FamilySearch Wiki:Manual of Style: Difference between revisions

'''Avoiding mixing&nbsp; pronouns and antecedents.''' For clarity, pronouns should be used correctly. If needed, rewrite the sentence or repeat the noun. <br>  

'''Avoiding “we” and “I.”''' Contributors should not use “we” or “I” to refer to themselves and others in the wiki community.  

'''Ampersand (&amp;).''' Do not replace the word “and” with an ampersand (&amp;).  

:;Exception  

'''Accepted authority.''' When there is uncertainty about grammar, follow an accepted authority such as the Chicago Manual of Style.  

'''Using the Talk page.''' If differing opinions about a grammar issue cannot be resolved by referring to an accepted authority, the opinions should be added to the article’s Talk page for input from the wiki community.  

*'''Unique titles.''' No two articles may have the same title. <br>  

*'''Avoid duplication'''. If an article already exists for the same topic, edit the existing article rather than creating a new article.  

*'''Specific but short titles.''' Titles should be as short as possible but specific enough that users can identify the topic of the article when it appears in the search results. Avoid clever but unclear titles. Remove any unnecessary words or punctuation.  

*'''Common terms.''' Titles should use common terms that users might search for. A well chosen name for a new article can be very helpful to users and make it easier for search engines to guide users to the most relevant wiki article.  

'''Places that have had different names or jurisdictions.''' If a place has had more than one name or been in more than one jurisdiction (county, state, province, country and so on), the current name and jurisdiction should be used in the title. If the article gives information about the place only when it had a specific name or jurisdiction, use those in the title. [[Help:Redirects|Redirects]] can be used to make sure users will find the article regardless of the name or jurisdiction they search for.  

'''Non English place names.''' Generally, if a country is listed in the title, use the English name (for example, Germany rather than Deutschland). Search engines pull up a different list of articles depending on the place that is listed in the title. Redirects can be used to make sure users will find the article regardless of which spelling is used.<br>  

'''Places and dates in titles.''' If the place, country, or time period is important to the content of the article, include them in the title of the article. Add the word county in the title if the article is about a county.<br>  

==== '''Diacritics and quotation marks''' <br>  ====

In article titles, you may use words with diacritics or letters that do not appear in the English alphabet however, the search engine may not display the article if users search for the English version of the word. Quotation marks should be avoided in article titles.<br>  

==== Punctuation in the title  ====

::{{xt|Each record has a death or burial date. Some records have both dates.}}  

::{{xt|The number 1 cause of war deaths was disease.}}