Schema Revision 2021

Call for Comments: Revision of Encoded Archival Context – Corporate bodies, Persons, Families

The Technical Subcommittee on Encoded Archival Standards is pleased to release Encoded Archival Context – Corporate bodies, Persons, Families (EAC-CPF) 2.0, a draft updated version of the standard for public review and comment. To ensure the greatest possible input from EAC-CPF users around the world, the subcommittee is calling for comments on the proposed changes to the current version, EAC-CPF 2010. The deadline for comments on the change proposals is June 30, 2021.

The process for a major revision for EAC-CPF started in 2017, following the 2015 merger of the Technical Subcommittees on EAD and EAC-CPF and the Schema Development Team into the Technical Subcommittee on Encoded Archival Standards (TS-EAS). This major revision aims to modernize the schema in terms of:

  • simplifying where possible,
  • aligning with EAD where useful,
  • implementing features and solutions upon users’ request,
  • clearing up unused components.

For details on the new and updated encoding see the Revision notes

Files and documentation

The current timetable for this revision process is as follows:

  • March 2021: Call for comments
  • April/May 2021: Webinar on EAC-CPF 2.0
  • June 30, 2021: Deadline for comments
  • July – October 2021: Including Comments and Change requests
  • December 2021: Publish revised version

In completing the revision process, the subcommittee will take account of the current implementation practice. It will endeavor to encourage continued adoption of EAC-CPF as a tool for the online dissemination of archival information by ensuring that EAC-CPF is as economical and straightforward as possible to implement and use.

To give comments on the proposed changes, please send an email to ts-eas@archivists.org with a brief description and the rationale for the proposed change. Comments may also be contributed directly in GitHub https://github.com/SAA-SDT/eac-cpf-schema/issues or from SAA’s website: For more information, see the “How to Submit a Bug Report or Feature Request for EAD and EAC-CPF video tutorial”.

To ensure that the revision process is as open as possible, all comments must be attributable to named individuals and affiliated organizations where appropriate. Anonymous responses will not be considered. All change proposals will be made publicly available via GitHub. E-mail addresses are requested so that we may contact respondents for clarification.

Silke Jagodzinski (Geheimes Staatsarchiv PK, DE), EAC-CPF Team lead in TS-EAS, Karin Bredenberg (Kommunalförbundet Sydarkivera, SE) & Mark Custer (Yale University, US), TS-EAS Co-chairs