FYS Toolkit: Call Numbers

Understanding LC Call Numbers

Most LC call numbers have four parts:

• General Subject (represented by one to three letters)
• Narrower Topic (represented by a number)
• Cutter number (represents author, title, or corporation; named for Charles Ammi Cutter, who developed the alphanumeric table for them)
• Year of Publication

How to Read Call Numbers

The formatting of the call number depends on where it is displayed. On the book's spine label, the parts of the call number are listed vertically, as in the image above. In SuperSearch, the call number is displayed on a single line, and may not have spaces between parts.

How Call Numbers are Arranged on the Shelf

Each line of a call number is read differently

The first line consists of 1 to 3 letters and is read alphabetically. The following are in the correct order:

A  B  BF  C  CD  D  DA  DAW  G  GE

The second line is a whole number and is read as a numeral. This number may contain a decimal. The following are in the correct order:

1  9  38  39  133  725  725.9  1225  9756

The third line (and perhaps fourth, if there are multiple Cutters) can be the trickiest to read. It consists of a letter, which is ordered alphabetically, followed by numbers, which are read as a decimal. So, just as the decimal .525 comes before the decimal .7, so does the cutter .B525 come before the cutter .B7. The following are in the correct order:

.B5  .B525  .B6  .B679  .B7  .C3  .C337  .C4  .C5877

The last line is the four-digit year of publication, and is read in chronological order.

1889  1902  1975  1980  2001  2017

In addition, there may be letters and numbers indicating the book’s order in a series. Here are some common examples:

Call Number Variations

It's important to note that not all call numbers have exactly four lines representing the same information. It depends on the nature of the work. Here are some other examples:

Multiple Cutter Numbers

A second Cutter number is used when there are many works on a topic or by an author, and the works cannot be represented in sufficient detail by a single Cutter. The second cutter number does not have a leading decimal point.

Multiple Volumes or Parts

Works with multiple volumes will have a final line representing the volume or part number. "Volume" and "Part" will typically be abbreviated "V." and "Pt.", respectively.