Content area
According to OCLC's Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification: One of Dewey's great strengths is that the system is developed and maintained in a national bibliographic agency, the Library of Congress. [...]LC's Camilla Williams, CIP and Dewey Program Manager, serves alongside EPC members representing major Dewey use centers worldwide in the U.K, Canada, and Australia, as well as U.S.-based members (several of which are nominated by the American Library Association).4 LC operations personnel use a number of operational tools to share data and analysis on what issues may require action by the EPC and review by individuals like me who work to offer additional feedback to use in the decision making process. [...]this description of the EPC from the Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification provides a good summary of the group's structure: EPC is a ten-member international board whose main function is to advise the editors and OCLC on matters relating to changes, innovations, and the general development of the Classification. According to the document, many groups were originally identified population-wise based on their native language. According to Wikipedia, the Mi'kmaq language is spoken by nearly 10,000 Mi'kmaq who live in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick regions in Canada (a small percentage of Mi'kmaq also live in Maine and Massachusetts in the U.S.).7 The word Mi' kmaq is a plural word meaning my friends.
Back in 2021, I wrote about the usefulness of library linked data in the context of the Dewey Decimal Classification System (DDC).1 At that time, I was an active participant in the Dewey Linked Data initiative, which was led by DDC Editor Alex Kyrios. We examined and evaluated the technical functionality of Dewey linked data and made recommendations on addressing current issues along with future needs and challenges.
During this time I was invited to participate in the traditional Dewey editorial process-a similar, yet more traditional, evaluation of DDC classification areas, including the content of the class, wording of class notes, and the relationship of DDC editorial decisions to other classification and taxonomy structures (the Library of Congress (LC) Classification, LC Authorities, and the LC Demographic Group Terms (LCDGT) among those actively consulted).
This installment of Making and Managing Metadata provides a glimpse into some of those DDC editorial activities, using two exhibits currently under consideration by the Dewey Editorial Policy Committee (EPC).2 The committee (soon to meet for the 146th time as this article is being written) will evaluate details and rationale behind changes associated with Names of Indigenous groups and Mi'kmaq language and people, among others.
Editorial Cooperation and Coordination: DDC, EPC, LC, Libraries Worldwide
To better understand how the DDC editorial process works, identifying and examining the structure and function of the EPC will help better understand how decisions are made that affect the wording, numbering, and other editorial changes made to the DDC as well as the additions to the classification (and their influence on the use of the classification in a variety of contexts). According to OCLC's Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification:
One of Dewey's great strengths is that the system is developed and maintained in a national bibliographic agency, the Library of Congress. The Dewey editorial office is located in the Dewey Section of the Library of Congress, where classification specialists annually assign over 60,000 DDC numbers to records for works cataloged by the Library. Having the editorial office within the Dewey Section enables the editors to detect trends in the literature that must be incorporated into the Classification. The editors prepare proposed schedule revisions and expansions and forward the proposals to the Decimal Classification Editorial Policy Committee (EPC) for review and recommended action.3
Members of the EPC work in LC's respective divisions. For example, LC's Camilla Williams, CIP and Dewey Program Manager, serves alongside EPC members representing major Dewey use centers worldwide in the U.K, Canada, and Australia, as well as U.S.-based members (several of which are nominated by the American Library Association).4 LC operations personnel use a number of operational tools to share data and analysis on what issues may require action by the EPC and review by individuals like me who work to offer additional feedback to use in the decision making process.
Thus, this description of the EPC from the Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification provides a good summary of the group's structure:
EPC is a ten-member international board whose main function is to advise the editors and OCLC on matters relating to changes, innovations, and the general development of the Classification. EPC represents the interests of DDC users; its members come from national, public, special, and academic libraries, and from library schools.5
Procedures for Developing and Correcting DDC
Now that we have a basic understanding of the composition and mission of the EPC to add and/or change DCC content, let us take a look at the steps necessary to bring an action to the DDC from idea to review. Here is a list of the steps and their requirements, as taken from OCLC's DDC "Procedure for Development and Corrections" document:
1. Review LC editorial fields (MARC 697) for suggested development.
2. Study in generalities the subject content of the area to be developed in recent, recognized treatises, encyclopedias, and reference works.
3. Study treatment of the subject in other classifications and thesauri, e.g., UDC, LCC, Bliss, MeSH, and special classifications.
4. Study carefully the literature published on the area to be developed. Use the LC Catalog, WorldCat, and other bibliographic sources to identify content and generate a bibliography.
5. Create a draftversion of the exhibit for initial review by the EPC and DDC staff.
6. Once considered worthy of becoming an exhibit, develop an exhibit think piece for EDC and outside reviewers to examine.
7. Create, using DDC notation and style guide, an exhibit-based version of the subject under investigation in a project.
8. Add the subfield $9 ess=685 to the 685 fields of select records in WorldCat that should not be displayed or printed as part of the current edition.
9. Include notes from DDC editors and feedback from others (internal review).
10. Prepare a new draftof the proposed changes for EPC and external review and label it "Ext. Review".
11. Once the version/changes are approved, change the status to "Pub Review" (final publication review).
12. Once ready for electronic publication, change the 685 field [History Note] to include the edition of the DDC receiving the update, and change the status to "Ready for Pub".6
An internal MARC record for WorldCat titles that are part of the exhibit review set may have multiple 685 fields and they are to be ordered based on date in descending order:
153 ## $a 305.8 $e 305 $j Ethnic and national groups
685 20 $t Race relations in mass media $i relocated from $b 302.23089 $d 20110401 $2 23
685 20 $t Indigenous ethnic and national groups $i relocated from $b 306.08 $d 20030101 $2 22 $9 ess=685
685 20 $t Racial, ethnic, national groups associated with a specific language $i relocated from $b 305.7
$d 19960101 $2 21 $9 ess=685
Two Current DDC Exhibits: Names of Indigenous Groups and Mi'kmaq Language and People
As mentioned earlier, I will look at two current DDC exhibits to understand the rationale behind the changes in the context of the process that was outlined in the previous section. Keep in mind that these examples are still in "Pub Review" status, so changes/additions might still be possible following the review.
Names of Indigenous Groups
In this exhibit (EPC 146-T6.1), the use of the term "Indians" and name forms that are acceptable and not offensive to Indigenous populations is the key driver behind the rational for review. An audit of its use finds 505 instances of the term in the LC classification and requisite LC vocabularies. The proposal is to not change or eliminate the use of the term immediately but to begin a rolling review of the headings for those identified. The proposed EPC 146-T6.2, which would change "Micmac" to "Mi'kmaq" (and the next exhibit in this review) is brought forth as a model for how many of these changes will look.
According to the document, many groups were originally identified population-wise based on their native language. Subsequently, while they often still self-identify as Indians, discoveries in a population's origins and evolution have warranted the need to propose changes in these three forms:
* Group name alone. The example states that the French are identified as such in T5-41, why not identify the Cherokee as such in T5-97557?
* Parenthetical qualifier. If Poles (People) could be identified as such or Igbo (African people), could Cherokee (Native American People) be appropriate?
* People Other sources (in the example from Wikipedia - Pawnee people) include the term in a description. Following our pattern, would "Cherokee people" work also?
Mi'kmaq Language and People
Similar to EPC 146-T6.1, EPC 146-T6.2 looks to change "Micmac" to "Mi'kmaq" to better align language terms with what the population has adopted as their generally-accepted identification term. According to Wikipedia, the Mi'kmaq language is spoken by nearly 10,000 Mi'kmaq who live in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick regions in Canada (a small percentage of Mi'kmaq also live in Maine and Massachusetts in the U.S.).7 The word Mi' kmaq is a plural word meaning my friends.
Others have studied the impact of language as a qualifier for describing ethnic populations and reducing what have been identified as centuries of degradation, as Thornton profiled in her paper, Race and Ethnicity in Dewey Decimal Classification.8 Thornton cites both degenerative and environmental theories (outlining how ethnic populations have been identified since the 8th century B.C. and intensified by Melville Dewey's Caucasian-based classification structures). Thornton offers the following language-based scope note from the DDC as an example of how language has now been included as a qualifier for description:
Class here indigenous ethnic and national groups; ethnic and national groups associated with a specific language; ethnology, cultural ethnology, ethnography, race relations; racial groups, racism; treatment of biculturalism and multiculturalism in which difference in language is not a central element. [from WebDewey 2011, "300: Social Sciences"]
With respect to EPC 146-T6.2's Mi'kmaq language-as-identifier issue in the current DDC Relative Index, the change would address current practice, which has notation captioned simply "Micmac," with "Micmac Indians" and "Micmac language" as their respective Relative Index terms. This aligns with the accepted thought to address ongoing accepted term changes and also reinforces arguments Thornton and other proponents of addressing classification bias have brought forth and promoted.
Future DDC EPC Themes
I will admit that my DDC exhibits review work was somewhat interrupted by my daily caregiving duties for my 88-year-old dad; he passed away April 11, 2025. His needs and my virtual work schedule precluded my full participation. However, I know that some interesting DDC EPC exhibits are on the horizon. Examples include a review of 629.4 Astronautics and the History of Myanmar, so I look forward to the opportunity to review and comment on those and other topics moving forward.
Note of Appreciation
Many thanks to Alex Kyrios, DDC Editor, for reviewing this article and sharing editorial comments. His efforts and those of the EPC continue to be transformational and have worldwide impact.
References
1. Tom Adamich, "21st Century Dewey Decimal Classification on the Web," Technicalities 41, no. 3 (May/June 2021): 16-18.
2. "EPC 146 Exhibits Ready for Review," 025.431: The Dewey Blog, June 16, 2025, ddc.typepad.com (accessed June 20, 2025). Note that the full exhibits are in a protected Google Drive to which I have access.
3. OCLC, Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification, last updated May 17, 2019, www.oclc.org/content/dam/oclc/dewey/versions/print/intro.pdf (accessed June 20, 2025).
4. OCLC, Dewey Services, "Guidance from the Experts," www.oclc.org/en/dewey/resources/epc.html (accessed June 20, 2025).
5. OCLC, Introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification.
6. OCLC, DDC Manual, "Section 2-Procedures for Development and Correction," updated April 7, 2025. Note that the full manual is in a protected Google Drive to which I have access.
7. Wikipedia, s.v. "Mi'kmaq," last edited June 20, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mi'kmaq (accessed June 20, 2025).
8. Lisa Thornton, "How Did We Get Here? Race and Ethnicity in Dewey Decimal Classification," Knowledge Organization 51, no. 6 (2024): 414-424. DOI: 10.5771/0943-7444-2024-6-414.
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