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MODS User Guidelines Version 3

General Application

Top Level Elements in MODS

The following lists top-level elements in MODS. All elements, subelements, and attributes are described in the Detailed Description of MODS Elements section in the order in which they appear in the MODS XML schema. Please see the Index of MODS Elements by Element Name section for a complete list of all elements (main and child) valid in the MODS schema.

Attributes Used Throughout the MODS Schema

Language and Related Attributes. Certain language and related attributes (e.g., script and transliteration attributes) may be applied to most MODS elements, as indicated in the MODS schema. They are defined below:

• lang - This attribute is used to specify the language used within individual elements, using the codes from ISO 639-2/b. This is equivalent to authority="iso639-2b" used with the <language> element (which gives a language of the resource described in the record), but is applied to the language used as content of the metadata elements. There is no MARC 21 equivalent for this attribute since language cannot be currently indicated at the element level.

• xml:lang - In the XML standard, this attribute is used to specify the language used within individual elements, using specifications in RFC 3066. RFC 3066 ("Request for Comments," which defines Internet practice) uses the two-character ISO 639-1 codes along with three-character ISO 639-2 codes for those languages not given in 639-1. This is equivalent to authority="rfc3066" used with the <language> element (which gives a language of the resource described in the record), but is applied to the language used as content of the metadata elements. There is no MARC 21 equivalent for this attribute since language cannot be currently indicated at the element level.

• script - This attribute specifies the script used within individual elements, using codes from ISO 15924 (Code for the representation of names of scripts). There is no MARC 21 equivalent for this attribute.
  
• transliteration - It specifies the transliteration technique used within individual elements. There is no standard list of transliteration schemes available, although one may be developed. There is no MARC 21 equivalent for this attribute.

Date Attributes. Certain date attributes may be applied to some MODS elements, as indicated in the schema. They are defined below:

• encoding - The following values are used with the encoding attribute:
  • w3cdtf - This value is used for the profile of ISO 8601 that specifies the following date pattern: YYYY-MM-DD.
  • iso8601 - This value is used for formatted dates allowed in ISO 8601 which use the alternative described as "basic" rather than "extended". This alternative specified in the standard uses the following date pattern: YYYYMMDD (hours, minutes, seconds may also be added). It is also used for other encodings specified in ISO 8601, e.g. date ranges, which are in the form of YYYY/YYYY (in which case start and end portions are not parsed). The ISO 8601 basic expression has been used widely in MARC 21 date elements.
  • marc - This value is used only for dates coded according to MARC 21 rules in field 008/07-14 for dates of publication/issuance. Thus, this would only apply to the attribute in <dateIssued>. Examples include: 19uu (a MARC convention to show unknown digits in a date), 9999 (a MARC convention showing that the end date has not occurred or is not known).

• point - If no point attribute is specified, date is assumed to be a single date. The following values are used with the point attribute:
  • start - This value is used for the first date of a range (or a single date, if used).
  • end - This value is used for the end date of a range.

• keyDate - The following value is used with the keyDate attribute:
  • yes - This value is used so that a particular date may be distinguished among several dates. Thus for example, when sorting MODS records by date, a date with keyDate="yes" would be the date to sort on. It should occur only for one date at most in a given record.

• qualifier - The following values are used with the qualifier attribute:
  • approximate - This value is used to identify a date that may not be exact, but is approximated, such as "ca. 1972".
  • inferred - This value is used to identify a date that has not been transcribed directly from a resource, such as "[not before 1852]".
  • questionable - This value is used to identify a questionable date for a resource, such as "1972?".

Linking attributes. Certain linking attributes may be applied to some MODS elements, as indicated in the schema. They are defined below:

• ID - This attribute is used to link internally and to reference an element from outside the instance.
  
• xlink - This attribute is used for an external link. It is defined in the MODS schema as xlink:simpleLink, (see information about the XML Linking Language), which in the XML schema specification has a further breakdown for different types of xlinks. At this time, only xlink:href is envisioned in MODS records. The guidelines will be revised if it is found that there is a need for the other xlink attributes that are available (e.g. xlink:role, xlink:title).

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