Authority files contain names and subjects that can be added to catalog records to simplify searching by providing a consistent vocabulary for access points. You may hear authority files referred to by other names: thesauruses, heading lists, indexing vocabularies, or taxonomies.An authority record is created for the standardized form of a name or term. This form is sometimes called the authorized, authoritative, or established form. On the authority record the standardized form is the key element for which the record was made, so it is also called the heading.Name authority is the identification and formulation of unique identifiers for names. It is the process of choosing one authorized form of the name to provide consistency in its use. The choice of name and the form used is governed by Anglo American Cataloging Rules (AACR2).Only catalogers who have completed NACO training are authorized to establish name authority records. This section offers guidance in the use of established names and subjects, and in assembling supporting information for use in the creation of new headings.
Definition of name
authority control:
Name authority is the identification and formulation of unique
identifiers for names. It is the process of choosing one authorized form of the
name to provide consistency in its use. The choice of name and the form used is
governed by Anglo American Cataloging Rules (AACR2). To facilitate searching
for materials produced by the entity represented by the name, all variant forms
should be identified and recorded. In this way, all materials will be found
under the same form of the name regardless of what form appears on the
individual items. To provide control of names in a catalog or database, the
chosen, or authorized, form of the name and its variant forms are identified in
an authority record. In authority records created in accordance with the MARC21
standard the authorized form is recorded in the 1XX field, and the variant
forms are recorded in 4XX tags. Information about sources used to choose the
form may be recorded in 670 fields. AACR2 recognizes three types of name
headings; personal names, corporate names, and geographic jurisdictions. Since
all these types are used as access points in bibliographic records, they need
to be under authority control.
Personal Name
Headings
Personal names headings include names of individuals and family names.
Headings of this type are represented in the Marc format by X00 tags. The
guidelines for determining the authorized form of names are given in AACR2
chapter 22. The general rule for authors is to choose the form that is most
prominently used by the person. For other individuals, the general rule is to
choose the name by which the person is most commonly known. AACR2 provides
guidelines for acceptable sources to be used to determine the proper form of a
name.
Personal names can be a challenge to find a unique form. There can often
be several people that have the same name and it is important to differentiate
between them. Birth and death dates are the most common identifiers used.
Titles, honorifics, and other descriptors can be used to provide further
differentiation.
Corporate Name
Headings
AACR2 defines a corporate body as "an organization or a group of
persons that is identified by a particular name and that acts, or may act, as
an entity." (citation AACR2 21.1B1) The general guidelines for choosing
the form of a corporate name are similar to those for personal names, and are
found in Section 24 of AACR2. Basically, the form chosen should be the form by
which the body is "commonly known." One difference between personal
and corporate names is that when a person changes their name, they are still
the same entity and only one form is chosen as the authorized form with
cross-references made for all other forms. When a corporation changes its name,
it is considered a new entity and so a new authorized form should be chosen.
This means another authority record will be required. See-also references (5xx
tags) can be made to link the two headings.
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