Dewey Decimal System Day

Dewey Decimal System Day (December 10th) is set to celebrate the creation of the Dewey Decimal System, formally the Dewey Decimal Classification [1]. December 10th is the birthday of its creator, Melvil Dewey [2]. Dewey designed the first iteration of the system in 1873 and would continue to iterate over the years [1]. Dewey had an undeniable impact on the state of American librarianship from starting the journals Library Journal and Library Notes to helping found the American Library Association [2]. He is a controversial figure with ALA opting to remove his name from their top award in an effort to acknowledge his problematic history [4]. While the older versions are no longer copyrighted, the most recent publications are under copyright. In addition, the key phrases associated with the Dewey Decimal Classification are trademarked by the OCLC [5]. This is a system that is deeply embedded into the library profession, both domestically and internationally. OCLC maintains and updates it by continuously focusing on keeping it inclusive and relevant to our changing world [3]. The OCLC is currently releasing updated versions, via both print and web resources [3]. Library Thing maintains a free to use web version of an older edition as the Melvil Dewey System. This listing also simultaneously shows the Dewmoji system that seeks to recreate the system in emojis [5].

-- Written by Anissa Alexander 

Dewey Decimal Online

Library Thing – Melvin Dewey System: MDS: Melvil Decimal System | LibraryThing

Works Cited

[1]“Dewey Decimal Classification.” Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Jan. 2018, p. 1. EBSCOhost, research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=295bb081-d067-3cf0-b9cf-2de368a36df9.

[2] “Dewey, Melvil.” Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Jan. 2018, p. 1. EBSCOhost, research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=b5e68716-e041-3a7f-90ac-96e577eb4de9.

[3] Fox, Violet. “The Dewey Decimal Classification Needs You!” OCLC Next, 21 May 2019, blog.oclc.org/next/the-dewey-decimal-classification-needs-you/.

[4] Katz, Brigit. “Melvil Dewey’s Name Stripped from Top Library Award.” Smithsonian Magazine, 28 June 2019, www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/melvil-deweys-name-stripped-top-library-award-180972514/.

[5] “MDS: Melvil Decimal System | LibraryThing.” LibraryThing.com, 2016, www.librarything.com/mds#. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.