Relations

Relations can be listed in all entities in a specific <listRelation>. This will contain <relation> elements with @name taken from a list of values in the schema and can be updated.

<listRelation> is allowed everywhere.

For example, in a manuscript record within a <msItem> such relations and a description of them should be given within the element <filiation>


                <filiation>
                    <listRelation>
                        <relation name="saws:isDirectCopyOf" active="FSUffhludolfII21" passive="BNFet1">
                            <desc>This manuscript is a direct copy of <ref type="mss" corresp="BNFet1"></ref>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    </listRelation>
                </filiation>
            

Example 1

These relations can be much more precise than a simple list of <ref> elements stating similarity, and this is, therefore, the recommended way to encode similar manuscripts. Multiple relations can be stated if needed, for example, if a manuscript A is a copy from two different manuscripts B and C of which one is certainly a translation from a Coptic manuscript D: one might have a relation between A and B, A and C, C and D or parts of them.

In the @active and @passive attributes, please don't use # as this hinders the possibility to use further specific IDs within the record, and to point to a specific msItem, e.g.

It is preferable to have a separate <relation> for each relationship, even if the same relation exists between one and several more items:


                    <relation name="snap:FatherOf" active="PRS11029Arkala" passive="PRS11031WalattaM"></relation>
                    <relation name="snap:FatherOf" active="PRS11029Arkala" passive="PRS11032EsetaM"></relation>
                

Example 2

Note that there is a specific <relation> to link BM and the Dillmann lexicon; the complete URL should be provided for the lemma ID, as in the sample file:


                    <relation name="betmas:hasLexiconEntry" active="LOC7011Meskwa" passive="http://betamasaheft.eu/Dillmann/lemma/L65ae0746b7f9428da90682226ae6cc75"></relation>
                

Example 3

The following are some frequently used relation names, but there are many more readily available from the schema (see <relation>) and you can use others which are in the ontology. In the <relation> page, as well as in your preferred editor, you will find a link in the schema to the actual concept and to a search for instances of that property in the project website.

Before using one of these relations, please make sure you are aligned to the other encoders' usage. Below we provide some examples, and some more specific cases are detailed elsewhere, like the one above, but for many other values we have not done that yet. Open an issue, we will then agree on a way to proceed and update also this page.

Most <relation> statements are not required at any level, they can be used to enrich the network of information. They are much more useful when explained with a <desc>.

We have provided examples which are as much as possible self-explanatory, with preference to those where some additional information was given.

Generic Relations

Generic properties like skos:exactMatch, skos:broadMatch, etc. are used in specific cases documented in these guidelines where appropriate.

The special property betmas:formerlyAlsoListedAs is reserved for marking the relation between a deleted record and a record which contains information formerly described in that deleted record.

lawd:hasAttestation is used to say that a named entity, a person, a place, a textual unit is attested in a textual unit or a manuscript or one of its parts. It cannot be used to relate persons to persons or persons to places, and so on. This also means that if you are working on a set of records and do not want to touch the manuscripts, either start writing a list of witnesses, you can use this relation to say that a textual unit is present in a manuscript.

syriaca:different-from can be used to differentiate any two entitites from each other except works, where saws:isDifferentTo is used.

Manuscript to Manuscript

saws:isDirectCopyOf is used as in the example below to state that a manuscript is a direct copy of another manuscript


                        <relation name="saws:isDirectCopyOf" active="FSUffhludolfII21" passive="BNFet1">
                            <desc>This manuscript is a direct copy of <ref type="mss" corresp="BNFet1"></ref>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 4

saws:isCloseTranslationOf


                        <relation name="saws:isCloseTranslationOf" active="BAVet2#ms_i1.2" passive="BAVet2#ms_i2.1"></relation>
                    

Example 5

betmas:isAntigraphOf


                        <relation name="betmas:isAntigraphOf" active="BNFet141" passive="FSUor41#p3_i1"></relation>
                    

Example 6

The SAWS ontology defines classes and properties to describe the relations between manuscripts (families, etc.) very deeply, but we do not have any example of this being used. If you would like to venture into this, it would be very interesting so you are more than welcome! We will then add the examples here.

Properties of the Syntaxe du Codex Ontology (prefixed sdc:) are not discussed here.

saws:formsPartOf is used also to associate a document to a corpus. See the corpus page for this.

dcterms:hasPart


                        <relation active="BNFet45#UniCirc1" name="dcterms:hasPart" passive="BNFet45#p1 BNFet45#f2"></relation>
                    

Example 7

Manuscript to Work

Most of the many relations between a manuscript and the abstract records identifying its contents are extracted directly from the semantics of the TEI encoding. If you feel the need to add such a relation explicitly, open an issue to discuss the case, please.

Work to Manuscript

Because this is a collaborative effort and is continuously in progress, we have plenty of records for which we do not have enough encoding.

It is not possible to fix everything as we go, there is too much. Therefore, in cases in which you are editing a Work, and you know it is contained in a manuscript, you can say so in the Work record, instead of tackling the manuscript description, by saying that the work has a generic attestation in that manuscript. To this aim we are currently using lawd:hasAttestation as in the example below.


                        <relation name="lawd:hasAttestation" active="LIT5106MiraclePriest" passive="EMML6938">
                            <desc>
                                <locus corresp="EMML6938" target="#41v"></locus>
                            </desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 8

Work to Work

saws:formsPartOf is used to declare that a defined Textual Unit is always part of another one.


                        <relation name="saws:formsPartOf" active="LIT3854KingList" passive="LIT1507GadlaT">
                            <desc>The king list B is embedded within the Dabra Libānos recension of
                                Gadla Takla Hāymānot.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 9

ecrm:CLP46i_may_form_part_of can be used for texts which are not always included in another one.


                        <relation name="ecrm:CLP46i_may_form_part_of" active="LIT1758Lefafa" passive="LIT1931Mashaf">
                            <desc>The <foreign xml:lang="gez">Lǝfāfa ṣǝdǝq</foreign> can circulate
                                both as an independent work and as a part of the <foreign xml:lang="gez">Maṣḥafa gǝnzat</foreign>
                            </desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 10

saws:isVersionOf


                        <relation name="saws:isVersionOf" active="LIT2230Saatat" passive="LIT1961Mashaf">
                            <desc>Saʿātāt za-gǝbṣ is a version of the<ref type="work" corresp="LIT1961Mashaf">Maṣḥafa saʿātāt</ref>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 11

saws:isVersionInAnotherLanguageOf


                        <relation name="saws:isVersionInAnotherLanguageOf" active="LIT1978Mashaf#t1" passive="LIT1978Mashaf#t4arabic">
                            <desc>The Ethiopic version of the Maṣḥafa ṭomār was translated from the
                                Arabic version based on a Syriac version. Guidi suggests that the
                                Maṣḥafa ṭomār may have been translated in the mid-16th century. <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Guidi1932storia"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">72-73</citedRange>
                                </bibl>
                                <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Graf1944GCALI"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">295-297</citedRange>
                                </bibl>
                            </desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 12

saws:contains can be used if you are sure that a textual unit always contains another textual unit (the latter may circulate also independently).


                        <relation name="saws:contains" active="LIT2317Senodo" passive="LIT2696Hom"></relation>
                    

Example 13

saws:isRelatedTo


                        <relation name="saws:isRelatedTo" active="LIT1940Mashaf#t1" passive="LIT1940Mashaf#t1coptic">
                            <desc>According to <persName ref="PRS10747Zotenbe"></persName>, the recension of
                                the Maṣḥafa krǝstǝnnā in <ref type="mss" corresp="BNFet78"></ref> agrees
                                nearly entirely to the Coptic baptismal rite edited by Assemani in <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Assemani1749Catechumenis"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">141-167</citedRange>
                                </bibl>, <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Assemani1749Baptismo"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">150-193</citedRange>
                                </bibl> and <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Assemani1749Confirmatione"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">82-117</citedRange>
                                </bibl>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 14

saws:follows


                        <relation name="saws:follows" active="LIT1586Hayman" passive="LIT1978Mashaf">
                            <desc>The <foreign xml:lang="gez">Maṣḥafa ṭomār</foreign> very often
                                follows Hāymānota ʾabaw and precedes the table of content.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 15

ecrm:P129_is_about is used to say that a Textual Unit speaks about another Textual Unit.


                        <relation name="ecrm:P129_is_about" active="LIT5327MiracleVisit" passive="LIT3575Mashaf"></relation>
                    

Example 16

saws:isCommentOn


                        <relation name="saws:isCommentOn" active="LIT4591TergwameM" passive="LIT1340EnochE#Luminaries"></relation>
                    

Example 17

saws:hasUsed


                        <relation name="saws:hasUsed" active="LIT2230Saatat" passive="LIT3564Psalmodia">
                            <desc>Parts of <ref type="work" corresp="LIT3564Psalmodia"></ref>, mainly
                                    <ref type="work" corresp="LIT3566Theotokia"></ref> and <ref type="work" corresp="LIT3568Psalis"></ref> are among additional
                                material included in <ref type="work" corresp="LIT2230Saatat"></ref>, but
                                not in <ref type="work" corresp="LIT3570Agbiya"></ref>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 18

saws:fallsWithin


                        <relation name="saws:fallsWithin" active="LIT3944ArdeetChL" passive="LIT1931Mashaf">
                            <desc>The Maṣḥafa ʾardǝʾǝt circulates both as an independent work and as
                                a part of the Maṣḥafa gǝnzat</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 19

saws:isShorterVersionOf


                        <relation name="saws:isShorterVersionOf" active="LIT1120Apocal" passive="LIT1127Apocal">
                            <desc>according to <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Leslau1951Falasha"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">63</citedRange>
                                </bibl>
                            </desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 20

saws:isLongerVersionOf


                        <relation name="saws:isLongerVersionOf" active="LIT3944ArdeetChL" passive="LIT3943ArdeetChS"></relation>
                    

Example 21

saws:isVariantOf


                        <relation name="saws:isVariantOf" active="LIT2444Temher" passive="LIT3978Elmastoagya"></relation>
                    

Example 22

saws:isVariantTranslationOf


                        <relation name="saws:isVariantTranslationOf" active="LIT3953MashafaQ" passive="LIT3952MashafaQ"></relation>
                    

Example 23

saws:hasDescendant


                        <relation name="saws:hasDescendant" active="LIT2230Saatat" passive="LIT1544Gebrah">
                            <desc>Parts of <ref type="work" corresp="LIT2230Saatat"></ref> survive in
                                    <ref type="work" corresp="LIT1544Gebrah"></ref>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 24

syriaca:share-a-title


                        <relation name="syriaca:share-a-title" active="LIT2296Sayfas" passive="LIT2286ZenaSellase"></relation>
                    

Example 25

saws:isDifferentTo


                        <relation name="saws:isDifferentTo" active="LIT4031EgziabeherN" passive="LIT2001Mazmur">
                            <desc>Both works have often be confused with each other, for example, in <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Ewald1846Tuebingen"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">37-38</citedRange>
                                </bibl>, <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Abbadie1859Cat"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">149-150</citedRange>
                                </bibl> and <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Dillmann1865Lexicon"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="part">Prolegomena</citedRange>
                                    <citedRange unit="column">XI</citedRange>
                                </bibl>. See <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Zotenberg1877Catalogue"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">196</citedRange>
                                </bibl>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 26

syriaca:possibly-identical


                        <relation name="syriaca:possibly-identical" active="LIT5200MiracleInkDawit" passive="LIT3590Miracle">
                            <desc>The miracles seem to share part of their text, it would be
                                desirable to consult more manuscripts containing them for a certain
                                identification.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 27

dcterms:isPartOf


                        <relation name="dcterms:isPartOf" active="LIT3973GadlaT" passive="LIT1008DossierTH">
                            <desc>Vita of Takla Hāymānot is part of a hagiographic dossier of Takla
                                Hāymānot</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 28

Work to Person

saws:isAttributedToAuthor is used to state that a Textual Unit has been attributed to a person.


                        <relation name="saws:isAttributedToAuthor" active="LIT1287Dersan" passive="PRS9481Theodoto">
                            <desc>The Homily on St George is traditionally attributed to <persName ref="PRS9481Theodoto"></persName>. Though this attribution already appears
                                in Coptic tradition, it is probably apocryphal. <bibl>
                                    <ptr target="bm:Witakowski2010EAETheodotos"></ptr>
                                    <citedRange unit="page">945a</citedRange>
                                </bibl>
                            </desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 29

dcterms:creator is used to state the authorship of a work. In this case we are completely sure.


                        <relation name="dcterms:creator" active="LIT4836ZenaEskenderyawit" passive="PRS9167TaklaHa"></relation>
                    

Example 30

ecrm:P129_is_about is used to state a subject of a Textual Unit.


                        <relation name="ecrm:P129_is_about" active="LIT5284MiracleDawit" passive="PRS3429DawitII">
                            <desc>Although Dāwit is not mentioned by name in the miracle, his
                                identification is certain according to <ref target="#Getatchew"></ref>.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 31

Person to Person

betmas:wifeOf, betmas:husbandOf, betmas:fatherInLawOf, betmas:motherInLawOf, betmas:sonInLawOf, betmas:daughterInLawOf have been added as fast forward properties, to be used where the direct relationships are not known.


                        <relation name="betmas:fatherInLawOf" active="PRS7458NagadaI" passive="PRS11767RomanaWarq"></relation>
                    

Example 32

betmas:isPredecessorOf and betmas:isSuccessorOf are used to order the kings and emperors of Ethiopian dynasties.


                        <relation name="betmas:isPredecessorOf" active="PRS1854Amdase" passive="PRS8595SayfaAr"></relation>
                    

Example 33

betmas:ordainedBy


                        <relation name="betmas:ordainedBy" active="PRS4070FereMik" passive="PRS3801endreyas"></relation>
                    

Example 34

betmas:hasOrdained


                        <relation name="betmas:hasOrdained" active="PRS4351Gabrase" passive="PRS6876Matewos"></relation>
                    

Example 35

betmas:baptizedBy


                        <relation name="betmas:baptizedBy" active="PRS7188Motalami" passive="PRS9162TaklaHa"></relation>
                    

Example 36

The following SNAP examples use classes rather than properties (this can be seen by the capital letters which they use). This is indeed confusing. It should be however correctly modelled in the transformation to RDF and makes your encoding life a bit easier by sparing the encoding of all the triples needed.

All SNAP classes of relationship are listed in the schema and are not reproduced here for all cases


                    <relation name="snap:SonOf" active="PRS11720WahibaSellase" passive="PRS11722GabraMaryam"></relation>
                

Example 37

snap:Group


                        <relation name="snap:Group" active="ETH2324Salnna" passive="ETH1083Agaw"></relation>
                    

Example 38

agrelon:hasFounder is used to relate a person to a persons group, like a monastic group.


                        <relation name="agrelon:hasFounder" active="PRS11232HouseSam" passive="PRS8491Samuel"></relation>
                    

Example 39

foaf:member is used to relate a person to a persons group, like a monastic group or group of Saints.


                        <relation name="foaf:member" active="PRS12196NineSaints" passive="PRS1467Afse"></relation>
                    

Example 40

Person to Manuscript

saws:isCopierOf you would normally add this with a <persName> with @role equal to scribe in the manuscript record, but sometimes you are not editing of the manuscript record, and want to add this information with the person or wherever you are editing.


                        <relation name="saws:isCopierOf" active="PRS12823Akala" passive="ESktm005"></relation>
                    

Example 41

saws:hasOwned you would normally add this with a <persName> with @role equal to owner in the manuscript record, but sometimes you are not editing of the manuscript record, and want to add this information with the person or wherever you are editing.


                        <relation name="saws:hasOwned" active="PRS12813Hawaryat" passive="BLorient639"></relation>
                    

Example 42

saws:hasWritten implies an authorship of some content, e.g. of marginalia in manuscripts.


                        <relation name="saws:hasWritten" active="PRS11501Endreyas" passive="BAVet8#a1"></relation>
                    

Example 43

Person to Work

ecrm:P129i_is_subject_of


                        <relation name="ecrm:P129i_is_subject_of" active="PRS11855Diyosqoros" passive="LIT2375Synaxa">
                            <desc>Commemorated on 3 Maskaram</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 44

betmas:isAuthorOfEthiopicTranslation a relation in this form is equivalent to say that this person is the author of the Ethiopic translation of this work


                        <relation name="betmas:isAuthorOfEthiopicTranslation" active="PRS9187TaklaMa" passive="LIT2064Naydaq"></relation>
                    

Example 45

saws:isAttributedAuthorOf a relation in this form states that this person is an attributed author of this work. It would be nice to have some more details about this attribution when possible, for example, the source of the attribution. Please note that the domain (@active) and range (@passive) of this statement are inverted when compared to the inverse property saws:isAttributedToAuthor (which you can use alternatively to this, with the very same meaning) or the property dcterms:creator used for certain authorship attribution, and which you can find above.


                        <relation name="saws:isAttributedAuthorOf" active="PRS8746Semon" passive="LIT5334MiracleFurnishings"></relation>
                    

Example 46

Place to Place

gn:locatedIn


                        <relation name="gn:locatedIn" active="LOC6577WestGondar" passive="LOC1426Amhara">
                            <desc>The West Gondar Zone is located in the ʾAmharā kǝllǝl.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 47

gn:nearBy


                        <relation name="gn:nearBy" active="LOC6564MaryamS" passive="LOC1311AksumS">
                            <desc>The new church of Māryām Ṣǝyon was built next to the old church of
                                ʾAksum Ṣǝyon.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 48

dc:relation can be used to state a generic relation between two places


                        <relation name="dc:relation" active="LOC3577Gondar" passive="LOC6552Amhara">
                            <desc>Gondar was the capital of the Governo dell&apos;Amhara during the
                                Italian occupation.</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 49

Person to Place

syriaca:has-relation-to-place


                        <relation name="syriaca:has-relation-to-place" active="PRS4015Fasilada" passive="LOC3589Gorgor">
                            <desc>Fāsiladas ordered the burning of the library of the Jesuits&apos;
                                mission in Gorgorā</desc>
                        </relation>
                    

Example 50

Syriaca.org has defined other relations between persons and places which are not currently used, but you are more than welcome to do so and add an example here.

Art Themes

ecrm:P129_is_about


                        <relation name="ecrm:P129_is_about" active="AT1132MMSophia" passive="LIT3611Miracle"></relation>
                    

Example 51

saws:contains is used also to say that an abstract art theme contains a representation of a specific person


                        <relation name="saws:contains" active="AT1010Entombment" passive="PRS5684JesusCh"></relation>
                    

Example 52

This page is referred to in the following pages

Revisions of this page

  • Pietro Maria Liuzzo on 2018-04-30: first version of guidelines from Wiki
  • Dorothea Reule on 2018-05-18: Edited and updated examples
  • Eugenia Sokolinski on 2018-05-25: Added lexicon relation example
  • Dorothea Reule on 2020-03-05: Corrected typos
  • Dorothea Reule on 2022-07-07: updated use of several relations according to discussion in https://github.com/BetaMasaheft/Documentation/issues/1920 and https://github.com/BetaMasaheft/Documentation/issues/1350