Volnummer

Volnummer, a contraction of volume number, is a bibliographic designation used in serial publications to identify a specific volume within a larger ongoing work. It is typically paired with an issue number to locate a particular set of pages or articles within the publication. In journals and magazines, each year or a defined publication cycle produces one or more volumes, and each volume contains several issues.

In practice, a citation might reference a journal article as belonging to volume 12, issue 3, published in 2020. Dutch usage often writes vol. 12, nr. 3. The volume number generally increases with new collections of issues, while the issue number locates items within that volume. Some publishers maintain continuous pagination across volumes, while others reset page numbering for each volume.

Volnummer is distinct from edition or part numbering. A multi-volume work may designate volumes I, II, III, or Arabic equivalents, whereas issues subdivide a single volume by month, number, or theme. In books, a similar concept appears as volumes within a multi-volume edition.

In libraries and bibliographic databases, volnummer helps organize records, support accurate citations, and enable efficient searching by title, year, or volume. It is commonly recorded alongside the year, title, ISSN/ISBN, and pagination. Overall, the volnummer provides a stable reference point within the dynamic structure of serial literature.