Knowra S. R. Ranganathan S. R. Ranganathan S. R. Ranganathan (1892–1972) was an Indian librarian and mathematician who formulated the five laws of library science and developed Colon Classification.
Colon Classification : A faceted library classification system devised by S. R. Ranganathan, using punctuation to express relationships among subjects. Ranganathan’s signature classification system turns his ideas about flexible subject description into a practical scheme.
PMEST : Ranganathan’s five fundamental categories for analyzing subjects: Personality, Matter, Energy, Space, and Time. The PMEST categories provide the core facets used to construct many Colon Classification numbers.
Madras Library Association : An organization founded in 1928 to promote libraries and library development in the Madras Presidency. Ranganathan helped establish the association and used it to advance library development in India.
W. C. Berwick Sayers : A British librarian and classification theorist who wrote influential works on library classification and cataloging. Sayers’s teaching helped introduce Ranganathan to modern library classification during his studies in London.
Universal Decimal Classification : A multilingual classification system that organizes knowledge through decimal notation and compound subject numbers. It offers a contrasting general-purpose system to Ranganathan’s Colon Classification.
Five Laws of Library Science : Five principles stating that libraries serve use, connect readers with books, save readers’ time, grow, and adapt to the future. These principles are Ranganathan’s best-known statement of what libraries should do.
Analytico-synthetic classification : A classification approach that analyzes a subject into facets and synthesizes them into a notation for the specific topic. Ranganathan’s method analyzes topics and recombines their facets instead of relying only on prelisted subjects.
Public Libraries Act 1948 : An Indian law establishing a public library system in the then Madras State through public funding and library cess. Ranganathan campaigned for library legislation that culminated in this landmark state act.
D. J. Foskett : A British librarian and information scientist known for work on classification, indexing, and information retrieval. Foskett helped explain and extend Ranganathan’s faceted approach for later information science.
Library legislation in India : The laws governing the establishment, funding, and operation of libraries across India. Ranganathan’s advocacy helped make public library legislation a central part of library development.
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