A birth anniversary we missed this month was that of Mr. Shiyalli Ramamrita Ranganathan (born August 9, 1892), known as the father of library sciences in India. [1] [2]
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, "Ranganathan’s chief technical contributions to library science were in classification and indexing theory. His Colon Classification (1933) introduced a system that is widely used in research libraries around the world and that has affected the evolution of such older systems as the Dewey Decimal Classification. Later he devised the technique of “chain indexing” for deriving subject-index entries. Other works of his included Classified Catalogue Code (1934), Prolegomena to Library Classification (1937), Theory of the Library Catalogue (1938), Elements of Library Classification (1945), Classification and International Documentation (1948), Classification and Communication (1951), and Headings and Canons (1955). His Five Laws of Library Science (1931) was widely accepted as a definitive statement of the ideal of library service. He also drafted plans for a national and several state library systems, founded and edited several journals, and was active in numerous professional associations."
It turns out that the his colon classification system that was not favored due to the adoption of the Dewey Decimal system is now much better suited for computer-search. "S. R. Ranganathan was the first to introduce the word "facet" in Library and Information Science (LIS), and the first to consistently develop the theory of facet analysis. His Colon system was the first classification to apply the principles of facet analysis." [3] [4] [5]
The man seems interesting too. Here's an article on him. [6]
(c) Arun Simha
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