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Dewey Decimal System

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Encyclopedia of Database Systems

Synonyms

Dewey decimal classification

Definition

The Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) System is a system primarily used in libraries to classify books. In general, the system claims to provide a set of categories for all human knowledge. The system consists of a hierarchy of classes. At the top level, there are ten main classes, that are divided into 100 divisions which are sub-divided into 1,000 sections. The system was conceived by Melvil Dewey in 1873 and published in 1876. DDC uses Arabic numerals to number the classes and explicates the semantics of a class and its relation to other classes.

Key Points

Since its first publication in 1876 by Melvil Dewey [2], the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) has been updated to accommodate changes to the body of human knowledge. The current version, DDC 22, was published in mid-2003 [3] (http://www.oclc.org/dewey/versions/ddc22print/). Currently, the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) (http://www.oclc.org) of Dublin Ohio owns the...

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Recommended Reading

  1. Chan L.M. Dewey Decimal Classification: A Practical Guide. Forest, 1994.

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  2. Dewey M. Dewey; Decimal classification and relative index for libraries, clippings, notes. Library Bureau, 1891.

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  3. Mitchell J.S. Summaries DDC 22: Dewey Decimal Classification. OCLC, 2003.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pennsylvannia State University, University Park, PA, USA

    Prasenjit Mitra

Authors
  1. Prasenjit Mitra
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, 266 Ferst Drive, 30332-0765, Atlanta, GA, USA

    LING LIU (Professor) (Professor)

  2. Database Research Group David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, N2L 3G1, Waterloo, ON, Canada

    M. TAMER ÖZSU (Professor and Director, University Research Chair) (Professor and Director, University Research Chair)

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© 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

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Mitra, P. (2009). Dewey Decimal System. In: LIU, L., ÖZSU, M.T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Database Systems. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-39940-9_877

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