Title. ISO 690

Form of title

Preferred form

The wording and spelling of the title should be given in the form in which it appears in the preferred source (see Elements of a reference > Sources of data).

Alternative forms

If alternative forms of title are given in the preferred source, the most prominent should be used. If several forms are given equal prominence, the form used should be one of the following, listed in order of preference:

a) a title in the language and script mainly used in the cited information resource;

b) the title given prominence by the order of titles or the layout;

c) a title in the language of the main target audience;

d) for cartographic material [in preference to a) or b)]:

1) an overprinted title,

2) a title in the title panel,

3) a title within the grid or other border which encloses the detail of a map,

4) a title elsewhere;

e) for graphic works:

1) a title forming part of the original design,

2) a handwritten title on the information resource, or custodian’s description,

3) a popular or traditional title, e.g. Mona Lisa;

f) other forms of title.

EXAMPLE
Eric, or Little by little: a tale of Roslyn School.

Other title

If the cited item is widely known by, or was originally issued under, a title different from that of the preferred source, the alternative may also be given, in brackets if necessary.

EXAMPLE 1
CENTRAL ADVISORY COUNCIL FOR EDUCATION (ENGLAND). Children and their primary schools [Plowden Report].

EXAMPLE 2
Cutter’s Way [Cutter and Bone] [film].

EXAMPLE 3
GREAT BRITAIN. House of Commons. Official Report. Parliamentary debates [Hansard].

Long title

A title that is inconveniently long may be shortened by the omission of some words, but initial words, other than the definite or indefinite article, should not be omitted, nor should the sense be altered. The omittedwords, with the exception of omitted articles, should be replaced by three dots (for abbreviation of periodical titles, see Titles of serials > Abbreviation).

EXAMPLE

On source: Map of the countries lying between Turkey and Birmah, comprising Asia Minor, Persia, India, Egypt and Arabia and including the Black, Caspian and Red Seas.

Reference: Map of the countries lying between Turkey and Birmah...

Subtitles

Subtitles should be included if they furnish essential information about the content of an information resource (see also Form of title > Ambiguous or incorrect title), otherwise they may be omitted.

EXAMPLE 1
Etheldreda's Isle: a pictorial map of the Isle of Ely to commemorate the 1300th anniversary of the founding of Ely's conventual church.

EXAMPLE 2
Eric, or Little by little: a tale of Roslyn School.

Ambiguous or incorrect title

Elucidation of a title that is ambiguous or fails to indicate clearly the content of the information resource may be supplied in brackets after the title. If a title contains an obscure abbreviation, the full form, if known, may be supplied.

EXAMPLE 1
Statistical digest of the war. [1939–1945].

EXAMPLE 2
Two trio sonatas for two violins and basso continuo. [Op.5 no. 4, 5.].

For cartographic material, the special subject and area covered should be supplied if not given in the title. The supplied name of a geographical area should be the name in use at the date of production, rather than a modern equivalent.

EXAMPLE 3
National topographic map series. 1:100,000. [Queensland index map].

EXAMPLE 4
Gull’s eye view [of Hugh Town, St Mary's, Scilly Isles].

No title

If there is no clear title in the cited item, a popular or traditional title may be given, if one exists. Otherwise, a title should be supplied in brackets, giving the following information:

a) the special subject matter;

b) the nature of the item (e.g. pamphlet, map, plan, drawing, index, engraving, photograph) and if applicable, the name of the object depicted (e.g. the person, building, location, etc.);

c) for a single cartographic item (e.g. atlas, single-sheet map), the area covered.

EXAMPLE 1
[Wildlife sanctuaries of Trinidad].

EXAMPLE 2
Untitled [Judo fighters] [photograph]. In: Starkey, Hannah. Moments in the modern world: photographic works by Hannah Starkey 1997–2000. Irish Museum of Modern Art, 2000. ISBN 1-873654-90-1.

For a map series as a whole, the scale and series designation should also be supplied, if they are necessary to distinguish the series from others of the same area.

EXAMPLE 3
[Western Australia forestry series. 1:63,360].

EXAMPLE 4
[Hong Kong. 1:1,000. Series HP1C].

For graphic works, the subject matter and print process should be supplied.

EXAMPLE 5
PELHAM, Henry, del. [Quin Abbey, Co. Clare. General view] [engraving].

Translation of title

The original title of a translated information resource, or a translation of the title, may be supplied immediately after the original title.

EXAMPLE 1
The Artamonovs [Delo Artamonvykh].

EXAMPLE 2
Delo Artamonovykh [The Artamonovs].

Titles of serials

Qualifiers for titles

If the title of a serial issued by a society or similar organization is insufficient in itself to identify the publication, the organization's name should be added.

EXAMPLE 1
Bulletin trimestriel. Institut archéologique du Luxembourg.

Serials with the same title should be distinguished from each other by the addition of the place of publication.

EXAMPLE 2
Natura (Amsterdam).
Natura (Bucharest).

Key title

The key title (see ISO 3297), if any, may be given in place of the form which appears in the preferred source (see Elements of a reference > Sources of data). The International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) (see Identifiers) shall be included.

EXAMPLE 1
Geological Magazine. ISSN 0016-7568.

EXAMPLE 2
Journal of Technological Education [online]. ISSN 1045-1064.

Earlier or later titles

Earlier or later titles of a serial may be given, with the years when the title was in use.

EXAMPLE
British Journal of Physical Education. 1970– .

Journal of Physical Education. 1945–1954.

Physical Education. 1955–1959.

Abbreviation

Titles of periodicals for which no key title is available may be abbreviated in accordance with ISO 4. If there is any risk of ambiguity, the title should be given in full.

Distinction between title of contribution and title of host ítem

If the cited item is a contribution, its title shall be typographically distinguished from that of the host item. For monographic publications, the use of the word “In:” should precede the title of the host item. The use of the “In:” connector is not needed for citations that are contributions from journals and is optional for other types ofserial publications.

EXAMPLE 1
Belle de Jour. In: Magill’s Survey of cinema [online]. Pasadena [CA]: Salem Press, 1985– [viewed 1994-08-04]. Accession number 0050053. Available from: Dialog Information Services, Palo Alto [CA].

EXAMPLE 2
BRY, I., and L. AFFLERBACH. In search of an organizing principle for behavioural science literature. Community Mental Health Journal. 1968, 4(1), pp. 75-84. ISSN 0010-3853.

EXAMPLE 3
CLARK, Carol. On the threshold of a brave new world. In: Blueprint of the body [online]. CNN.com, 2000 [viewed 24 August 2000; 10:25 EST]. In-depth specials. Available from: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2000/genome/story/overview/

EXAMPLE 4
McCONNELL, W. H. Constitutional history. In: The Canadian encyclopaedia [CD-ROM]. Macintosh version 1.1. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, ©1993. ISBN 0-7710-1932-7.

EXAMPLE 5
MICHAEL, D. The effect of local deformations on the elastic interaction of cross walls coupled by beams. In: COULL, E.A. and B. STAFFORD-SMITH. Tall buildings. Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1967.

In other languages, a connector other than “In” may be preferred, for example the use of “Julkaisussa” in Finnish.

EXAMPLE 6
SUHONEN, Pertti. Suomalaiset arvot ja politiikka. Julkaisussa: Aikamerkki. 1989, 62(1), 2-23.

Conferences

If regular conferences are held with the same title, it may be necessary to add the date and place of the conference for clarity.