Tables

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There are three-similar sounding elements for tagging tables:

<table>	The element containing the rows and columns of tabular table material. The Tag Suite default element is <table>, taken from the NISO JATS XHTML-inspired table model. The OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model can also be used with the Tag Suite, and the name for the similar rows-and-columns element is typically “<oasis:table>”.
<table-wrap>	Element that represents the complete table. This includes the row-and-column data, table number, table caption including the table title, and any table footnotes or general notes attached to the table. If the complete table includes a label (such as “Table 3”) and it should appear in a List of Tables for the publication, then it is tagged with the <table-wrap> element.
<table-wrap-group>	A logical or display grouping of more than one complete table (<table-wrap>).

Table Wrapper (<table-wrap>)

Simply put, the <table-wrap> is a container for tables. Here is a <table-wrap> element that contains nothing but a NISO JATS <table> element inside it:

...
<table-wrap>
 <table frame="box">
  <thead>
   <tr>
    <th>Color</th>
    <th>Size</th>
    <th>Price</th>
   </tr>
  </thead>
  
  <tbody>
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Green</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>

   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$2.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$1.15</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Red</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$5.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$9.95</td>
   </tr>
  </tbody>
 </table>
</table-wrap>
...

The <table-wrap> element also provides a uniform place to put information such as a table number (<label>) and table title and caption (both in <caption>). The element <table-wrap> can also contain a Table Wrapper Footer, as a place to put table footnotes and other information.

<table-wrap id="TN0.170">
 <label>Table 17.</label>
 <caption>
  <title>Patient Care at End of Follow Up</title>
  <p>Numbers of patients receiving institutional care at
   the end of scheduled follow up and use of hospital beds
   among those allocated to day hospital or alternative
   services</p>
 </caption>
 <table frame="box" rules="all" cellpadding="5">...</table>
 <table-wrap-foot>
  <fn-group>
   <fn id="TF1-150"><p>Data not available for 1 trial.</p></fn>
   <fn id="TF1-151"><p>P&lt;0.05 (random effects model).</p></fn>
  </fn-group>
 </table-wrap-foot>
</table-wrap>

Nested Tables

The table models in the JATS do not allow nested tables. That is, a table cell (e.g., <td>) may not contain a table. However, table cells may contain <array>s. This allows a table cell to contain nested row/column structures but does not allow a table cell to contain tables with caption, headers, and such.

Non-tabular Tables

It is possible that a <table-wrap> will not contain a <table> element at all, since objects that are identified as tables need not contain tabular material. While a <table-wrap> may contain the rows and columns of a table element as just shown (using either the NISO JATS XHTML-inspired Table <table> or the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model <oasis:table>), in place of explicit table elements, a table may contain only:

one or more graphics,
a bulleted or numbered list,
a definition list,
paragraphs of material, or
a mixture of these elements.

Here is a table that has no tabular material in it because the tabular portion is represented as a graphic:

...
<table-wrap id="Table-07">
 <caption>
  <title>2008 Expenditures</title>
  <p>Total research expenditures by disease, 2008</p>
 </caption>
 <graphic xlink:href="totals.jpeg">
  <alt-text>Distribution of research spending for major
   diseases.</alt-text>
  <object-id>314159</object-id>
 </graphic>
 <attrib>Reprinted courtesy of TableSource, Inc.</attrib>
</table-wrap>
...

Here is another non-tabular table:

<table-wrap id="Table-05">
 <caption>
  <title>Show and Tell Program</title>
 </caption>
 <list list-type="order">
  <list-item><label>1.</label><p>Poodle</p></list-item>
  <list-item><label>2.</label><p>Persian Cat</p></list-item>
  <list-item><label>3.</label><p>Weaver Finches</p></list-item>
  <list-item><label>4.</label><p>Gecko</p></list-item>
 </list>
 <attrib>Reprinted courtesy of YourSchool.edu</attrib>
 <permissions>
  <copyright-statement>&copy; 2008</copyright-statement>
 </permissions>
</table-wrap>

Table Group <table-wrap-group>

Some complex tables may consist of a single table wrapper (<table-wrap>) containing one or more small tables that represent one logical tabular area. For example, one part of the display might be 3 rows by 10 columns, the next part might be 5 rows by 2 columns, and the last part may return to 10 columns for 6 more rows. Each tabular area can be tagged with a NISO JATS <table> element (or an OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model <oasis:table> element), and paragraphs of text may be interspersed between the tabular material. In the United States, tax tables are frequently this type of table.

In the example just explained, three <table>s equaled one <table-wrap> and not a <table-wrap-group>. A <table-wrap-group> contains multiple <table-wrap> elements, each of which typically has a table number, caption or title, and tabular material. The entire group may also be given a collective label and caption. Table groups are frequently a print artifact, where several tables are clustered on a page for better display. The <table-wrap-group> element has been provided to capture these as well as semantic or logical groupings. Here is an abbreviated <table-wrap-group>:

...
<table-wrap-group id="Table-grp-06">
 <label>Special Section II.</label>
 <caption><title>Tables 3 through 5</title></caption>
 <table-wrap id="Table-03">
  <label>Table 3</label>
  <caption><p>...</p></caption>
  <graphic xlink:href="..."></graphic>
 </table-wrap>
 <table-wrap id="Table-04">
  <label>Table 4</label>
  <caption><p>...</p></caption>
  <graphic xlink:href="..."></graphic>
 </table-wrap>
 <table-wrap id="Table-05">
  <label>Table 5</label>
  <caption><p>...</p></caption>
  <graphic xlink:href="..."></graphic>
 </table-wrap>
</table-wrap-group>
...

Table Formatting

By default, JATS uses the NISO JATS XHTML-inspired table model (based on and designed to be converted easily to the XHTML 1.1 Table Model). This model matches the needs of web browsers and can support (at least roughly) most table display formatting.

Format is indicated in one of two ways in a NISO JATS default table, using multiple single-purpose attributes for simple formatting, or making more complex formats using the @style attribute.

Simple Formatting with Attributes

Simple format information can be indicated with the following attributes:

@border controls borders around all of the cells in a table,
@cellpadding controls space between the text and any borders in the cells of the table,
@cellspacing controls space between the cells of the table,
@frame controls the “box” around the whole table,
@rules controls rules between groupings in the table (rows, columns, column groups, etc.), and
@width controls the width of the entire table or columns within the table.

To illustrate use of the @rules attribute, here is a table with rules on the rows:

...
<table-wrap>
 <table rules="rows">
  <thead>
   <tr>
    <th>Color</th>
    <th>Size</th>
    <th>Price</th>
   </tr>
  </thead>
  
  <tbody>
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Green</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>

   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$2.25</td>
   </tr>

   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$1.15</td>
   </tr>

   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Red</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$5.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$9.95</td>
   </tr>
  </tbody>
 </table>
</table-wrap>
...

Here is the same table, without the rules, to demonstrate use of the @frame attribute:

...
<table-wrap>
 <table frame="box">
  <thead>
   <tr>
    <th>Color</th>
    <th>Size</th>
    <th>Price</th>
   </tr>
  </thead>
  
  <tbody>
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Green</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>

   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$2.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$1.15</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Red</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$5.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$9.95</td>
   </tr>
  </tbody>
 </table>
</table-wrap>
...

And here is the @border attribute:

...
<table-wrap>
 <table border="1">
  <thead>
   <tr>
    <th>Color</th>
    <th>Size</th>
    <th>Price</th>
   </tr>
  </thead>
  
  <tbody>
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Green</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$2.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$1.15</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td rowspan="3">Red</td>
    <td>small</td>
    <td>$3.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>medium</td>
    <td>$5.25</td>
   </tr>
  
   <tr>
    <td>large</td>
    <td>$9.95</td>
   </tr>
  </tbody>
 </table>    
</table-wrap>
...

Formatting with Style

All the tables just shown are all relatively simple formats. More complex table formatting is done using the @style attribute, which contains CSS instructions. Key to understanding how the CSS in tables works is that instructions on smaller portions override those on larger portions of the table. For example, if a background color is provided for the whole table and a different background color is specified for a row, everything in the table will be the first background color except that row, which will have the second. Similarly, if borders are specified for a <colgroup>, they will apply to the whole <colgroup> unless a different border is specified for one cell (<th> or <td>), in which case that cell will have the override.

Here is a sample, in code and image, of a relatively complex table, formatted using a variety of techniques including CSS in the @style attribute, controlling alignment with the @align attribute, and a few spans.

...
<table-wrap>
 <table rules="groups" >
  <colgroup style="border-right: hidden"><col/></colgroup>
  <colgroup style="border-right: solid thin"><col/><col/><col/></colgroup>
  <colgroup><col/><col/><col/></colgroup>

  <tr>
   <th></th>
   <th colspan="3" style="border-bottom: solid">1974-75</th>
   <th colspan="3" style="border-bottom: solid">1983-84</th>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <th></th>
   <th style="border-bottom: solid thin">Public</th>
   <th style="border-bottom: solid thin">Private</th>
   <th style="border-bottom: solid thin">Total</th>
   <th style="border-bottom: solid thin">Public</th>
   <th style="border-bottom: solid thin">Private</th>
   <th style="border-bottom:  solid thin">Total</th>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td style="background: lightgrey" colspan="7">Preschool</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Schools</td>
   <td align="right">n.a.</td>
   <td align="right">n.a.</td>
   <td align="right">n.a.</td>
   <td align="right">n.a.</td>
   <td align="right">n.a.</td>
   <td align="right">n.a.</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td>Teachers</td>
   <td align="right">2,986</td>
   <td align="right">1,252</td>
   <td align="right">4,238</td>
   <td align="right">15,440</td>
   <td align="right">4,008</td>
   <td align="right">19,448</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td>Enrollment</td>
   <td align="right">108,500</td>
   <td align="right">43,800</td>
   <td align="right">152,300</td>
   <td align="right">442,700</td>
   <td align="right">80,600</td>
   <td align="right">523,300</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td style="background: lightgrey" colspan="7">Primary</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Schools</td>
   <td align="right">9,982</td>
   <td align="right">1,116</td>
   <td align="right">11,098</td>
   <td align="right">11,397</td>
   <td align="right">1,285</td>
   <td align="right">12,682</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td>Teachers</td>
   <td align="right">54,276</td>
   <td align="right">8,922</td>
   <td align="right">63,198</td>
   <td align="right">71,454</td>
   <td align="right">9,176</td>
   <td align="right">80,630</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Enrollment</td>
   <td align="right">1,764,100</td>
   <td align="right">226,000</td>
   <td align="right">1,990,100</td>
   <td align="right">2,338,400</td>
   <td align="right">303,000</td>
   <td align="right">2,641,400</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td style="background: lightgrey" colspan="7">Secondary</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td>Schools</td>
   <td align="right">735</td>
   <td align="right">438</td>
   <td align="right">1,173</td>
   <td align="right">1,486</td>
   <td align="right">710</td>
   <td align="right">2,196</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Teachers</td>
   <td align="right">24,222</td>
   <td align="right">9,133</td>
   <td align="right">33,355</td>
   <td align="right">41,350</td>
   <td align="right">13,964</td>
   <td align="right">55,314</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Enrollment</td>
   <td align="right">513,100</td>
   <td align="right">118,100</td>
   <td align="right">631,200</td>
   <td align="right">786,200</td>
   <td align="right">177,200</td>
   <td align="right">963,400</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td style="background: lightgrey" colspan="7">Higher Education</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Schools</td>
   <td align="right">26</td>
   <td align="right">12</td>
   <td align="right">38</td>
   <td align="right">535</td>
   <td align="right">275</td>
   <td align="right">805</td>
  </tr>
  
  <tr>
   <td>Teachers</td>
   <td align="right">13,228</td>
   <td align="right">1,376</td>
   <td align="right">14,604</td>
   <td align="right">24,633</td>
   <td align="right">4,072</td>
   <td align="right">28,705</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
   <td>Enrollment</td>
   <td align="right">172,100</td>
   <td align="right">21,200</td>
   <td align="right">193,300</td>
   <td align="right">320,800</td>
   <td align="right">63,900</td>
   <td align="right">384,700</td>
  </tr>
 </table>
</table-wrap>
...

Table Models (XHTML and OASIS CALS)

By default, JATS uses the NISO JATS (XHTML-inspired) table model, as defined in the NISO JATS version of the XHTML Table Module. However, JATS can be set up to use the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model either instead of or in addition to the XHTML-inspired model. The modules that enable the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model are distributed as part of this Tag Set, and a separate OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) Table Tag Library (https://jats.nlm.nih.gov/options/OASIS/tag-library/19990315/index.html) describes the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model elements, attributes, and parameter entities.

To enable two different tagging schemes for the same material (row and column tables), all OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model elements have been given a namespace and use the namespace prefix “oasis”. Since DTDs do not really work with namespaces, the namespace prefix has been hard-coded into the names of the OASIS table elements. This differentiates the two sets of table elements, allowing both NISO JATS XHTML-inspired and OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table models to be used together.

To illustrate how this works and for use by the user community, two separate OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) Archiving DTDs have been made available as part of the Archiving Tag Set. They both use the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table elements instead of the NISO JATS XHTML-inspired table elements, and they differ only in using MathML 2.0 or MathML 3.0 (filenames: JATS-archive-oasis-article1-4.dtd and JATS-archive-oasis-article1-4-mathml3.dtd).

NISO JATS XHTML-inspired Tables: The modules that implement the NISO JATS table coding are:

NISO JATS XHTML-inspired Table Setup Module (JATS-XHTMLtablesetup1-4.ent) Sets all the parameter entities needed by the NISO JATS version of the XHTML table model, and then references (invokes) the NISO JATS XHTML-inspired Table Module. (See next item.)
To include the NISO JATS XHTML-inspired table model in a tag set, a DTD must reference this module.
NISO JATS XHTML-inspired Table Module (xhtml-table-1.mod) The XML DTD version of the XHTML Table Module, which contains the NISO JATS version of the W3C-developed XHTML table model. This module is invoked from the module %XHTMLtablesetup.ent;. (See previous item.)
NISO JATS XHTML-inspired Table Style Module (xhtml-inlstyle-1.mod) Declares the @style attribute, which supports inline style markup for elements such as <td> and <tr> within the XHTML-inspired tables.

OASIS CALS Tables: The XHTML-inspired table model is the NISO JATS default, but versions of the models (DTD, XSD, and RNG) have been provided for archives and publishers that use the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model. As set up, these are separate models that define both the XHTML-inspired and the OASIS Exchange (CALS) table models, with the OASIS table model namespaced (prefix “oasis”) to prevent name clashes. An XML expert can readily turn off the XHTML-based table model and (once there is only the single OASIS Exchange (CALS) table model) remove the OASIS namespace using NISO JATS-provided overrides (the OASIS Table Module need not be touched). The following files are necessary to use the OASIS Exchange (CALS) table model:

Journal Archiving and Interchange DTD with OASIS Tables (JATS-archive-oasis-article1-4.dtd) Complete Archiving DTD for the creation of new journal articles. This extension of the Journal Archiving and Interchange DTD replaces the Archiving DTD module and invokes both the XHTML table and the CALS OASIS XML Exchange Table models.
Journal Archiving and Interchange DTD with OASIS Tables DTD-Specific Modules (JATS-archive-oasis-custom-modules1-4.ent) The DTD-specific modules for the new Journal Archiving and Interchange DTD that includes OASIS Tables.
Journal Archiving and Interchange DTD with OASIS Tables Customize Classes Module (JATS-archive-oasis-custom-classes1-4.ent) The class overrides for this new DTD. These repeat all the class overrides of the regular Archiving DTD, with the table and alternative classes modified to use the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table elements. There is no equivalent mix override module, because this DTD uses the ordinary Archiving mix overrides.
JATS OASIS Table Namespace Module (JATS-oasis-namespace1-4.ent) This module establishes the prefix for the OASIS Exchange (CALS) table model, by default “oasis” (“<oasis:table>”).
JATS Namespaced OASIS XML Table Setup Module (JATS-oasis-tablesetup1-4.ent) Sets all the parameter entities needed by the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model, and then references (invokes) the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) Table Model Module for declarations of all the table elements.
OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) Table Model Module (oasis-exchange.ent) This is the OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) table model DTD fragment, modified to use the OASIS namespace and the “oasis” prefix. This module is invoked from the JATS OASIS XML Exchange (CALS) setup module.

Multi-Language Tables

JATS provides several ways to enable users to provide the same table in more than one language. The techniques are the same whether the whole article is in multiple languages or the bulk of the article is mono-lingual with tables in multiple languages.

Multi-lingual Attributes — The table can be repeated, once for each language, using the attribute @xml:lang on each table to name the language and the attribute @lang-group to associate the tables in one language group, meaning that each table is a representative of the same table, each in a different language. This is the technique of choice in a multi-language article.
Block Alternatives — The table can be repeated, once for each language, inside a <block-alternatives> element. This is probably the technique of choice in an article that is basically mono-lingual, but contains tables repeated in several languages (for example, a Korean article with English and Korean tables or a Spanish article with tables in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.)
While it is not recommended, publishers do produce JATS tables in which only the <label> and <caption> elements within a single table repeat, once for each language. JATS tagging allows for this multi-lingual mechanism.

Spanish and English Table Using Multi-lingual Attributes

This example shows two same-content tables differing only in language: one table is the original (in Spanish) and one table is a translation (in English). The table element has been repeated, placed into an attribute-named language group using the @lang-group attribute. One variant has been marked as the original and the other as a translation using the @lang-variant attribute. One variant has been marked as primary and the other as secondary using the @lang-focus attribute. The tables need not be co-located in the article, and may be presented in any order.

...
<table-wrap id="t0001" lang-group="t0001"  
  position="float" orientation="portrait" 
  xml:lang="es" lang-variant="original" 
  lang-source="author" lang-focus="primary">
 <label>Tabla 1.</label>
 <caption><p>Estadísticos descriptivos por edad</p></caption>
 <table>...</table>
</table-wrap>

<table-wrap id="t0006" lang-group="t0001"  
  position="float" orientation="portrait" 
  xml:lang="en"  lang-variant="translation" 
  lang-source="translator" lang-focus="secondary">
 <label>Table 1.</label>
 <caption><p>Descriptive statistics by age</p></caption>
 <table>...</table>
</table-wrap>
...

Block Alternatives

The major use case for <block-alternatives> is probably a table provided in multiple languages. The element <block-alternatives> element holds two or more versions of the same table, each in a different language. The <table-wrap> content (graphic, table, list, whatever) may be the same, differing only in external structures such as labels, captions, footnotes, etc. Or the entire narrative or graphic content may be in a different language. The appropriate table can be chosen at display or production time, based on language attributes or other criteria.

  <block-alternatives>
  <table-wrap xml:lang="es">...</table-wrap>
  <table-wrap xml:lang="en">...</table-wrap>
  <table-wrap xml:lang="de">...</table-wrap>
</block-alternatives>

Another typical <block-alternatives> use is multiple language versions of a table that are used for different purposes. For example, an article in a printed journal contains a table in Portuguese, and when the same article is presented online the table is shown in English (identical tables). The equivalent Portuguese and English tables are placed into the same <block-alternatives> element, with the attribute @xml:lang providing the language of the table and the @specific-use attribute indicating the print or online usage.

Comparison to Table Wrap Group: The element <table-wrap-group> is defined as a collection of related tables, rather than multiples of the same table. A group of logically identical but differently marked-up tables is a <block-alternatives> rather than a table wrap group. Thus a table wrap group containing 6 tables counts as 6 tables; a <block-alternatives> element containing 6 tables would count as a single table, with 6 processing alternatives.

Comparison to Alternatives: A group of processing alternatives inside a single table does not use <block-alternatives>. The element <alternatives> holds different processing versions of the same table (like a graphic and MathML), inside a single <table-wrap>. The element <block-alternatives> holds multiple versions of that single table (multiple <table-wrap> elements), each different in some aspect.

Multiple Labels and Captions inside One Table

While it is not considered best practice, multiple <label> and <caption> elements in different languages can be placed within a single table (<table-wrap>). Typically, there is one label and caption for each language, differentiated by @xml:lang attributes:

<table-wrap>
  <label xml:lang="pt">Tabela 1</label>
  <label xml:lang="en">Table 1</label>

  <caption xml:lang="pt"><title>...</title></caption>
  <caption xml:lang="en"><title>...</title></caption>

  <table frame="hsides" rules="groups">
   ...
  </table>
</table-wrap>

Processing Implications: To associate the related language caption and label more closely, for example, to place them on the same line for display, a processing system would need to match on the @xml:lang attributes (or other selectors as needed).

Related Resources

For information on providing Accessibility information for tables and arrays, see “Table Headers” section in Accessibility.