Register (de) = index (en)

Eurobubba

This has been bugging me for a while, which probably says more about the occupational hazards of translating for a living than anything else. Does anyone actively disagree that Luhmann's "Register" and similar documents in modern zettelkästen would naturally be called indexes in the absence of interference from the German word? If you disagree, what does the English word 'register' mean to you, and in a zettelkasten context, how does it differ from an index? (I'm aware that Luhmann explicitly said his Register wasn't meant to be exhaustive, but in my understanding an index doesn't have to be either.)

zk_1000

What do you mean by interference? Register to me is a storage location which holds a data entry. An index is a list of locations. It holds no data, only references.

Eurobubba

@zk_1000 said:
What do you mean by interference? Register to me is a storage location which holds a data entry. An index is a list of locations. It holds no data, only references.

By interference I just mean that it's a bit too easy to translate the German word 'Register' with the English word 'register'. For example @Sascha refers to Luhmann's Schlagwortregister as a register in the English version of his Introduction to the ZK Method. But before I go accusing anyone of mistranslation, I want to be sure there's not some good reason he and others are avoiding the word 'index'.

zk_1000

The translation is close to the original. I don't see why index would be a better fitting translation. You could distinguish between registers and indexes for technical reason but there is no need for it.

ctietze

@Eurobubba with your experience, what's the connotation about english register that bugs you?

Double-checking some dictionaries, I'm (1) concerned that it's about an official list of people first, but (2) relieved because "directory" in general also doesn't sound too bad?

(Books usually have an index, not a register of keywords. So that's a hint.)

Eurobubba

@ctietze said:
(Books usually have an index, not a register of keywords. So that's a hint.)

I doubt I'd naturally use the word 'register' for a list of keywords. If keywords are a special category distinct from other terms/items in a general index, I'd probably specify "keyword index". If for some reason I didn't want to use the word 'index' I'd probably just call it a list. I'm not sure I'd use 'register' in this sense at all, though it might be applicable in certain technical contexts where I lack expertise.

What difference do you perceive between an index and a register of keywords? I can think of a couple of possible answers, but none that are particularly relevant to the way I've been keeping notes, so I'm still trying to get a better sense of what the distinction is to people who do see one. Maybe there's a useful tool or process in there that I've been neglecting.

zk_1000

What difference do you perceive between an index and a register of keywords?

To me a register is something permanent, immutable. An index does not have such connotation.

Sascha

I don't have any preference myself. Just to give you the feedback that there is no deeper decision process behind my choice.