and/or peer

applied evaluation

Item retrieved Publication

User expresses Bibliographic

A need Control

Stored in library,
File, computers
 Information Levels of Need

1. the desire for information related to the

subject
area of specialization
2. the need for information related to their
organization’s particular goals and missions
at a
given point in time
3. the need for information which exist in a
larger
social and cultural circle and seek
information
that is not necessarily job oriented
 WHAT IS AN ABSTRACT?

An abbreviated, accurate representation of the

contents of a document (ISO 214)
A brief and objective representation of a
document
or an oral presentation (NISO Z39.14)
A condensed, representative surrogate of a
knowledge record; a narrative description of
a
document which may include pertinent data
and
critical comments (Cleveland & Cleveland)
A brief but accurate representation of the
contents of
a document (Lancaster)
Where can you
compare an
ABSTRACT?
• Similarly, after reading the
abstract, it is assumed that the
document is known to you even
if it is not physically present
• So if you are the researcher,
you can decide as to whether or
not to read the original
document, once you have read
its abstract.
 Types of Document Surrogate

• Abstract
• Annotation
• Extract
• Summary
• Abridgement
• Synopsis
• Terse Literature
ANNOTATION
This is a note added below the
bibliographic reference or title of
a document by way of comment
or brief description or what the
document is about.
It usually appears in one or two
sentences only
EXTRACT
•This document surrogate is actually a
portion of a document lifted from the
results, conclusions or recommendations to
represent the aboutness of the document.
•It is easy to produce an extract because,
this is just a matter of lifting any portion of
the document which is thought of giving the
reader an idea of what the document is
about
SUMMARY
This type of surrogate is usually
found at the end of the document
which is tended to complete the
orientation of the reader and to
present some of the highlights for
the reader to remember. This is
done by the author of the document
to restate the important findings
and conclusions of the document
ABRIDGEMENT
•This document surrogate is a
reduction in terms of length of
the original document that aims
to present only the major points.
SYNOPSIS
This is similar to a summary.
Example – Short resume at the
back of a pocketbook
TERSE LITERATURE
•This document surrogate is a
condensation of the original.
This is done by using statements
which are highly abbreviated to
encapsulate the major points.
Abstracting a document is
not a
natural form of writing. It
requires
training and practice to
enable you to write a
satisfactory abstract.
 USES OF
ABSTRACTS
• Abstract facilitate selection
• Abstracts save the time of the reader
• Abstracts facilitate literature search
• Abstracts promote current awareness
• Abstracts overcome language barrier
• Abstracts also aid in the compilation
and provision of other tools such as
indexes, bibliographies and reviews
 Abstracting
Standards
• ISO 214: 1976 – Abstracts for
Publications and
Documentation
• ANSI/NISO Z3914: 1997
(R2002) – Guidelines for
Abstracts
• ISO 5122: 1979 – Abstract
Sheets in Serial Publications
 ISO 214: 1976
Abstracts for Publications and documentation

• Presents guidelines for the preparation and

presentation of abstracts of documents. Applies to
abstracts prepared by the authors of primary
documents, and to their publication, because such
abstracts can be both helpful to the readers of these
documents and reproducible with little or no change
in secondary publications and services. The basic
guidelines are also suitable for the preparation of
abstracts by persons other than the authors. Cancels
and replaces ISO Recommendation R 214-1961, of
which it constitutes a technical revision.
 ANSI/NISO Z3914:1997 (R2002)
Guidelines for Abstracts

• This standard helps authors

and editors prepare useful abstracts
by describing the components of an
abstract and the appropriate styles
and formats. Numerous examples
illustrate the instructions presented
in the standard and clarify how to
handle special cases.
 ISO 5122:1979 – Abstract Sheets in
Serial Publications

• Sets out rules for the presentation of an

abstract sheet in a periodical or other serial
publication. Such abstract sheet provides a
detailed description of each article, giving
such details as are essential for
documentation work. Covers definition, text
of abstract sheet, physical presentation,
language(s) of abstract sheet and an
example of an abstract sheet in English.
Types of Abstracts
• According to information content
– Indicative abstract – sometimes called
descriptive abstract, it discloses what
significant information and specific data can
be found in the document; simply describes
(indicates) what the document is about
– Informative abstract – presents the specific
data found in the original document;
attempts to summarize the substance of the
document
– Critical abstract – uncommon form of
abstract that contains evaluative comments
on the significance of the materials
abstracted or the style of its presentation;
comments written by abstractors who are
usually subject-area specialist
Informative Abstract

• Abstract for a strictly-structured

document like an experiment,
investigation or survey
• Four parts:
– Purpose
– Methodology
– Results
– Conclusions
 Purpose
• The purpose section of an
informative abstract should state
either the reason for or the
primary objectives of the
experiment or investigation. The
purpose section of an informative
abstract might also contain the
hypothesis of the experiment
 Methodology
• The methodology section of an
informative abstract should
describe the techniques used in
conducting the experiment. This
section should give only as much
detail as is necessary to
understand the experiment; the
abstract should not focus entirely
on research methods unless that is
the primary focus of the original
document
 Results
• The results section of an
informative abstract should
relate the observations and /or
data collected during the
experiment. This section
should be concise and
informative, and only the most
important results need be
included
 Conclusion
• The conclusion section of an
informative abstract should state
the evaluation or analysis of the
experiment results. It should
also briefly state the implications
of these results. This conclusion
section might also state whether
the driving hypothesis of the
experiment was correct.
 Indicative Abstract
• Less-structured document like
an essay, editorial or book
• Three parts:
– Scope
– Arguments Used
– Conclusions
 Scope
• The scope section of an indicative
abstract should state the range of
the material dealt with in the
original document as well as the
starting premise of the document.
An abstract for an essay on
Shakepeare’s comedies, for
example, would state that the
Bard’s comedies make up the
focus of the essay
 Arguments Used
• The arguments used section of an
indicative abstract should state the
main arguments and counterarguments
employed in the original document.
These arguments should be stated in
the same progression in which they
appear in the document. Not all
documents contain a progression of
arguments; in some cases this section
may outline analysis or plot progression
instead
 Conclusions
• The conclusions section of an
indicative abstract should state
the document’s main closing
argument and its implications
as suggested by the original
author. This conclusion
section might also state plot
resolution when the original
document is a work of fiction
Types of Abstracts
• According to By Whom Written
– Author-prepared abstract
– Subject expert-prepared abstract
– Professional abstractor-prepared abstract

According to purpose
– Discipline-oriented abstract – written for
specific area of knowledge
– Mission-oriented abstract – written
based on a specific information need
– Slanted abstract – often a form of
mission-oriented abstract
Types of Abstracts
According to form
– Statistical or tabular abstracts are most
effective in conveying certain types of
information found in documents that contain
economic, social, and marketing data.
Statistical data or tabular data on
economics, social conditions, marketing
trends are presented in their original format
to present the summary of the contents of
the document
– Modular abstract – full content description of
document. Contains 5 parts: citation,
annotation, indicative, abstract, informative
abstract and critical abstract
Types of Abstracts
• According to form
– Structured abstract – abstract that is
arranged according to prescribed
headings. Normally contains
background, aims, methods, results and
conclusions of a study
– Mini-Abstracts – highly structured
abstract designed for searching by a
computer. It consists of keywords or key
phrases but not complete sentences
– Telegraphic abstract – presentation is
very parsimonious, not complete
sentences resembling a telegram
 Parts of Abstract
• Reference - contains the bibliographic data:
1. Document identification number
2. Author
3. Author affiliation
4. Title of the document
5. Source of the document: volume and or issue number, data of
publication and specific pages
6. Original language
7. Any other additional description notes
• Body – contains data from the original
document
Signature – contains the abstractor’s name
 What type materials are
commonly abstracted?

• Journals articles
• Newspaper articles
• Technical reports
• Thesis/Dissertations
• Monographs/Books
• Patent specifications
• Meetings/conferences/symposium
proceedings
• Reviews
Writing the Abstract
• Step One – Accurately and fully record the
reference. Careful attention should be given
to the following elements in the entry
• Title
• Author
• Author affiliation
• Funding agency
• Publication source
• Foreign languages
• Other information
 Writing the Abstract

• Step Two – When the reference section is

complete, it is time of the content analysis of
the document.
– Indicators that the abstractor looks for in
preparing the content analysis
1. Purpose – objectives and scope: Why was this
document written?
2. Methodology – describe techniques or
approaches only to the degree necessary for
comprehension
Writing the Abstract

3) Results – describe results as concisely and

informatively as possible
4) Conclusions – Describe the implication of the
results, especially how they relate to the
purpose of the investigation or the reason for
preparing the document
5) Collateral and other information – findings or
information incidental to the main purpose of
the document but of value outside its major
subject area may be included.
 Writing the Abstract

• Step Three – Write the annotation here (The

concepts must be constructed into a short
narrative and the results of the analysis
must be expressed in natural language.
– Importance of the First Sentence – “ lead
sentence” – the first sentence of the
abstract is critical; it should be a topic
sentence that tells what the paper is all
about
– Avoid Redundancy – the abstract should
build upon the information in the title of
the item, not duplicate it.
 Writing the Abstract

• Step Four - The last item of the

abstract, the abstractor’s name,
gives credit for the abstract.
• Step Five – The last step is
arrangement of the abstracts. A
common form is alphabetical by
title, but some alternatives are
alphabetical by author;
alphabetical by subject descriptors;
classified and dictionary
Writing the Abstract

– Quality of the Abstract

• Brevity – abstracts must be shorter
than the original document,
redundancy avoided, but at the same
time pertinent information are
captured
• Accuracy – abstractor must not what
is in the original document, avoiding
errors and capturing data as they are
presented
• Clarity – abstracts must be
intelligible to its intended readers.
Ambiguities must be avoided
 How long should an
abstract be?
The shorter the abstract the better, as
long as the meaning remains clear
and there is no sacrifice of accuracy.
• 100 – 250 words
• One paragraph only

Absolutely there’s no reason at all why

all abstracts should be approximately the
same length.
 Factors affecting the length of an
abstract
• The length of the item being
abstracted
• The complexity of the subject matter
• The diversity of the subject matter
• The importance of the item to the
organization preparing the abstract
• The “accessibility” of the subject
matter
• Cost
• Purpose
• INDEXING
Role of Indexing in Information
Retrieval
Creation of a new
knowledge

Indexing Tools

Index Abstract

Patron
 Purpose of Indexing
• Is a construct representation
of
published items in a form
suitable for
inclusion in some type of
database
for retrieval purposes
 An Index therefore should:

• Indicate all important topics or features of

documentary units in accordance with the
level of exhaustivity appropriate for the index
• Provide access to topics or features using the
terminology of prospective users
• Provide access to topics or features using the
terminology of verbal texts being indexed
whenever possible
• Use terminology that is as specific as
documentary units warrant and the
indexing language permits
• Provide access through synonymous and
equivalent terms
• Guide users to terms representing related
concepts
• Provide a means for searching particular
topics by means of a systematic
arrangement of entries in displayed
indexes by means of a clearly documented
and displayed method of entering,
combining and modifying terms to create
search statements and for reviewing
retrieved items
Types of Indexes
 According to Cleveland & Cleveland
(2001):

• Alphabetical indexes
• Author indexes
• Book indexes
• Citation indexes
• Classified indexes
• Coordinate indexes
• Cumulative indexes
• Faceted indexes
• First line indexes
• Hypermedia indexes
• Multimedia indexes
• Periodical indexes
 Alphabetical
Indexes
• Is based on the orderly principles of letters of
the alphabet and is used for the arrangement
of subject headings, cross-references, and
qualifying terms as well as main headings

Author Indexes
• Are those whose entry points are
people, organizations, corporate
authors, government agencies,
universities and the like
 CHAIN INDEX
A semi-mechanical method of
producing the requisite subject
index entries for a classified
catalogue, based on analysis of
the classification symbol of each
subject.
 Book Indexes

• Are lists of words generally

alphabetical at the back of the book
giving a page location of the subject
or name associated with each word

Citation Indexes
• A list of articles with a sublist under
each article of subsequently published
papers that cite the articles
• Shows who cited that paper at a later
point in time
 Citation Index

• Is based on the simple concept that an

author’s references to previously recorded
information identify much of the earlier work
that is pertinent to the subject of his present
document
• Citation Index is a structured list of all the
citations in a given collection of documents
• Primary advantage of citation indexing is that
it identifies relationships between documents
 Classified Indexes
• Its contents are arranged systematically by classes or
subject heading
• Have an important role to play, especially in scientific
indexing, but general indexes that are classified mystify
the general user, primarily because they do not
understand how they are constructed

Coordinate Indexes
• Allow terms to be combined or coordinated
• Combining two or more single index terms to
create a new class creates coordinating indexes
 Cumulative Indexes
• A combination or merging of a set of
indexes over time
• Such indexes apply to journals and to
large, important works and are published
as separate volumes

Faceted Indexes
• Facet, by definition, means one side of something that has
many sides
• Any subject is not a single unit but has many aspects –
discover all the individual aspects of a subject and then
synthesize them in a way that best describes the subject
under discussion
 First-line Indexes
• Refer to poems
• In these indexes all the words in the first line
of a poem are listed in their alphabetical
position in the index

Hypermedia Indexes
• Allows users to thread their way to what
they want through electronic nodes and
links between those nodes
 Multimedia Indexes
• These indexes integrate images,
sounds and textual materials

Periodical Indexes
• There are two types of periodical indexes
– Individual indexes
– Broad indexes
• Open ended
Permuted Title Indexes

• Are created by systematically

rotating information-conveying
words in the titles as subject
points into the index
• The premise of a permuted title
index is that titles effectively
indicate the content of
documents
• Chain Index
– A chain is a string of terms organized in a
particular sequence based on the classification
scheme that the chain adapts. The sequence of
terms is pre-coordinated. Ranganathan is credited
with the invention of chain indexing, an economical
system of providing access to the terms in
classification schedules without replicating the
hierarchical structure of the classification in the
alphabetical index.
– Chain indexing was used, for example, in the British National Bibliography (BNB)
in the 1950s and 1960s until they were replaced by PRECIS indexing.
Indexing Languages
INDEXING LANGUAGE:
1.Controlled Vocabulary
2.Natural Language
3.Free Language
Components of Indexing Language:

• Vocabulary (Index & Approach)

• Syntax (Recall and Precision Devices)
• Indexing language is generally
defined as all the words
permitted wither to describe a
specific document or to
construct a query to search a
document file, along with the
rules describing how the terms
are to be used and in what
relation to each other
 Components of Indexing
Language

• Vocabulary. The vocabulary of the indexing

language is composed of terms loosely called index
terms. There are two types of vocabularies:
– Index vocabulary which consists of index terms which are assigned to express the concepts of the author. These are also called descriptors

For example: Deacidification

Dead titles
Decay
Depository collection
Depreciation
Depreciation scale
Deselection
 Components of Indexing
Language
– Approach vocabulary which consists of terms which are used as lead-in terms to the index terms.
For example: Able Students
use. ACADEMICALLY GIFTED

Academic Advisement
use. EDUCATIONAL COUNSELING

Activity Learning
use. Experiential Leaning
 Components of Indexing
Language
• Syntax. A complete indexing
language includes certain devices
which are used to achieve either
high recall or high precision in
both indexing and search
operations. These are referred to
as Indexing Language devices and
may be conveniently regarded as
forming the syntax of the Index
language:
Recall devices. These are indexing
language devices that group terms together
into classes of one type or another so that
such devices will allow improvements in
recall in search operation and will make the
index consistent in assigning index terms
that represent the subject contents of
documents.
Precision devices. These are
indexing language devices that when
used with association with terms will
increase the shades of meaning of the
terms. Hence, such devices will
improve precision in both indexing
and search operations.
Term coordination or combination
Subheadings or subdivision
 Examples of Precision
Devices
Term coordination
 Examples of Precision
Devices

Subheadings or Subdivisions
 Types of Indexing Language

• Controlled vocabulary or artificial language.

This is basically an authority list. The use of an artificial
language enables us to use concept indexing. In
concept indexing, we try to establish a standard
description for each concept and use that description
each time it is appropriate, whether it has been used
by the author or not.
 Types of Indexing
Language
Natural Language
• If we use terms as they appear in documents
without modification, we are using natural
language or derivative system.
• Since the terms are picked out from the text
itself, this approach may also be called
indexing by extraction.
• The rationale of this approach is based on the
idea that the authors are using words that
confirm to the subject field under discussion.
 Types of Indexing
Language
Free Language
• The free-text language does not consist of
a list of terms distinct from those used to
describe concepts in a subject area.
Indexing is “free” in the sense that there
is no constraints on the terms that can be
used in the indexing process.
• It is the nature of a free language that any
word or term that suits the subject may be
assigned as an indexing term.
 Subject Indexing
• Process by which the subject matter/content of
documents is represented by an index.
• Is usually performed to meet the needs of a
particular audience – the users of a particular
information center or of a particular publication
• Involves 3 steps
– Determining “aboutness” or subject content of a
document
– Conceptual analysis – also called subject analysis and
involves deciding which of an item’s aspects should
be represented in the bibliographic record
– Translation – process of converting concepts derived
from the document into a particular set of index
terms usually derived from a controlled vocabulary
 PERIODICAL
INDEXING
Index
 a tool, which indicates to a
user the information or a
source of information that one
needs
 a systematic guide designed to
indicate subjects, topics, or
features of documents in order
to facilitate their retrieval
 INDEXING GUIDELINES
AND PROCEDURES
INDEXING PROCESS:

1. Recording of
bibliographic data -
recording of the important
information or the
elements that identify a
particular document.
•- When indexing
contents of a collection
of documents, locators
should give complete
information about each
document.
• for periodical articles, each entry
normally consists of
• the following elements:

Essential elements for an article

or contribution in a
periodical are:

•
Essential elements for an article
or contribution in a periodical
are:

• Name(s) of Author(s) with forenames

• Title of the article
• Title of the periodical or Source
• Volume Number
• Issue Number
• Date of the issue
• Page number
Example:
Name(s) of Author(s): Xian, Jie
Title of the article : Hybrid rice: a new
hope towards a bountiful Philippines
Title of the periodical or Source :
Impact
Volume Number : 46
Issue Number : 9
Date of the issue : September
2007

Page number : [4-8]

• Xian, Jie. Hybrid rice: a
new
hope towards a
bountiful
Philippines. Impact,
Vol. 46, no.9, S 2007,
p. 4-8.
Parts of the document that
have to be analyzed:
Title of the document/article
- it is considered as basic
indexing unit
- it is the first stop in
determining the subject
content
Abstract
- actual information-packed
miniature of documents;
- good abstract can be
fundamental indicator of
subject content
Text itself
- includes introduction,
summary, conclusion,
section heading, first & last
sentences of the
paragraph
Illustrations, diagrams, tables
and captions
References
- reference sources cited by
the author may also be
considered as subject
indicator.
 Generating Index
Entries
Index entries maybe generated
manually or using the computer.
Manual generation- involves
generation of index entries one by
one using an ordinary or electric
typewriter

Machine generation- involves the use

of the computers in generating index
entries; various software packages are
available
• Machine generation-
involves the use of the
computers in generating
index entries; various
software packages are
available
 INDEXING
STANDARDS

• Standards serve as
models and guidelines for
the analysis of documents,
construction and
organization of indexes,
indexing terminology,
construction and use of
thesauri, etc. they promote
consistency and uniformity.
• Standards include the
following:
• ISO
• NISO ANSI
 Automatic Indexing
 refers to indexing by machine,
or the analysis of text by means
of computer algorithms.
 The focus is on automatic
methods used behind the
scenes with little or no input
from individual searchers, with
the exception of relevance
feedback.
• The focus is on automatic
methods used behind the
scenes with little or no
input from individual
searchers, with the
exception of relevance
feedback.
Human / Manual
Indexing vs.
Automatic Indexing
•Automatic methods have
trouble handling synonyms,
homonyms, and semantic
relations. Conceptualizing is
very poor. Human indexers
go through cognitive
processes that may be
influenced by their
background experience,
• education, training,
intelligence, and common
sense.
• Computers can, and
humans cannot, organize
all words in a text and in a
given database and make
statistical operations on
them.
 BOOK INDEXING

• The ideal page length

should be in the range 4-
6% of total book pages. For
example, a 300-page book
would have an index of 12-
18 pages each containing
approximately 100 entries
and subentries.
• Read the document.
• Make a list of terms to
appear.
• Separate these terms into
main entries and subentries.
• Add the page numbers for
every meaningful reference
to a selected term.
• Alphabetize all main entries
and main words of subentries.
Prepositions and articles are
not part of alphabetization.
• Eliminate duplicate entries,
combine similar entries (e.g.
singular and plural forms of
same term), and provide
cross–references.
• Identify patterns that can
be developed further (in the
structure of entries, in the
type of cross–references).
• Correct any residual typos
or stylistic mismatches
between the index and the
final text of your book.
• Check that all ‘see’ and ‘see also’
cross–references point to a valid entry
and use the exact wording and spelling
of that entry.
• List entry page numbers in numerical
order.
• Put yourself in the role of reader. You
know the book’s text and arguments
best; however, step back slightly from
the text and ask: What will your
readers look for in the index?
• Identify the most likely search
terms. Consult indexes of books
on similar topics to identify what
is helpful.
• Provide a consistent level of
indexing throughout.
• Index all important themes and
concepts including those not
directly mentioned in the
Contents or heading structure.
 NON-INDEXABLE TERMS

• Notes, unless these contain

substantive information.
• References, Further
Reading, Bibliography, or
Glossary.
 STYLE

• Follow the same

capitalization, spelling,
hyphenation styles used in
the text after copyediting.
• All index entries other than
proper nouns should begin
with lower–case letters.
• When different terms or
spellings for the same entry
are used in chapters that
have been written by
several authors, only one
variant should be chosen
and used consistently
throughout the index.
• Identify page numbers
referring to figures by
putting these in italics
and those referring to
tables in bold. Add an
explanation of this usage
in a note at the start of
the index.
 Index entries

• Index entries should not start with an

article (e.g. ‘a’ or ‘the’) or preposition
(e.g. ‘in,’ ‘on,’ ‘below’).
• Main entries should be nouns, as
concrete as possible. For example,
‘characteristics of algae’ is an acceptable
topical heading in the text, but readers
are not likely to look for information
about algae under the abstract noun
‘characteristics.’ The proper index entry
is ‘algae, characteristics of.’
• Never use an adjective as an entry.
For example, the adjective
‘absolute’ by itself is not a proper
entry but ‘absolute humidity’ could
be.
• If an unfamiliar acronym or
abbreviation is used as a main
entry, it should be spelled out in
following parentheses, e.g. TCS
(Total Conservation Solutions).
• If you index a person,
include the first name (or
at least an initial) even if
the text mentions only the
surname (family name). Try,
as far as possible, to use
first names or initials
consistently across the
index.
 Sub-entries and sub-
sub-entries
• Set out subentries using
indentation (one tab)
rather than running
them on. This is clearer
for the reader where the
index is quite complex,
or main entries have
numerous subentries.
• Sub-entries should generally
also be listed in alphabetical
order, ignoring initial ‘small’
words such as ‘and,’ ‘at,’ ‘by,’
‘in,’ ‘of,’ and ‘with.’ The
exception to alphabetical
arrangement of subentries is
the chronological arrangement
in history books and
biographies.
•Do not use
prepositions with
every sub-entry to
show the relationship
with the main entry
(‘at,’ ‘in,’ ‘on,’ etc.).
• Cross–references within an
index are used either to point
the reader to further
information (‘see also’) or to
another headword (‘see’).
• A cross–reference indicated
by ‘see’ does not also have
page references: here ‘see’
means that
• Index references to notes should be in
the form ‘96n’ where 96 is the page
number.
• Where you want to index content within
a note, use ‘n.’ plus the note number
(e.g. 96n.3) for a single reference or
‘nn.’ if you are making reference to
more than one note appearing on the
same page (e.g. 96nn.3, 5, 7).
•
Numbering
•Page numbers are listed
in numerical order and
are separated from their
entries and each other by
commas.
•
• Main entries followed by a long
line of page numbers will force
the reader to search through
many pages before finding the
needed information. A good
rule of thumb is to generate
subentries when there are
more than five page
references.
• Distinguish between
continuous discussions of
a subject over two or more
pages (when the page
reference is given as a
single range: ‘30–36’) and
discrete mentions of a
subject across a passage of
text (‘30, 31, 36’).
• Page ranges should
always be written out in
full as follows: 16–17,
23–24, 113–114, 129–
130, 200–211, etc. Don’t
use ‘ff.’ (‘and the
following pages’) give
closing page numbers.
 QUOTES ON INDEXING
• “Book indexing is more like
playing the violin: most
people get totally stressed
out by the complexity of the
task; some people learn how
to do it reasonably well; but
only a few master the art and
science of book indexing.”
• – Clive Pyne
“Book indexing is
something that you will
either enjoy or detest; and
there is little middle
ground. It is a mixture of
art and craft, judgment
and selection.”
•Nancy Mulvany
Good luck to all takers of
LLE!