Glossary of Archival Terms
A
Access: the ability to discover, view, and make use of an item
Archives: materials created or collected by a person, family, organization, or community and preserved because of their continuing value; also a place where archival materials are physically or digitally stored (see Repository) | Learn more about archives
Archivist: a person responsible for collecting, preserving, and providing access to archival materials
B
Born-digital: items originally created in a digital format, such as websites, emails, social media posts, and digital photos | Born-digital items are different from analog or physical items that may be digitized, such as letters or photographs
C
Collective memory: the shared pool of memories, knowledge and information of a social group that is significantly associated with the group's identity
Collection: group of materials related to a particular person, family, organization, community, topic or theme
Community: group of individuals who share a collective geographic space, experience, or level of ownership of the content being shared
Community archives: (see also Participatory archive) archives that incorporate community participation and ownership; self-documentation of shared experiences, events, and identities
Contemporary: existing or occurring at the present time
Contributor: (see Donor) someone who donates material to an archive or contributes material to an online archive | In archives and libraries, this can also be someone who helped create a work (when there is more than one creator)
Contributor agreement: (see Donor agreement) a written agreement between a donor and an archive, that says what an archive can and cannot do with the donation
Copyright: a legal right protecting the interests of creators by granting them control over the use of their work
Creative Commons: a type of copyright license that provides ways for creators to give others the right to share and use their work
Creator: the person, group, or organization that created an item
D
Digital archive: (see also Participatory archive) an online collection of born-digital or digitized archival items; also a crowdsourced collection of materials documenting a particular topic or event
Digital preservation: all of the actions required to maintain access to digital materials despite technological change
Digitize: to convert non-digital materials (such as newspapers, letters, or artwork) into digital form (via scanning or digital photography)
Document: n. an item that contains evidence or information; v. to create a record of something such as a time period or event
Donor: (see Contributor) someone who donates material to an archive or contributes material to an online archive
Donor agreement: (see Contributor agreement) a written agreement between a donor and an archive, that says what an archive can and cannot do with the donation
Dublin Core: a set of fifteen "core" elements (properties) for describing digital or physical resources
F
File type: a specific type of computer file, which can be proprietary or universal | Examples include JPEG and PNG (image files) MP3 and WAV (audio files) and PDF (application file)
Format: the file format, physical medium, or dimensions of a resource
H
Historical value: the importance or usefulness of an item for understanding the past
History: the study of the past, particularly human affairs
L
Link rot: when a hyperlink no longer takes you to the web page or resource it was supposed to point to
M
Memory: knowledge of the past
Metadata: information used to describe other information, for example: a title used to describe a book; metadata is essential for the discovery and management of archival materials
O
Oral history: an interview conducted to record a person’s memories of the past and historical events
P
Participatory archive: (see also Digital archive) an archival collection or site in which community members contribute materials and knowledge, usually in an online environment
Primary source: material that contains firsthand information about people, places, events, and time periods--as recorded by the people who experienced them | Examples include letters and diaries, oral histories, photographs, and social media posts
Public domain: material not protected by copyright; creative work under public ownership and open to use by anyone without permission
R
Record: an item constituting a piece of evidence about the past, especially an account kept in writing or some other permanent form
Repository: (see also Archives) a physical or digital location used for the long-term storage of archival material
S
Social history: field of history that studies the lives and activities of everyday people.
Social memory: a concept used to explore the connection between social identity and historical memory
V
Visual literacy: the ability to understand, read, and use images and to think and learn in terms of images