Bibliographic Metadata Specifications
HathiTrust requires bibliographic records sufficient to:
- Identify and collate records that each describe items exemplifying the same manifestation (e.g., show all records for a particular edition of a specific title).
- Identify and track records to their contributor.
- Facilitate record updates.
- Make an initial rights determination about each volume using the Bibliographic Rights Determination documentation.
Records submitted should:
- be as complete as possible
- be valid per the MARC21Â format
- in MARCXML format
- in utf8 encoding
- include OCLC number
- each describe a single item using a single 955 field with that item’s description (one bibliographic record per item; multi-volume works should have the same record repeated for each volume)
- describe the print version of the digitized item
Records missing the following MARC fields or data elements will result in error or warning (see Metadata Submission Guide for a key to error messages):
- LDR
- 008
- OCLC number
- Local system record number
- 245$a (or 245$k, when applicable)
- Item identifier (barcode or other identifier)
The following conditions result in warning alerts and, as they have potentially significant impacts for resource discovery and access, should be addressed whenever possible:
- 008 values that are not 40 characters
- missing OCLC numbers
- multiple 245s
Please supply an explanation when you are unable to address these conditions.
Records should adhere to the following standards (MARC 21 Minimal Level Requirements are bolded)