RDA and the RDA Toolkit

Authors

Keywords:

RDA, AACR2, RDA Toolkit

Abstract

For more than a decade, RDA has been a globally recognized and applied standard for cataloguing collections in cultural institutions. From the start RDA established itself as a unique standard, one seeking to be international in its usage and available exclusively online through the RDA Toolkit.  These goals were bold and widely questioned initially.  

This article describes the development of RDA from its beginnings to the present day. It covers the evolution of the content of the standard as well as its governance and publication format.

The article also looks forward to further developmental work that will improve processes and better support users of RDA and the entire cataloguing/metadata community.

Author Biographies

  • Renate Behrens, RDA Steering Committee

    Renate Behrens is Chair of the RDA Steering Committee.

  • James Hennelly, ALA Digital Reference

    James Hennelly is Director of ALA Digital Reference, the publisher of the RDA Toolkit.

References

Association of College and Research Libraries Rare Books and Manuscripts Section Bibliographic Standards Committee (2026) Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (RDA Edition). RBMS Bibliographic Standards Committee. Available at: https://bsc.rbms.info/DCRMR/ [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

ALA Digital Reference (2012-2027) Original RDA Toolkit. Available at: https://original.rdatoolkit.org [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

ALA Digital Reference (2019-) [Official] RDA Toolkit. Available at: https://access.rdatoolkit.org [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

Galeffi, A. et al. (2017) International Statement of Cataloguing Principles. 2016 edition with minor revisions, 2017. International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions. Available at: https://repository.ifla.org/handle/20.500.14598/80 [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

Grzegorski, Jessica (2026) 'Official RDA and Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (RDA Edition): a multifaceted approach to rare materials cataloguing', Catalogue & Index, 215, pp. 46-51. Available at: https://journals.cilip.org.uk/catalogue-and-index/article/view/957 [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (2025) ISBD for Manifestation. International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions. Available at: https://www.iflastandards.info/ISBDM/ [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

Joint Steering Committee for AACR (1967) The Anglo-American Cataloging Rules. American Library Association.

Joint Steering Committee for Revision of AACR (1978-) Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules. 2nd edition. American Library Association, Canadian Library Association and The Library Association.

Library of Congress Program for Cooperative Cataloging (2026) Resource Description & Access (RDA) Metadata Guidance Documentation. Available at: https://www.loc.gov/aba/rda/mgd/ [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

RDA Steering Committee (2023) Submitting Proposals to Revise RDA. Available at: https://www.rdatoolkit.org/rsc/submitting-proposals [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

RDA Steering Committee (2026a) Protocols and Liaisons between the RDA Steering Committee and Other Information Standards Groups. Available at: https://www.rdatoolkit.org/rsc/RSCprotocols [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

RDA Steering Committee (2026b) Working Groups. Available at: https://www.rdatoolkit.org/rsc/workinggroups [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

RDA Steering Committee and ALA Digital Reference (2021) 3R Project Final Report. RSC/Papers/2021/1. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/11213/24435 [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

Riva, P., P. Le Bœuf and M. Žumer (2018) IFLA Library Reference Model: A Conceptual Model for Bibliographic Information. International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, https://repository.ifla.org/handle/20.500.14598/40 [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

Sze, E. (2022) Report on Approaches to Teaching RDA in the LIS Classroom. RSC/Papers/2022/1. Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/11213/22204 [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

Welsh, A. (2025) RDA Organization Chart 2025. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/11213/22830 [Accessed: 20 June 2026]

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Published

2026-06-23

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Section

Articles