Taxonomy terms assigned to content items makes the content easier to find, whether in an internal system, on the web, or both. To make content easier to find or discover on the web, the use of taxonomy terms or tags is part of the broader application of search engine optimization(SEO). A lot…
The Accidental Taxonomist Blog
Taxonomy Hierarchical Relationship Issues
A common feature of taxonomies is the hierarchical relationship between terms. Terms are linked to each other in a relationship that indicates that one is the broader term (BT) of the other, and in the other direction, one is the narrower term (NT) of the other. You don’t need to…
Taxonomy Hierarchy Levels
A taxonomy comprises a hierarchy of concepts (terms), and those hierarchies can be considered to be in different levels. In actuality, levels are somewhat artificial, and its important not to think of levels too strictly. In some taxonomies the levels are even named (for example: Domain, Category, Subcategory, Topic), but…
Categories, Tags, and Taxonomies in WordPress
When I upgraded my Hedden Information Management website to WordPress a few months ago, I took advantage of WordPress’s blog post feature and incorporated a copy this blog into the website (while also keeping its original location on Blogger.com). The difference between categories and tags in the different platforms became…
Creating Subject Terms for a Faceted Taxonomy
Faceted taxonomies—those that allow users to limit or filter search results by selecting terms or attributes from each of several types/aspects—are becoming increasingly common. They are easy and effective for end-users with various abilities in searching. When it comes to designing facets, some of the facets and their terms for…
Related Terms in Taxonomies and Thesauri
One of the benefits of a taxonomy is that there are relationships between the terms to support navigating to find the most suitable term. This could be the multi-level hierarchical browsing from broader terms down to more specific narrower terms. In a strict definition of a taxonomy, the only required…
Subject Searching: Why a Taxonomy, Thesaurus, or Controlled Vocabulary Still Helps in the Age of Search
Subjects, topics, index terms, keywords, controlled vocabulary, thesaurus, taxonomy. These all refer to an organized, precise way to find and retrieve desired information, where that information has been indexed to terms. Indexing content with subject terms can be manual or automated, but in either case the focus is on what…
Taxonomies for Filtering and Sorting
Taxonomies are versatile and may be used for various purposes. Originally designed to support hierarchical browsing of topics linked to content, they also may be implemented to support more accuracy in searching. Most discussions of taxonomies have focused on browse and/or search, but taxonomies may function in additional ways: enhancing…
Best Practices for Different Taxonomies
A question was recently posted to a group: “I’m wondering if anyone knows of a standard for designing taxonomies for industrial components (widgets).” So far, no one has replied. To clarify, taxonomies for different subject areas and different content don’t have different standards. Standards, whether for interoperability, such as SKOS,…
Engaging Others in Taxonomy Building
Whether you are building a new taxonomy from scratch or redesigning one based on an existing taxonomy, it’s important to engage other people in the process. There are two primary reasons: getting input from those who will use the taxonomy, so that it will better suit their needs getting buy-in…