Evolution of the Bibliographic Control Systems and Genesis of the Concept ‘Documentation’: Contribution of Paul Otlet and Henry la Fontaine in 19th C (original) (raw)

Abstract

The paper covers a review of evidence existing for documentation systems followed in the pre Christian literary history and during the 19 th C. A special attention was given to the evidence of a most comprehensive cataloguing system followed in the Alexandrian library 'the pinakes' which had a great impact to cataloguing, indexing and documentation tradition thereafter. Even though the concept 'documentation' was not introduced at that time during the 1 st century to date, many attempts were made to capture the knowledge by scientists, priests, publishers and librarians especially after the printing technology was introduced in 16 th C. A special attention was paid to the most versatile and systematic documentation system designed and carried out in 19 th C by two visionaries, Paul Otlet and Henry la Fontaine who were creators of the concept 'documentation'. Evidence for this effort still exists in a card based archive in Belgium and its vision and design is now identified by computer scientists as the base structure of the World Wide Web and the base architecture of modern computer networks and search engines. The article provides a brief review of the structure and history of the bibliographic repertory of 18 million index cards.

Key takeaways

sparkles

AI

  1. Paul Otlet and Henry la Fontaine pioneered systematic documentation, influencing modern bibliographic control and information retrieval.
  2. The Mundaneum housed 16 million index cards, representing a significant early effort to organize global knowledge.
  3. Otlet's Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) includes over 62,000 classifications, facilitating multilingual information access.
  4. 'Pinakes', created by Callimachus in Alexandria, was an early bibliographic catalog that influenced library science.
  5. The text reviews historical documentation systems from pre-Christian eras to the 19th century, emphasizing their evolution.

Loading...

Loading Preview

Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.

References (37)

  1. Armstrong, E. (1999). Robert estienne, royal printer: an historical study of the elder stephanus. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press.
  2. Anderson, L. (2012) The History of King Ashurbanipal and the Library of Nineveh http:// voices.yahoo.com/the-history-king-ashurbanipal-library-of-10988876.html. Accessed on 24th February, 2012
  3. Athenius Kircher Society archives (2007). Mundaneum: the indexcard internet. A blog post, 02 nd April, 2007.
  4. Bagnal, R.S. (2002). Alexandria : library of dreams. Proceedings of American Philosophical society. 46 (4) http;// archives nyu. Edu/ bitstream/ 2451/ 28263/2/ D172
  5. Coe, M.D. (2002). The Maya ( 6 th ed.) New York: Thames & Hudson.
  6. Cutter, W.P. (1931). Charles Ammi Cutter. Chicago: American Library Association (Repr. Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms, 1969.)
  7. Daily mail Reporter (2012) Was the internet invented in 1934? The scientist whose 'televised book' foretold the world wide web seven decades ago. By Daily Mail Reporter.Published on 8 June 2012
  8. Dubray, C. (2010). Introduction. In Mundaneum: archives of knowledge. By B.W. Rayward. Occasional paper. No.215. GSLIS, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign. Duties of the visier (2013) http://www.digitalegypt.ucl.ac.uk/administration/ dutiesviziertrans.html. Accessed in August 2013
  9. Elmer, J.D. (1970). History of libraries in the ancient world. NJ: Scarecrow Press.
  10. Encyclopedia Britannica (2013) Aldus Manutius the Elder. Retrieved from:http://www.britannica.com/EB checked/ topic/363258/Aldus-Manutius-the- Elder
  11. Gates, J.K. (1983). Guide to the use of libraries and information sources. New York: McGraw-Hill.
  12. Goethe Institute . (2012). Library and Information Science in Germany. Retrieved from: http://www.goethe.de/wis/bib/ fdk/en9845638.htm
  13. Irwin, R. (1956). Callimachus: studies in the history of libraries-ix'. Library Association Record, LVIII (May, 1956). 170.
  14. James, G. G. M. (1954). Stolen legacy. Greek philosophy in stolen Egyptian philosophy. NewYork:Philosophical Library.
  15. Libraries in Antiquity. (1995) Encyclopedia Americana. 100 th ed. Vol. 17. Libraries. (1995). Britannica. Vol.22. Chicago.
  16. Lindberg, D. (2007). The Beginnings of Western Science. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Lost City of Mohenjo Daro. National Geographic. Retrieved 2012-04-08.
  17. Meike Laaff . (2013). Internet Visionary Paul Otlet: Networked Knowledge, Decades Before Google http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/internet-visionary-paul-otlet- networked-knowledge-decades-before-google-a-775951.html.
  18. Miksa,F. (1974). Charles Ammi Cutter: Nineteenth-Century Systematizer of Libraries. Early Life and Harvard Years. www.ischool.utexas.edu/\~miksa/ publications/ dissertation/ Charles_ Ammi_Cutter-Systematizer_of_Libraries-ch1.pdf Oriental Institute (2007) Ugarit ritual texts. http://oi.uchicago.edu/research/pubs/nn/ win02_pardee.html. Accessed on Sept. 2013.
  19. Otlet, Paul and Goldschmidt, Robert. (1918). "On a New Form of the Book: The microphotographic Book", in International Organisation and Dissemination of Knowledge: Selected Essays of Paul Otlet. Edited by W. Boyd Rayward. Elsevier, 1990 pp. 204-210.
  20. Peter, J.P. (1897). Nippur: exploration and adventures on the Euprates. New York:Putnam & sons.
  21. Posner, E. (1972). Archives in the ancient world. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Renaissance 2.0 (2012). A brochure distributed on Mundaneum exhibition. Google Belgium.
  22. Rayward, (2010). Mundaneum: archives of knowledge. Occasional paper. No.215. GSLIS, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign.
  23. Rayward, W. B. (1991). The case of paul Otlet: pioneer of information science, internationalist, visionary -Reflections on biography. Course Material. GSLIS, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign.
  24. Rayward, W. B. (1994). Visions of Xanadu: Paul Otlet (1868-1944) and Hypertext. JASIS 45. 235-250
  25. Rayward, W. Boyd .(1991). The Case of Paul Otlet, Pioneer of Information Science, Internationalist, Visionary: Reflections on Biography. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, 23,135-145.
  26. Serageldin, I. (2013). The ancient library. www.serageldin.com/anacient library_ibrary.htm
  27. Small, H. (1982). The library of congress. Its architecture and decorations. Norton. Newyork.
  28. Spiegel Online International (2011) Internet Visionary Paul Otlet: Networked Knowledge, Decades Before Google. An interview with Jaques Gillen. An archivist at Mundaneum.
  29. Suidae, Lexicon. Ed, Adler,A. (1928). Kalimachos III vol.III, 227. (an ancient text) http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/internet-visionary-paul-otlet-networked- knowledge-decades-before-google-a-775951.html
  30. Spoon, J. C. (1999). Ancient libraries of Greece and Rome : a summary of research findings. Published at http://utm.edu/research/iep/l/library.htm Universal Decimal Classification Consortium, "About the UDC." Retrieved from:.http://www.udcc.org/ about.htmWeb Resources
  31. Wellisch, H.H. (1986). The forst Arab bibliography : al Fihrist al Ulam. Occaasional Paper No.175. University of Ollinois. Urbana Champaigne. 43p.
  32. Wikipedia (2013) Liu Xiang (scholar).Retrieved from: .http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu\_Xiang\_(scholar)
  33. Witty, F.J. (1958). The Pinakes of Callimachos. Library Quarterly, 28 (1) 132 -136.
  34. Wright, A. (2003)Forgotten Forefather: Paul Otlet. Retrieved from:http://boxesandarrows.com/forgotten-forefather-paul-otlet/
  35. Wright, A. (2008). The webtime forgotten. A podcast, Science Times. (July 8 th 2008)
  36. Zulu.
  37. I.M. (2012). The ancient kemetic roots of library and information science. The journal of Pan African Studies. 5, (1), 1-25. (edocument).

FAQs

sparkles

AI

How did Otlet and la Fontaine influence modern bibliographic systems?add

Their development of the Universal Decimal Classification in 1897 introduced a widely used faceted classification system, now exceeding 62,000 classifications globally.

What was the significance of the Mundaneum in knowledge management?add

Opened in 1920, the Mundaneum served as an early prototype for information networks, aspiring to organize global knowledge through interconnected index cards.

What evidence links ancient Egyptian information management to modern practices?add

Ancient Egyptians utilized advanced methods for cataloging, such as labeling papyrus rolls with key descriptive terms, reflecting systematic organization seen in contemporary libraries.

When did the concept of bibliographic control evolve in the 19th century?add

The 19th century marked significant advancements, particularly with Otlet and Fontaine's efforts to establish systematic documentation and global bibliographic frameworks established in 1895.

How did Callimachus's 'Pinakes' contribute to bibliographic catalogs?add

Callimachus's 'Pinakes' from 296 BC created an early systematic cataloging method, categorizing over 700,000 works which influenced future bibliographic tools.