Dear all
Apologies for cross posting

The Subject in Question: Developing the UK Archival Thesaurus

We would like to announce the availability of the website for the UK
Archival Thesaurus (UKAT) project (http://www.ukat.org.uk/).

The website provides:

1. Facilities to browse and search the Thesaurus (see
http://www.ukat.org.uk/thesaurus/). UKAT is being made available as it
is developed, so we would be grateful for your comments or contributions
(see below for URLs).

2. Ability to register as a contributor, and to submit terms and
relationships which you think should be included in UKAT. Contributions
are welcome from anyone with an interest in archives, including record
offices, archivists and archive users.

You can register using the on-line registration form
(http://www.ukat.org.uk/contribute/register.php). Once your registration
has been confirmed, you'll be able to login to submit terms and
relationships (http://www.ukat.org.uk/contribute/secure/). If you have a
large number of terms which you'd like to contribute (e.g. an in-house
thesaurus used by your institution), please contact UKAT
([log in to unmask]), as it may be more convenient to submit them to us
by other means.

3. Further information about the project (see
http://www.ukat.org.uk/about/).

4. A feedback form to provide us with comments about the Thesaurus and
the website (http://www.ukat.org.uk/contact/).

BACKGROUND:

The UKAT project is working to create a subject thesaurus for use by the
archive sector in the UK. The project has been supported by a grant from
the Heritage Lottery Fund, with additional funding and support from the
University of London Computer Centre and the National Archives. The
project will run until the end of June 2004.

The Thesaurus is being constructed from terms submitted by archives,
archive projects and users of archives. By promoting greater consistency
in the subject indexing terms which are being used by archives and
archive projects, UKAT will help to facilitate reliable subject
searching of resources in the National Archives Network. Contributions
received so far include terms from the Access to Archives project (A2A),
the Archives Hub, Archives in London and the M25 Area (AIM25), the
CASBAH project, Gateway to Archives of Scottish Higher Education
(GASHE), the Modern Records Centre at the University of Warwick, the
MUNDUS project, the National Archives, the National Digital Archive of
Datasets, and Warwickshire County Record Office. UKAT is being
constructed by adding terms to and amending the structure of the UNESCO
Thesaurus (http://www.ulcc.ac.uk/unesco/).

Another key goal of the project is to promote the involvement in
archives of groups which have previously been under-represented among
archive users, by incorporating terminology relating to their histories
and experiences.

For further information about the project, see the UKAT website
(http://www.ukat.org.uk/). The project team can be emailed at
[log in to unmask]

Phil Carlisle
Editor
UK Archival Thesaurus