GENEALOGIX

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Citation Entity ​

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Overview ​

A Citation entity represents a specific reference to evidence that supports genealogical conclusions. Citations link to Source entities and provide detailed information about where evidence was found, including page numbers, data dates, and quality assessments.

Core Concepts ​

Citation vs. Source ​

  • Source: A bibliographic resource (book, document, database, website)
  • Citation: A specific reference to information within a source

One source can have many citations referencing different pages or sections.

Evidence Quality ​

GENEALOGIX uses a 0-3 quality scale that maintains 1:1 compatibility with GEDCOM QUAY for interoperability.

Quality Scale (GEDCOM QUAY Compatible):

  • 3: Direct and primary evidence used, or by dominance of evidence
    • Examples: Original birth certificate, contemporary baptism record, firsthand diary entry
  • 2: Secondary evidence, data officially recorded sometime after event
    • Examples: Census record, compiled index, published vital records
  • 1: Questionable reliability of evidence
    • Examples: Undocumented oral history, conflicting sources, estimated data
  • 0: Unreliable evidence or estimated data
    • Examples: Unverified family tradition, unsourced online trees

See Vocabularies - Quality Ratings for:

  • Customizing quality rating definitions for your archive
  • Alternative approaches using confidence levels
  • Vocabulary file structure and validation

GEDCOM Interoperability: This scale maps directly to GEDCOM 5.5.1 QUAY values (0→0, 1→1, 2→2, 3→3), ensuring lossless conversion between formats.

Advanced Evidence Evaluation: For more sophisticated analysis beyond the 0-3 scale, use:

  • assertion.confidence field (high/medium/low/disputed) for conclusion certainty
  • citation.research_notes for detailed source analysis (primary vs. secondary, direct vs. indirect)
  • Multiple citations per assertion to show corroboration

Properties ​

Required Properties ​

|| Property | Type | Description | ||----------|------|-------------| || id | string | Unique identifier (format: citation-{id}, map key) | || source | string | Reference to Source entity |

Optional Properties ​

|| Property | Type | Description | ||----------|------|-------------| || page | string | Page number or locator within source | || data_date | string | Date the data was recorded (for documentary sources) | || text_from_source | string | Transcription or excerpt from the source | || quality | integer | Evidence quality (0-3, QUAY value) | || locator | object | Structured locator information | || locator.film_number | string | FamilySearch film number | || locator.item_number | string | Item number or accession number | || locator.image_number | string | Image or page identifier | || locator.url | string | URL to online source | || repository | string | Reference to Repository entity | || media | array | References to Media entities (scans, photos, documents) related to this citation | || notes | string | Free-form notes about the citation | || tags | array | User-defined tags for organization |

Usage Patterns ​

Simple Citation to Book ​

yaml
# citations/citation-book.glx
citations:
  citation-marriage-record:
    source: source-parish-register
    page: "125"
    quality: 3
    text_from_source: "John Smith married to Mary Jones, 15 May 1850"

Note: The id is the map key (citation-marriage-record), not a separate field.

Citation with Online Source ​

yaml
# citations/citation-online.glx
citations:
  citation-census-online:
    source: source-ancestry-census
    data_date: "1851"
    page: "Schedule 7, piece 1123"
    quality: 2
    locator:
      url: "https://www.ancestry.com/..."
      image_number: "87342534"
    text_from_source: |
      Name: John Smith
      Age: 35
      Occupation: Blacksmith
      Place of Birth: Leeds, Yorkshire, England

Citation to Archive Document ​

yaml
# citations/citation-will.glx
citations:
  citation-will-john:
    source: source-probate-wills
    repository: repository-probate
    page: "23"
    quality: 3
    locator:
      item_number: "1876/X/150"
      film_number: "100234"
    data_date: "1876"
    text_from_source: |
      I, John Smith, being of sound mind, do hereby
      bequeath all my goods and chattels...

Citation with Media References ​

yaml
# citations/citation-photo.glx
citations:
  citation-photo:
    source: source-photo-collection
    locator: "Album 1, page 5"
    media:
      - media-john-photo
    notes: "Photo provides visual evidence of person's appearance"

Citation in Assertions ​

Citations are primarily used within Assertions to provide evidence:

yaml
# assertions/assertion-birth.glx
assertions:
  assertion-birth-john:
    subject: person-john-smith
    claim: birth_date
    value: "1850-01-15"
    citations:
      - citation-parish-birth
      - citation-census-birth
    confidence: high
    research_notes: "Primary source from parish register"

Locator Object ​

The locator object stores structured information about how to find the evidence:

yaml
locator:
  # For online resources
  url: "https://www.familysearch.org/..."
  image_number: "4253453"
  
  # For archive materials
  film_number: "1234567"
  item_number: "P/152/1"
  
  # For databases
  record_id: "REC12345678"
  database_collection: "UK Census 1851"

File Organization ​

Note: File organization is flexible. Entities can be in any .glx file with any directory structure. The example below shows one-entity-per-file organization, which is recommended for collaborative projects (better git diffs) but not required.

Citation files are typically embedded in assertion documents or organized by source:

sources/
├── books/
│   └── source-book001.glx
│       └── citations/
│           ├── citation-01.glx
│           └── citation-02.glx
└── online/
    └── source-ancestry.glx
        └── citations/
            ├── citation-01.glx
            └── citation-02.glx

Or more commonly, citations are referenced by ID from assertions.

GEDCOM Mapping ​

|| GLX Property | GEDCOM Element | Notes | ||--------------|----------------|-------| || id | (synthetic) | Not in GEDCOM | || source | SOUR | Source reference | || page | SOUR.PAGE | Page within source | || data_date | SOUR.DATA.DATE | Date data was recorded | || text_from_source | SOUR.TEXT | Transcribed text | || quality | SOUR.QUAY | Evidence quality (0-3) | || locator.url | SOUR.OBJE.FILE | File/URL path | || locator.film_number | SOUR.REPO.CALN.VALUE | Media number |

Validation Rules ​

  • Source ID must reference an existing Source entity
  • Quality, if present, must be 0-3
  • Page information should be concise and meaningful
  • Locator URLs must be properly formed
  • Text transcriptions should accurately represent source material
  • Repository, if specified, must exist

Evidence Hierarchy ​

Citations are the lowest level in the evidence hierarchy:

Archive/Collection (Source)
  └─ Specific Record/Document (Citation)
      └─ Specific Field/Statement (Assertion)

Quality Assessment ​

When entering citations, consider:

  • Original vs. Derivative: Is this from the original record or a copy?
  • Reliability of Source: Who created/maintains the source?
  • Completeness: Does the source provide all relevant information?
  • Corroboration: Is the information supported by other sources?

See Also ​

Licensed under Apache License 2.0

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