Property 3: Title

A name or title by which a resource is known
3. Title
Required Occurrences: 1-n

Definition: A name or title by which a resource is known.

Allowed values, examples, other constraints:

Free text. Multiple titles are allowed to support multilingual titles and different title types (main title, subtitle, translated title, etc.).

DOCiD™ Implementation:

The Publications model stores the primary title in the document_title field, with support for multilingual titles through JSON metadata fields:

Publications Model - Title Field
class Publications(db.Model):
    __tablename__ = 'publications'
    
    # Primary title (required)
    document_title = Column(String(255), nullable=False)
    
    # Additional title information can be stored in JSON metadata
    metadata = Column(JSON)  # Can include translated titles, subtitles, etc.

Sub-properties

3.1 titleType
Optional Occurrences: 0-1

Definition: The type of title.

Allowed values:

  • AlternativeTitle: Alternative title for the resource
  • Subtitle: Explanatory or subordinate title
  • TranslatedTitle: Translated title in different language
  • Other: Other title types

Examples based on African research:

Title Types Examples
# Main Title
"Ubuntu Philosophy in Contemporary African Education"

# Subtitle  
"Ubuntu Philosophy in Contemporary African Education: A Cross-Cultural Analysis"

# Translated Title (Zulu)
"IFilosofi ye-Ubuntu Emfundweni Yanamuhla Yase-Afrika"

# Translated Title (Swahili)
"Falsafa ya Ubuntu katika Elimu ya Kisasa ya Kiafrika"

# Alternative Title
"Ubuntu: An African Educational Philosophy for the 21st Century"
3.2 lang
Optional Occurrences: 0-1

Definition: The language of the title using ISO 639-1 language codes.

Examples based on African languages:

  • en: English
  • af: Afrikaans
  • zu: Zulu
  • xh: Xhosa
  • sw: Swahili
  • am: Amharic
  • ha: Hausa
  • yo: Yoruba
  • ar: Arabic
  • fr: French
  • pt: Portuguese

Multilingual Title Support

JSON Metadata Structure
Implementation Publications.metadata field

DOCiD™ supports multilingual titles through the JSON metadata field in the Publications model:

Multilingual Title JSON Structure
{
    "titles": [
        {
            "title": "Ubuntu Philosophy in Contemporary African Education",
            "titleType": "MainTitle",
            "lang": "en"
        },
        {
            "title": "A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Educational Practices",
            "titleType": "Subtitle", 
            "lang": "en"
        },
        {
            "title": "IFilosofi ye-Ubuntu Emfundweni Yanamuhla Yase-Afrika",
            "titleType": "TranslatedTitle",
            "lang": "zu"
        },
        {
            "title": "Falsafa ya Ubuntu katika Elimu ya Kisasa ya Kiafrika",
            "titleType": "TranslatedTitle",
            "lang": "sw"
        },
        {
            "title": "Ubuntu: Une Philosophie Africaine pour l'Éducation du 21e Siècle",
            "titleType": "AlternativeTitle",
            "lang": "fr"
        }
    ]
}

API Implementation

Publication Creation with Multilingual Titles
POST /api/v1/publications/publish
Authorization: Bearer {jwt_token}
Content-Type: application/json

{
    "document_title": "Traditional Healing Practices in the Eastern Cape",
    "document_description": "Comprehensive study of traditional medicine...",
    "document_docid": "DOCID.UCT.2024.002",
    "resource_type_id": 1,
    "metadata": {
        "titles": [
            {
                "title": "Traditional Healing Practices in the Eastern Cape",
                "titleType": "MainTitle",
                "lang": "en"
            },
            {
                "title": "A Study of Indigenous Medicine and Cultural Protocols",
                "titleType": "Subtitle",
                "lang": "en"
            },
            {
                "title": "Indlela Zokwelapha Zesintu Empuma Koloni",
                "titleType": "TranslatedTitle",
                "lang": "xh"
            },
            {
                "title": "Tradisionele Geneeskunde Praktyke in die Oos-Kaap",
                "titleType": "TranslatedTitle", 
                "lang": "af"
            }
        ]
    },
    "creators": [...]
}
API Response with Title Information
GET /api/v1/publications/get-publication/1
Authorization: Bearer {jwt_token}

Response:
{
    "status": "success",
    "data": {
        "id": 1,
        "document_title": "Traditional Healing Practices in the Eastern Cape",
        "document_docid": "DOCID.UCT.2024.002",
        "titles": [
            {
                "title": "Traditional Healing Practices in the Eastern Cape",
                "titleType": "MainTitle",
                "lang": "en",
                "isPrimary": true
            },
            {
                "title": "Indlela Zokwelapha Zesintu Empuma Koloni",
                "titleType": "TranslatedTitle",
                "lang": "xh",
                "isPrimary": false
            }
        ]
    }
}

African Research Title Examples

Research Area English Title Local Language Title Institution
Traditional Medicine Medicinal Plants of the Fynbos Biome Izityalo Zokwelapha ze-Fynbos (zu) University of Cape Town
Agricultural Research Drought-Resistant Crops for the Sahel Mimea ya Kiangazi kwa Sahel (sw) University of Ghana
Social Sciences Community Governance in Rural Zimbabwe Utongozwi hwekomuniti mumaruwa eZimbabwe (sn) University of Zimbabwe
Environmental Studies Climate Change Adaptation in the Nile Basin التكيف مع تغير المناخ في حوض النيل (ar) Cairo University
Cultural Studies Oral Traditions of the Maasai People Riwayoyin Enu awon Masai (yo) University of Nairobi

Validation Rules

Title Validation Requirements

  • Required Field: document_title cannot be null or empty
  • Length Constraint: Maximum 255 characters for primary title
  • Character Encoding: UTF-8 support for all languages
  • Language Codes: ISO 639-1 standard codes required
  • Title Types: Must use controlled vocabulary
  • Uniqueness: Titles should be distinctive within an institution
2. Creator 4. Publisher