TEI Header
The <teiHeader> is a required component of the transcription file and contains metadata about the digital edition. It generally consists of the following elements:
- The <fileDesc>: the only mandatory component. It contains a bibliographic description of the digital edition;
- The <encodingDesc>, which describes the relation between the digital edition and its (material) source;
- The <profileDesc> containing classifying and contextual information about the text.
- The <encodingDesc> which allows the encoder to provide a history of changes made during the development of the electronic text
The <fileDesc> itself consists of three mandatory parts as well:
- A <titleStmt> with information about the <title>, <author> and/or <editor> of the text;
- A <publicationStmt> containing information about publication details;
- A <sourceDesc> with bibliographical details about the material source.
The smallest possible valid TEI Header looks like this:
<teiHeader> <fileDesc> <titleStmt> <title> <!-- title of the resource --> </title> </titleStmt> <publicationStmt> <p> <!-- Information about distribution of the resource --> </p> </publicationStmt> <sourceDesc> <p> <!-- Information about source from which the resource derives --> </p> </sourceDesc> </fileDesc> </teiHeader>
Each of our projects should at least use the <title> element to give the title of the edited document and the <editor> element to define the editors. E.g. (Mondrian example):
<titleStmt>
<title>Briefkaart aan Harry Holtzman. Parijs, donderdag 14
maart 1935</title>
<editor xml:id="wc">Wietse Coppes</editor>
<editor xml:id="lj">Leo Jansen</editor>
<sponsor>Mondrian Edition Project</sponsor>
</titleStmt>
The xml:id attributes make it possible to point to these elements, in order to assign responsibility.
It is advisable to maintain a log of changes to the document within the <revisionDesc>. The <change> element can be used to document these modifications:
<revisionDesc>
<change who="#lj" when="2014-10-08">Introduced facsimile element</change>
<change who="#wc" when="2014-10-09">checked transcription</change>
</revisionDesc>
The who attribute refers to identifiers on the <editor> elements.
Not every source of text requires the same type of information within the metadata, so the way in which the <teiHeader> is shaped depends on the type of source. It is therefore advisable to take a look at the Wiki page about the TEI Header of the relevant project.
