Searching for Non-English Language Materials: Scripts, Diacritics, Numerals and Dates
Find strategies and tools to help make your search for non-English language materials more effective, including guidance on using scripts, diacritics, numerals and dates.
- Overview
- Searching with non-Latin script
- Searching with romanization
- Searching with diacritics
- Numerals and dates
- Standards and conversion tools
Connect with a subject specialist
Use the library’s "Find a Specialist" tool to identify a librarian with expertise in your language. Search by language and then click through to the librarian's profile.
Languages
- MARC Code List for Languages - Find the spelling of the name for a language or language grouping used in the list of languages within Library Search Advanced Search Screen. For instance, instead of “Pashto” USE “Pushto.” Or if you are looking for books in “Gagauz” or “Bulgaro-Turkic” USE “Altaic (Other)”.
Transliteration
- ALA-LC Romanization Tables
- Thomas T. Pedersen’s transliteration comparison tables
- Chinese:
- The ALA-LC Chinese Romanization Table (PDF) has a section called “Correspondence of Wade-Giles to Pinyin” on pages 9 to 21.
- Pinyin to Wade-Giles Conversion Table (PDF)
- Convert Wade Giles to Pinyin
- Hebrew:
- The main dictionary used to supply vowels when romanizing Hebrew according to ALA-LC Romanization is written by Avraham Even-Shoshan. Either of these two editions may be used:
- Hebraica Cataloging RDA: A Guide to ALA-LC Romanization and Descriptive Cataloging 2025 Revised Edition (PDF)
Calendar conversion tools
- Chinese: Academia Sinica's 2000 Year Chinese-Western Calendar Converter 兩千年中西曆轉換 converts between the Chinese calendar (with dynasty, reign name, reign year, year within the sexagenary cycle, and date in the lunar calendar) and Western calendars (Julian or Gregorian).
- Hebrew: The Yale University Library provides good guidance about the Hebrew calendar
- Korean: The 600-year chronology of Seoul (서울 육백년사 연표), developed by the Seoul Historiography Institute, serves as a valuable resource for converting dates from the Korean calendar to the Western calendar and for identifying significant historical events from each year.
- Near East: Calendar converter for Near East Historians covers five calendars Gregorian, Julian, Hebrew, Islamic, and Persian (i.e., Solar Hijri)
Last Updated: Dec 4, 2025 1:11 PM
Subjects: How-to, International Studies