Report of the GNCRT Metadata and Cataloging Committee on the Inclusion of Anime in the LCGFT Vocabulary

Abstract

In an email exchange discussing their endorsement of the Report of the GNCRT Metadata and Cataloging Committee on the Inclusion of Manga in the LCGFT Vocabulary, the PCC Standing Committee on Standards expressed a hope that “Anime” would also eventually be added to the LCGFT vocabulary. Following the establishment in November 2022 of “Manga” as a subject and genre, and given the similarities between the justifications for prior rejections of “Anime” and “Manga,” the GNCRT Metadata and Cataloging Committee decided to research “Anime” and advocate for its inclusion in the LCGFT vocabulary. This report summarizes their findings and recommendations.

Description

The GNCRT Metadata and Cataloging Committee recommends that the Library of Congress adopt “Anime” as a term into the LCGFT vocabulary (and preferably also into the LCSH vocabulary, for scholarly works about the form). Anime as a form meets the criteria for inclusion into the LCGFT delineated in LCGFT Manual Instruction J 120–it is definable and identifiable, with a common, shared American understanding, as seen above. An LCGFT heading for anime would bring the vocabulary into line with other authority vocabularies that already include the term. And it would alleviate the problems for patrons and libraries that the lack of LCGFT term, and patchwork of stopgap terms, creates when attempting to access anime in library catalogs. The Committee would be happy to further facilitate the process by creating SACO proposals for “Anime” as a genre and subject, should the Library of Congress agree that anime would now be eligible for inclusion into the LCGFT and LCSH.

Keywords

subject headings, LCSH, anime, vocabulary, cataloging, metadata

Citation

DOI