Arrangement of Books Arrangement of Books on Shelves by Call on Shelves by Call

NumberNumber

Have you ever wondered how library books are arranged on

shelves?

?What is the call number??

What are call numbers for?What are call numbers for?Each book in the library has a unique call Each book in the library has a unique call

number. A call number is like an address: it tells number. A call number is like an address: it tells usus where the book is located in the library.where the book is located in the library.

Call number appears on

the spines of the books

QA

76.618

.K66

2005

ANDAND

Appears in the online catalogAppears in the online catalog

QA

76.618

.K66

2005

QA76.618.K66 2005

What does the call number What does the call number mean?mean?

1. The first two lines describe the subject

of the book. 2. The letter-and-decimal section of the

call number often represents the author's last name.

3. And, the last section of a call number is the date of publication.

Putting Call Numbers in Putting Call Numbers in Shelf OrderShelf Order

To understand how call numbers are put in order, look at each section of the call number.

129 before 173

Putting Call Numbers in Putting Call Numbers in Shelf OrderShelf Order

QC before QD

Putting Call Numbers in Putting Call Numbers in Shelf OrderShelf Order

.C before .F

Putting Call Numbers in Putting Call Numbers in Shelf OrderShelf Order

2002 before 2003

HHCC29 INT 2002 29 INT 2002 comes before the below comes before the below because ‘C’ before ‘D’ because ‘C’ before ‘D’

HHD28D28 ADV ADV comes before the below comes before the below because ‘0’ (i.e. 28 = 28.0) because ‘0’ (i.e. 28 = 28.0) comes before ‘1’ comes before ‘1’

HD28.HD28.1515 KEL KEL comes before the below comes before the below because ‘1’ comes before because ‘1’ comes before ‘6’ ‘6’

HD28.HD28.6 6 ETM 1993 ETM 1993 --

In shortIn short

Why Is This Important To Why Is This Important To Know?Know?

Because books are classified by subject, you can often find several helpful books on the same shelf, or nearby.

Financial Accounting

Management Accounting

Accounting

TheoryFinancial

Accounting: A User

Perspective

Introduction To Financial Accounting

Location PrefixesLocation prefixes mean that book is shelved in a special place, and may have loan restrictions. UTAR Library uses the following location prefixes:

Prefix Collection Loan Period

[Blank] Open Shelf 2 weeks

DisDissertation

Library-use only

Ref Reference Library-use only

RS Red-spot2 hours/overnight loan

Sem Seminar PaperLibrary-use only

Ser Serial Library-use only

When a call number looks like this :

Open Shelf Books

This indicates that the book is shelved on the Open Shelf.

BF637.C45W66 2004

When a call number looks like this:

Red Spot Books

The RS prefix indicates the book is shelved on the Red Spot Shelf.

RS QA76.9.C66M67 2006

When a call number looks like this:

Reference Books

The Ref prefix indicates that the book is shelved on the Reference Shelf.

Ref HF5382.5.M4.C37 2004

 For more information about call numbers and finding library

materials, please ask the Reference Librarians.