SNAC stands for Social Networks and Archival Context, which is a cooperative initiative aimed at improving the accessibility and discoverability of historical records and personal archives. It is a collaborative project that focuses on creating a searchable and interconnected network of historical documents, records, and primary resources found in archives, libraries, and other cultural heritage institutions.
The SNAC project aims to provide researchers, historians, and scholars with a comprehensive tool to navigate and explore the interconnected nature of historical materials and the people, events, and organizations related to them. It achieves this by aggregating and linking information from various archival sources and making it available in a standardized and user-friendly format.
In SNAC, each individual, known as an agent, is assigned a unique identifier that can be used to link related records and create a network of connections between different entities. By collating biographical and descriptive information on agents, SNAC enables users to traverse through interconnected historical narratives and understand the socio-political, cultural, and personal contexts in which they operated.
Furthermore, SNAC promotes collaboration between institutions by enabling them to contribute their archival descriptions and connect them to other records within the network. This feature helps in breaking down barriers between separate collections and allows for a more comprehensive understanding of historical events, individuals, and organizations.
In summary, SNAC is an ongoing initiative that seeks to enhance access and discovery of historical records by establishing links between archival collections, agents, and events. It provides researchers with a powerful tool to explore and understand the interconnected nature of historical narratives and the individuals and institutions behind them.
