Classification Systems

There are a number of systems for classifying books in libraries. The following list is made up of links to some of the ones in use. Some are universal, while others are limited to a specific library or a specific subject area.

American Numismatics Association Classification: The classification system used by the ANA Library appears to be similar to the Library of Congress system in that it uses two letters and two numbers in the first line, but it actually is completely different. The ANA library contains many specialized books; neither LC or DDC is adequate.
Blegen Library Classification: This is used at the American School of Clasical Studies in Athens, Greece.
Bliss Classification: The Bibliographic Classification (BC2 or Bliss) is the leading example of a fully faceted classification scheme. It provides a detailed classification for use in libraries and information services of all kinds, having a broad and detailed structure and order.
Brian Deer Classification: This system is used in a few First Nations libraries in Canada to catalogue resources dealing with indigenous issues.
Cambridge University Library Classification: This is the system used in the main library at Cambridge University, United Kingdom.
Chinese Library Classification: "Chinese Library Classification" is a comprehensive one in common use in most of China's libraries, information institutes, and centers.
Colon Classification: The Colon Classification, just as other classification schemes, starts with a number of main classes (42), which represent the fields of knowledge. Each class is then anaylzed and broken down into its basic elements, grouped together by common attributes, called facets. It is used in India.
Cutter Expansive Classification: Most call numbers in the Cutter classification follow conventions offering clues to the book's subject. The first line represents the subject, the second the author (and perhaps title), the third and fourth dates of editions, indications of translations, and critical works on particular books or authors.
CWI Library Classification Scheme: It is classification scheme is used to retrieve monographs on a certain subject in the library catalogue. This scheme is a combination of the Mathematics Subject Classification (MSC 2000) and the Computing Reviews Classification System (CR 2000).
Dewey Decimal Classification: The Dewey Decimal Classification is the most widely used library classification system in the world. It is used in more than 135 countries and has been translated into over 30 languages.It is used for other purposes, e.g., as a browsing mechanism for resources on the World Wide Web.
Goethals Indian Library Classification: This system stresses India.
Harris Classification: A system prepared for the St. Louis, Missouri, public schools before 1870.
KEK Book Classification: This is the classification used in KEK, a Japanese research organization for science with high energy accelerators. The organization was founded for research on particle and nuclear physics and material science using advanced accelerators and related facilities.
Library of Congress Classification: This is a universal system for large libraries, particularly university.
Literacy Council of Northern Virginia Classification System: This is the classification system of The Literacy Council of Northern Virginia, a non-profit educational organization that recruits and trains volunteers to tutor adults who need to develop basic reading, writing, and English speaking skills.
Medieval Arabian Classification (internal link): This list shows the earliest method for classifying in Arabian libraries.
Mass Art Classification: This is the classification for Massachusetts College of Art: Morton R. Godine Library.
Mathematics and Computer Science Classification: This is the classification for the Mathematics and Computer Science Library of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
National Library of Bhutan: Books and prints are classified according to the alphabetically arranged typological (i.e. genre) classification code (KA through NA), with an additional letter code which indicates the book's sectarian provenance (bka', dge, rnying, sa, jo and bon), whenever feasible or required.
NLM Classification: The NLM Classification is a system of mixed notation patterned after the Library of Congress (LC) Classification where alphabetical letters which denote broad subject categories are further subdivided by numbers. The NLM (National Library of Medicine) Classification utilizes schedules QS-QZ and W-WZ, permanently excluded from the LC Classification Schedules.
National Reference Center for Bioethics Literature: This is the classification system of the National Reference Center for Bioethics Literature at Georgetown University.
Panini Classification (internal link): This is the work of the first classifier, plus later classifications in India.
Schiller Classification System: This is used in the Arthur W. Diamond Law Library, at Columbia University.
Superintendent of Documents Classification System: US government documents received by libraries through the Federal Depository Library Program are arranged by the Superintendent of Documents Classification System (SuDoc). Briefly, the SuDoc system is an alpha-numeric call number scheme that places materials together on the shelves according to the agency that issued the document, reflecting the organiztion of the government.
Universal Decimal Classification: The Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) is the world's foremost multilingual classification scheme for all fields of knowledge, a sophisticated indexing and retrieval tool. It was adapted by Paul Otlet and Nobel Prizewinner Henri La Fontaine from the Decimal Classification of Melvil Dewey, and first published in French.
WIPO Library Classification: This is the classification used by The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an international organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, dedicated to promoting the use and protection of works of the human spirit.
YKL Classification System: The YKL classification system, which is being used by most of the Finnish public libraries, is an adaption of the American Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC). The whole area of knowledge is broken down into ten main categories, which, in turn, are further divided into ten sub-categories and so on, as far as is needed.