Data model for ISMI

Conceptual objects in the database:

• (abstract-) TEXT
• ALIAS (title for text or name for person or place)
• WITNESS (aka manuscript)
• CODEX (of one or more witnesses)
• COLLECTION
• REPOSITORY (aka library)
• PERSON
• PLACE
• SUBJECT

Objects

TEXT

an abstract text (mostly with a specific title) that exists as one or more witnesses.

Attributes:

• full_title (arabic)
• full_title_translit (transliteration, generated from arabic if not present)
• short_title canonical short title in arabic or latin (if applicable)
• language
  • MAIN:
  • Arabic
  • Persian-Farsi
  • Greek-classical
  • Hebrew
  • Latin
  • Syriac
  • SECONDARY:
  • Armenian
  • Castillian
  • Catalan
  • Chinese
  • French
  • German
  • Greek-Byzantine
  • Hindi
  • Italian
  • Mongolian
  • Persian-Old
  • Persian-Middle
  • Russian
  • Sanskrit
  • Turkish (Ottoman pre-1839)
  • Turkish (Ottoman 1839-)
  • Turkish (pre-Ottoman)
  • Turkish-Republican
  • Urdu
  • Uighur
• incipit i.e. beginning (arabic text)
• explicit i.e. ending (arabic text)
• dedication (arabic text)
• creation_date (hijra date, should generate a CE date)
  • creation_date_ce (legacy)
  • creation_date_num (legacy)
• text_type i.e. genre
  • First-order prose composition (or compilation) [matn]
  • First-order verse composition (didactic poem)
  • Second-order composition (Commentary) [sharh]
  • Third-order composition (Supercommentary)
  • Fourth-order composition (Gloss)
  • Fifth-order composition (Supergloss)
  • Sixth-order composition
  • Seventh-order composition
  • Rearrangement
  • Abridgement (epitome)
  • Versification
  • Translation
  • Paraphrase
  • Supplement
• text_arrangement latin text description of number of books, parts, chapters, sections
• table_of_contents (arabic text)
• notes some text notes

Relations:

• TEXT is_commentary_on TEXT
• TEXT is_translation_of TEXT
• TEXT is_version_of TEXT
  • is redaction (revision, abbreviation, paraphrase, ...) of text
• TEXT was_created_by PERSON
• TEXT was_created_in PLACE
• TEXT was_dedicated_to PERSON
• ALIAS is_alias_title_of TEXT
• ALIAS is_alias_incipit_of TEXT
• TEXT has_subject SUBJECT
• ...

Problematic attributes:

• subject of text (legacy attribute genre, replaced by relation)
  • hay'a, zīj, mīqāt, astrolabe, etc
  • -> a canonical list of subjects should be present in the database
• format/structure of text (number of books, parts, chapters, sections)
• bibliographical information (secondary literature)
• number of versions [this number will generate additional forms to fill in unique details for each version; a version is usually an author's reedition but could have been made by students or someone else, even w/o author's approval]
• information whether the work has been published, translated, studied (relations)
• Text Arrangement: list of chapters, with a title in Arabic attached to each chapter.
• basis of text [the immediate text to which this is related as commentary, translation, gloss, etc.]

Problems:

• alias titles e.g. greek, latin linked to translations? [yes; also for persons, e.g. Avicenna=Ibn Sīnā]
• must Text Arrangement be a new definition? It is composed of several field! [yes since each component of the text arrangement corresponds to a particular page and line number in a witness; e.g. chapter 3 might correspond to f. 31a, line 2 in one witness, f. 42b, line 20 in another witness, etc.]

WITNESS

witnesses (manuscripts) are concrete written pieces of paper lying in a library.

Attributes:

• title as written on the manuscript (if different from text title)
• title_translit transliteration of title
• author_name as written on the manuscript
• source_of_information
  • catalog, ...(we need a list of values here!)
• ms_number (legacy)
• codex_part
• folios total number and/or text
• incipit if different from TEXT
• explicit if different from TEXT
• colophon (arabic text)
• is_autograph is this manuscript the autograph of the text (yes/no)
• creation_date (hijra, translated to CE)
• creation_date_ce
• page_dimensions height + width in cm
• written_area_dimensions height + width in cm
• lines_per_page
• writing_surface (predefined list)
• page_layout (latin text)
• script
  • include comments on legibility, ink, etc.
• other_features
• diagrams_and_illustrations information on diagrams and illustrations
  • include number of diagrams, folios, color of ink, brief description
  • include number of tables if possible, folios, color of ink, brief description
• scans URL to images of the witness
• notes_on_title_author
• notes_on_collation_and_corrections information on collation and corrections
• notes_on_ownership
• notes

Relations:

• WITNESS is_exemplar_of TEXT
• WITNESS is_part_of CODEX
  • is part of a collection
  • is in a library
• WITNESS was_created_by PERSON
• WITNESS was_created_in PLACE
• WITNESS had_patron PERSON
• WITNESS is_similar_to WITNESS
  • with notes
• WITNESS was_annotated_by PERSON
  • information about annotation
• WITNESS was_taught_by PERSON
• WITNESS was_studied_by PERSON
• WITNESS was_owned_by PERSON
• WITNESS was_studied_in PLACE/INSTITUTION

Problems:

• annotations/marginal notes
• Text Arrangement Pagination (from Text Arrangement into TEXT). This field shows folio and line number of the start of each chapter (from TEXT) in the list.
• alternative MS/catalog numbers?
  • ALIAS library/collection/shelfmark -> different CODEX

CODEX

a codex is a physical, bound collection of manuscripts

Attributes:

• identifier (shelfmark or catalog id)
• number_of_folios
• table_of_contents table of witnesses in the codex
• binding (select from list)
• dimensions
• distinguishing_features (e.g. presentation copy, decoration)
• notes_on_ownership
• notes

Relations:

• WITNESS is_part_of CODEX
• CODEX is_part_of COLLECTION
• CODEX is_part_of LIBRARY
• CODEX is_copy_of CODEX
• CODEX was_copied_by PERSON
• CODEX was_owned_by PERSON
• CODEX had_patron PERSON
• ALIAS is_alias_identifier CODEX

Problems:

• does every witness have to be in a codex? yes

COLLECTION

a codex is in a collection (in a repository).

Attributes:

• name of collection
• notes
• owner and historical information
• description of holdings

Relations:

• CODEX is_part_of COLLECTION
• COLLECTION is_part_of LIBRARY

REPOSITORY

a collection is in a repository (aka library)

Attributes:

• name of repository
• more info?

Relations:

• CODEX is_part_of REPOSITORY
• COLLECTION is_part_of REPOSITORY
• REPOSITORY is_in PLACE

PERSON

persons are (real or hypothetical) people that have some relation to a manuscript/text.

Attributes:

• name full arabic (or other script) name
• name_translit transliteration of name
• short_name canonical short name (in transliteration)
• birth_date birth date (hijra)
• birth_date_ce birth date (ce)
• death_date death date (hijra)
• death_date_ce birth date (ce)
• url link to biography
• authority_id id in library of congress authority file
• notes

Relations:

• TEXT was_created_by PERSON
• WITNESS was_created_by PERSON
• TEXT/WITNESS/CODEX had_patron PERSON
• ALIAS is_alias_name_of PERSON
• PERSON was_born_in PLACE
• PERSON died_in PLACE
• PERSON was_influenced_by PERSON
• (...)

Problems:

• anonymous or insufficiently specified names
• alternative names (historical change?)

Anonymous authors:

• link to one generic Anonymous person (with optional notes)
• if more individuating information becomes available a new person will be created and linked as an author

ALIAS

alias titles or names for places and persons.

Attributes:

• alias arabic or latin or other text
• alias_translit semi-automatically generated transliteration if necessary

Relations:

• ALIAS is_alias_name_of PERSON
• ALIAS is_alias_title_of TEXT
• ALIAS is_alias_incipit_of TEXT
• ALIAS is_alias_explicit_of TEXT

PLACE

places are institutions, dwellings or locations that have some relation to a manuscript/text/person/library/...

Attributes:

• name original script name
• name_translit (translit)
• type of place
  • institution, city_part, city, region (also country)
• location geographic coordinates (point and polygon?)

Relations:

• PLACE is_part_of PLACE (city is part of region, etc)
• WITNESS was_created_in PLACE
• PERSON was_born_in PLACE
• LIBRARY is_in PLACE
• ALIAS is_alias_name_of PLACE (at a certain time?)

SUBJECT

subjects are subject matters that are treated in a text.

Attributes:

• name subject name or description (English?)
• name_arabic
• notes

Relations:

• SUBJECT is_part_of SUBJECT
• TEXT has_subject SUBJECT

Examples:

• ASTROLOGY
• ASTRONOMY
  • hay’a (4-part division)
  • hay’a (general astronomy)
  • mīqāt
  • qibla determination
  • taqwīm
• ASTRONOMICAL INSTRUMENTS
  • astrolabes
  • celestial globes/armillary spheres
  • equatoria
  • observational
  • quadrants
    • sundials
• ASTRONOMICAL TABLES (ZĪJES)
• CHRONOLOGY
• COSMOLOGY-philosophical
• COSMOLOGY-religious
• GEOGRAPHY-mathematical
• GEOGRAPHY-terrestrial phenomena (hay’at al-arḍ)
• MATHEMATICS
  • algebra
  • arithmetic
    • arithmetic tables
    • basic arithmetic
    • number theory
  • geometry
    • conic sections
    • Euclidean constructions
    • general geometry
  • mensuration
  • inheritance (farā’iḍ)
  • magic squares
  • spherics
  • trigonometry
• OPTICS
• TECHNOLOGY
  • mechanical devices
  • military
  • navigation
• PHILOSOPHY
  • metaphysics/ilâhiyyât
  • natural philosophy/tabî‘iyyât
  • epistemology/tasawwur and tasdîq
  • philosophy of mind/‘ilm al-nafs
  • ethics/akhlâq
  • politics/siyâsa
  • logic/mantiq
  • dialectic/âdâb al-bahth, ‘ilm al-munâzara
  • philosophy of language/‘ilm al-wad‘, ‘ilm al-balâgha, usûl al-fiqh
  • multiple subjects
  • other

Secondary literature

Items:

• bibliographical items (book/article/etc)
• later separate authors with aliases

Relations:

• covers text/manuscript/codex/collection/library or person

Questions

• historical record of manuscripts in libraries?
• historical record of author attribution?
• historical record of ownership?
• have the possibility to maintain a list of Titles which were wrongly attributed to an author in secondary literature
• collect secondary literature
• format of dates
• workflow for public and non-public entries in the display?