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About this page

This page explains how to describe a document (Q21) in Metabase: which type to choose, how to link it to topics and projects, and which properties to use.

Document types

There are many types of document (Q21), such as reports, posters and slide deck. See the list of available document types before you choose one.

Creating a new document type

If none of the existing types fits, you can create a new one. The new type needs a subclass of (P4) statement that places it in the hierarchy:

• For a general type, use subclass of (P4) = document (Q21). Example: white paper (Q47).
• For a more specific type, use subclass of (P4) = the broader type. Example: final report (Q76) is a type of report (Q29).

Document types should also have a same as on Wikidata (P1). The only exception is a type that is not relevant for Wikidata.

Linking to topics and projects

Keywords

Every document should have at least one keyword (P15) that describes what it is about. Example: linked open data (Q70).

The value can be:

• an keyword (Q12), meaning a topical keyword
• an event or activity, for example the edit-a-thon that a report describes
• a project, for example the project that a report describes
• an organization
• a Wikimedia content project (Q22)

The more keywords a document has, the easier it is to search and analyze the data in detail.

Projects

If a document was produced as part of a project, link it to that project with produced in the scope of the project (P36). This applies, for example, to documents produced by WMSE.

Some documents are about a project but were not produced as part of it. Use only keyword (P15) for these, not produced in the scope of the project (P36). For example, application (Q43) is an application, and an application is published before the project starts.

Situation	keyword (P15)	produced in the scope of the project (P36)
The document was produced as part of the project	Yes	Yes
The document is about the project, but was produced outside it	Yes	No

Properties

Required

• instance of (P5)
  • Example: report (Q29)
  • See the list of document types.
• title (P8)
  • The title of the document.
  • Example: Wikidata as an open, collaborative bibliographic database: the case of the National Library of Sweden
• keyword (P15)
  • Example: Wikidata (Q20)
  • See Keywords above.
• language of work or name (P20)
  • The language the document is written in.
  • Example: English (Q32)

Required if it exists

• same as on Wikidata (P1)
  • Example: Q12323
  • Add this if the document is relevant for Wikidata (for example a scholarly article) and has an item there.

Dates and recipients

• publication date (P18)
  • Example: 31 July 2019
  • If you do not know the exact date, a month or a year is enough.
• addressee (P29)
  • Example: National Library of Sweden (Q75)
  • Use this for documents with a specific recipient, such as grant applications and open letters.

About the document

• author (P19)
  • Example: Axel Pettersson (Q77)
• Other properties for people who took part in making the document:
  • editor (P110)
  • illustrator (P112)
  • screenwriter (P113)
  • designer (P114)
  • animator (P115)
  • narrator (P116)
• publisher (P21)
  • Example: Wikimedia Sverige (Q9)
• number of pages (P55)
  • Example: 67
• published in (P107)
  • Example: Diff (Q41917)

Parts of a document

Use these when a document has parts that are clear enough to have their own items, such as the chapters of an anthology.

• part of (P17)
  • Example: Strategic Inclusion of Library Data in Wikidata 2018 ‒ final report (Q35)
  • The larger work this document is part of, for example the anthology a chapter belongs to.
• has part(s) (P35)
  • Example: Q96
  • The parts of this document that have their own items, for example the chapters of an anthology.

Projects and events

• produced in the scope of the project (P36)
  • Example: Wikidata for authority control (Q14)
  • Connects the document with the project (Q2) it was produced for. See Projects above.
• created for (P46)
  • Example: Annual General Meeting of Wikimedia Sverige, 2022 (Q52)
  • Use this if the document was made for a particular event or similar occasion.

Links to the document

• document file on Wikimedia Commons (P22)
  • Example: LIBER 2020 Poster WMSE.pdf
  • The file name of the document on Wikimedia Commons, usually a PDF.
• full work available at Wikimedia page (P45)
  • Example: wmse:Projekt:GLAM 2021/Wikimedia Commons guide
  • A Wikimedia page that contains the document itself. Write the link with an interwiki prefix.
  • Do not confuse this with full work available at URL (P44) or described at Wikimedia-page (P11).
• described at Wikimedia-page (P11)
  • Example: :wmse:Projekt:Strategisk_inkludering_av_biblioteksdata_på_Wikidata_2018/Rapportering/Inklusionsguide
  • A Wikimedia page that describes the document. Write the link with an interwiki prefix.
• full work available at URL (P44)
  • Example: https://digiteket.se/kurs/att-skriva-pa-wikipedia/
  • The URL of a web page outside the Wikimedia wikis that contains the full document.

License

• copyright license (P111)
  • Example: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (Q44106)
  • The license the document is released under.

Properties for specific document types

For video (Q21950)

• duration (P61)
  • Example: 23 minutes

For slide deck (Q62)

• used by (P42)
  • Example: LD4 Conference 2021 ‒ presentation by WMSE (Q21974)
  • The video (Q21950), presentation (Q48) or other occasion where the slides were used.

Examples

• Article: Wikipedia's war against scientific disinformation (Q50424)
• Blog post: Introducing the Karakalpak Wikipedia, a new, developing project (Q48347)
• Final report: Strategic Inclusion of Library Data in Wikidata 2018 ‒ final report (Q35)
• White paper: WMSE white paper on Structured Data on Commons (Q89)
• Application: Strategic Inclusion of Library Data in Wikidata 2018 ‒ application (Q74)
• Poster: Wikidata as an open, collaborative bibliographic database: the case of the National Library of Sweden (Q45)
• Slide deck: Wikidata at the museum (Q21958)

SPARQL

Find all documents:

PREFIX wb: <https://metabase.wikibase.cloud/entity/>
PREFIX wbt: <https://metabase.wikibase.cloud/prop/direct/>
SELECT ?item ?itemLabel ?instance_of ?instance_ofLabel ?published
WHERE
{
?item wbt:P5/wbt:P4* wb:Q21.
?item wbt:P5 ?instance_of.
OPTIONAL {?item wbt:P18 ?published.}
SERVICE wikibase:label { bd:serviceParam wikibase:language "sv,en". }
}

Try it!