<defitem> Definition List Item

<defitem> is a formatting element used within <list> to pair a <label> with its definition/description/explanation (an <item>). As such, it only appears within <list>. Such lists are most often formatted into 2 columns, using XSL and CSS.

Attributes

  • @altrender – not required. Use if the content of the element should be displayed or printed differently than the rendering established in a style sheet for other occurrences of the element.
  • @audience – not required. Use to set whether the element’s contents will be visible to external users or to internal ones. Possible values are: “internal” and “external.”
  • @id – not required. Creates an ID for element. Can be used for linking.
  • @lang – not required. Three-letter code that indicates the language in which the element’s contents were written. It should come from ISO 639-2b.
  • @script – not required. Four-letter code that indicates the script in which the element’s contents were written. It should come from ISO 15924.

Child Elements

Each <defitem> must contain both an <item> and a <label> element.

Examples

In this case, we’re using the list to define access permissions for the collection.

<p>The following terms are used in correspondence throughout the series.</p>
<list listtype="deflist">
  <listhead>
    <head01>Term</head02>
    <head02>Definition</head03>
  </listhead>
  <defitem>
    <label>cutter</label>
    <item>a rotary cutter used to cut fabric</item>
  </defitem>
  <defitem>
    <label>Hera</label>
    <item>The Clover brand Hera tool is used to mark and fold fabric.</item>
  </defitem>
  <defitem>
    <label>jelly roll</label>
    <item>a rolled bundle of fabric strips, cut 2.5" wide</item>
  </defitem>
</list>
<fileplan>
  <head>List of Courses</head>
  <p>The following list associates course codes with course titles represented in the syllabuses.</p>
  <list listtype="deflist">
    <listhead>
      <head01>Course Number</head01>
      <head02>Course Title</head02>
    </listhead>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-512</label>
      <item>What is Technology?</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-537</label>
      <item>History of the Quilt</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-570</label>
      <item>Traditional Quilts, Art Quilts, and Feminism</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-614</label>
      <item>Quilting and the Industrial Revolution</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-638</label>
      <item>Women's Work: Society, Technology, and Misogyny</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-687</label>
      <item>Technologies of Improvisation</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-712</label>
      <item>Needle, Thimble, and Computer: Textiles and Technologies</item>
    </defitem>
    <defitem>
      <label>QT-729</label>
      <item>Technological Design and the Textile Future</item>
    </defitem>
  </list>
</fileplan>

Changes from EAD 2002

The only changes from EAD 2002 are the addition of @lang and @script.

EAD3 Tag Library Entry

View the official tag library entry for <defitem>