Presentation given by Catherine Ryan, Collections Support Librarian, UCD Library, at the CONUL Conference, Athlone, Ireland, June 2, 2016.

1. Leabharlann UCD
An Coláiste Ollscoile, Baile
Átha Cliath,
Belfield, Baile Átha Cliath 4,
Eire
UCD Library
University College Dublin,
Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
Pilot Thesaurus of Irish Folklore
A Collaborative Project by the Digital Repository
of Ireland and the National Library of Ireland
Catherine Ryan
Collections Support Librarian
Collection Services

2. Project Description
• Partners: Digital Repository of Ireland, National
Library of Ireland
• Thesaurus Construction Guidelines
– http://apps.dri.ie/motif/docs/guidelines.pdf
• Pilot Thesaurus of Irish Folklore
– Demonstration of the guidelines
– http://apps.dri.ie/motif/vocab/index.php

3. Project Description
• Digital Archiving in Ireland
DRI report
• Common issues
– Custom vocabularies
– Adapted vocabularies
– Irish content

4. What is a Thesaurus?
Thesauri Browsing, navigating
Synonyms, antonyms, making
connections, definitions, scope
Hierarchical relationships
EquivalenceRelationships,
AssociativeRelationships,
ScopeNotes
Search: consistency, remove
ambiguity, improveprecision
Controlled Vocabulary,
Restricted List of Terms

5. Construction Guidelines
• Main elements of a
thesaurus
– Terms and concepts
– Relationships (USE, UF, BT,
NT, RT)
– Notes, node labels, and
arrays
• Facet analysis
• Construction process

6. Construction Guidelines
• Main elements of a
thesaurus
– Terms and concepts
– Relationships (USE, UF, BT,
NT, RT)
– Notes, node labels, and
arrays
• Facet analysis
• Construction process

7. Construction Guidelines
• Main elements of a
thesaurus
– Terms and concepts
– Relationships (USE, UF, BT,
NT, RT)
– Notes, node labels, and
arrays
• Facet analysis
• Construction process

8. Construction Guidelines
• Main elements of a
thesaurus
– Terms and concepts
– Relationships (USE, UF, BT,
NT, RT)
– Notes, node labels, and
arrays
• Facet analysis
• Construction process

9. Pilot Thesaurus
Why Irish folklore?
• Most potential for reuse among
specialised collections across
Ireland
• Covers many aspects of Irish
life
• Existing sources
• Large potential for collaboration
on a national and international
level

10. Construction Process
• Term selection
• Structure
• Facet analysis
• Relationships
• Alphabetical view
• Expert review
• Documentation

11. Pilot Thesaurus
Term Selection I
Vocabulary Resources
– A Handbook of Irish Folklore
by Seán Ó Suilleabháin
– Bealoideas: Journal of the
Folklore of Ireland Society

12. Pilot Thesaurus

13. Pilot Thesaurus
Systematic Structure
Hierarchical Display
– Subjects or facets at top of
hierarchy?
– Decided on fundamental
facets
– Easily updated structure
– Good demonstration of the
ISO 25964 hierarchy rules
• Thing/kind
• Whole/part
• Particular instances of classes
Agents
People
Animals
Objects
Natural
objects
Man-made
structures

14. Pilot Thesaurus
Facet Analysis
– ISO: “grouping of concepts of the same inherent
category”
• Objects, materials, people, places, etc.
– Ranganathan, 1920s and 1930s
• Personality, Matter, Energy, Space, Time
– Classification Research Group, 1960s
• Thing, kind, part, property, material, process, operation, agent, patient, product,
by-product, space and time

15. • Time
• Place / Space /
Environment
• Products
• Activities
• Processes and
Phenomena
• Events
• Agents
• Objects
• Materials
• Attributes and Properties
• Parts
• Genre
• Abstract Entities and
Concepts
Pilot Thesaurus

16. Pilot Thesaurus

17. Pilot Thesaurus

18. Pilot Thesaurus

19. Pilot Thesaurus

20. Pilot Thesaurus

21. Future Development and Collaboration
Ireland
– National Folklore Collection
(based in UCD)
– Dúchas.ie
– Project to digitise the
National Folklore Collection
of Ireland.
– Folklore experts get a feel
for the thesaurus to see if it
works in its current format.

22. Future Development and Collaboration
International Collaboration
• European folklorists, esp.
Scandinavian
• Digital libraries, digitisation
• Common approach
• Linked Data?
• Common patterns?

23. Thank you!
UF Thanks!
UF Cheers!
UF Ta!