Functional Analysis of the MARC 21
Bibliographic and Holdings Formats

Updated and Revised by the
Network Development and MARC Standards Office
Library of Congress

April 6, 2006


CONTENTS


INTRODUCTION

Original Study

In 2001, the Network Development and MARC Standards Office (NDMSO) at the Library of Congress commissioned a study to examine MARC 21 from several perspectives:

The study used the models from IFLA's Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) and the related Logical Structure of the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules and was carried out by the consultant who was largely responsible for those studies, Tom Delsey, of Thomas J. Delsey Consulting. By sponsoring this analysis and making it available, the Network Development and MARC Standards Office and others hoped to use the information when analyzing or making decisions relating to format maintenance, system implementation, and data sharing. As a result, the study has proven to be an important tool for the continuing development of the MARC 21 standards.

Current Revised and Updated Edition

Since the study was first commissioned, NDMSO has updated it to include new and revised data elements stemming from MARC 21 updates. In 2003, the study was reformatted to allow for easier browsing and use.

NDMSO eliminated the appendix "Mapping of AACR to MARC Data Elements" because AACR work with FRBR is ongoing and thus, it could not be maintained accurately. The original 2002 tables may still be accessed from the original study site.

The revised study is available in PDF format (when viewing the PDF pages, you will need access to Acrobat Reader). In addition, the master table (from which all of the display tables in the study are generated) is available in a database format.

Links to the study are below. Please note that the document is extensive. Therefore, larger sections are divided into numbered sections for faster downloading. The number of pages in each section is indicated.


ANALYSIS WITH TABLES

To access the database, please right click on the link and save the file to your hard drive. An ASCII delimited text file is also available.


RELATED STUDIES AND TOOLS

Studies Tools The Network Development and MARC Standards Office would like to learn about any research or experimentation that users have undertaken when using the information presented in these tables. Over time either a list of projects and/or a bibliography of studies will be compiled.

Please contact the Network Development and MARC Standards Office (via e-mail at: ndmso@loc.gov) if you have any questions or corrections.


UPDATE HISTORY

2002-03-21:
Functional Analysis of the MARC 21 Bibliographic and Holdings Formats
Appendix D
Appendix E
2002-08-13:
Appendix E -- added additional fields and other information from MARC 21 Bibliographic and Holdings 2001 updates; also made available in Access 2000 and in an ASCII delimited text file.

2003-07-10:
Appendix E -- added additional fields and other information from MARC 21 Bibliographic and Holdings 2002 updates
2003-07-14:
Appendix D -- added a definition to record attributes to accommodate the MARC 21 Bibliographic and Holdings 2002 updates
2003-09-17:
The analysis and tables were reorganized to enhance readability and usability

2004-06-18
The tables were updated to include MARC data originating from Update No. 4
2004-06-23
The database was updated to include MARC data originating from Update No. 4
2006-02-07
The tables were updated to include MARC data originating from Update No. 5
2006-02-07
The database was updated to include MARC data originating from Update No. 5
2006-03-31
The database was updated to include MARC data originating from Update No. 6
2006-04-06
The tables were updated to include MARC data originating from Update No. 6


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