View source for ISAD(G)

{{Short description|Archival finding aid standard}}
The '''General International Standard Archival Description''', abbreviated as '''ISAD(G)''', defines the elements that should be included in an [[Archive|archival]] [[finding aid]]. It was approved by the [[International Council on Archives]] (ICA) as an [[international standard]] for registering archival documents produced by corporations, persons and families.

== Overview ==
ISAD(G) defines a list of elements and rules for the description of archives, and describes the kinds of information that should be included in such descriptions. It creates a hierarchy of description that determines what information should be included at what level.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal |last=Youn |first=Eunha |date=11 May 2015 |title=Adoption of ISAD(G) in practice: a close look at the standardization process of ISAD(G) in a manuscript archives of Korea |journal=Journal of the Archives and Records Association |volume=36 |issue=2 |pages=128–145 |doi=10.1080/23257962.2015.1029892 |s2cid=155847887}}</ref>

ISAD(G) follows four general principles: multilevel description, information relevant to the level of description, linking of descriptions, and non-repetition of information.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Bonturi |first=Lina |title=Archives in the Digital Age |publisher=Chandos Publishing |year=2017 |pages=1–22 |chapter=Archival Description}}</ref> Multilevel description starts from a general level of description, which is usually the [[fonds]], and proceeds to more detailed levels, such as the subfonds, the series, the file, and the item. This hierarchical structure must be represented and properly defined in the archival description.<ref name=":0" /> Information in each level of description must be related only to the archival unit described in that level.<ref name=":0" /> Every archival unit must be linked to its [[Tree (abstract data type)|parent level]] within the hierarchy, and its level must be made explicit.<ref name=":0" /> To avoid repetition, general information common to a group must be declared in the highest level possible. Sublevels must, in turn, contain common information applicable to its child levels.<ref name=":0" />
== History ==
The advent of the internet and [[electronic records]] changed the way curators conceived archives. With ability to interrelate archives around the world, there was a need to [[Standardization|standardize]] archival descriptions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Casini |first=Paola |title=ISAD(G): Synthesis or Innovation in Archival Description Traditions? |publisher=ProQuest LLC |year=2014 |location=Ann Arbor, MI |pages=13–14}}</ref>

With initial activities beginning in 1988 and supported by [[UNESCO]], a subgroup of the AdHoc Commission on Descriptive Standards discussed the first draft of ISAD(G) beginning in 1990. The first version of ISAD(G) was released and adopted by the ICA in 1994.<ref name=":02" /> In 1999, an evaluation of ISAD(G) was conducted to determine its effectiveness of describing datasets and to evaluate how it had been being used in data archives.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Shepherd |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Smith |first2=Charlotte |date=2000 |title=The Application of ISAD(G) to the Description of Archival Datasets |journal=Journal of the Society of Archivists |volume=21 |pages=55–86 |doi=10.1080/00379810050006911 |s2cid=110699478}}</ref> The ICA published a revised version in 2000. Sometimes abbreviated as ISAD(G)2'','' the revised version remains the current standard.<ref name=":2">{{cite web |date= |title=Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS) |url=http://www.archivists.org/governance/standards/dacs.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100714055311/http://www.archivists.org/governance/standards/dacs.asp |archive-date=14 July 2010 |accessdate=8 July 2012 |publisher=[[Society of American Archivists]]}}</ref>

== Adoption ==
ISAD(G) has been adopted as the standard for archival description by many national and international institutions.  

=== National organizations ===
In the United States, the implementation of ISAD(G) by the [[Society of American Archivists]] is described in Describing Archives: A Content Standard (2006).<ref name=":2" />

In the United Kingdom, ISAD(G) was adopted by [[The National Archives (United Kingdom)|The National Archives]] Cataloguing Standards in 2000.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Garmendia |first=Jone |date=March 2017 |title=The National Archives - Homepage |url=https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/about/our-role/plans-policies-performance-and-projects/our-plans/our-digital-cataloguing-practices/ |access-date=2021-09-22 |website=The National Archives |language=en-GB}}</ref>

In Canada, ISAD(G) was implemented alongside [[ISAAR(CPF)]] in the second edition of Rules for Archival Description (RAD2) by the [[Archives Canada|Canadian Council on Archives]] in 2005.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Canadian Committee on Archival Description |title=Toward a Second Edition of RAD : A Report |year=2005}}</ref>

In Brazil, ISAD(G) was adopted by the {{Interlanguage link|Conselho Nacional de Arquivos|pt}} (Conarq) and implemented in the {{Lang|pt|Norma Brasileira de Descrição Arquivística}} (Brazilian Standard for Archival Description) in 2006.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://www.gov.br/conarq/pt-br/centrais-de-conteudo/publicacoes/nobrade.pdf |title=NOBRADE : Norma Brasileira de Descrição Arquivística |date=2006 |publisher=Conselho Nacional de Arquivos |location=Rio de Janeiro |page=9 |access-date=2 March 2025}}</ref>

=== Transnational organizations ===
The [[World Bank Group]] has adopted ISAD(G) as the standard for description of its archival records. Each record has at least one level ([[fonds]]); where multiple levels are available, they are presented in a tree format. The World Bank Group Archive is arranged into fonds using [[Encoded Archival Description|EAD]] [[XML schemas]] with [[metadata]] for the description or archival content following ISAD(G).<ref>{{Cite web |title=API Access to Archival Description Metadata |url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/archive/using-the-archives/using-our-finding-aids/API-Access-to-Archival-Description-Metadata}}</ref>

[[UNESCO]] Archives are organized using the [[AtoM (archival software)|AtoM]] database and adhere to ISAD(G) for archival description.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Organization of the Archives |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/archives/organization-of-the-archives}}</ref>

== Compatibility with other archival protocols ==
ISAD(G) has been implemented by institutions with other protocols such as [[ISO 15489]] record management protocol or the [[ISAAR (CPF)]] standard for archival authority records. ISAD(G) has been mapped into archival finding aids protocols such as [[Encoded Archival Description]] (EAD) and structure standards like [[Dublin Core]].

EAD uses [[XML schemas]] to encode content descriptions mapped to ISAD(G) standards as a guide to determine required data elements and hierarchical relations between said elements. These protocols are not exclusive but complementary. ISAD(G) is not as specific as EAD with respect to finding aid data, but it offers a useful model for determining both essential elements and the amount of descriptive detail an archivist may wish to gather at each hierarchical level.<ref>{{Cite web |title=EAD Application Guidelines for Version 1.0 |url=https://www.loc.gov/ead/ag/agcre1.html |website=[[Library of Congress]]}}</ref>
== Elements ==
ISAD(G) defines 26 data elements of description, 6 of which are considered essential, divided into 7 areas. The standard provides a framework for a common approach, rather than a rigid format.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=ISAD(G) standard - Archives Hub |url=http://archiveshub.ac.uk/isadg/ |accessdate=7 July 2012}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite web |date=16 Jun 2003 |title=ISAD (G): The Basics |url=http://www.archive-skills.com/infobytes/isad-g.pdf}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+ISAD(G) elements of description<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" />
!Area
!Field
!Field description
!Essential
|-
| rowspan="5" |Identity statement
|Reference codes
|Elements used to unequivocally identify the unit of description: country code, repository code, specific local reference code/control number/other unique identifier
| rowspan="6" {{Yes}}
|-
|Title
|Name for the unit of description
|-
|Date
|Dates of record creation during the conduction of affairs or dates of document creation
|-
|Level of description
|Level of the unit of description within the hierarchy
|-
|Extent and medium of the unit of description
|Physical or logical extent and medium of the unit of description
|-
| rowspan="4" |Context
|Name
|Creator of the unit of description
|-
|Administrative/biographical history
|Biographical or administrative details pertaining to the creators of the unit of description
| rowspan="20" {{No}}
|-
|Archival history
|Relevant historical information on the unit of description
|-
|Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
|Source of acquisition of the material
|-
| rowspan="4" |Content and Structure
|Scope and content
|Summary of scope and content relevant to the level of description
|-
|Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information
|Appraisal, destruction and scheduling actions taken on or planned for the unit of description
|-
|Accruals
|Planned additions to the unit of description
|-
|System of arrangement
|To provide information on the internal structure, the order and/or the system of classification of the unit of description
|-
| rowspan="5" |Conditions of Access and Use
|Conditions governing access
|Information on legal status that may affect access to the unit of description
|-
|Conditions governing reproduction
|Conditions for the reproduction of the unit of description after creation
|-
|Language/scripts of material
|Languages, scripts and symbol systems used in the unit of description
|-
|Physical characteristics and technical requirements
|Relevant physical conditions, software and hardware requirements for the access and preservation of the unit of description
|-
|Finding aids
|Finding aids applicable to the unit of description
|-
| rowspan="4" |Allied Materials
|Existence and location of originals
|Information about the existence or destruction of the original unit of description
|-
|Existence and location of copies
|Information about the existence and availability of copies of the unit of description
|-
|Related units of description
|Information about units of description related by provenance or other associations with the unit of description
|-
|Publication note
|Publications that are about or are based on the use, study, or analysis of the unit of description
|-
|Notes
|Note
|Information that does not fit in any of the previous areas
|-
| rowspan="3" |Description Control
|Archivist's note
|Information on who prepared the description and how
|-
|Rules or conventions
|Protocols on which the description is based
|-
|Date(s) of descriptions
|Dates of creation and revision
|}
==See also==
* [[Records in Contexts]]
* [[Describing Archives: A Content Standard]]
* [[Archival processing]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{citation|url=http://www.icacds.org.uk/eng/ISAD(G).pdf |title=ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description |publisher=[[International Council on Archives|International Council on Archives Committee on Descriptive Standards]] |edition=2 |year=2000 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027061153/http://www.icacds.org.uk/eng/ISAD%28G%29.pdf |archivedate=2011-10-27 }}

{{Authority control}}

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[[Category:Archival science]]
[[Category:International standards]]
[[Category:1993 documents]]
[[Category:1994 documents]]
[[Category:2000 documents]]