Translators

Are translators listed in the catalog record and can I search by their name?
According to Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR2), translators are not generally traced in the catalog record for works other than verse and belles lettres. The translator(s) therefore appears only in the statement of responsibility. As such, names of translators most often are retrievable only as keywords in the catalog. See #6 for searching tips for translations and translators.

• Example:
• 110 2_ Lévi-Strauss, Claude.
• 240 10 Regard éloigné. ‡l English
• 245 14 The view from afar / ‡c Claude Lévi-Strauss ; translated by Joachim Neugroschel and Phoebe Hoss.
• [No added entries for the translators]

In certain cases listed below in #1 & #2, the translator is traced however.

1. Special rules on added entries in certain cases—Translators (AACR2 21.30K 1)

Make an added entry under the heading for a translator if the main entry is under the heading for a corporate body or under title.

• Example:
• 130 0_ Codex Merida.
• 245 12 A Maya manuscript <Codex Merida> / ‡c translated with notes and introduction by Robert B. Stacy-Judd ; foreword by T. A. Willard.
• 700 2_ Stacy-Judd, Robert.

If the main entry is under the heading for a person, make an added entry under the heading for a translator if any of the following are true:

• a) the translation is in verse
• b) the translation is important in its own right
  • The Library of Congress (LCRI 21.30K1) applies this condition as follows: Make an added entry under the heading for the translator of a work of belles lettres when the name of the translator appears on the title page.
• c) the work has been translated into the same language more than once

• Examples:
  • 100 1_ Durkheim, Emile, ‡d 1858-1917.
  • 240 10 Formes élémentaires de la vie religieuse. ‡l English
  • 245 14 The elementary forms of religious life / ‡c Emile Durkheim ; translated and with an introduction by Karen E. Fields.
  • 300 New York : ‡b Free Press, ‡c 1995.
  • 700 1_ Fields, Karen E. ‡q (Karen Elise), ‡d 1945-
  • 100 1_ Durkheim, Emile, ‡d 1858-1917.
  • 240 10 Formes élémentaires de la vie religieuse. ‡l English
  • 245 14 The elementary forms of religious life / ‡c Emile Durkheim ; translated by Carol Cosman ; abridged with an introduction and notes by Mark S. Cladis.
  • 300 Oxford ‡a New York : ‡b Oxford University Press, ‡c c2001
  • 700 1_ Cosman, Carol.

• d) the wording of the title page of the item being catalogued implies that the translator is the author

• e) the main entry heading may be difficult for catalog users to find (e.g., as with many oriental and medieval works).

2. Another cataloging rule (AACR2 21.29 (Added Entries)), allows for cataloger’s judgment in the creation of added entries.

(AACR2 21.29C) In addition, make an added entry under the heading for a person or a corporate body or under a title if some catalogue users might suppose that the description of an item would be found under that heading or title rather than under the heading or title chosen for the main entry.

• Example:
• 100 1_ Homo, Léon Pol, ‡d 1872-
• 240 10 Italie primitive et les débuts de l’impérialisme romain. ‡l English
• 245 10 Primitive Italy and the beginnings of Roman imperialism, by Léon Homo; [translated from the French by V. Gordon Childe].
• 700 1_ Childe, V. Gordon ‡q (Vere Gordon), ‡d 1892-1957.

(AACR2 21.29D) If, in the context of a given catalogue, an added entry is required under a heading or title other than those prescribed in 21.30, make it.
3. MARC Code List: Relator Codes

If a translator is traced in the catalog record, the cataloger may choose to use the relator code “trl” for translator. Usage: Use for a person who renders a text from one language into another, or from an older form of a language into the modern form.

Example: 700 1_ Childe, V. Gordon, ‡q (Vere Gordon), ‡d 1892-1957. ‡4 trl
4. MARC Language Note (546) & Language code (041)

Information about the language of the original work may be recorded as a note as well as encoded for retrieval limits.

• Example: 546 Translated from the [language of original work].
• 041 _1 [language code(s) for the work being cataloged] ‡h [language of the original work] (These language codes can be used in library catalogs to qualify user searches.)

5. Library of Congress Classification Cuttering for translations

Subject Cataloging Manual: Shelflisting Translations G 150

A translation is a rendering from one language into another, or from an older form of a language into a modern form, more or less closely following the original. A translation can be identified in a bibliographic record by the presence of a uniform title with the addition of a language or languages at the end. The Library of Congress uses a Translation Table when Cuttering for a translation. Translations generally follow the original work in alphabetical order by language. Prior to 1983, if there was an indication that the work was a translation either in the statement of responsibility in the body of the entry, or the cataloger indicated that a uniform title was not available, the Translation Table was applied. This practice was discontinued in 1983.

 

• Translation Table
  • .x Original work
  • .x12 Polyglot*
  • .x13 English translation
  • .x14 French translation
  • .x15 German translation
  • .x16 Italian translation
  • .x17 Russian translation
  • .x18 Spanish translation
    • The Cutter for polyglot is assigned when a work is written in several languages.

 

• 1. Use the Translation Table when Cuttering for a translation only when a uniform title plus language(s) is provided and when the main entry is a personal author or title. Do not use the Translation Table for entries with a corporate or conference heading. Do not use the Translation Table for autobiographies or correspondence.
• 2. Distinguish translation from the original work by using the Cutter of the original work modified by the application of the Translation Table.
• 3. If two languages are named in the uniform title, Cutter for the first language.
• 4. If a language is not listed in the Translation Table, select a number for that language that would agree alphabetically with the table and any translation(s) previously shelflisted in the same class.
  • For example, if a German translation is already shelflisted on .x15, a Hebrew translation could be .x16, Portuguese .x17, etc.
• 5. [Described earlier practice]
• 6. When the caption “By language, A-Z appears in the classification schedules, do not apply the Translation Table. Instead, Cutter for the language itself, e.g., .E5 for English, .F7 for French, .G4 for German, etc.

6. Searching for translators: Below are some tips for searching for translations and translators adapted from the Illinois Library Computer Systems Organization (ILCSO) (http://www.ilcso.uiuc.edu/About.html)

• 1. Search for the author of the original work.
• 2. Search for the title of the work, as translated.
• 3. Search for the original title by keyword or title, and apply a limit by language.
• 4. Search for the title of the original work and include the language of the translation you seek. This strategy depends on the existence of a uniform title in the bibliographic record for the translation.
• 5. Search for the translator’s name, as keyword or author, if known.
• 6. Do a keyword search.