RAD 1.1 – Title and statement of responsibility area
- Creighton Barrett
1.1B – Title proper
Usage guidelines: mandatory at all levels of description.
Formal title proper
Provide a formal title proper or supplied title proper for each level of description.
Transcribe formal titles exactly as to wording, order, and spelling, but not necessarily as to punctuation or capitalization.
Supplied title
If no formal title proper exists, compose a brief supplied title that includes a “name element” and terms or phrases that describe the “nature of the archival unit.”
See RAD 1.14B for guidance on supplied titles for parts of a fonds or collection.
Do not assume name information is inherited from higher level descriptions. Include a “name element” in all supplied titles, even if this contradicts RAD Rule 1.0A2d and 1.1B4a.
For example: a series of administrative records in the Oland and Son Limited fonds should have a supplied title proper such as “Administrative records of Oland and Son Limited” not “Administrative records.”Try to provide two “name elements” when creating file- or item-level descriptions of correspondence.
For example: a file of correspondence in Albert Smith’s correspondence series could have a supplied title proper such as “Correspondence between Albert Smith and Anne Smith” not “Correspondence with Anne Smith.”
1.1C – General material designation
Usage guidelines: mandatory at all levels of description.
Select one or more general material designation term(s) from the drop-down menu.
If the unit being described contains material that falls into more than three terms in the list, use the term multiple media.
Use terms with “electronic” in parentheses for born-digital material. Do not use these terms for analogue material that has been digitized.
Use the term “Textual record (microform)” if the material is available on microfilm or microfiche.
1.1D – Parallel titles
Usage guidelines: prohibited at all levels of description except the file- and item-level, where it is optional when transcribing a formal title proper. Do not use parallel titles with supplied titles.
Transcribe parallel titles that appear in conjunction with the formal title proper.
1.1E – Other title information
Usage guidelines: prohibited at all levels of description except the file- and item-level, where it is recommended when transcribing a formal title proper that needs explanation (See RAD 1.1E6). Do not use other title information with supplied titles.
If the formal title proper needs explanation, supply a brief note as other title information. The supplied information should be provided in the title proper field, not the other title information field. Refer to RAD 1.1E6 for examples of correct punctuation.
Formal titles that often need explanation include manuscripts, sound recordings, moving images, posters, theatre programs, and other creative material.
Supplied title information can include a “name element” and terms or phrases that describe the “nature of the archival unit.” Only include a “name element” if the name is different from the name(s) of the creator of the unit as a whole.
Do not use RAD 1.1E7 for describing dates of a reproduction. Provide this information in the Date(s) of Creation Area according to RAD 1.4B3a.
1.1F – Statement of responsibility
Usage guidelines: prohibited at all levels of description, except the item-level, where it is recommended only if the title of the description is a transcribed formal title proper that requires explanation as per RAD 1.1E6.
Provide a statement of responsibility when the title of the item-level description is a transcribed formal title proper that requires explanation as per RAD 1.1E6.
Ensure that supplied title information does not include the same “name element” that is provided in the statement of responsibility.
1.8B2 – Source of title proper
Usage guidelines: optional at all levels of description.
Select “Source of title proper” from the note type drop down menu and indicate the source of a title proper.
Note that sources of formal and supplied titles vary depending on broad class of material being described. Consult the relevant chapter in Part 1 of RAD for more guidance.
1.0A – Level of description
Usage guidelines: mandatory at all levels of description.
Select the appropriate level of description from the drop-down list.
Ensure that the level of description reflects the level of arrangement. This field is critical to ensuring that the archival descriptions comply with the principle that levels of arrangement and description constitute a hierarchical system (see RAD Principle P5.1).
Ensure that the archival description is correctly nested in the hierarchical system. Note: AtoM allows for the creation of a false level of description note. For example, the system allows for the creation of a “Series” level of description note in an archival description that is nested one level under a sub-series. In these cases, the system presents an error message at the top of the archival description.
Repository
Usage guidelines: mandatory at the highest level of description and prohibited at lower levels of description.
At the top-level description, select the appropriate repository from the drop-down repository list.
Do not provide the repository at lower levels of description.
Identifier (reference code)
Usage guidelines: mandatory at highest level of description and at the file- and item-level of description. Identifiers are currently prohibited at the series- and sub-series level of description.
Enter a unique code used to identify the material described in the archival description. Do not enter identifiers in series- and sub-series level descriptions.
Compose identifiers according to the provisions outlined in the Guidelines for assigning reference codes and physical storage locations.