Directories as Tertiary Information Sources: Complete LIS Study Notes
Comprehensive study material curated for UGC NET / JRF, SET, KVS, NVS, DSSSB, and State PSC Librarian examinations, synthesized from eGyanKosh (IGNOU BLIS/MLIS), e-PG Pathshala, and standard reference evaluation frameworks.
1. Definition and Conceptual Overview
In Library and Information Science (LIS), a Directory is an alphabetical, geographical, or classified list of individuals, institutions, societies, industrial enterprises, professional bodies, or publications. It typically provides official names, addresses, administrative heads, organizational functions, contact numbers, web links, and historical profiles.
According to Denis Grogan (1973), documentary sources are classified into Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary sources. Directories belong to Tertiary Information Sources because they act as institutional signposts, compiled registers, and access gateways that point users toward primary literature, secondary documentation, specialists, and parent bodies rather than delivering original subject discoveries.
2. Chronological Order: Major International / Worldwide Directories
1. Kelly's Directory (1837)
- Founder / Compiler: Frederic Festus Kelly
- Publishing Organisation: Kelly's Directories Ltd. (United Kingdom)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1837
- Frequency: Annually (historical print series)
- Key Details & Functions: Pioneer commercial and postal directory originally covering London's trades, residents, streets, and postal addresses; subsequently broadened into nationwide county trade registers.
- Amendments & Digital Transitions: Print production was phased out as directories transitioned into computerized business databases, commercial intelligence platforms, and online postal search engines.
2. Thomas Register of American Manufacturers (1898)
- Founder / Compiler: Harvey Mark Thomas
- Publishing Organisation: Thomas Publishing Company (USA)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1898
- Frequency: Annually (historic multi-volume print edition)
- Key Details & Functions: Comprehensive industrial buying guide cataloging North American industrial manufacturing enterprises, brand names, product classifications, and plant capacities.
- Amendments & Digital Transitions: Ceased its massive print run in 2006 (106th edition) and migrated completely to the web as ThomasNet (www.thomasnet.com), serving as a real-time B2B sourcing portal.
3. American Library Directory - ALD (1923)
- Publishing Organisation: R. R. Bowker (later published by Information Today, Inc.)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1923
- Frequency: Annual (formerly published biennially)
- Key Details & Functions: Authoritative inventory of public, academic, special, government, and armed forces libraries across the United States and Canada. Provides data on key personnel, annual expenditures, collection sizes, library automation software, consortium memberships, and branch networks.
- Amendments & Modern Formats: Now accessible both as a multi-volume print set and via the searchable electronic database American Library Directory Online.
4. Ulrich's Periodicals Directory (1932)
- Founder / Compiler: Carolyn Farquhar Ulrich (Chief of Periodicals Division, New York Public Library)
- Publishing Organisation: R. R. Bowker; later acquired and maintained by ProQuest (Clarivate)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1932
- Frequency: Annual in print; continuously updated in web database
- Original Title: Periodicals Directory: A Classified Guide to a Selected List of Current Foreign and Domestic
- Amendments & Key Dates:
- 1965 (11th Edition): Renamed to Ulrich's International Periodicals Directory, expanding into a multi-volume international coverage format with ISSN tracking.
- 1988: Merged with Irregular Serials & Annuals to offer comprehensive global coverage of all continuing serial resources.
- Present Format: Operates universally across academic research libraries as Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory, providing peer-review indicators, open access markers, and indexing/abstracting details.
5. The World of Learning (1947)
- Publishing Organisation: Europa Publications, London (now an imprint of Routledge / Taylor & Francis Group)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1947 (emerging out of Europa's general reference handbooks)
- Frequency: Annual (Published in 2 large volumes)
- Key Details & Functions: The premier international reference directory of higher education institutions, scientific academies, learned societies, research institutes, museums, art galleries, and university libraries in over 200 countries worldwide.
- Internal Arrangement: Divided into an International Section (covering UNESCO, international academic councils, and cross-border associations), followed by a country-by-country alphabetical layout with institutional entries detailing chancellors, professors, deans, librarians, and student intake.
- Modern Access: Available in hardcover print and as an online institutional database subscription at worldoflearning.com.
6. Directory of Special Libraries and Information Centers (1963)
- Founder / Original Compiler: Anthony T. Kruzas
- Publishing Organisation: Gale Research (now Gale / Cengage Learning)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1963
- Frequency: Annual
- Key Details & Functions: Provides detailed profiles of subject-specific, technical, corporate, medical, legal, and governmental documentation centres, archives, and special collections worldwide.
- Amendments & Scope: Expanded from North American institutions into global coverage, published with companion geographic and personnel indexes.
7. World Guide to Libraries / Internationales Bibliotheks-Handbuch (1966)
- Publishing Organisation: K. G. Saur Verlag, Munich (now Walter de Gruyter)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1966
- Frequency: Biennial / Regular multi-year revisions
- Key Details & Functions: Comprehensive multi-volume directory covering national libraries, general research repositories, university libraries, and government documentation centers in more than 150 nations holding over 30,000 volumes.
3. Chronological Order: Major Indian National Directories
1. Universities Handbook: India (1927)
- Publishing Organisation: Inter-University Board of India (established in 1925; renamed the Association of Indian Universities - AIU in 1973)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1927
- Frequency: Biennial / Periodic regular editions
- Key Details & Functions: Authoritative reference work covering conventional universities, Institutes of National Importance (IITs, IIMs, IISc, NITs), Deemed-to-be Universities, and Central/State statutory universities across India.
- Data Covered: Vice-chancellors, registrars, university librarians, statutory academic bodies, teaching departments, constituent colleges, degrees offered, library book counts, and residential facilities.
2. Directory of Scientific Research Institutions in India (1969)
- Founder / Parent Organisation: INSDOC (Indian National Scientific Documentation Centre, New Delhi; merged in 2002 to form CSIR-NISCAIR, currently CSIR-NIScPR)
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1969
- Frequency: Periodic / Irregular project editions
- Key Details & Functions: Detailed institutional profiles of Indian R&D laboratories under CSIR, ICAR, ICMR, DRDO, DAE, DOS, and university science departments. Records research mandates, specialized laboratory equipment, directors, publications, and technical library collections.
3. Directory of Social Science Research Institutions in India (1971)
- Publishing Organisation: NASSDOC (National Social Science Documentation Centre) / ICSSR (Indian Council of Social Science Research), New Delhi
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1971
- Frequency: Periodic / Irregular updates
- Key Details & Functions: Catalogs autonomous social science research organizations, policy planning bodies, demographic survey centers, and university research cells across India, highlighting research projects, library holdings, and recurring journals.
4. Directory of Public Libraries in India (1986)
- Publishing Organisation: Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation (RRRLF), Kolkata
- Date of Launch / First Published: 1986
- Frequency: Periodic revisions and compilation volumes
- Key Details & Functions: Systematic state-by-state register of public library systems in India. Covers State Central Libraries, Divisional/District Libraries, Sub-Divisional/Taluka Libraries, and registered rural/NGO libraries receiving financial assistance under RRRLF matching and non-matching schemes.
4. Structural Layout of a Reference Directory
Directories are engineered for rapid information lookup using a consistent internal organization:
- Prefatory Section: Editorial scope, criteria for inclusion, abbreviations, postal system guidelines, and user navigation keys.
- Body / Master Register: Main entries arranged either geographically (Country → State → City), alphabetically by corporate title, or systematically by subject classification.
- Data Attributes: Official organization name, head/executive title, postal address, telephone/fax, official email, web address, founding year, divisional breakdown, library collection statistics, and primary publications.
- Back-of-the-Book Indexes: Multiple entry points, including Subject Indexes, Institutional Name Indexes, Personal Names/Executive Indexes, and Cross-Reference Indexes for renamed institutions.
5. High-Yield UGC NET, KVS & NVS Exam Points
- Denis Grogan's Taxonomy: Denis Grogan categorized Directories under Tertiary Sources along with Yearbooks, Almanacs, Handbooks, Bibliographies of Bibliographies, and Guides to Literature.
- C. W. Hanson's Exception: C. W. Hanson classified documentary sources into only two tiers: Primary and Secondary. Under Hanson's model, directories are treated under secondary sources.
- The World of Learning Launch: Published first in 1947 by Europa Publications (London) with annual revision. It remains the most frequently cited academic directory in national librarian eligibility tests.
- Ulrich's Chronology: Launched in 1932 by Carolyn F. Ulrich; renamed Ulrich's International Periodicals Directory in 1965 (11th ed.); transformed into the digital serials index Ulrichsweb under ProQuest.
- Universities Handbook Publisher: Published by the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), which was founded in 1925 as the Inter-University Board (IUB) before adopting its present name in 1973.
- Directory vs. Yearbook Distinction: A Directory provides a systematically organized list of names, addresses, affiliations, and contact records; a Yearbook records, reviews, and analyzes events, statistics, and developments during a single calendar year.