Collating

Collating is the process of gathering items and arranging them in a prescribed order. It is used in various fields to ensure consistency, accuracy, and efficiency, including publishing, office work, and data management. The term derives from Latin collatus, meaning brought together.

In printing and publishing, collating refers to assembling pages or sheets in the correct sequence before binding. A collator machine can automatically stack pages in order, producing multiple complete copies of a document. Manual collating involves sorting and stacking by hand, often as a final step after copying or printing.

In data management and information processing, collation involves organizing and combining data from different sources into a coherent set. This includes sorting records by key fields, merging datasets, and applying standard formats. In databases and programming, collation also denotes the rules that govern how strings are compared and sorted, which can vary by language or locale (for example, case sensitivity or accent rules).

Practical applications include preparing reports, mailings, or catalogs; ensuring that bound books have pages in order; and enabling accurate data analysis. The choice of collation rules can affect search results and sorting outcomes, so locale-aware collation is often important in multilingual contexts.