Shiyali Ramamrita Ranganathan

Biographical Information

S.R. Ranganathan (August 9, 1892 - September 27, 1972) was born in the rural village of Shiyali (also known as Sirkazhi), South India.

Education and Professional Accomplishments

S.R. Ranganathan received his bachelor's and master's degree in mathematics from Madras Christian College. He went on to teach mathematics at Mangalore, Coimbatore and Madras Universities. His early published work was on mathematics history but he eventually went on to become a librarian and champion of library science and is widely considered to be the father of library science in India.

In 1923, the University of Madras created a new position, University Librarian, to help the effort to organize their library collections. Though Ranganathan was reluctant, and himself felt unqualified, the search committee believed his background and knowledge met the requirements they were looking for. Ranganathan went to University College London for formal training in librarianship. With his mathematics background in hand, he began to examine what he thought might be flaws in the Dewey Decimal system. This eventually lead him to develop the idea for the Colon Classification system. ("ALA", 1980)

After returning from England, he held the position of university librarian at the University of Madras for 20 years. His two major professional accomplishments are his Five Laws of Library Science published in 1931 and the Colon Classification System published in 1933. The former, Ranganathan considered to be the inspiration for the 50 books he would write throughout his career

Ranganathan was head of the Indian Library Association from 1944 to 1953. He became a professor at the Hindu University in 1945 teaching library science. He was given an honorary professorship at Delhi University from 1949 to 1955. Through his relationship with S. Das Gupta, he helped to build that university's library science program. Ranganathan also helped establish the Documentation Research and Training Center in Bangalore in 1962 and also served as an honorary director for 5 years. The Indian government honored him with the title of "National Research Professor" in 1965.

Contributions to Reference Transactions

Certainly one of his great, though not widely adopted, contributions is the creation of the Colon Classification as well as his Five Laws of Library Science, which have been quoted and referenced significantly in the profession.

Ranganathan began his idea of a more in depth and detailed reference service while in library school. He coined it, "Long Range Reference Service" and distinguished it from Ready Reference Service. He believed reference service is the "trialogue among reader, librarian and catalogue". ("News")

It was through Ranganathan's vision and efforts that Indian universities established master's and PhD programs in library science and helped create standards in education and ultimately in library practice. "His way was a constant analysis and codification of the details of the best professional practice in a never-ending search for fundamental principles as a guide to action. Applied in an appropriate manner, such principles would ensure that Indian LIS would rank with the best in the world, and contribute in a unique and systematic way to its forward progress." (Foskett, 1991)

Ranganathan's life body of work went far beyong reference service. And it is this very far-reaching influence that has impacted reference service by simply impacting all areas of library science. Jesse Shera said, "That one cannot properly judge the work of S. R. Ranganathan without referencing to the totality of librarianship is a tribute to the breadth and depth of his contribution to the profession." ("ALA", 1980) Pauline Atherton, in reference to Five Laws of Library Science is quoted as saying, "these words stir students to think of and believe in library service above library work as their life goal." ("ALA", 1980)

Notable Publications

• Genesis of Colon Classification (1924)
• The Five Laws of Library Science (1931)
• Classification and Communication (1961)
• A Librarian Looks Back - Autobiography (1963)
• Subject Heading and Facet Analysis (1964)
• Colon Classification (1965)
• Hidden Roots of Classification (1967)
• Choice of Scheme for Classification (1968)
• Library Classification Through a Century (1972)

More information on positions held

Other awards and honors

References

ALA world encyclopedia of library and information services(1986). In Wedgeworth R. (Ed.), (Second ed.). Chicago: American Library Association.

D. J. Foskett. (1991). World libraries: The pioneers: S. R. ranganathan. Retrieved 11/16, 2006, from http://www.worlib.org/vol02no1/foskett_v02n1.shtml

DLIST - the five laws of library science.http://dlist.sir.arizona.edu/1220/

Garfield, E. (1984). A tribute to S. R. ranganathan, the father of indian library science. part 1. life and works. Electronic version. Essays of an Information Scientist, 7(6), 37.

News.http://www.isibang.ac.in/DRTC/srr/index.htm.

Ranganathan's monologue on melvil dewey.http://www.miskatonic.org/library/ranganathan-audio.html

David Lee