Abbreviations

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Abbreviations

General Rule

Abbreviations MUST be reproduced and MUST NOT be expanded in the transcription. Expanding abbreviations at the transcription stage—where automated tools lack contextual and linguistic information MUST be avoided, as it risks introducing inconsistencies and degrading model performance. We therefore consider that abbreviation expansion SHOULD be treated as a separate normalization task, performed after the transcription stage.

Medieval Documents

Character Selection

For medieval documents, MUFI characters MUST be preferred, along with Unicode's public domain characters. The use of standardized characters ensures interoperability and consistency across projects.

• The semantic value of the unicode sign MUST be taken into account. For example, to represent "p with stroke," the Armenian letter ք (Ke) [U+0554] MUST NOT be used, even if it visually resembles ꝑ [U+A751], which is the correct character carrying the appropriate semantic value for "p with stroke through the descender."

When selecting the appropriate MUFI character, the choice MUST be based on the shape of the abbreviation, keeping in mind that CATMuS does not differentiate allographs. If the shape leads to an uncertain choice, the choice MAY be informed by the function of the abbreviation sign.

Projects following CATMuS guidelines MUST prioritize the characters listed in the CATMuS character table.

Categories of Abbreviations

Abbreviations in medieval documents fall into the following categories:

• Tildes
• Abbreviations using special signs
• Abbreviations using superscript letters Superscript letters are divided into two subcategories:
  • Combining characters: Letters written directly above another letter, see keyboard in section Tools.
  • Superscript characters: Letters written in superscript position next to a regular letter (e.g., exponent-like forms),see keyboard in section Tools.

We provide a priority list of signs in the table below. Given the diversity of abbreviation representations across time and languages, we make no claim to exhaustivity. See also the subsection on Graphemic Transcription Principles in the Generalities section.

Concerning the placement of the tilde, some cases may seem complex, and certain choices are more influenced by habit than by strict rules. In instances where the tilde covers more than one element, there are two possible approaches, depending on the context:

• Double the sign, as in ẽẽ (esse).
• Place the sign in the most appropriate position—either in the middle of the word, or over the consonant or vowel that is modified.

Modern and Contemporary Documents

General Approach

For older documents where the abbreviation system resembles medieval practices, the rules for medieval documents MAY apply. This allows for consistency when dealing with transitional or hybrid systems.

For commonly abbreviated letters (e.g., "ꝑ" [U+A751], "⁊" [U+204A], "&" [U+0026]),"ɖ" [U+0256]), they MAY be retained for the transcription of more recent sources.

Superscript Letters

In modern and contemporary documents, abbreviations often take the form of superscripted letters (e.g., "1ˢᵗ" for first, "Mᵉˡˡᵉ" for Mademoiselle). The following rules MUST be applied :

1. Superscript sequential additions must be transcribed with superscript caracters, see keyboard in section Tools. P.S : Superscript sequential additions have been transcribed in the first datasets using a pseudo markup system based on "^" [U+005E], which marks the beginning of the sequence.

2. Interlinear corrections MUST NOT be confused with superscript sequential additions. If a superscript sequence forms a complete word or a sequence of words, it MUST be transcribed on its own line.

3. In modern documents, a unique letter used above a word, as it can be found in medieval documents, SHOULD be transcribed with the corresponding combining letter, combined to the character it relates to.