Appendix A - Society of American Archivists

Introduction to Describing CreatorsThe structure and content of archival materials cannot be completely understood withoutsome knowledge of the context in which they were created. It is insufficient for thearchivist simply to include the name of the creator in the title of the description of thematerials. Additional information is required regarding the persons, families, andcorporate bodies responsible for the creation, assembly, accumulation, and/ormaintenance and use of the archival materials being described. Part II describes theinformation that is required to establish this context. It is the logical outcome of Principle8 in the Statement of Principles: that the creators of archival materials, as well as thematerials themselves, must be described.There are three steps in the process of creating the documentation that establishesarchival context.The archivist must first identify the individuals, families, and corporate bodiesthat played a significant role in the creation of the materials.Chapter 2.6, Identifying Creators, provides specific guidance as to which ofthese entities need to be associated with the description of the materials,based on their role in the creation, assembly, accumulation, and/ormaintenance and use of the records.The archivist must assemble biographical information about these individuals andfamilies or data about the history, structure, functions, and relationships of therelevant organization.Chapter 2.7 provides guidance on recording biographical data oradministrative histories.Finally, the names of these entities must be rendered in a standardized form usingstandardized vocabularies (e.g., Library of Congress Authorities) or with rules forformulating standardized names such as those found in AACR2, ISAAR (CPF),or RDA to facilitate the retrieval of information across descriptions, systems, andinstitutions.Once formulated, this information may be presented to the user in either of two ways.Traditionally, archivists have incorporated the names of creators and contextualinformation about them directly into archival descriptions, both in catalog records and infinding aids. Such information, created according to the rules in DACS, may certainlycontinue to be employed in this manner.However, DACS also provides an alternative: information about creators of archivalmaterials can be captured and maintained in a separate system of archival authorityADM IN IS TR AT IV E/BIO GR APH IC AL H IS TOR Y 91