A label is a handle
Two catalogues can use the same word for different ideas. They can also use different words for substantially the same idea. A reliable crosswalk therefore needs more than a text match. It needs a statement about meaning, scope and the relationship between the records.
The W3C's Simple Knowledge Organization System, or SKOS, separates concepts from their labels. Concepts can have stable URI identifiers, preferred and alternative labels, and explanatory notes. The practical gain is modest but valuable: renaming a category need not erase its identity or its history.
Sources: s1
Choose the strength of the link
SKOS distinguishes close matches from exact matches. A close match does not automatically carry across a chain of mappings. An exact match is transitive, so a mistaken assertion can travel further. Both differ from declaring two records to be the very same resource with owl:sameAs.
Consider an illustrative archive with the labels 'island settlement' and 'island nation.' A settlement may be a town, archaeological site or seasonal camp. Nation introduces additional political questions. Matching the word island does not settle any of them. Preserve both records until their definitions justify a stronger link.
A small audit that pays off
Before approving a mapping, save the two definitions, the scheme versions and the reason for the selected relationship. What would disappear if the terms became interchangeable? A reader should be able to challenge that choice without reconstructing the editor's assumptions. This is a suggested audit, not an additional SKOS requirement.
Sources: s2