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EAD stands for Encoded Archival Description, and is a non-proprietary de facto standard for the encoding of finding aids for use in a networked (online) environment. Finding aids are inventories, indexes, or guides that are created by archival and manuscript repositories to provide information about specific collections. While the finding aids may vary somewhat in style, their common purpose is to provide detailed description of the content and intellectual organization of collections of archival materials. EAD allows the standardization of collection information in finding aids within and across repositories.

URL for Resource: http://www.loc.gov/ead/

Alternate Name / Title: EAD

Standards Creating / Publishing Body: The Technical Subcommittee for Encoded Archival Standards of the Society of American Archivists, in partnership with the Library of Congress.

Institutional Implementation: Library of Congress, State Archives of North Carolina

Date of Creation: 1998

Date of Latest Revision: EAD3 1.1.1

Date Resource Added/Modified: October 7, 2022