ISO 690:2021

Information and documentation — Guidelines for bibliographic references and citations to information resources

This document describes a set of principles, guidelines, and requirements for the preparation of bibliographic references and citations in works that are not themselves primarily bibliographical. It is applicable to bibliographic references and citations for all kinds of information resources, including but not limited to monographs, serials, contributions within monographs and serials, patents, cartographic materials, artworks, performances and diverse electronic resources, such as research datasets, databases, programs and applications, Web archives and social media, music, recorded sound, prints, photographs, graphic and audio-visual materials, archival sources and moving images. This document provides a system for citing information resources that renders deterministic output, such that a citation generated by this system can be uniquely mapped back to the originally defined set of source elements. This system is intended to be applicable across multiple languages. Citations generated by this system are machine-parseable. The citation system described in this document can be used as a configurable framework for building citation styles. This document does not specify a data model for machine‑readable citations, although such specification may be provided in a separate document or added to a later edition of ISO 690. Guidelines for legal citations, such as references to cases, statutes or treatises, are not addressed in this document, since such guidelines are usually country-specific1. Recommendations with regards to what kind of information resources may or may not be cited, or describing the risks involved with, for example, citing social media, are not within the scope of this document2. 1 For example, the ALWD Guide to Legal Citation, and Bluebook, are commonly used in the USA depending on jurisdiction acceptance. 2 Academic institutions or scientific publishers may not accept references for some information resources such as Wikipedia articles for research papers and other scientific documents.

Information et documentation — Principes directeurs pour la rédaction des références bibliographiques et des citations des ressources d'information

Informatika in dokumentacija - Smernice za bibliografske navedbe in citiranje virov informacij

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 10-Jun-2021
• ICS: 01.140.20 - Information sciences
• Technical Committee: ISO/TC 46/SC 9 - Identification and description
• Drafting Committee: ISO/TC 46/SC 9 - Identification and description
• Current Stage: 6060 - International Standard published
• Start Date: 11-Jun-2021
• Due Date: 24-Feb-2021
• Completion Date: 11-Jun-2021
• Ref Project: SIST ISO 690:2021 - Information and documentation -- Guidelines for bibliographic references and citations to information resources

Relations

• Consolidated By: ISO 15384:2018/Amd 1:2021 - Protective clothing for firefighters — Laboratory test methods and performance requirements for wildland firefighting clothing — Amendment 1
• Effective Date: 06-Jun-2022
• Revises: ISO 690:2010 - Information and documentation — Guidelines for bibliographic references and citations to information resources
• Effective Date: 10-Dec-2016

Overview - ISO 690:2021 (bibliographic references & citations)

ISO 690:2021 provides international guidelines for bibliographic references and citations to information resources. It defines principles, requirements and a configurable citation system that produces deterministic, machine-parseable citations. Applicable across languages and resource types, ISO 690 covers monographs, serials, datasets, databases, software, cartographic materials, recordings, photographs, archives, social media and more. It does not cover legal citation rules (country‑specific) and does not itself define a machine‑readable data model - though it supports machine parsing and can be used to build citation styles.

Keywords: ISO 690:2021, bibliographic references, citation guidelines, machine-parseable citations, citation styles, metadata, persistent identifiers.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Principles for creating references: accuracy of metadata, prioritizing identification and retrieval, uniform presentation, and appropriate specificity.
• Guidelines for reference construction: how to reflect the specific content used, reference manifestations and items, handle derivative works, unpublished resources and access constraints.
• Metadata handling: provenance of metadata, verification, and conflict resolution to ensure citation reliability.
• Data elements and architecture: structured elements such as creator, title, edition/version, dates, production information, numeration/pagination, identifiers and availability/location.
• Identifiers and persistence: treatment of international standard identifiers and persistent identifiers to support long-term retrievability.
• Network and access aspects: network location, access restrictions, permanent links and considerations for archived or extinct resources.
• Machine‑parseability & determinism: the system is designed so a generated citation can be uniquely mapped back to its source elements and parsed by software; it serves as a framework for building standardized citation styles.

Practical applications & who uses ISO 690:2021

• Academic publishers and journals - to standardize citations and enable automated reference checks.
• Libraries, archives and institutional repositories - for consistent cataloging and resource linking.
• Researchers and authors - to create accurate, retrievable bibliographic references across media (datasets, software, web content).
• Reference management and discovery tool developers - to implement machine‑parseable citation output and configurable citation styles.
• Data curators and research data managers - for citing datasets, databases and software in reproducible research.
• Standards organizations and style committees - as a basis for national or domain-specific citation styles.

Related standards (if applicable)

• National or disciplinary style guides that implement or adapt ISO 690.
• Standards and identifiers that support citations (e.g., ISBN, DOI) - referenced in ISO 690 for identifier handling.

ISO 690:2021 is a practical, modern foundation for interoperable, machine-friendly citation practices across diverse information resources.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-oktober-2021
Nadomešča:
SIST ISO 690:2010
Informatika in dokumentacija - Smernice za bibliografske navedbe in citiranje virov
informacij
Information and documentation -- Guidelines for bibliographic references and citations to
information resources
Information et documentation -- Principes directeurs pour la rédaction des références
bibliographiques et des citations des ressources d'information
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: ISO 690:2021
ICS:
01.140.20 Informacijske vede Information sciences
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 690
Fourth edition
2021-06
Information and documentation —
Guidelines for bibliographic
references and citations to
information resources
Information et documentation — Principes directeurs pour la
rédaction des références bibliographiques et des citations des
ressources d'information
Reference number
©
ISO 2021
© ISO 2021
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword .viii
Introduction .ix
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Principles for creating references . 8
4.1 Purpose . 8
4.2 Principle 1: Ensure metadata accuracy . 8
4.3 Principle 2: Prioritize identification and retrieval . 9
4.4 Principle 3: Unify reference presentation . 9
4.5 Principle 4: Determine appropriate specificity . 9
5 Guidelines for creating references . 9
5.1 General . 9
5.2 Facilitate location of the cited information resource . 9
5.3 Reflect the content used accurately .10
5.4 Reference derivative works alongside the original .10
5.5 Faithfully reference the manifestation and item .10
5.6 Consider retrievability of unpublished information resources .11
5.7 Adopt a uniform presentation scheme .11
5.8 Accurately indicate specificity level .11
6 Metadata .11
6.1 General .11
6.2 Data source .11
6.2.1 General.11
6.2.2 Cited information resource .12
6.2.3 External metadata sources .12
6.3 Verifying correctness and completeness .13
6.4 Handling conflicting data .13
7 Data elements .13
7.1 General .13
7.1.1 Architecture of a citation .13
7.1.2 Common rules .14
7.1.3 Manifestation and item.23
7.2 Creator . .25
7.2.1 General.25
7.2.2 Roles .25
7.2.3 Selection .26
7.2.4 Personal names .26
7.2.5 Organization or group names .30
7.2.6 Multiple creators .32
7.2.7 Pseudonyms .34
7.2.8 Anonymous works .34
7.3 Title .35
7.3.1 Preferred form .35
7.3.2 Alternative forms .35
7.3.3 Popular or original title .35
7.3.4 Long title .36
7.3.5 Additional title parts .36
7.3.6 Ambiguous or incorrect title .36
7.3.7 No title .36
7.3.8 Translated title .37
7.3.9 Titles of translated works .37
7.3.10 Representation .37
7.4 Component parts .38
7.4.1 General.38
7.4.2 Representation .38
7.5 Formats and resource types .40
7.5.1 Formats .40
7.5.2 Resource types .41
7.5.3 Digital file formats .42
7.5.4 Migrated medium .43
7.6 Edition and version .43
7.6.1 Edition .43
7.6.2 Version .44
7.6.3 Differentiated and adaptive content .45
7.6.4 Publication stages .45
7.7 Date .45
7.7.1 General.45
7.7.2 Representation .46
7.7.3 Date of publication .48
7.7.4 Date of citation.48
7.7.5 Reissuance and surrogate dates .48
7.7.6 Incorrect dates .49
7.8 Production information .49
7.8.1 General.49
7.8.2 Roles .49
7.8.3 Place .51
7.9 Numeration and pagination .53
7.9.1 General.53
7.9.2 Part cited .54
7.9.3 Plain citations and references .54
7.10 Serials and series .54
7.10.1 General.54
7.10.2 Qualifiers for titles .55
7.10.3 Key title and the abbreviated key title .55
7.10.4 Earlier titles .56
7.10.5 Conference information .56
7.10.6 Series title and numbering .56
7.10.7 New series .56
7.11 Identifiers .57
7.11.1 General.57
7.11.2 International standard identifiers .58
7.11.3 Persistent identifiers .59
7.12 Availability and location .60
7.12.1 Physical location.60
7.12.2 Network location and access .63
7.12.3 Permanent links and URL shorteners .66
7.12.4 Access restrictions and extinct resources .67
7.13 Item and event attributes .68
7.13.1 General.68
7.13.2 Item attributes .68
7.13.3 Event attributes .69
7.14 Relationship .70
7.14.1 General.70
7.14.2 Translation .70
7.14.3 Commentary .71
7.14.4 Annotated editions .72
7.14.5 Arranger .72
7.14.6 Abridgement and adaptation .72
7.14.7 Reviews and critiques .73
iv © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

7.14.8 Surrogate .74
7.14.9 Inclusion .75
7.14.10  Performance.76
7.14.11  Multiple relationships .76
7.15 Other elements .76
7.15.1 General.76
7.15.2 Subject.76
7.15.3 Dimensions and size .77
7.15.4 File size .78
7.15.5 Price .78
7.15.6 Registered trademark .78
7.15.7 Rights metadata .78
7.15.8 Provenance and authenticity .79
7.15.9 System requirements .80
7.15.10  Restoration .81
7.15.11  Other information .81
8 Resource categories .81
8.1 General .81
8.1.1 Purpose .81
8.1.2 Metadata elements to display .81
8.2 Monographs .81
8.2.1 Metadata elements .81
8.2.2 Simple monographs .82
8.2.3 Composed of multiple volumes .83
8.2.4 E-books . . .83
8.2.5 Audiobooks .83
8.2.6 Plays, librettos and scripts .83
8.2.7 Item .84
8.3 Monograph components .84
8.3.1 Metadata elements .84
8.3.2 Component parts of a monograph .86
8.4 Serials and their component parts .86
8.4.1 General.86
8.4.2 Metadata elements .86
8.4.3 Serials and their component parts .88
8.4.4 Newspaper articles .89
8.4.5 Monograph series and their component parts .90
8.5 Programs and applications .90
8.5.1 General.90
8.5.2 Metadata elements .90
8.5.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .91
8.5.4 Operating systems .92
8.5.5 General programs .93
8.5.6 Games .93
8.6 Cartographic material .93
8.6.1 General.93
8.6.2 Metadata elements .93
8.6.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .94
8.6.4 Separately issued cartographic resources .96
8.6.5 As a component part . . .97
8.6.6 Electronic cartographic resources .97
8.7 Events, performances, recordings and audio-visual materials .97
8.7.1 General.97
8.7.2 Metadata elements .98
8.7.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .99
8.7.4 Motion pictures and videos .101
8.7.5 Broadcasts .102
8.7.6 Component parts .103
8.7.7 Performance, productions and events .103
8.7.8 Performance recordings .105
8.7.9 Performance-related artefacts .105
8.7.10 Exhibitions .106
8.8 Art, graphic material and collectables .106
8.8.1 General.106
8.8.2 Metadata elements .106
8.8.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .107
8.8.4 Individual works .111
8.8.5 As a component part . . .113
8.8.6 Permanent structures and installations .113
8.8.7 Temporary or destroyed work .114
8.9 Music material .114
8.9.1 General.114
8.9.2 Metadata elements .114
8.9.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .115
8.9.4 Performed and recorded music .116
8.9.5 Musical score .117
8.9.6 As a component part . . .118
8.10 Patents .118
8.10.1 General.118
8.10.2 Metadata elements .118
8.10.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .119
8.10.4 Patent applications .120
8.10.5 Issued patents .120
8.11 Reports in series and similar information resources .120
8.11.1 General.120
8.11.2 Metadata elements .120
8.11.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .121
8.11.4 Standards.122
8.12 Archival materials .125
8.12.1 General.125
8.12.2 Metadata elements .126
8.12.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .126
8.12.4 Individual documents .127
8.12.5 Collections .127
8.12.6 Privately-owned documents and ephemera .127
8.13 Research datasets .128
8.13.1 General.128
8.13.2 Metadata elements .128
8.13.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .129
8.14 Web sites and their component parts .132
8.14.1 General.132
8.14.2 Metadata elements .132
8.14.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .133
8.14.4 Web site .133
8.14.5 Web archives .134
8.14.6 Web page .134
8.14.7 Component part of a Web page .135
8.15 Social media and services .135
8.15.1 General.135
8.15.2 Metadata elements .135
8.15.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .136
8.15.4 Services .138
8.15.5 Stream of records .138
8.15.6 Individual records .139
8.15.7 Posting of content belonging to an original creator .140
8.16 Unpublished information resources.140
vi © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

8.16.1 General.140
8.16.2 Metadata elements .140
8.16.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .141
8.16.4 Personal communications .141
8.16.5 Group communications .142
8.16.6 Dissertations and theses .142
8.16.7 Manuscript .142
8.16.8 Preprint .142
8.16.9 Phone calls .
...

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 690
Fourth edition
2021-06
Information and documentation —
Guidelines for bibliographic
references and citations to
information resources
Information et documentation — Principes directeurs pour la
rédaction des références bibliographiques et des citations des
ressources d'information
Reference number
©
ISO 2021
© ISO 2021
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword .viii
Introduction .ix
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Principles for creating references . 8
4.1 Purpose . 8
4.2 Principle 1: Ensure metadata accuracy . 8
4.3 Principle 2: Prioritize identification and retrieval . 9
4.4 Principle 3: Unify reference presentation . 9
4.5 Principle 4: Determine appropriate specificity . 9
5 Guidelines for creating references . 9
5.1 General . 9
5.2 Facilitate location of the cited information resource . 9
5.3 Reflect the content used accurately .10
5.4 Reference derivative works alongside the original .10
5.5 Faithfully reference the manifestation and item .10
5.6 Consider retrievability of unpublished information resources .11
5.7 Adopt a uniform presentation scheme .11
5.8 Accurately indicate specificity level .11
6 Metadata .11
6.1 General .11
6.2 Data source .11
6.2.1 General.11
6.2.2 Cited information resource .12
6.2.3 External metadata sources .12
6.3 Verifying correctness and completeness .13
6.4 Handling conflicting data .13
7 Data elements .13
7.1 General .13
7.1.1 Architecture of a citation .13
7.1.2 Common rules .14
7.1.3 Manifestation and item.23
7.2 Creator . .25
7.2.1 General.25
7.2.2 Roles .25
7.2.3 Selection .26
7.2.4 Personal names .26
7.2.5 Organization or group names .30
7.2.6 Multiple creators .32
7.2.7 Pseudonyms .34
7.2.8 Anonymous works .34
7.3 Title .35
7.3.1 Preferred form .35
7.3.2 Alternative forms .35
7.3.3 Popular or original title .35
7.3.4 Long title .36
7.3.5 Additional title parts .36
7.3.6 Ambiguous or incorrect title .36
7.3.7 No title .36
7.3.8 Translated title .37
7.3.9 Titles of translated works .37
7.3.10 Representation .37
7.4 Component parts .38
7.4.1 General.38
7.4.2 Representation .38
7.5 Formats and resource types .40
7.5.1 Formats .40
7.5.2 Resource types .41
7.5.3 Digital file formats .42
7.5.4 Migrated medium .43
7.6 Edition and version .43
7.6.1 Edition .43
7.6.2 Version .44
7.6.3 Differentiated and adaptive content .45
7.6.4 Publication stages .45
7.7 Date .45
7.7.1 General.45
7.7.2 Representation .46
7.7.3 Date of publication .48
7.7.4 Date of citation.48
7.7.5 Reissuance and surrogate dates .48
7.7.6 Incorrect dates .49
7.8 Production information .49
7.8.1 General.49
7.8.2 Roles .49
7.8.3 Place .51
7.9 Numeration and pagination .53
7.9.1 General.53
7.9.2 Part cited .54
7.9.3 Plain citations and references .54
7.10 Serials and series .54
7.10.1 General.54
7.10.2 Qualifiers for titles .55
7.10.3 Key title and the abbreviated key title .55
7.10.4 Earlier titles .56
7.10.5 Conference information .56
7.10.6 Series title and numbering .56
7.10.7 New series .56
7.11 Identifiers .57
7.11.1 General.57
7.11.2 International standard identifiers .58
7.11.3 Persistent identifiers .59
7.12 Availability and location .60
7.12.1 Physical location.60
7.12.2 Network location and access .63
7.12.3 Permanent links and URL shorteners .66
7.12.4 Access restrictions and extinct resources .67
7.13 Item and event attributes .68
7.13.1 General.68
7.13.2 Item attributes .68
7.13.3 Event attributes .69
7.14 Relationship .70
7.14.1 General.70
7.14.2 Translation .70
7.14.3 Commentary .71
7.14.4 Annotated editions .72
7.14.5 Arranger .72
7.14.6 Abridgement and adaptation .72
7.14.7 Reviews and critiques .73
iv © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

7.14.8 Surrogate .74
7.14.9 Inclusion .75
7.14.10  Performance.76
7.14.11  Multiple relationships .76
7.15 Other elements .76
7.15.1 General.76
7.15.2 Subject.76
7.15.3 Dimensions and size .77
7.15.4 File size .78
7.15.5 Price .78
7.15.6 Registered trademark .78
7.15.7 Rights metadata .78
7.15.8 Provenance and authenticity .79
7.15.9 System requirements .80
7.15.10  Restoration .81
7.15.11  Other information .81
8 Resource categories .81
8.1 General .81
8.1.1 Purpose .81
8.1.2 Metadata elements to display .81
8.2 Monographs .81
8.2.1 Metadata elements .81
8.2.2 Simple monographs .82
8.2.3 Composed of multiple volumes .83
8.2.4 E-books . . .83
8.2.5 Audiobooks .83
8.2.6 Plays, librettos and scripts .83
8.2.7 Item .84
8.3 Monograph components .84
8.3.1 Metadata elements .84
8.3.2 Component parts of a monograph .86
8.4 Serials and their component parts .86
8.4.1 General.86
8.4.2 Metadata elements .86
8.4.3 Serials and their component parts .88
8.4.4 Newspaper articles .89
8.4.5 Monograph series and their component parts .90
8.5 Programs and applications .90
8.5.1 General.90
8.5.2 Metadata elements .90
8.5.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .91
8.5.4 Operating systems .92
8.5.5 General programs .93
8.5.6 Games .93
8.6 Cartographic material .93
8.6.1 General.93
8.6.2 Metadata elements .93
8.6.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .94
8.6.4 Separately issued cartographic resources .96
8.6.5 As a component part . . .97
8.6.6 Electronic cartographic resources .97
8.7 Events, performances, recordings and audio-visual materials .97
8.7.1 General.97
8.7.2 Metadata elements .98
8.7.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .99
8.7.4 Motion pictures and videos .101
8.7.5 Broadcasts .102
8.7.6 Component parts .103
8.7.7 Performance, productions and events .103
8.7.8 Performance recordings .105
8.7.9 Performance-related artefacts .105
8.7.10 Exhibitions .106
8.8 Art, graphic material and collectables .106
8.8.1 General.106
8.8.2 Metadata elements .106
8.8.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .107
8.8.4 Individual works .111
8.8.5 As a component part . . .113
8.8.6 Permanent structures and installations .113
8.8.7 Temporary or destroyed work .114
8.9 Music material .114
8.9.1 General.114
8.9.2 Metadata elements .114
8.9.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .115
8.9.4 Performed and recorded music .116
8.9.5 Musical score .117
8.9.6 As a component part . . .118
8.10 Patents .118
8.10.1 General.118
8.10.2 Metadata elements .118
8.10.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .119
8.10.4 Patent applications .120
8.10.5 Issued patents .120
8.11 Reports in series and similar information resources .120
8.11.1 General.120
8.11.2 Metadata elements .120
8.11.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .121
8.11.4 Standards.122
8.12 Archival materials .125
8.12.1 General.125
8.12.2 Metadata elements .126
8.12.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .126
8.12.4 Individual documents .127
8.12.5 Collections .127
8.12.6 Privately-owned documents and ephemera .127
8.13 Research datasets .128
8.13.1 General.128
8.13.2 Metadata elements .128
8.13.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .129
8.14 Web sites and their component parts .132
8.14.1 General.132
8.14.2 Metadata elements .132
8.14.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .133
8.14.4 Web site .133
8.14.5 Web archives .134
8.14.6 Web page .134
8.14.7 Component part of a Web page .135
8.15 Social media and services .135
8.15.1 General.135
8.15.2 Metadata elements .135
8.15.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .136
8.15.4 Services .138
8.15.5 Stream of records .138
8.15.6 Individual records .139
8.15.7 Posting of content belonging to an original creator .140
8.16 Unpublished information resources.140
vi © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

8.16.1 General.140
8.16.2 Metadata elements .140
8.16.3 Data elements and guidance specific to type .141
8.16.4 Personal communications .141
8.16.5 Group communications .142
8.16.6 Dissertations and theses .142
8.16.7 Manuscript .142
8.16.8 Preprint .142
8.16.9 Phone calls .143
8.16.10 Presentation .143
Annex A (informative) Citation systems .144
Annex B (informative) Persistent references to Internet resources .151
Bibliography .157
Foreword
ISO (the International Organiz
...