17) ARCHIVING METHODS

The filing method to be used for the organization of a certain

documentation will depend on the nature of the documents being processed and the organic structure of the

institution. Paes (2007, p. 61) divides filing methods into two main classes, basic and
standardized, according to the scheme below:

The cited methods (basic and standardized) belong to two large systems of
filing, namely:

Direct system: the search for the document is done directly at the location where it

Okay, saved.
Indirect system: it is one in which, to locate the document, it is
it is necessary to consult an index or code. Characteristic of the methods that
they organize the documents by number.
 Alphabetical Method
It is considered a simple method and uses the main archiving criterion of
nonexistent name in the document, based on strict alphabetical order. It is a direct method, having

considering that the research is conducted within the document set itself, without the need for
to refer to an index to locate any document.

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGE

FAST Great possibility of error

when the volume of documents
STRAIGHT
it is very big, because of the
EASY visual fatigue and variety of

CHEAP spelling of names.

Sorting method that is based on the alphabet.

Alphabetization Rules - Thirteen Simple Rules

1) In the names of individuals, the last surname is considered first, followed by the first name.

EXAMPLES TO BE FILED

A-Z
1st - Abreu, Pedro Ricardo
João Barbosa
2°- Barbosa, João
Pedro Ricardo Abreu
3°- Lopes, Bruno Mendonça
Bruno Mendonça Lopes

When there are identical surnames, the alphabetical order of the first name prevails.
 EXAMPLES Filing

A-Z
1° - Mendonça, Bruno
BrunoMendonça
2nd - Mendonça, Carlos
José Mendonça
3°- Mendonça, José
Carlos Mendonça

2) Compound surnames made up of a noun and an adjective or connected by a hyphen do not

separate

EXAMPLES Filing

A-Z
1° - Castle White, Camilo
Camilo Castelo Branco
2nd - Monte Verde, Paulo
Paulo Monte Verde
3°- Villa-Lobos, Heitor
Heitor Villa-Lobos

3) Surnames formed with the words Santa, Santo, or São follow the rule of
documents composed of an adjective and a noun

EXAMPLES They are archived

A-Z
Alberto Saint Peter 1st - Santa Rita, Diogo
Carlos Holy Christ 2°- Holy Christ, Carlos
DiogoSanta Rita 3°- Saint Peter, Alberto
 4) The abbreviated initials of first names take precedence in the classification of surnames.

equals:

EXAMPLES They are filed

A-Z
José Rios 1° - Rivers, J.
John Rios 2°- Rivers, John
J. Rios 3°- Rios, José

5) Articles and prepositions, such as a, o, de, d', da, do, e, um, uma, are not considered:

EXAMPLES ARE ARCHIVED

A-Z
1° - Andrade, Pedro d’
Ricardo de Azevedo
2°- Azevedo, Ricardo de
Pedrod'Andrade
3°- Rocha, Lúcia da
LúciadaRocha

6) Last names that express degree of kinship such as Filho, Júnior, Neto,
Nephews are considered an integral part of the last name, but are not considered in the
alphabetical order:

EXAMPLES ARE FILED

A-Z
1° - Almeida Filho, Santino
Paulo Ribeiro Junior
2nd - Cruz Sobrinho, Raimundo
Raimundo Cruz Sobrinho
3°- Ribeiro Júnior, Paulo
Santino Almeida Filho

Degrees of kinship will only be considered in alphabetical order when they serve as
element of distinction:
 EXAMPLES FILED

A-Z
1st - Abreu Filho, Raphael de
Raphael deAbreu Neto 2nd - Abreu Neto, Raphael de

Raphael deAbreu Filho

Titles are not considered in the alphabetization. They are placed after the name.
complete, in parentheses:

EXAMPLES FILED

A-Z
Dr. Francisco Everardo Silva 1° - Law, Menezes (Minister)
Minister Menezes Law 2°- Pires, Carla (Professor)

Professor Carla Pires 3°- Silva, Francisco Everardo (Dr.)

Foreign names are considered by the last surname, except in cases of

eastern Spanish names

EXAMPLES They are archived

A-Z
1° - Carnegie, Andrew
Cornelius Vanderbilt
2°- Rockefeller, John Davison
John Davison Rockefeller
3°- Vanderbilt, Cornelius
Andrew Carnegie
 9) The particles of foreign names may or may not be considered. The most common
they are considered an integral part of the name when written with a capital letter:

EXAMPLES FILING

A-Z
1st - Blessed, Michelle of
MichellediBenedetto
2°- Di Stefano, Alfredo
Alfredo Di Stefano
3°- O’Brien, Margaret
Margaret O'Brien

10) The Spanish names are registered by the last surname, which corresponds
to the family surname of the father:

EXAMPLES ARCHIVED

A-Z
1° - Andrés Messi, Lionel
Diego Armando Maradona
2°- Armando Maradona, Diego
Lionel Andrés Messi
3°- Román Riquelme, Juan
Juan Román Riquelme

11) Eastern names —Japanese, Chinese, and Arabic —are recorded as if

they present:

EXAMPLES FILED

A-Z
1st - Lai Changxing
Nancy Ajram Nabil (Arab)
2°- Nancy Ajram Nabil
Yuzo Sato (Japanese)
3°- Yuzo Sato
Lai Changxing (Chinese)
 12) The names of firms, companies, institutions, and government agencies must be
transcribed as they appear, not considering, however, for the purposes of ordering, the articles and
prepositions that constitute them. It is accepted, for the sake of convenience in ordering, that the initial articles be

placed in parentheses after the name:

EXAMPLES ARCHIVED

A-Z
The Washington Post 1° - House of the Student
Filomena Foundry 2°- Filomena Foundry
The House of the Student 3°- Washington Post (The)

13) In the titles of congresses, conferences, meetings, assemblies, and similar events
Arabic numbers, Roman numerals or written out in full should appear at the end, in parentheses:

EXAMPLES ARE FILED

A-Z
National Conference of Museums 1st - National Conference of
Museums (I)
Fifth Physics Congresses
2nd - Archives Congress (3rd)
3rd Congress of Archives 3rd Congress of Physics
(Fifth)

Geographic Method
It is a filing method belonging to the direct system, that is, when the
the user will perform a search, it will be done directly in the document, without the need for assistance
of an index or code.
It is a filing methodology widely used when the main element to
to be considered in a document is the origin or location.
 ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGE

DIRECT It requires two classifications - one

for the origin and another for the

EASY
correspondent.

Sorting method that focuses on geographical aspects.

When using the geographic method, the ordering may be based on

three criteria: by state, by city or by country, as we will see:
Organization by state
In the organization of the provided file, the respective capital must be ordered in
first place, regardless of the alphabetical order in relation to the other cities included,
that should be arranged alphabetically immediately after the state capital. If necessary
sort the correspondents by state, this should be done according to the rules of alphabetization
present in the alphabetical method. For example:

STATE CITY CORRESPONDENT

Brasília Souza, Júlio Cesar Andrade de

Federal District Ceilândia Costa, Maurício Matias da

Taguatinga Andrade, Tatiane Moura d'

Belo Horizonte Madureira, Fernando Radamés

Minas Gerais High Catas of Norway Testoni, Celso Neiva

Lafayette Counselor Fernandes, Denise Corrêia

It is observed that the states are ordered alphabetically (Federal District and Minas)
General), followed by their respective capitals, which appear first in this methodology. In
the other cities appear in sequence, also arranged in alphabetical order.
Organization by city
When the main identifying element of the document is the city and not the state,
One must strictly observe the alphabetical order taking into account the names of the cities, not
highlighting the capitals.
 CITY STATE CORRESPONDENT

Belo Horizonte Minas Gerais Madureira, Fernando Radamés

Brasília Federal District Souza, Júlio Cesar Andrade de

Catas Altas of Norway Minas Gerais Testoni, Celso Neiva

Ceilândia Federal District Costa, Maurício Matias da

Counselor Lafayete Minas Gerais Fernandes, Denise Corrêia

Taguatinga Federal District Andrade, Tatiane Moura d'

It is observed that the cities obey à strict alphabetical order,

regardless of the state of origin and its capital. It is essential that the cities
be accompanied by the respective names of the states, considering the occurrence of cities
with the same name in different states. For example: Taguatinga–DF and Taguatinga–TO.
Correspondence by country
When the main element to be considered in the sorting of the documentation is the
nome depaíses, alfabeta-se primeiramente este, seguido da respectiva capital, do nome das
other cities and the names of the correspondents. According to the sorting logic by state, the
The other cities will be arranged in alphabetical order after the capital.

COUNTRY CITY CORRESPONDENT

Ottawa Johnston, David

Canada Toronto Harper, Stephen

Vancouver Cartier, Jacques

London David Cameron

England Bristol Brown, Gordon

Liverpool Blair, Tony

It is observed that the countries follow the strict alphabetical order (Canada and England).
the capital of each country takes priority in the ordering, being placed in the first position, and the others

cities are ordered alphabetically right after the capitals.

 Numerical Methods
Method used when the main element to be considered for filing is
search for a document for your number. It is divided into three categories: simple, chronological
digit-terminal. It is considered a method of the indirect system, given that for the
The recovery of documents should use an alphabetical index.
Simple Numeric
It is materialized through the assignment of a unique number to each correspondent, of
according to the order of entry into the institution or registration. This method dispenses with the use of

alphabetical order, as its use will be accompanied by the creation of an alphabetical index
remissive.

Sorting method that is based on the number assigned to the units of

archiving.

EXAMPLE OF THE SIMPLE METHOD

EXAMPLE OF REMISSIVE ALPHABETICAL INDEX

The simple numerical method has wide application in special files (disks,
photographs, films, soundtracks) and specialized (engineering projects, projects of
financing, medical records, employee registrations.
Numeric-chronological
It is a methodology in which the person responsible for filing must observe the
numbering and the date assigned to the documents. The assignment of number and date to the documents is

a widely used method by public institutions.

Sorting method that is centered on the number and date of the documents.

The use of this method pertains to the document itself and not to its folder. After each
The document will receive its unique identifier, it will be arranged in strict numerical order.
 Just like the simple numeric, the chronological-numeric is characterized by being a
indirect system method, considering the need to create an auxiliary index for
assist in the location and retrieval of documents.
In the initiation of its processes, the Federal Executive adopts a methodology
standardized and established by Ordinance No. 3, of May 16, 2003, of the Ministry of
Planning.
According to the aforementioned Ordinance (applicable to the bodies of the Federal Executive Power), the

the unique number assigned to the process, upon its registration, will consist of fifteen digits,
still needing to be added with two more check digits (DV) and, with the addition of the digits
verifiers, the number assigned to the process will be composed of seventeen digits, separated into
groups(00000.000000/0000-00), as described below:
I - the first group consists of five digits, referring to the numerical code
assigned to each protocol unit and this code identifies the body of origin of the process,
remaining unchanged;
II - the second group consists of six digits, separated from the first by a period and
determines the sequential registration of the filed processes, with this number needing to be restarted each time

yes
III - the third group, consisting of four digits, separated from the second group by a
bar, indicates the year of formation of the process; and

IV - the fourth group, consisting of two digits, separated from the third group by a hyphen,
indicate the check digits (DV), used by agencies that utilize automated routines.

Example: 35041.000387/2000-19
 Numeric digit-terminal
Organizational method used in institutions with large amounts of
documents and adopted the number as the main element of identification.

The digit-terminal method is centered around a numerical code divided into groups of
digits, read from right to left, indicating the physical arrangement of
documents.

The documents must receive sequential numbering and their reading presents a
peculiarity that characterizes the method - the numbers arranged in three groups of two digits each
Um, they are read (ALWAYS) from right to left forming pairs. For example:

SEQUENTIAL NUMBER DIGIT-TERMINAL

963.256 96.32.56

Converting the number 963.256 to the terminal digit method, the person in charge of
the ordering will have the following group: 96.32.56. The reading is done from right to left and is divided into

groups: number 56 belongs to the primary group, number 32 belongs to the secondary group and the
number96 belongs to the tertiary group.
When archiving, the documents will be stored taking into account
consideration of the groups that make up the number. Firstly, the primary group will be considered.
(56), then the secondary group (32) and finally the tertiary group (96).
So that the user can locate the document 96-32-56, filed based on the
digit-terminal method, he must first locate where the folders are
ending in 56, then locate the folders whose secondary group is 32 and, finally, the folder
desired, 96.
Example of sorting based on the simple method and the terminal digit method:
SIMPLE METHOD DIGIT-TERMINAL METHOD
(1°) 42.639 (1°) 36.95.21
(2°) 236.895 (2°) 04.26.39
3° 369.521 (3°) 99.01.56
(4°) 953.456 (4°) 95.34.56
(5°) 990.156 (5°) 23.68.95
 It is noticeable that in the digit-terminal method, when the number is composed of less than

for five digits, zero (0) will be placed to its left for its completion, as an example of what
it happened with the number 42,639, which came to have the following composition: 04.26.39.

It is also observed that the organization of the documents is in ascending order.

taking into consideration, first of all, the primary group. The other groups (secondary and
Tertiary) will be considered for the purpose of ranking when more than one document has numbers.
identical to that of the primary group.

Ideographic method – (subject)

Document filing method that is linked to its application to
interpretation of the subject of the document under analysis. Paes (2007, p. 77) argues that the method in

study is more advisable in cases of large documentary masses and variety of subjects, because
requires deep knowledge of institutional activities.

Método de ordenação que tem por eixo os assuntos presentes, explicitamente ou

no, in the documents.

The ideographic method is subdivided as follows:

Dictionary
Alphabetical

Encyclopedic

IDEOLOGICAL OR
FOR SUBJECT Duplex

Numeric Decimal

Uniterm or indexing
coordinate
 Alphabetical - dictionary
The subjects dealt with by a certain institution or person are arranged
alphabetically, considering only the sequence of letters.

Arrangement of entries in the strict sequence of letters.

Let's look at an example of its application:

A instituiçãoXrealiza determinadas atividades que dão origem aos documentos que

we deal with the topics present in column A. With the application of the alphabetical ideographic method.

dictionary, all topics will be arranged in alphabetical order, following the logic of a
common dictionary. The result of the organization through this method is what is in column B.

COLUMN–A (unordered matters) COLUMN–B (ordered matters)

Appointment of server Property management
Exoneration of a server Vehicle Administration
Acquisition of permanent assets Acquisition of permanent asset
Acquisition of consumable materials Acquisition of consumable materials
Property management Preparation of the budget proposal
Vehicle management Elaboration of the multi-year plan
Preparation of the budget proposal Dismissal of server
Preparation of the multiannual plan Survey of documentary production
Survey of documentary production Appointment of server
Transfer / collection of documents Transfer / collection of documents

After the application of the method, it is observed that all the subjects in column A
They were placed in strict alphabetical order in column B. This is an example of how to apply the
alphabetical method dictionary in an institution.
 Alphabetical - encyclopedic
In the encyclopedic alphabetical method, the person responsible for the organization of the documentation

group related subjects into general titles, ordered according to the sequence
rigorousness of the letters, that is, literacy. For example: GENERAL TITLE

DOCUMENTATION AND INFORMATION

Related subjects
Survey of documentary production
sorted
Transfer / collection of documents alphabetically

PEOPLE MANAGEMENT
Functional Registration

Dismissal of employee
Appointment of server

MATERIAL AND SERVICE

Acquisition of permanent asset
Acquisition of consumable materials

BUDGET AND FINANCE

Financial and budget programming
Preparation of the budget proposal
Elaboration of the multiannual plan

HERITAGE
Property management
Vehicle administration

Ideographic - numeric
The use of numerical methods (duplex, decimal, and uniterm) in conjunction with the
subject classification aims to facilitate the development of the organization activity and
archiving of documents, considering the simplicity of working with numbers.

Numeric - duplex
It focuses on the distribution of documents into major classes by subject. The classes
generals can be subdivided into subordinate classes through the use of juxtaposed numbers with
traces of union.
 Another important feature of this method is the possibility of opening
unlimited number of classes. In other words, it is not necessary to anticipate all the
activities at the time of building the classification plan, as new classes may be created
opened according to institutional need.
To facilitate understanding, the classification scheme example will be used.
presented in the encyclopedic alphabetical method. However, it will be enhanced with the
duplex numbering methodology.

1 DOCUMENTATION AND INFORMATION

1-1 Survey of documentary production
1-2 Transfer / collection of documents
Juxtaposed numbering
with hyphen 2 PEOPLE MANAGEMENT
2-1 Functional Record
2-1-1 Exoneration of server
2-1-2 Appointment of server

3 MATERIAL AND SERVICE

3-1 Acquisition of permanent asset
3-2 Acquisition of consumable materials

4 BUDGET AND FINANCES

4-1 Financial and Budget Programming
4-1-1 Preparation of the budget proposal
4-1-2 Elaboration of the multiannual plan

5 HERITAGE
5-1 Property management
5-2 Vehicle management

IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS IN THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE DUPLEX METHOD

1- Existence of the hyphen, for example: (2-1-1).

2- Method divided into classes, according to the subjects, always starting from the general to the

particular, for example:

5PATRIMÔNIO(geral)
5-1 Property management (private).

3- Possibility of unlimited class opening. The example presented for the duplex method only
it presents five classes, but nothing prevents the unlimited growth of classes and subclasses.

Numeric–decimal
It is based on a pre-defined plan for the distribution of documents limited to ten major ones.
classes, each of which can be subdivided into ten subclasses and, thus, successively, starting from
Always from the general to the particular.

Considering the limited number of classes, Paes (2007, p.85) points out that the most
complex in the use of this method is the need for determination, when drafting the
classification plan, of the main classes that encompass any and all species of
documents produced or received, which makes it necessary to foresee the development of the
activities of the institution.

As an example of the application of the decimal method, a fragment of the

Classification Code prepared by the National Archives Council and serves as guidance
for the archival classification of documents produced and received by the Executive Power
Federal.

CONARQ CLASSIFICATION CODE SUBDIVISION OF SUBCLASS 020 - STAFF

000 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION (CLASS) 020 PERSONAL (SUBCLASS)

010 ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTIONING 021 RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION

020 PERSONNEL 022 IMPROVEMENT AND TRAINING

030 MATERIAL 023 FRAMES, TABLES AND PERSONNEL POLICY

040 PATRIMONY 024 RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND ADVANTAGES

050 BUDGET AND FINANCE 025 ACCOUNTABILITY AND DISCIPLINARY ACTION

060 DOCUMENTATION AND INFORMATION 026 SOCIAL SECURITY, ASSISTANCE AND SOCIAL PROTECTION

070 COMMUNICATIONS 027 (vacant)

080 (spot) 028 (vacant)

090 OTHER MATTERS RELATED TO GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

029 OTHER MATTERS RELATED TO PERSONNEL

SUBDIVISION OF GROUP 024 DIVISION OF SUBGROUP 024.1

024 RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND ADVANTAGES (GROUP) 024.1 PAYROLL. FINANCIAL RECORDS
(SUBGRUPO)

024.1 PAYROLLS. FINANCIAL RECORDS 024.11 SALARIES, WAGES, REMUNERATIONS AND

Remunerations

024.2 HOLIDAYS 024.12 GRANTS (including incorporations)

024.3 LICENSES 024.13 ADDITIONALS

024.4 ABSENCES 024.14 DISCOUNTS

024.5 REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES 024.15 EMPLOYER CHARGES. COLLECTIONS

024.6 (vague)

024.7 (vague)

024.8 (vacancy)

024.9 OTHER RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND ADVANTAGES

The classification presented in the scheme above could be written as follows:

CLASS 000 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

SUBCLASS 020 PEOPLE

GROUP 024 RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND ADVANTAGES.

SUBGROUPS 024.1 PAYROLL. FINANCIAL RECORDS.

024.11 SALARIES, WAGES, BENEFITS, AND REMUNERATIONS.

IMPORTANT FEATURES IN IDENTIFYING THE DECIMAL METHOD

1–The number is separated into classes of three digits by a point, for example: (024.11).

2- The method is divided into classes, subclasses, groups, subgroups, according to the topics,
starting always from the general to the particular, for example:
020PERSONAL(general)
024.11 Salaries, wages, benefits, and compensations (private).

3–Todos os assuntos referentes à determinada classe ficam juntos.

Unitermo
Method developed by Mortimer Tauber, in the USA, in the early 1950s.
The use of this method consists of assigning to each document or group of
documents, in a number in ascending order, according to their entry into the unit of
file (marked in a visible and previously determined location). After the numbering has been completed,
each document will undergo the process of analysis and indexing by simple terms extracted from its
content, so that the indexed words will serve as the basis for later research. Such elements
should be transcribed in an index card in the form of keywords. The index card should
there are still other complementary information about the presentation of the document and the

quantity. For each keyword, a card is prepared (keyword card), divided into 10
columns are numbered from 0 to 9. The registration number is transcribed in the corresponding form or forms

to the keywords.
 The research is conducted through keyword cards, which must be
overlapping consultations, since the method described here works on the basis of comparison.
The uniterm method is successfully used in special and specialized files, not
being recommended for use in conventional collections.
Variadex
It is the sorting method that is based on the letters of the alphabet represented by
different colors. To facilitate the filing and locating of documents, it was decided to attach
colors to the alphabetical method studied previously.
There will be a key divided into five colors:

Letters Hearts
A, B, C, of the abbreviations Gold
E, F, G, The abbreviations Rose
I, J, K, L, M, The abbreviations Green
O, P, Q are abbreviations Blue
R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, The abbreviations Straw

According to the method, the key colors must be assigned to the projections of
folders based on the second letter of the input name and not the initial letter, which will indicate the section

alphabetical corresponding for your sorting.

Example:
NAMES ORGANIZED IN
LIST OF NAMES ENTRY CORES
ALPHABETICAL ORDER
Júlio Cesar Andrade de Souza Andrade, Tatiane Moura d' Andrade Green
Maurício Matias da Costa Costa, Maurício Matias da Coast Blue
Tatiane Moura d’ Andrade Madureira, Fernando Radamés Madureira Gold
Fernando Radamés Madureira Souza, Júlio Cesar Andrade de Souza Blue
Celso Neiva Testoni Testoni, Celso Neiva Testoni Rose
Leonardo Travassos Travassos, Leonardo Travassos Straw

Documents must be filed under the letters A, C, M, S, T, and T, according to the order.
alphabetical presented in the second column. The notations would be inscribed in projections (labels
in the colors, green, blue, gold, pink, and straw), according to the associations between the third and fourth columns.
 Folder projections

Through the variadex method, it is possible to adopt all five colors for each letter of
alphabet, minimizing the possibility of incorrect filing and speeding up the search. For example:
according to the sorting scheme presented, the documents organized under the letter 'T' must be
placed in folders with projections in pink and straw colors.

Automatic, Soundex, Rôneo and Mnemonic

It has no practical application
AUTOMATIC
in Brazilian files
Sorting method that is based on phonetics
It has no practical application and does not spell the names. It gathers the names by
SOUNDEX
in the Brazilian files similarity of pronunciation, despite the spelling being

different. Look for nearby and similar sounds.

It is known as a hybrid method because it does the

Rhoneo Obsolete relationship of letters, numbers and colors for

for filing purposes.
The coding of the subjects is done using the
combination of letters. The letters are considered
Obsolete MNEMONIC symbols in order to aid the memory of
archivist, in order to facilitate the retrieval of the
information.

Alphanumeric method
It is the method of sorting archival documents that has as its characteristic
mainly the combination of letters and numbers, aiming to facilitate the filing activity. Example:
 DIVISIONS OF THE ALPHABET PREVIOUSLY
FILE NUMBER
PLANNED
Aa–Af 1
Ag–Al 2
Am–As 3
At–Az 4
Ba–Bl 5
Bm–Bz 6
(...) (...)
Za–Zz 100

When using the alphanumeric method, the person responsible for managing the collection
must study beforehand the number of alphabetical divisions that will make up the table, considering the
high incidence of certain names.
Example of using the alphanumeric method:
Names Pastas
Acrísio, Paulo 1
Almeida. John 2
Amaral, Roberto 3

The alphanumeric filing method (combination of letters and numbers) does not
inserts basic and standardized method classes.