How to Find Print Books: How a Call Number is Like an Address
Which "Town" Does Your Book Live In?
If you had as many books as we do, how would you arrange them so you could always find each one of them?
The first letter of a call number tells you which "town" (large subject group) you will find your book in. The first letter also tells you which floor of the library to go to.
THE NAMES AND LOCATIONS OF THE "TOWNS"
- THE NAMES OF THE "TOWNS" -
And Their Locations in the Library
A General Works 5th Floor
B Philosophy, Psychology, Religion 4th Floor
C Archaeology, Biography 5th Floor
D World History 3rd Floor
E U.S. History 3rd Floor
F U.S. Regional & Latin America 3rd Floor
G Geography, Anthropology, Recreation 5th Floor
H Social Sciences 3rd Floor
J Political Science 5th Floor
K Law 5th Floor
L Education 5th Floor
M Music 5th Floor
N Fine Arts 3rd Floor
P Language, Literature 4th Floor
Q Science 5th Floor
R Medicine 5th Floor
S Agriculture 5th Floor
T Technology 5th Floor
U Military Science 5th Floor
V Naval Science 5th Floor
Z Library Science 5th Floor
THE "NEIGHBORHOODS," "STREETS," AND "HOUSES"
- THE "NEIGHBORHOODS" -
The second (and sometimes a 3rd letter) together with the first number (and sometimes a further letter/number) place your book in a "neighborhood" of books on the same subject. For example,
P Language, Literature
- PG 7001 - PG 7446 Polish Literature
- PJ 7501 - PJ 8518 Arabic Literature
- PN 849 .G74 - PN 849 .G742 British Literature
- THE "STREETS" AND "HOUSES" -
The rest of the call number identifies the "street" and the "house" (exact location) for your book. It is derived from the author's name or the title of the book and frequently includes the year of publication.
THE BENEFITS OF CALL NUMBERS
- THE BENEFITS OF CALL NUMBERS -
Books on the same subject will be together. Find one book on your topic and you can easily find more.
Books by the same author on the same subject will be together.
All academic libraries use the Library of Congress classification system.
And of course, being able to locate just one book among the hundreds of thousands in the library.