How Are Books Organised in the Library?
How do I locate a book on the library shelves?
Every book in the library has a label on the spine. This is called
the Call Number. The call number tells us the location of the book on
library’s shelf.
Why is this important to know?
Because books are classified by subject, (or by its author in
the case of fiction), you can often find several helpful books
on the same shelf, or nearby once you have found out what the subject
number
is for the information you need.
Non-Fiction Call Numbers
Non-Fiction (factual information) is arranged by a special numbering
system especially invented for libraries. These numbers are called
Dewey numbers, named after
the man who invented the system. This system uses a combination of
letters and numbers to arrange materials by subjects.
Non-Fiction call numbers appear from top to bottom, on the spines of
books:
REF
641
LON
Read the call number line by line as each line is part of the “code” or
classification system.
The letters on the top row will tell you which section in the library
the books are shelved.
For example:
641 stands for the subject – Cookery
LON stands for the first three letters of the author’s surname
Non-Fiction books contain factual information about many topics.
You will find information for your assignments in books from the
non-fiction section of the library.
Non-Fiction is shelved in numerical sequence on the library shelves,
beginning at the number 000 and ending at 999. You just need to
go to where the call number fits in within the numerical sequence
on the shelves.
The Dewey numbering system groups subjects by numbers. The subject groupings
and their corresponding Dewey Numbers are as follows:
001-099 Encyclopedias and general knowledge
100-199 Philosophy and psychology
200-299 Religion
300-399 Society and family, the environment, politics and economics
400-499 Languages and dictionaries
500-599 The sciences, astronomy, animals
600-699 Technology, medicine, health, cookery
700-799 The arts, recreation and sport
800-899 Literature, poetry, plays
900-999 Geography and history
Fiction Call Numbers
Fiction books are works of the imagination, which means they are
made up stories and do not contain factual information. Fiction books
are arranged together on the fiction shelves alphabetically by the
first 4 letters (or sometimes 3 letters ) of the author’s surname.
If you know the name of the author, or have found the call number
in the catalogue, you just need to go to where the call number fits in
within the alphabetical sequence on the shelves.
If you need help locating books, please ask the library staff.
Other Call Numbers on the catalogue
Vi = Video
Videos are available for overnight loan. As videos are not shelved
on the library shelves please ask for assistance.
CLASS SET = Class Sets of textbooks
and novels
As these books are not
shelves on the library bookshelves, please ask for assistance.
TEACHER REFERENCE
These books
are used by teachers and are located in their respective faculty.
INTERNET LINK
= Website
Link to the website via the URL in the catalogue
record.
PERIODICALS = Magazines or Periodicals
Magazines and periodicals are not available for loan, but
can be used in the library. Indexes to periodical articles can
be located by using Guidelines or electronic indexes. Please ask
the library staff
if you need assistance.
Some information resources have a prefix before the call number
to indicate that the book is shelved in a separate part of the
library collection:
B BIOGRAPHY
REF REFERENCE – (Not For Loan)
Vi VIDEO
Library Lingo
For more information about library terms as well as help with searching
try this easy to understand instructional link from Bowling Green
University.
http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/infosrv/lue/basics.html
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Keep a record
of the resources held by the library.
