010 International Standard Book Number

Field Definition

This field contains an International Standard Book Number and a qualification which distinguishes between ISBN when more than one is contained in a record. The field corresponds to the ISBD Standard Number (or Alternative) and Terms of Availability Area. The field may contain the terms of availability and/or price, even if it does not contain an ISBN.

Occurrence

Optional. Repeatable when more than one valid ISBN etc. is to be recorded.

Indicators

Indicator 1: blank (not defined)

Indicator 2: blank (not defined)

Subfields

$a Number (ISBN)

A correctly applied ISBN including hyphens. The ISBN are assigned by the designated agency in each country. (Optional and not repeatable)

$b Qualification

An indication of the scope of the ISBN in subfield $a (if present), usually the name of a publisher, an indication of the binding of the item, or an indication of the relationship of an ISBN to a set or to a particular volume. (EX 3, 5, 6, 7). (Optional and not repeatable)

$d Terms of Availability and/or Price

The price of the item and any comment on its availability (EX 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8). (Optional and not repeatable)

$z Erroneous ISBN

An ISBN that has been identified as being erroneously applied to an item or is otherwise invalid. It may have been allocated to two different publications and in this instance cancelled (EX 8), or it may have been incorrectly printed (EX 9). (Optional and repeatable)

Notes on Field Contents

ISBN structure:

The ISBN is a unique number applied to a published item according to the provisions of ISO 2108. The ISBN consists of four distinct parts, each of which is separated by a hyphen or space. Hyphens are recommended in UNIMARC. The four parts are:

Group identifier: Allocated to each country or group of countries or language groups by the International ISBN Agency. International organizations, e.g., the UN, also have their own group identifier.

Publisher identifier: Allocated to each publisher by a National or Regional ISBN Agency.

Title identifier: Allocated to each title (and each edition and format of each title) by the publisher.

Check digit: calculated on the basis of the other 9 digits of the ISBN.

All digits of the ISBN are numeric except the check digit which may be numeric or a roman numeral X (capital X, representing a numeric value of 10) ISO 2108 gives the standard specifications of the form of the ISBN.

Verification of check digit:

To check for accuracy of an ISBN: take each digit and multiply by a number whose value depends on the position of the digit (the 'weight'), add the results and divide by 11. If the answer is not zero then one or more of the digits is wrong. Using EX 9 as an example:

Data format:

The letters ISBN, which are usually found printed with an ISBN on the item, should not be entered in field 010.

Any ISBN which is found to be wrongly printed on the item can be entered in subfield $z, Erroneous ISBN, which is provided to give access to records that may have been requested by an erroneous number appearing on the item.

Hyphens are inserted to separate the four separate parts of the number in the $a or $z subfield. No other punctuation is permitted. The purpose of the hyphens or spaces in the ISBN is to separate the distinct parts. When an ISBN is displayed in a catalogue entry the inclusion of the hyphens or spaces is mandatory. Many national agencies do not store the hyphens or spaces in the machine-readable record since they can be generated by algorithm if the range of publisher identifiers which have been allocated is known. When records are exchanged internationally the recipient of records may not always know the range of publisher identifiers allocated within the group represented by the first part of the ISBN. Therefore it is recommended that hyphens always be included in the ISBN in field 010 to ensure their display on output.

Strictly, each book has one ISBN. However, there are circumstances in which a single record may need to include more than one ISBN, depending on the policy of the cataloguing agency. Examples of situations in which multiple ISBN might appear in a record are: where a publisher issues a work in more than one binding or physical format, each with a different ISBN, and a single record is created by the agency encompassing more than one of these 'editions', where a single record is created for a multipart item (multi-volume monograph) and different ISBN have been assigned by the publisher to each volume, or to each volume and to the set as a whole; where a single item is published, or published and distributed, by more than one entity, each of which has assigned a separate ISBN to the item.

In order to distinguish between ISBN when there is more than one in a record, qualifications may be added to one or more of them, according to the practice of the agency preparing the record.

Terms of availability and price are often related to each ISBN. Thus this information is recorded in the same field. Punctuation is included with the data as required.

The field should be repeated for each valid ISBN. It should also be repeated for an invalid ISBN unless that invalid ISBN clearly relates to a known valid equivalent entered in the record, in which case the invalid ISBN will be entered in the same field as its corresponding valid ISBN (EX 8, 9).

Some agencies use the ISBN as record identifier and enter it in the field 001. In those cases the ISBN should be entered additionally in field 010.

Fields or other related entities

011 International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

A number similar in use to the ISBN but applied to serials.

013 International Standard Music Number (ISMN)

A number similar in use to the ISBN but applied to printed music.

Examples

Ex. 1:

010 ##$a0-246-11007-4$d£2.95

A book published in England and cloth bound priced at £2.95 with the ISBN on the document as follows: 0 246 11007 4.

Ex. 2:

010 ##$a963-592-149-7$d$25.00 (outside Hungary)

A book published in Hungary and sold outside the country for $25.00.

Ex. 3:

010 ##$d£3.50

010 ##$bpbk$d£2.50

A book published in both cloth and paper covers. No ISBN are available.

Ex. 4:

010 ##$a0-85997-276-3$d£5.20 (£3.90 to members of the Library Association)

A book is published with a discount to members of the Library Association.

Ex. 5:

010 ##$a0-915408-15-5$dUnpriced

010 ##$a0-915408-16-3$bSigned ed.$dUnpriced

A book is available in cloth bound form with the option of purchasing it in a cased edition signed by the translator. The alternatives each have their own ISBN.

Ex. 6:

010 ##$a0-306-35054-8$d£22.05

010 ##$a0-306-35050-5$bSet of six vols$d£97.29

The record is for volume 4 of a monograph Treatise on solid state chemistry published in 6 volumes, each with its own ISBN. The set also has an ISBN and a price is available for the set.

Ex. 7:

010 ##$a0-563-12887-9$b(B.B.C.)

010 ##$a0-233-96847-4$b(Deutsch)

A book is jointly published by the British Broadcasting Corporation and Deutsch.

Ex. 8:

010 ##$a0-95045-372-2$df0.55$z0-95045-711-6

A publisher erroneously gives the same ISBN to all the items he publishes. The national ISBN agency provides correct ones for each. In the record for each of the items, the correct one is found in subfield $a and the wrongly applied one is $z.

Ex. 9:

010 ##$a0-11-884094-0$z0-11-884094-X

ISBN 0 11 884094 0 is incorrectly printed with an X as the check digit.