The Martin Luther King Jr. Library uses the Dewey Decimal Classification for call numbers. This system uses a combination of letters and numbers to arrange materials by subjects. See instructions below for finding the call number in the catalog and then locating the book in the library.
The Martin Luther King, Jr., Library at LACC holds over 150,000 print titles and over 200,000 ebook titles. Search the collection by entering keywords, author’s name, title, subject, or ISBN in the box below and pressing the Search button.
Search our Books in the Library Catalog.
The Dewey Decimal System has ten major subject groupings. Within each subject group, there are classification numbers that lead to more specific topics:
Overview
000 GENERAL KNOWLEDGE
100 PHILOSOPHY & PSYCHOLOGY
200 RELIGION
300 SOCIAL SCIENCES
400 LANGUAGES
500 SCIENCE
600 TECHNOLOGY
700 ARTS & RECREATION
800 LITERATURE
900 HISTORY & GEOGRAPHY
0-499 located on2nd floor of the library |
500-999 located on3rd floor of the library |
000 Computers, Information & General Reference010 Bibliographies & catalogs 020 Library & information sciences 030 General encyclopedic works 050 General serials & their indexes 060 General organizations & museums 070 News media, journalism, publishing 080 General collections 090 Manuscripts & rare books
|
500 Natural Sciences & Mathematics· 510 Mathematics · 520 Astronomy & allied sciences · 530 Physics · 540 Chemistry & allied sciences · 550 Earth sciences · 560 Paleontology, Paleozoology · 570 Life Sciences · 580 Botanical sciences · 590 Zoological sciences |
|
100 Philosophy & Psychology · 110 Metaphysics · 120 Epistemology, causation, humankind · 130 Paranormal phenomena · 140 Specific philosophical schools · 150 Psychology · 160 Logic · 170 Ethics (Moral philosophy) · 180 Ancient, medieval, Oriental philosophy · 190 Modern Western philosophy |
600 Technology (Applied Sciences)· 610 Medical sciences · 620 Engineering & allied sciences · 630 Agriculture · 640 Home economics & family living · 650 Management & auxiliary services · 660 Chemical engineering · 670 Manufacturing · 680 Manufacture for specific uses · 690 Buildings |
200 Religion· 210 Natural theology · 220 Bible · 230 Christian Theology · 240 Christian moral & devotional theology · 250 Christian orders & local churches · 260 Christian social theology · 270 Christian church history · 280 Christian denominations & sects · 290 Other and comparative religions |
700 The Arts· 710 Civic & landscape art · 720 Architecture · 730 Plastic arts · 78 Music Scores · 740 Drawing & decorative arts · 750 Painting & paintings · 760 Graphic arts · 770 Photography & photographs · 780 Music · 790 Recreational & performing arts |
300 Social Sciences· 310 General statistics · 320 Political science · 330 Economics · 340 Law · 350 Public administration · 360 Social welfare · 370 Education · 380 Commerce, communications, transport · 390 Customs, etiquette, folklore |
800 Literature & Rhetoric· 810 American literature in English · 820 English and Old English literature · 830 Literatures of Germanic languages · 840 Literatures of Romance languages · 850 Italian, Romanian, Rhaeto-Romanic · 860 Spanish & Portuguese literatures · 870 Italic literatures, i.e., Latin · 880 Hellenic literatures, i.e., Classical Greek · 890 Literatures of other languages |
400 Language· 410 Linguistics · 420 English & Old English · 430 Germanic languages, i.e., German · 440 Romance languages, i.e., French · 450 Italian, Romanian languages · 460 Spanish & Portuguese languages · 470 Italic languages, i.e., Latin · 480 Hellenic languages, i.e., Classical Greek · 490 Other languages |
900 History & Geography· 910 Geography & travel · 920 Biography, genealogy, insignias · 930 History of the ancient world · 940 General history of Europe · 950 General history of Asia & Far East · 960 General history of Africa · 970 General history of North America · 980 General history of South America · 990 General history of other areas |
When you find a title in our catalog note down the Call Number to locate the physical book in the library (which will be on the spine of the book).
For example, the call number for the book Higher education in the digital age by William G. Bowen is 378.173 B675h.
The call number identifies the location of the book. Here is a breakdown of the call number, line by line:
Read the first line in numerical order as a decimal (e.g. 378.173 comes between 378.17 and 378.18)
The second line is a combination of letters and numbers to further identify the location of the book
Next identify the Catalog Location to find your book in the library.
| Catalog Location | Location in Library | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Stacks | 2nd and 3rd floors |
|
| Reference | 1st floor (behind the reference desk) | The letter “R” will appear before the call number (Ex. The Gale encyclopedia of medicine R 616 G131a4) |
| Reserve desk | 1st floor (where you check out and return books) | If there is no call number and only a class name, that means that it is located at the Reserve Desk and can be checked out for 2-hours for use in the library only (Ex. Rules for Writers ENGLISH 28/101/103) |
| Circulation desk | 1st floor (where you check out and return books) | These books can be checked out for 7-days. You will need the Call Number to request them. (Ex. Rules for Writers 808.02 H115r7) |
| Fiction | 2nd floor | Fiction is organized by author’s last name. (Ex. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros has a call number of C4974h) |
| Children’s Collection | 2nd Floor | Follows same rules of Dewey Decimal call number and Fiction collection, however call number begins with “XZ” |
| New Book Display | 1st floor (by the circulation desk) | This collection is frequently updated |
| Foreign Language | 3rd Floor | Language indicated by letter preceding call number (Ex. C for Chinese, S for Spanish, G for German, etc.) |
For more information on the Dewey Decimal System and how subjects are organized, see the guide page here: http://lacitycollege.libguides.com/libraryguide/dewey