Cataloging Hebrew materials in the online environment: a comparative study of American and Israeli approaches

This comprehensive text clarifies the rules and practices of descriptive and subject cataloging of Hebrew-alphabet materials. At the same time it chronicles the historical and descriptive cataloging and classification traditions in two centers of Hebrew cataloging-Washington and Jerusalem. The authors provide guidelines for formulating headings and uniform titles; analyze and demonstrate systems for transliteration and transcription; and trace (structurally and historically) classification systems for Judaica, Hebraica, and Israelitica. Librarians with Internet access to Israeli systems will also find the tools they need to search and understand those catalogs. This exploration and comparison of the approaches of America's RLIN and Israel's ALEPH bibliographic networks closes with an analysis of the potential for exchanging Hebrew bibliographic data and a forecast of the implication of automation for the future of Hebrew cataloging worldwide.