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User:Dl2000/International date formatting

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Overview

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In Wikipedia, the format of dates in Wikipedia articles is governed by Wikipedia:Manual of Style (dates and numbers) (MOS:DATE). Two formats are deemed acceptable for running prose (and often elsewhere):

  1. American (or US) format/Month before day is written as February 14, 1990 (comma required), or February 14 when year is omitted.
  2. International (or universal) format/Day before month is written as 14 February 1990, or 14 February when year is omitted.

The first style is generally identified as US format.[1][2][3]

The second style is sometimes referred to as universal or European format.[1] However, its use is adopted by most international-scope bodies (see below), and is also found as a standard in various regions outside Europe e.g. Australia[4][5] or New Zealand.[6]

MOS:DATE indicates which format is preferable in many cases, but leaves the question open in most cases, particularly for articles without ties to an English-speaking nation.

In an international project such as Wikipedia, there is a need to consider what formatting is most suitable on a global scale.

Advantages and disadvantages of each Wikipedia's two date formats

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Although both formats are equally comprehensible to all codes of English, where the 'month' in the date string is not numerical, the pros and cons of each are:-

Advantages of International format:

  • More compact, omitting comma for complete dates
  • Logical ordering (day then month then year)
  • Has significant level of usage in many world regions, and in certain sectors or segments in the USA
  • Not subject to a particular national bias, there is no WP:NPOV issue
  • Generally the English format of choice for international bodies e.g. UN, EU, NATO

Advantages of American format:

  • Has significant level of usage, such as news media (including some British press)

Disadvantages of International format:

Disadvantages of American format:

  • Extra punctuation
  • possible confusion when writing out serial dates or date ranges, especially when the year is represented by two digits.
  • 'Illogical' sequence order
  • Generally considered an American format, therefore associated with that bias and fails WP:NPOV
  • Not preferred by most international bodies

The International format is therefore the superior choice for a global project such as Wikipedia. Its use should be strongly encouraged in cases where the choice of date formatting is open, at least for new articles or articles in which a date format is not yet established. Its adoption should be encouraged by default on new articles, at least other than for U.S. non-military topics.

The issue of retrofitting articles to International format, of course, is a longer-term issue which requires a clearer consensus according to current MOS:DATE policy.

International format overview

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The following items demonstrate usage of international date format by multi-national bodies:

One international institution uses US format:

  • World Bank (clearly identifies its style as "American practice")

Summary of the existing MOS:DATE standard

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For reference, the existing standard generally indicates:

  • Articles with strong U.S. ties should use American format; exceptions apply to military articles and possibly other specialty topics
  • Articles with strong ties to most other English-speaking nations should use International format
  • All other articles may use either format consistently; this includes articles with strong Canadian ties, as a clearly stipulated case
  • Date formatting should be consistent within an article

References

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  1. ^ a b Scribe, Abel (2009). "MLA Style Lite for Research Papers". Retrieved 22 July 2010. Modern Language Association (MLA) Handbook.
  2. ^ Ritter, Robert (2002). "7.10.1". Oxford Guide to Style. p. 179. ISBN 0198691750. "In US format..." prefaces the description of dates where the month is placed before day then year.
  3. ^ "World Bank Translation Style Guide - English" (PDF). World Bank. June 2004. Retrieved 12 August 2010. Identifies its style specifically as "American practice".
  4. ^ "Online style guide". Australian Broadcasting Corporation / Radio National. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
  5. ^ Hansard Style Guide (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia. June 2005. Retrieved 22 July 2010. Exceptions in special events which are not dates per se, such as the September 11 attacks
  6. ^ "1.2.3, Numbers and dates". New Zealand Law Foundation http://www.lawfoundation.org.nz/style-guide/nzlsg_2.html#1.2.3. Retrieved 22 July 2010. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)