Händel-Werke-Verzeichnis

The HWV thematic catalogue serves as the modern numbering system for Handel's compositions. For example, Handel's Messiah is numbered as HWV 56. The HWV numbers range from 1 to 612, however they do not represent a global date-ordering of composition; i.e. HWV 1 is not Handel's first work, nor is HWV 612 his last. Instead, the HWV numbers group works into musical categories, and provide a good ordering of the date of composition within each category. The following table lists the categories and the HWV number ranges.

There are gaps and anomalies in the HWV numbering system, so the above table is only useful as a guide (see the List of compositions by George Frideric Handel for more details).

The HWV numbers do not imply that Handel wrote exactly 612 works. The combination of unnumbered works, lost works, misattributed works, spurious works, variants (e.g. HWV 251 a-d), grouped works (e.g. HWV 229 1-7), and arrangements (e.g. HWV 482 1-4), all render meaningless the determination of the exact number of Handel's compositions.