Proposing New Subject Headings for Family Names


This chapter provides guidance on proposing subject headings for family names as outlined in the Subject Headings Manual, H 1631.3, and also in accordance with the rules of the original RDA in its Chapter 10.2. The focus of this chapter is on Slavic, Eastern European and Eurasian family names.

This chapter does not address establishing the names of royal houses and dynasties, which should be established according to the instructions in H 1574 of the Subject Headings Manual.

Please note that in order for family names to be used as creators of a work, they should be established in the name authority file, according to standard procedures for establishing names. This will happen rarely; in most cases family names should be established as subjects in LCSH.

When proposing a family name as a subject, besides citation for the work that served as a basis for the subject heading, the Library of Congress requires citations from recommended reference sources (see the list at the end of this chapter).

English translation of non-English resources

When submitting a proposal for the family name based on a non-English resource, the Library of Congress requests that the citation for the work cataloged have information about the family translated into English. It should particularly contain the form of the name that will be used as the heading. It does not have to contain an English translation of the title unless the title contains some relevant information about the family name.

Example (in MARC format) at LC proposal stage:

670 Arsenych, P.I. Svi︠a︡shchenychyĭ rid Burachynsʹkykh, 2004: ǂb title page (Translation of the title: The priestly Burachynsky family; rid Burachynsʹkykh) ǂw (DLC)20006427396

Choosing form of family name

Establish the family name using the form of name by which the family is commonly known. Add forms of name for alternative linguistic forms, or resulting from different transliteration or spelling, as variant names.

Example (in MARC format):

100 3 Burachynsʹkyĭ family

400 3 Burachinsky family

400 3 Burachynskyj family

400 3 Buraczynskyj family

670 Svi︠a︡shchenychyĭ rid Burachynsʹkykh, 2004: ǂb title page (Translation of the title: The priestly Burachynsky family; rid Burachynsʹkykh) ǂw (DLC)20006427396

670 MD (Montgomery county) phone book, July 11, 2006 ǂb (Burachynskyj)

670 LC database, July 11, 2006 ǂb (Burachynsʹkyĭ, Bohdan)

670 Google search, July 11, 2006 ǂb (Burachynskyj, Burachinsky, Buraczynskyj)

675 Am. fam. names; Cent. pop. growth

Do not add any qualifiers to the name, such as the name of the progenitor or the occupation of the family.

For names that appear in inflected forms, generally prefer the masculine, singular, nominative form.

Example (in MARC format):

100 3 Babović family

670 Bratstvo Babovići, 2000.

Use of diacritics

If family names of different meanings or different ethnic backgrounds are distinguished only by the use of diacritical marks, establish a single heading (with or without diacritical marks as appropriate), based on the most common usage or earliest work cataloged. Add a public note(s) explaining that the heading is used for multiple families and that the appropriate diacritical marks may be included in the heading on an individual bibliographic record.

Example (in MARC format):

100 3 Bagirov family

670 Dünyaya naxış insanlar, 2009: ǂb page 5, etc. (Bağırovlar - a prominent Azerbaijani family originally from Shusha (Azerbaijan) of Nagorno-Karabakhskai︠a︡ avtonomnai︠a︡ oblastʹ (Azerbaijan S.S.R.). Most of the family members are primarily residing in Baku (Azerbaijan)) ǂw (DLC)201044940

675 Am. family names; ǂa Cent. pop. growth

680 ǂi Here are entered works on families with the surnames Bağırov and Bagirov.

680 ǂi When this heading is assigned to works on an individual family, the appropriate diacritical marks, if any, are included in the heading in the catalog record.

Adding these 680s is not necessary when establishing an authority file for a single family which has dropped use of diacritical marks, possibly due to emigration.

Compound names

Establish compound names as they appear. For example, if the name appears commonly with a hyphen, then use the hyphen. If the name appears commonly without a hyphen, then do not use a hyphen.

Add parts of the name in 500 (related term) fields, if they have been established.

Example (in MARC format):

100 3 Beloselʹskiĭ-Belozerskiĭ family

400 3 Belosselsky-Belozersky family

400 3 Bieloselskiĭ-Bielozerskiĭ family

500 3 Beloselʹskiĭ family

500 3 Belozerskiĭ family

Related names

If a family name has been changed as the result of emigration, and represents different branches of the family, establish headings for both names. Connect the headings with 500 fields, and assign both headings to the work being cataloged.

Example (in MARC format):

100 3 Galitzine family

500 3 Golit︠s︡yn family

670 The Princes Galitzine, 2002: ǂb title page (Galitzine) page xv ("In our text, the family is generally spelled Galitzine, according to the official French spelling of the name adopted by most family members living outside Russia today. However, our Moscow cousins write Golitsyn ...") ǂw (DLC)200272863

Nationality and/or location

Record the nationality or location of the family in the citation for the work being cataloged, and, optionally, in the citations for other sources consulted, if that information is available. The location is necessary so that the Library of Congress staff can tell if the name has been changed when the family moves to a different country.

Example (in MARC format):

100 3 Csárdás family

670 Work cat.: Csárdás, K. My Hungarian kitchen rhapsody, 2007: ǂb page 15 (Hungarian family; Csárdás)


Selected resources to consult when proposing subject headings for Slavic and Eastern European family names (Additions to this list are welcome. Please send names of new resources to SlavicCatalogingManual@gmail.com)

    • Moldanová, Dobrava, Naše přijmení [Our Surnames]. Praha: Mladá Fronta, 1983 [2nd, enlarged ed.: Praha : Agentura Pankrác, 2004; later editions: 2010, 2015, 2019] (Czech surnames)

    • Zhanuzaqov, T., Esbaeva, K. Qazaq esimderi = Kazakhskie imena. Almaty : Ghylym, 1988 (Khazak surnames)


Submitted by Brenda Carter and Larisa Walsh, March 17, 2021, in consultation with Paul Frank (LoC) and Linda Ewbank (LoC).