Why is metadata so important?

Short Answer #

Metadata helps communities understand, organize, search, and manage language resources.

Expanded Answer #

Metadata is often described as information about information. Examples include:

• Speaker name
• Recording date
• Topic
• Dialect
• Location
• Resource type

Metadata allows communities to answer questions such as:

• Who recorded this?
• When was it recorded?
• What is it about?
• Who can access it?

Without metadata, collections become difficult to navigate. With metadata, collections become significantly more useful. As language collections grow, metadata becomes increasingly valuable.