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APPENDIX C
Rules for Alphabetic Filing
There are three types of alphabetic filing: (1) letter by letter (in which spaces between words
are disregarded), (2) word by word, and (3) unit by unit (in which every word, abbreviation, and
initial is considered a separate unit). ARMA International (formerly the Association of
Records Managers and Administrators) recommends the use of the unit-by-unit method.
The basic principles of the unit-by-unit method (see pages 23) and the more specific rules
that follow are consistent with the ARMA standards.* However, many acceptable alternative
rules and variations are currently in use. The important thing to remember is that the goal of
any set of filing standards and rules is to establish a consistent method of sorting and storing
materials so that you and others you work with can retrieve these materials quickly and eas-
ily. Therefore, it makes sense to modify or change the following rules as necessary to accom-
modate the specific needs of your office or organization. Make sure, however, that everyone
with access to your files knows what the modifications are so that a consistent set of stan-
dards can be maintained.
For guidelines on how to create a computerized file name, see 1356.
Copyright 2011 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Before names can be placed in alphabetic order, they must be indexed; that is,
each name must be broken down into units, and the units must be arranged in a certain se-
quence. Once indexing is completed, the names can be compared unit by unit and alphabetic
order can then be established.
Each of the following rules is accompanied by a chart that shows names in two ways: the first
column (headed Name) shows the full name in a standard format, that is, as it would appear in
an inside address of a letter; the remaining group of columns (headed Unit 1, Unit 2, and so on)
shows the name in an indexed format, arranged unit by unit in a sequence appropriate for al-
phabetizing. Note that the inside address format presents the names in caps and lowercase,
with punctuation as necessary. The indexed format presents the names in all-caps because for
purposes of alphabetizing, the differences between capital and lowercase letters should
be ignored. Moreover, the indexed format ignores punctuation; it even ignores a space or a
hyphen between parts of a name.
If you want to use a computer (1) to print names in alphabetic order and (2) to insert names in
inside addresses as well as ordinary text, you may have to create two name fieldsone using the
standard format, the other using the indexed formatas shown in the following charts.
*Establishing Alphabetic, Numeric, and Subject Filing Systems, ARMA International, Lenexa, Kansas, 2005.
C2 Part 3 References
Basic Principles
Alphabetizing Unit by Unit
a. Alphabetize names by comparing the first units letter by letter.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
AlphaNumerics ALPHANUMERICS
Butterfield BUTTERFIELD
Eagleton EAGLETON
Eaton EATON
Eberhardt EBERHARDT
Eberhart EBERHART
ERGOnomics ERGONOMICS
Office Space Designers OFFICE SPACE DESIGNERS
Offices Incorporated OFFICES INCORPORATED
Official Stationers OFFICIAL STATIONERS
b. Consider second units only when the first units are identical.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2
Foley Associates FOLEY ASSOCIATES
Foley Enterprises FOLEY ENTERPRISES
Foley Industries FOLEY INDUSTRIES
Foley Mills FOLEY MILLS
NOTE:If two names are identical, they may be distinguished on the basis of geo-
graphic location. (See Rule 11.)*
Nothing Comes Before Something
a. A single letter comes before a name that begins with the same letter.
Name Unit 1
O O
Oasis OASIS
Oberon OBERON
C
b. A name consisting of one word comes before a name that consists of the same
word plus one or more other words.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
Operations OPERATIONS
Operations
Management
Consultants OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS
Operations
Technologies OPERATIONS TECHNOLOGIES
c. A name consisting of two or more words comes before a name that consists of the
same two or more words plus another word, and so on.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4
Oak Creek OAK CREEK
Oak Creek Home
Furnishings OAK CREEK HOME FURNISHINGS
Oak Creek Homes OAK CREEK HOMES
name being used for filing purposes. (See Rule 4c, Rule 6e, Rule 7a, note, and Rule
8b, note, for specific instances in which this principle can be applied.)
Personal Names
Rule 1: Names of Persons
a. Treat each part of the name of a person as a separate unit, and consider the units
B. T. Jacoby JACOBY B T
Bruce Jacoby JACOBY BRUCE
Continued on page C4
C4 Part 3 References
b. When you are dealing with a foreign personal name and cannot distinguish the last
name from the first name, consider each part of the name in the order in which it is writ-
ten. Naturally, whenever you can make the distinction, consider the last name first.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
Kwong Kow Ng KWONG KOW NG
Ng Kwong Cheung NG KWONG CHEUNG
Philip K. Ng NG PHILIP K
c. In a name like Mara Lpez y Quintana, the last name consists of three separate
words. For purposes of alphabetizing, treat these separate words as a single unit
(for example, LOPEZYQUINTANA).
NOTE: If you are using a computer, insert a hard (or nonbreaking) space between
the parts of a name such as Lpez y Quintana. Then the last name will be sorted as
though it were typed without spaces, but it will appear with spaces in an alphabet-
ized list of names.
For the treatment of hyphenated personal names, see Rule 3.
Rule 2: Personal Names With Prefixes
a. Consider a prefix as part of the name, not as a separate unit. Ignore variations in spac-
ing, punctuation, and capitalization in names that contain prefixes (for example, d,
D, Da, de, De, Del, De la, Des, Di, Du, El, Fitz, L, La, Las, Le, Les, Lo, Los, M, Mac, Mc,
Saint, San, Santa, Santo, St., Ste., Ten, Ter, Van, Van de, Van der, Von, and Von Der).
NOTE: If you are using a computer, insert a hard (or nonbreaking) space between
the parts of a name such as De La Cruz (shown above) or Mac Kay (shown at the
C
top of page 5). Then the last name will be sorted as though it were typed without
spaces, but it will appear with spaces in an alphabetized list of names.
Appendix C Rules for Alphabetic Filing C5
b. Consider the prefixes M, Mac, and Mc exactly as they are spelled, but ignore the
apostrophe in M. Consider a name such as OKeefe as one word, and ignore the
apostrophe.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
Marilyn R. Mack MACK MARILYN R
Irene J. MacKay MACKAY IRENE J
Roy F. Mackay MACKAY ROY F
Walter G. Mac Kay MACKAY WALTER G
F. Timothy Madison MADISON F TIMOTHY
Agnes U. MCauley MCAULEY AGNES U
Patrick J. McKay MCKAY PATRICK J
Andrew W. OHare OHARE ANDREW W
Alice R. OHearn OHEARN ALICE R
Malachy Q. ONeal ONEAL MALACHY Q
Kate F. ONeil ONEIL KATE F
Francis X. ONeill ONEILL FRANCIS X
c. Treat the prefixes Saint, San, Santa, Santo, St., and Ste. exactly as they are spelled.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
George V. Sahady SAHADY GEORGE V
Kyle N. Saint Clair SAINTCLAIR KYLE N
Jeffrey T. Sakowitz SAKOWITZ JEFFREY T
Copyright 2011 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
NOTE: If you are using a computer, insert a hard (or nonbreaking) space between
c. When you have to decide whether to file material under a persons formal name or
under a nickname, pseudonym, or some abbreviated form, choose the form that
you and others you work with are most likely to think of when you want to find that
persons name. (See also Deciding Which Name to Use, page 3.)
NOTE: You should also enter the persons alternative name in the appropriate alpha-
betic sequence and make a cross-reference to the primary name you have selected.
C
For example, suppose that Big Al (the primary name you have selected) is formally
named Albert J. Degas. In the appropriate alphabetic sequence you would provide
this entry: Degas, Albert J.: see Big Al.
Appendix C Rules for Alphabetic Filing C7
b. When a title is used with only one part of a persons name, treat the title as the first
unit. (See Deciding Which Name to Use, page 3.)
Name Unit 1 Unit 2
Dr. Ruth DR RUTH
Grandma Moses GRANDMA MOSES
King Hussein KING HUSSEIN
Copyright 2011 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
c. Ordinarily, alphabetize a married womans name on the basis of her own first name.
However, consider the title Mrs. (as abbreviated) if a woman uses her husbands
name and you do not know her first name.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4
Mr. Fred Naylor NAYLOR FRED
Mrs. Marie Naylor NAYLOR MARIE
Mrs. June Y. Nearing NEARING JUNE Y
Mr. Peter J. Nearing NEARING PETER J
Mr. Harry L. Norton NORTON HARRY L MR
Mrs. Harry L. Norton NORTON HARRY L MRS
C
Continued on page C8
C8 Part 3 References
d. Consider a seniority term (such as Jr., Sr., 2d, 3d, II, or III ), a professional or aca-
demic degree (such as CPA, M.D., or Ph.D.), or any other designation following a
persons name in order to distinguish names that are otherwise identical. Numeric
designations precede alphabetic designations. Moreover, arabic numerals precede
roman numerals, and each set of numbers is sequenced in numeric order. When
dealing with ordinal numbers such as 3d or 4th, ignore the endings.
NOTE: If you are using a computer, all names in which the first significant unit con-
There is a problem, however, with roman numerals. Since roman numerals are
written with letters of the alphabet, your software will consider them as letters
(and not as numerals) and position them accordingly in an alphabetic sequence of
Rules for Alphabetic Filing
names. Thus, if your software were sequencing the names shown in the preceding
chart, the name ending with D.D. (for Doctor of Divinity) would be inserted before
the name ending with III. To avoid this outcome, you will have to override the soft-
ware and move the name ending with D.D. to the correct position (after CPA, as
shown in the chart above).
Organizational Names
Rule 6: Names of Organizations
a. Treat each word in the name of an organization as a separate unit, and consider the
units in the same order as they are written on the letterhead or some other author-
C
itative document.
Appendix C Rules for Alphabetic Filing C9
The formal name of a South Bend academic institution is the University of Notre
Dame. Yet most people would not look for the name in the U section (as the formal
rule suggests) but would turn instead to the Ns. However, for the University of the
South, most people would turn to the U section rather than the S section.
CAUTION:When introducing exceptions to the basic rule for organizational names,
be sure that these exceptions are supported by cross-references for the sake of
those who may search the files for an alternative name. (See Rule 4c, note, for an
example of a cross-reference.)
personal name in the order in which they are written. Ignore any punctuation.
NOTE:A more traditional rule that is still widely followed requires that a persons
name within an organizational name be considered in the same way as a persons
Appendix C Rules for Alphabetic Filing C11
name that stands alonenamely, last name first. (See Rule 1.) Regardless of which
approach you are following, there are specific situations in which it would be wise to
make exceptions, depending on the way you (and others with access to your files)
are likely to look up the name.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4
Frank Balcom Construc-
tion Company FRANK BALCOM CONSTRUCTION COMPANY
Frank Balcom, Jr.,
Paving FRANK BALCOM JR PAVING
M. Clausen Optical
Supplies M CLAUSEN OPTICAL SUPPLIES
M. G. Clausen Autos M G CLAUSEN AUTOS
Mark Clausen Interiors MARK CLAUSEN INTERIORS
Mark G. Clausen Homes MARK G CLAUSEN HOMES
Mark G. Clausen Hotel MARK G CLAUSEN HOTEL
Mark G. Clausen Roofing MARK G CLAUSEN ROOFING
For example, even if you follow the ARMA standard for personal names in organi-
zational names (first name first), you might want to make an exception for the
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, since most people would look for the file under
the Ks rather than the Js. Similarly, the file for the Bernard J. Baruch College might
be more easily found if sequenced according to the surname, Baruch, rather than
the first name, Bernard.
On the other hand, those who follow the last-name-first approach might be wiser
Copyright 2011 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
to locate the Sarah Lawrence College file in the S section rather than the L, to file
materials on the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company in the J section
rather than the H, to store the Fred Astaire Dance Studios file under F rather than
A, and to put the Mary Kay Cosmetics file under M rather than K.
The key here is to consider the way in which the name is most likely to be looked
up (see Deciding Which Name to Use, page 3). Then provide cross-references
between the alternative form and the primary form that has been selected. (See
b. Treat acronyms and the call letters of radio and TV stations as single units.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
ASCAP ASCAP
CARE CARE
EPCOT EPCOT
MADD MADD
NASDAQ NASDAQ
NOW NOW
OPEC OPEC
OSHA OSHA
UNESCO UNESCO
VISTA VISTA
WBBM Radio Station WBBM RADIO STATION
NOTE: When organizations are better known by their abbreviated names (AFL-CIO
and NAACP) or acronyms (NOW and UNESCO) than by their formal names, use
these short forms for filing purposes and provide cross-references as necessary.
(See also 520, 522. For an example of a cross-reference, see Rule 4c, note.)
c. When the symbol & occurs in a name, consider it as if it were spelled out (that is,
as and ). If the symbol is freestanding (that is, with space on either side), treat it as
a separate filing unit.
Copyright 2011 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
b. When a geographic name begins with a prefix followed by a space or hyphen, treat
the prefix and the following word as a single unit. (See Rule 2 for lists of prefixes.)
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3
El Cajon Editorial
Services ELCAJON EDITORIAL SERVICES
La Crosse Graphics LACROSSE GRAPHICS
Las Vegas Lenders LASVEGAS LENDERS
NOTE:A name like De Kalb or Des Moines is considered a single unit, whereas a
name like Fond du Lac should be treated as three units (since the prefix du does not
come at the beginning of the geographic name).
b. Units that contain arabic numerals precede units expressed as roman numerals
and those consisting of letters of the alphabet (as shown in the chart at the top of
page 15). Arrange the units containing arabic numerals in numeric order.
Appendix C Rules for Alphabetic Filing C15
NOTE: For sequencing purposes most software programs will consider arabic nu-
merals from the left. Given the arabic units in the chart below, a computer will
place 1218 before 21 and 210. To avoid this outcome, add zeros to the left of 21
and 210 to make them the same length as 1218: 0021, 0210, 1218. Then the soft-
ware will sequence these units in the correct order.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4
21st Century Travel 21 CENTURY TRAVEL
210th St. Assn. 210 ST ASSN
1218 Corp. 1218 CORP
III Brothers Outlets III BROTHERS OUTLETS
The VII Hills Lodge VII HILLS LODGE THE
The IX Muses Bookshop IX MUSES BOOKSHOP THE
AAA Leasing Company AAA LEASING COMPANY
ILGWU Local 134 ILGWU LOCAL 134
ILGWU Local 145 ILGWU LOCAL 145
Seventh Heaven Vacations SEVENTH HEAVEN VACATIONS
Sixth Street Fashions SIXTH STREET FASHIONS
c. Units that contain roman numerals follow those with arabic numerals but precede
those consisting of letters of the alphabet (as shown above). Arrange units con-
taining roman numerals in numeric order.
NOTE: For sequencing purposes, most software programs will consider roman nu-
merals as letters of the alphabet and position them accordingly. If your software
were sequencing the names shown above, the name beginning with III would fall
Copyright 2011 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
between AAA and ILGWU. The name beginning with VII would come after Sixth.
The name beginning with IX would fall between ILGWU and Seventh. To avoid
having the roman numerals scattered in this way, you will have to override the pro-
gram and move these names to the positions shown in the chart above.
d. Units containing numbers expressed in words are sequenced (along with other
units containing words or letters) in alphabetic order.
Warren Sixty-Fourth
Street Salon WARREN SIXTYFOURTH STREET SALON
Continued on page C16
C16 Part 3 References
i. When a symbol appears with a number, treat the two elements as a single unit only
if there is no space between the symbol and the number. Consider the symbol as if
Rules for Alphabetic Filing
it were spelled out; for example, & (and), (cent or cents), $ (dollar or dollars),
# (number or pounds), % (percent), and + (plus).
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4
The $50 Outerwear
Shop 50DOLLAR* OUTERWEAR SHOP THE
50% Off Clothing
Outlet 50PERCENT OFF CLOTHING OUTLET
The 50+ Retirement
Community 50PLUS RETIREMENT COMMUNITY THE
The #1 Pizza Parlor NUMBER1 PIZZA PARLOR THE
The Original 5&10 ORIGINAL 5AND10 THE
C
NOTE: Most software programs will consider these symbols on the basis of where they
occur in the sequence of character sets. If you convert the symbol to a spelled-out
form as shown in the chart on the bottom of page 16, it will be sequenced in the cor-
rect alphabetic order.
c. If both the city and the state are identical, alphabetize according to the street name.
d. If the street name is a number, treat it exactly as written. Numbered street names
expressed in figures precede street names (numbered or otherwise) expressed in
words. Numbered street names expressed in figures are sequenced in numeric
order. Numbered street names in words are sequenced (along with other street
Third Avenue
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE THIRD AVENUE
e. If the street names are also the same, alphabetize by direction if the direction is
part of the address (for example, north, south, northeast, southwest).
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5
McDonalds
N. 16th Street
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE N 16 STREET
McDonalds
S. 16th Street
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE S 16 STREET
McDonalds
Swan Avenue East
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE SWAN AVENUE EAST
McDonalds
Swan Avenue West
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE SWAN AVENUE WEST
f. If all the foregoing units are identical, consider the house or building numbers and
sequence them in numeric order.
Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5
McDonalds
110 Park Avenue
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE PARK AVENUE 110
McDonalds
638 Park Avenue
Tallahassee, Florida MCDONALDS TALLAHASSEE PARK AVENUE 638
Government Names
Rule 12: Federal Government Names
a. For any organization that is part of the federal government, consider United States
Government as the first three units.
b. If necessary, consider the name of the department, transposing Department of to
the end. (For example, treat Department of Labor as three separate units: LABOR
DEPARTMENT OF.)
c. Next consider the name of the office or bureau within the department. Transpose
opening phrases such as Office of and Bureau of to the end. (For example,
C
NOTE: It is permissible to omit the names of departments (as is done in the follow-
ing examples) and move directly from United States Government to the name of the
office or bureau.
b. Then consider the name of the department, bureau, or other subdivision, transpos-
ing elements (if necessary) as was done with federal departments and bureaus in
Rule 12.
NOTE: Do not add state, city, or a similar term after the distinctive place name un-
less it is necessary to distinguish such names as New York State, New York County,
and New York City. Moreover, do not add of, of the, or a similar expression unless it