The paper describes the International Classification of Functioning (ICF),
published in 2001 by the World Health Organisation. Based on a thorough
revision of a former classification (the International Classification of
Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps of 1980), the ICF is used mainly in the
field of health and disability. The revision process that took place between the
two classifications led to profound changes and is here characterised as an
evolution as far as both content and terminological aspects are concerned. In
particular, the terminological innovations the ICF presents regard not only the
terms themselves but also the terminological principles underlying the
classification. The paper also looks at the ICF as an example of terminological
standardisation, discussing problems that are generally linked to
standardisation in fields other than manufacturing and the hard sciences.
Finally, a few hints are made to the process whereby the ICF was translated
into other languages and some translated terms are discussed with particular
reference to German and Italian.
