The Dewey Decimal and Library of Congress library classification systems are the two most common systems in the United States and among the most popular world-wide. These systems organize resources like books or other media by concept and assign call numbers that are, in part used to shelve and retrieve materials. The Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) is used predominantly in public libraries in the United States while the Library of Congress Classification (LCC) is used primarily in academic libraries.
Characteristics
The Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) was first published by Melvil Dewey in 1876, and included a detailed justification for his use of decimal notation. DDC decimal notation ID can be expanded or reduced as needed by libraries. including those found in public libraries, school libraries, and small academic libraries. It consists of ten numeric classes that represent broad fields of study. Using numbers, each class is divided into ten divisions or subclasses. For example, the call number 813.54 M37 includes 800 for the main class of literature, 810 for the division of American literature in English, 813 for American fiction in English, and the cutter M37 for the author. LCC was adopted by other institutions with larger or specialized collections, such as those found in academic libraries and research libraries. LCC has 21 main classes, each designated with a letter of the alphabet, excluding I, O, W, X, and Y which are used to accommodate special needs of libraries that use the classification scheme.
There are various factors that determine which classification system a library uses. Usually, the size of a library's collection determines whether it selects DDC or LCC. In the 1960s and early 1970s, many larger academic libraries changed from Dewey Decimal Classification to Library of Congress Classification.
Comparison
The following table compares the organization of resources by the Dewey Decimal and Library of Congress classification systems. It includes all 99 second-level (two-digit) Dewey Decimal classes (excluding 040), and all second-level (two-digit) Library of Congress classes.
{|class="wikitable sortable "align="center"
!Dewey Decimal
!width=125|Library of Congress
!width=550|Description
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|000|| A, AZ, QA, TA, Z4–659
|Computer science, knowledge, and general works; history of scholarship and learning
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|010||AI, Z1001–8999||Bibliography, indexes
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|110
|B, BD, BH
|Philosophy history, metaphysics, speculative philosophy, aesthetics
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|310||HA ||Statistics
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|330||HB, HC, HD, HE, HF, HG, HJ||Economics, economics theory, economics history, transportation, communication, commerce, finance, public finance, environmental sciences
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|350||JF, JS, U, V||Public administration and military science, constitutional history, local government, naval science
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|380||HE, HF||Commerce, communications, and transport
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|610||QM, R, RA, RB, RC, RD, RE, RF, RG, RJ, RK, RL, RM, RS, RT, RV, RX, RZ||Medicine, human anatomy, public health, pathology, internal medicine, surgery, ophthalmology, otorhinolaryngology, gynecology, obstetrics, pediatrics, dentistry, dermatology, therapeutics, pharmacology, pharmacy, nursing, Thomsonian medicine, eclectic medicine, homeopathy, other systems of medicine
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|630||S, SB, SD, SF, SH, SK||Agriculture, plant industry, animal industry, plant culture, forestry, animal culture, aquaculture, fisheries, angling, hunting
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|640||TT, TX||Home management, family management, home economics, handicrafts, arts and crafts
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|710||SB||Landscaping, area planning, plant culture
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|790||GV||Sports, games, entertainment, recreation, leisure
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|910||G, GA, GB||Geography, travel, mathematical geography, cartography, physical geography
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|940||DA, DAW, DB, DC, DD, DF, DG, DH, DJ, DJK, DK, DL, DP, DQ, DR||History of Europe (ca 500 A.D.), Great Britain, Central Europe, Austria, Liechtenstein, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, France, Andorra, Monaco, Germany, East Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Belgium, Luxembourg, Holland, Eastern Europe, Soviet Union, Poland, Scandinavia, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Balkan peninsula
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|980||F1401–3799||History of South America, Central America, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela
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