Glossary Term: Folksonomy Definition: Folksonomy is a term invented by Thomas Van der Wal to describe collaborative categorization using a community tool for developing a controlled vocabulary of metadata tags. Sometimes called tagsonomy, these terms have both been criticized because folksonomies and tagsonomies almost never have the hierarchical or tree structure of a normal taxonomy. They are categorization schemes with flat structures, simple name spaces. Lists of subject headings or simple authority files have more nesting of levels. And they lack even the rudiments of a good classification scheme like synonym? control. Their great value is that members of a community can use tags created by fellow members to classify their work, and members can suggest their own terms which get automatically added to the list of tags. References: Flickr del.icio.us Corante on Folksonomy Adam Mathes Related Terms: Knowledge Management Glossary Index | Back