FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) — Core Ontology
language en

FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) — Core Ontology

Release: October 2025

Modified on: 2026-10-01
This version:
https://w3id.org/fgv/1.0.0
Latest version:
https://w3id.org/fgv#
Previous version:
https://w3id.org/fgv/0.1.1
Revision:
1.0.0
Authors:
Mike Priddy, KNAW-DANS
Wilko Steinhoff, KNAW-DANS
Wim Hugo, KNAW-DANS
Contributors:
Daniel Garijo, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
Mark Wilkinson, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
Pablo Alarcón, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
Allyson Lyster, University of Oxford
Publisher:
OSTrails
Source:
https://github.com/OSTrails/FAIR-Guidance-Vocabulary/tree/develop/release/1.0.0
See also:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18506494
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1t76YNBzeDmZSNqVFparUunX4v5EvN5DZrUjOOH7loqw
Funder:
European Commission
Funding:
European Union’s Horizon Europe framework programme under grant agreement No. 101130187
Download serialization:
JSON-LD RDF/XML N-Triples TTL
License:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Visualization:
Visualize with WebVowl
Cite as:
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0255-5101, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7874-0362, https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1106-8441. FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) — Core Ontology. Revision: 1.0.0. Retrieved from: https://w3id.org/fgv/1.0.0
Vocabulary maintained at:
https://github.com/OSTrails/FAIR-Guidance-Vocabulary
Ontology First Major Release

Abstract

The FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) is an OWL/RDFS ontology and reference model for representing guidance associated with FAIR assessment in a structured and machine-actionable form. Guidance encompasses different forms of advice, including guidelines, recommendations, best practices, standards, FAQs and procedures, and may be provided directly by assessment tools and services or through external resources. FGV describes the type and focus of Guidance Elements and supports their linkage to online resources, provenance information and maturity values. By providing dereferenceable concepts as Linked Open Data, FGV enables guidance to be consistently described, shared, understood and reused across assessment tools and services. Although developed primarily to support automated FAIR assessment, the model is extensible and can also be applied to guidance associated with other principles, policies, protocols and assessment frameworks.

Introduction back to ToC

Guidance is a broad and multifaceted concept, ranging from informal advice to formally governed standards. Research communities provide guidance in many forms, including guidelines, recommendations, best practices, standards, FAQs and procedures, supporting researchers, repository managers and other stakeholders in creating, managing and sharing research digital objects. The need for structured guidance is particularly apparent in the context of the FAIR Principles. Since their publication in 2016, numerous manual and automated FAIR assessment approaches have emerged. While the FAIR Principles were deliberately formulated to be broadly applicable, their practical interpretation may require further clarification and domain-specific guidance. FAIR assessment tools differ considerably in the guidance they provide: some offer practical information on improving FAIRness, while others primarily report assessment results or technical diagnostic information. Relevant guidance may also exist independently in disciplinary resources, community standards and dedicated FAIR guidance services. This motivated the development of the FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) within the EU-funded OSTrails project. FGV provides a reference model and vocabulary for describing practical guidance in a structured, machine-actionable form, enabling guidance to be classified, shared, linked and reused across tools, services and assessment frameworks. Guidance may be provided directly or referenced through external resources such as persistent identifiers, Web pages, annotations or service APIs. The model also supports provenance, focus, domain and maturity information. FGV was originally developed to complement the FAIR Test Results (FTR) vocabulary and support FAIR assessment, but is not restricted to FAIR. It can be used or extended for guidance associated with other principles, policies, protocols and assessment frameworks. Wherever possible, FGV reuses established vocabularies and metadata models to support interoperability.

Namespace declarations

Table 1: Namespaces used in the document
fgv<https://w3id.org/fgv#>
dcat<http://www.w3.org/ns/dcat#>
dcterms<http://purl.org/dc/terms/>
dqv<http://www.w3.org/ns/dqv#>
foaf<http://xmlns.com/foaf/0.1/>
owl<http://www.w3.org/2002/07/owl#>
prov<http://www.w3.org/ns/prov#>
rdf<http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#>
rdfs<http://www.w3.org/2000/01/rdf-schema#>
schema<https://schema.org/>
sio<http://semanticscience.org/resource/>
skos<http://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/core#>
xml<http://www.w3.org/XML/1998/namespace>
xsd<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#>

FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV): Overview back to ToC

This ontology has the following classes and properties.

Classes

Object Properties

Named Individuals

FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV): Description back to ToC

The FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) is an OWL/RDFS ontology for describing, classifying and linking practical guidance in a structured and machine-actionable form. It models different types of Guidance Elements, such as recommendations, best practices, procedures, benchmarks and standards, and enables their characterisation by aspects including focus, domain, provenance and maturity. Guidance can be provided directly or manifested through External Resources, such as persistent identifiers, Web pages, annotations and service APIs. Originally developed within the OSTrails project to complement the FAIR Test Results (FTR) vocabulary and support FAIR assessment, FGV is designed for broader reuse with other principles, policies, protocols and assessment frameworks, while reusing established vocabularies and ontologies to support semantic interoperability. The conceptual schema below provides an overview of the main FGV classes and their relationships, including the external vocabularies and ontologies reused by FGV.

Cross-reference for FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV) classes, object properties and data properties back to ToC

This section provides details for each class and property defined by FAIR Guidance Vocabulary (FGV).

Classes

Annotationc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation

A structured note or comment associated with another resource.
has super-classes
Reference / External Resource c, S I O 001166 c
is in range of
resolves to op

Benchmarkc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Benchmark

Quantifiable standards or reference points used to compare or evaluate performance, practices, or processes.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c

Best Practicec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#BestPractice

Proven methods or approaches that are widely accepted as the most effective in achieving desired outcomes.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c

Focus Areac back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#FocusArea

The aspect of a Guidance Element addressed by the guidance, such as what it concerns, why it is relevant, how it can be applied, additional information, or an expected value.
is in range of
has focus area op
has members
Expected Value ni, How ni, More ni, What ni, Why ni

Frameworkc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Framework

A conceptual or structural foundation that organizes, aligns, and relates key components (such as goals, principles, processes, roles, and tools) within a particular domain or system of practice.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c

Frequently Asked Questionsc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#FAQ

A curated list of common queries and clear, concise answers about a product, service, policy, or process.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c

Guidance Elementc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#GuidanceElement

A discrete item of guidance (standard, procedure, FAQ, etc.) that can be categorized by one or more Guidance Dimensions such as Domain, Motivation, Actor, etc.
has super-classes
Creative Work c, Entity c
has sub-classes
Benchmark c, Best Practice c, Framework c, Frequently Asked Questions c, Guideline c, Instruction c, Procedure c, Standard c
is in domain of
domain op, has focus area op, has maturity value op, in dimension op

Guidelinec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Guideline

A set of recommendations describing an approach to achieve a desired outcome, expressed as an ordered list of Instructions.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c

Instructionc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Instruction

A single, discrete step contained within a Standard or Guideline.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c

Maturity Valuec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#MaturityValue

A quality measurement expressing the maturity level of a guidance element.
has super-classes
Quality Measurement c
is in range of
has maturity value op

Object or Service / APIc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#ObjectOrServiceAPI

A data service or API providing machine-actionable access to guidance or data.
has super-classes
Reference / External Resource c, S I O 001190 c
is in range of
resolves to op

Persistent Identifierc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier

An identifier that uniquely and persistently identifies a resource.
has super-classes
Reference / External Resource c, S I O 000675 c
is in domain of
resolves to op

Procedurec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Procedure

A defined and ordered series of steps or tasks to be performed to achieve a specific outcome or fulfill a process.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c
is in domain of
has ordered instructions op

Reference / External Resourcec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#ExternalResource

A resource that represents or provides access to a piece of guidance, such as a Persistent Identifier, Web Page, Annotation, or Object/Service API.
has super-classes
Entity c
has sub-classes
Annotation c, Object or Service / API c, Persistent Identifier c, Web Page c

Standardc back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#Standard

Documented agreements containing technical specifications or criteria to ensure consistent quality, safety, or interoperability.
has super-classes
Guidance Element c, Standard c

Web Pagec back to ToC or Class ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage

A document or page accessible on the Web.
has super-classes
Reference / External Resource c, S I O 000302 c
is in range of
resolves to op

Object Properties

agentop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: http://www.w3.org/ns/prov#wasAttributedTo

Relates a guidance element to an agent associated with its provenance.

domainop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#domain

Field of science and technology classification (FOS) for this guidance element.
has domain
Guidance Element c
has range
Concept c

has focus areaop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#hasFocusArea

Relates a guidance element to a focus area addressed by the guidance.
has domain
Guidance Element c
has range
Focus Area c

has maturity valueop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#hasMaturityValue

Relates a guidance element to its maturity value.
has domain
Guidance Element c
has range
Maturity Value c

has ordered instructionsop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#hasOrderedInstructions

A procedure may list its instructions in a defined order.
has domain
Procedure c
has range
List c

in dimensionop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: http://www.w3.org/ns/dqv#inDimension

Relates a guidance element to the quality dimension it addresses.
has domain
Guidance Element c
has range
Dimension c

is manifested asop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: http://semanticscience.org/resource/SIO_000341

Relates a guidance element or an abstract external resource to its manifestation as a concrete external resource (e.g., PID, WebPage, or Annotation).

locationop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: http://www.w3.org/ns/prov#atLocation

Relates a guidance element to a location associated with its provenance.

resolves toop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#resolvesTo

Indicates the resource a persistent identifier or annotation resolves to (e.g., a web page, annotation, or API).

has characteristics: functional

has domain
Persistent Identifier c
has range
Annotation c or Object or Service / API c or Web Page c

was revision ofop back to ToC or Object Property ToC

IRI: http://www.w3.org/ns/prov#wasRevisionOf

Relates a resource to an earlier resource of the same type that it is a revised version of.

Named Individuals

Expected Valueni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#ExpectedValueFocus

Guidance describing the expected value, result, or outcome.
belongs to
Focus Area c

Howni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#HowFocus

Guidance describing how something can be implemented, performed, or evaluated.
belongs to
Focus Area c

Moreni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#MoreFocus

Guidance providing additional information or resources.
belongs to
Focus Area c

Whatni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#WhatFocus

Guidance describing what is being addressed or evaluated.
belongs to
Focus Area c

Whyni back to ToC or Named Individual ToC

IRI: https://w3id.org/fgv#WhyFocus

Guidance explaining why the subject is relevant or important.
belongs to
Focus Area c

Legend back to ToC

c: Classes
op: Object Properties
ni: Named Individuals

Changes from last version

Classes

Modified classes
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation
    • Deleted: DisjointClasses DisjointClasses(<https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation> <https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage>)
    • Deleted: DisjointClasses DisjointClasses(<https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation> <https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier>)
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#ExternalResource
    • Added: rdfs:comment " A resource that represents or provides access to a piece of guidance, such as a Persistent Identifier, Web Page, Annotation, or Object/Service API. "@en
    • Added: SubClass of http://www.w3.org/ns/prov#Entity
    • Deleted: SubClass of http://semanticscience.org/resource/SIO_000614
    • Deleted: rdfs:comment "A resource that represents or provides access to a piece of guidance. May be a Persistent Identifier, a Web Page, or an Annotation."@en
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#FocusArea
    • Added: rdfs:comment "The aspect of a Guidance Element addressed by the guidance, such as what it concerns, why it is relevant, how it can be applied, additional information, or an expected value."@en
    • Deleted: rdfs:comment "A conceptual aspect or interpretive dimension describing the emphasis of a guidance element — typically answering 'What?', 'How?', or 'Why?'."@en
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#GuidanceElement
    • Added: SubClass of http://www.w3.org/ns/prov#Entity
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#ObjectOrServiceAPI
    • Added: SubClass of https://w3id.org/fgv#ExternalResource
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier
    • Deleted: DisjointClasses DisjointClasses(<https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation> <https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier>)
    • Deleted: DisjointClasses DisjointClasses(<https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier> <https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage>)
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage
    • Deleted: DisjointClasses DisjointClasses(<https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation> <https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage>)
    • Deleted: DisjointClasses DisjointClasses(<https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier> <https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage>)
Added classes
Deleted classes

Object Properties

Modified object properties
  • http://semanticscience.org/resource/SIO_000341
    • Added: rdfs:comment "Relates a guidance element or an abstract external resource to its manifestation as a concrete external resource (e.g., PID, WebPage, or Annotation)."@en
    • Deleted: domain https://w3id.org/fgv#ExternalResource
    • Deleted: FunctionalObjectProperty FunctionalObjectProperty(<http://semanticscience.org/resource/SIO_000341>)
    • Deleted: rdfs:comment "Relates an abstract reference to its single manifestation (e.g., PID, WebPage, or Annotation)."@en
    • Deleted: Range https://w3id.org/fgv#ExternalResource
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#domain
    • Deleted: FunctionalObjectProperty FunctionalObjectProperty(<https://w3id.org/fgv#domain>)
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#hasFocusArea
    • Added: rdfs:comment "Relates a guidance element to a focus area addressed by the guidance."@en
    • Deleted: FunctionalObjectProperty FunctionalObjectProperty(<https://w3id.org/fgv#hasFocusArea>)
    • Deleted: rdfs:comment "Relates a guidance element to one of its focus areas (What, How, or Why)."@en
  • https://w3id.org/fgv#resolvesTo
    • Added: rdfs:seeAlso http://www.w3.org/ns/dcat#accessURL
    • Added: domain https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier
    • Added: Range Union of (https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation, https://w3id.org/fgv#ObjectOrServiceAPI, https://w3id.org/fgv#WebPage)
    • Deleted: Range Union of (https://w3id.org/fgv#ExternalResource, https://w3id.org/fgv#ObjectOrServiceAPI)
    • Deleted: domain Union of (https://w3id.org/fgv#Annotation, https://w3id.org/fgv#PersistentIdentifier)
Added object properties
Deleted object properties

Data Properties

Deleted data properties

Acknowledgments back to ToC

The authors would like to thank Silvio Peroni for developing LODE, a Live OWL Documentation Environment, which is used for representing the Cross Referencing Section of this document and Daniel Garijo for developing Widoco, the program used to create the template used in this documentation.