A very important feature of RDA is the provision of relationship designators. These are terms added to entities in MARC records to specify the relationships between all the entities defined by FRBR/RDA. They replace the relator codes that were part of AACR2 but were infrequently used. Because relationships play such an important role in RDA, the relationship designators do as well.
Relationship designators that go after a name entity go in subfield $e (except when attached to the 111 and 711 [meeting names] fields, in which case they go in subfield $j). When the relationship designator records the relationship between works, expressions, manifestations, or items, it precedes the entity in the MARC field and goes in subfield “$i”.
100 1# Smith, Ed, $d 1967- $e author.
700 1# Wang, Albert, $e translator.
700 1# Brown, Leslie, $d 1981-, $e illustrator.
700 1# Jones, Linda $d 1965- $e editor.
700 1# Simmons, Frank $d 1945- $e editor.
700 1# Hecht, Ben, $d 1893-1964, $e screenwriter, $e director, $e producer.
710 2# Miramax Films, $e production company.
710 2# Miramax Home Entertainment (Firm), $e production company.
There are a wide variety of relationship designators. Some can give information about the physical book itself (this example is from LC).
700 1# Morrison, Jarrett $q (Jarrett Stephen), $d 1973- $e wood-engraver.
700 1# Rimmer, Jim, $e compositor.
710 2# Bowler Press, $e printer.
710 2# Press and Letterfoundry of Michael & Winifred Bixler, $e compositor.
710 2# Wookey Hole Mill, $e papermaker.
500 $a Based on the novel by Jane Austen.
Here we see the relationship designator followed by the authorized access point for Pride and Prejudice. The relationship designators between WEMI can work reciprocally as well, so a record for the book Pride and Prejudice might have an added entry with “adapted as a motion picture” followed by the name of the film. Note the “$i” subfield for the relationship designator.
100 1# $a Shakespeare, William, $d 1564-1616.
245 10 $a Hamlet ; $b King Lear / $c William Shakespeare.
700 12 $a Shakespeare, William, $d 1564-1616. $t Hamlet.
700 12 $a Shakespeare, William, $d 1564-1616. $t King Lear.
Here, the second indicator “2” in the 700 fields indicates that this is an “analytical entry” – i.e., the resource in the 245 field “contains” the resources in the 700 fields.
The other types of relationships for which relationship designators may be used are those between people, families, and corporate bodies (Appendix K), which would be likely to go in name authority records, and relationships between subjects, which have not yet been set by RDA.
It should be noted that LC only requires one relationship designator: “illustrator” when used for an expression intended to children. But it is likely that we will see many more relationship designators than this.