Termbase Design

Before you can start with actual terminology work and feed data into a terminology management system or even a mere list, creating a proper database definition first is useful. In this process, the structure of the database is defined. This means, some thought should first of all be given to the question which data categories are required on which termbase level. Besides user-defined data categories, there are also some standardized categories and pertaining list values (metadata) which are useful for every termbase.

However: no two terminology databases are alike. For this reason, we help you design a termbase which is tailored to your needs, a database independent of tools that is based on the fundamental principles of terminology science (concept orientation, term autonomy, data granularity and elementarity) and nevertheless represents your terminology resources in an expedient manner. Part of the process is defining which purpose the termbase shall serve and for which users it is intended.

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Concept level

i

Top level of a terminological entry. This is where all the superordinate terminological information is contained which refers to the entire terminological entry independent of languages, i.e. the meaning which is behind all the terms in this entry.

Concept

i

Data categories

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Concept ID

Definition

Subject field

i
  • Law
  • Life Sciences
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • etc.

Language level

i

Medium level of a terminological entry. Here are the actual terms pertaining to the respective language. Only few additional categories will normally be placed here.

Term level

i

Lowest level of an entry. This autonomous set of data categories includes all linguistic or grammatical information relating to a specific term, usage notes, and, specific context information, if any.


Language 1

Term 1

Term 2

Term 3

Language 2

Term 1

Term 2

Term 3

Language 3

i

Data categories

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Definition

i
In translation-oriented terminology work if definitions are to be captured in the target language(s) as well.

Language status

i
  • to be translated
  • to be checked
  • translated
  • etc.

Term 1

Term 2

i

Data categories

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Term type

i
  • Full form
  • Short form
  • Synonym
  • Variant
  • etc.

Usage

i
  • preferred
  • admitted
  • prohibited
  • dated
  • etc.

Part of speech

i
  • noun
  • verb
  • adjective
  • adverb
  • etc.

Term 3

Based on your company-specific text corpus or your corporate terminology we will be asking the following questions, for example:

  • Which purpose shall your terminology database serve?
  • What is the most suitable tool or software for the purpose?
  • Which data categories are useful and how shall they be arranged?
  • Which metadata shall enhance your terminology?
  • Which picklist values do you need to structure your terminology in a meaningful way?
  • Which fields should be classified as mandatory?
  • In case you perform multilingual terminology work: what will be the source and target languages?
  • Which GUI language makes sense for your terminology database?

We will be pleased to support you in configuring various layouts and authorization profiles (tool-dependent) to map the different roles in your terminology workflows and suit termbase users of all kinds.

Thanks to our comprehensive know-how in the world of database design, you will obtain a purposeful termbase which helps you work profitably, this will empower you to avoid costly wrong decisions.