More than “Creoles and Pidgins, Other”: Follow up on CRKN Study on Indigenous Languages Collections
Wednesday May 14, 2025
From 2:30pm to 3:00pm
Document
As a follow up to the recent study of CRKN member libraries collections in Indigenous languages presented at this conference last year by Jurczyk & Bennett, University of Toronto Libraries’ Indigenous Metadata Working Group is undertaking a project to refine the discoverability and accessibility of materials pertinent to Indigenous Peoples and knowledge in our collections. The project addressed a significant gap: the absence of specific MARC language codes for numerous Indigenous languages across Canada. We are adopting the more granular ISO 639-3 language codes, endorsed by the Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC), to enhance the identification of Indigenous languages not found in the ISO 639-2 list used in the existing MARC Code List for Languages. This enhancement in bibliographic metadata not only increases the precision of our cataloging efforts but also improves user search capabilities for resources in Indigenous languages. Our ongoing efforts aim to share insights and promote discussions that support the broader goal of decolonizing library systems and enriching access to Indigenous scholarly materials.
Speakers
Systems and E-Resource Access Coordinator
University of Toronto Libraries
Cataloging Librarian and Acting Co-Head of Metadata Services
University of Toronto Libraries