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very confusing as this is NOT the primary guidance regarding hatnote usage (which is WP:Hatnote)
<noinclude>{{pp-move-indef}}</noinclude>
{{Redirect|WP:D|information about deletion on Wikipedia|Wikipedia:Deletion policy}}
{{For|a short introduction written for encyclopedia readers|Help:Disambiguation}}
{{For|the Manual of Style guideline about disambiguation pages|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages}}
{{Subcat guideline|editing guideline|Disambiguation|WP:D|WP:DAB|WP:DISAMBIG}}
{{Nutshell|It is necessary to provide links and disambiguation pages so that readers typing in a reasonably likely topic name for more than one Wikipedia topic can quickly navigate to the article they seek.}}
{{Guideline list}}
{{Dabnav}}
'''Disambiguation''' in Wikipedia is the process of resolving conflicts that arise when a potential article title is [[Ambiguity|ambiguous]], most often because it refers to more than one subject covered by Wikipedia, either as the main topic of an article, or as a subtopic covered by an article in addition to the article's main topic. For example, the word "[[Mercury]]" can refer to a chemical element, a planet, a Roman god, and many other things.
There are three important aspects to disambiguation:
* Naming articles in such a way that each has a unique title. For example, three of the articles dealing with topics ordinarily called "Mercury" are titled [[Mercury (element)]], [[Mercury (planet)]] and [[Mercury (mythology)]].
* Making the [[Help:Link|links]] for ambiguous terms point to the correct article title. For example, an editor of an astronomy article may have created a link to [[Mercury]], and this should be corrected to point to [[Mercury (planet)]].
* Ensuring that a reader who searches for a topic using a particular term can get to the information on that topic quickly and easily, whichever of the possible topics it might be. For example, the page [[Mercury (disambiguation)|Mercury]] is a ''disambiguation page''—a non-article page which lists various meanings of "Mercury" and which links to the articles that cover them. (As discussed below, however, ambiguous terms {{em|do not always}} require a disambiguation page.)
This page discusses the standard ways of handling the above issues. For detailed advice about the format of disambiguation pages, see the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages|style manual]].
==Deciding to disambiguate==
Disambiguation is required whenever, for a given word or phrase on which a reader might search, there is more than one existing Wikipedia article to which that word or phrase might be expected to lead. In this situation there must be a way for the reader to navigate quickly from the page that first appears to any of the other possible desired articles.
There are three principal disambiguation scenarios, of which the following are examples:
* The page at '''[[Joker]]''' is a ''disambiguation page'', leading to all the alternative uses of "Joker".
* The page at '''[[Rice]]''' is about one usage, called the ''primary topic'', and there is a [[Wikipedia:Hatnote|hatnote]] guiding readers to [[Rice (disambiguation)]] to find the other uses.
* The page at '''[[Michael Dobbs]]''' is about the primary topic, and there is only one other use. The other use is linked directly using a hatnote; no disambiguation page is needed.
For how to decide which of these scenarios is appropriate in a given case, see the following two sections:
===Broad-concept articles===
{{main|Wikipedia:Broad-concept article}}
{{see also|Category:Disambiguation pages to be converted to broad concept articles}}
{{shortcut|WP:CONCEPTDAB|WP:DABCONCEPT}}
If the ''primary meaning'' of a term proposed for disambiguation is a broad concept or type of thing that is {{em|capable of being described in an article}}, and a substantial portion of the links asserted to be ambiguous are instances or examples of that concept or type, then the page located at that title should be an article describing it and not a disambiguation page. Where the primary topic of a term is a general topic that can be divided into subtopics, such as chronologically (e.g., [[History of France]]) or geographically (e.g., [[Rugby union in the British Isles]]), the unqualified title should contain an article about the general topic rather than a disambiguation page. A disambiguation page should {{em|not}} be created just because it is difficult to write an article on a topic that is broad, vague, abstract, or highly conceptual. Where there are additional meanings that are not instances or examples of a "Foo" primary concept or type, those should be included on a "Foo (disambiguation)" page.
For example:
* [[Particle]] (previously a disambiguation page) is a broad and abstract concept used to address many different ideas in physics, generally relating to small units from which larger things are composed. Although there are many different kinds of particles at levels ranging from the subatomic to the macroscopic, the broad concept is properly susceptible to explanation in an article. Truly unrelated meanings, such as [[Particle (band)]], are only presented at [[Particle (disambiguation)]].
* A [[Supreme court]], [[National Trust]], or [[Finance minister]] (or [[Ministry of Finance]]) is each a kind of entity occurring in multiple countries and possibly in other political entities and serving the same purpose in each. Rather than having disambiguation pages at these titles linking to existing articles on these entities by nation, each should contain an article describing in general terms what the concept is and how the different examples of this concept relate to each other.
* [[Central Asia]], [[Northern Europe]], and [[Southern United States]] are geographic designations that have been used with respect to different specific boundaries over time. Varying uses for broad geographic terms can be discussed in the context of an article describing the overall agreement of which areas definitely fall within that designation and which areas are only occasionally described as falling within that designation, for certain purposes.
* The [[Nokia Lumia]] is a cell phone with many different design models. The fact that different models in the same series of product by the same manufacturer may have the same name, or the same combination of name and number, does not make them ambiguous. The relationship between these design models can and should be discussed on a page describing products created by or licensed by the same manufacturer.
* [[Football]] may refer to one of a number of team sports which all involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball with the foot. Although the word "football" can apply to whichever form of football is the most popular in the regional context in which the word appears, all of these variations share some common elements and can be traced to a common origin. Thus, the history and development of the general concept of football can be explained in its own article. [[Football (disambiguation)]] describes the various literal uses of the word including the actual balls.
* Many definitions of [[triangle center]] are used in Euclidean geometry, which coincide only in the special case of equilateral triangles. The article lists a dozen of these and also gives a validity criterion applicable to various definitions of "center".
In writing articles on these subjects, it is useful to directly address the scope of the term and the history of how the concept has developed. Each of the examples of the concept or type of thing should be included at some point in the article, possibly in a list, so that no information is lost from what would have been presented in the disambiguation page format. Consider using [[Wikipedia:Summary style|summary style]] to incorporate information about the subtopics into the main article.
Pages needing to be expanded to describe the concept may be tagged with {{tlx|dabprimary}}.
=={{Anchor|Primary topic}}Is there a primary topic?==
{{Redirect|WP:PRIMARYTOPIC|the Manual of Style guideline|MOS:DABPRIMARY}}
{{see also|#Incomplete disambiguation}}
{{hatnote|This guideline section should be read in conjunction with the [[Wikipedia:Article titles#Disambiguation|article titles disambiguation policy]].}}
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not move it out of the section heading, even though it disrupts edit summary generation (you can manually fix the edit summary before saving your changes). Please do not modify it, even if you modify the section title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. (This text: [[Template:Anchor comment]]) -->{{shortcut|WP:PRIMARYTOPIC|WP:PRIMARYUSAGE|WP:PTOPIC}}
Although a word, name, or phrase may refer to more than one topic, sometimes one of these topics can be identified as the term's '''primary topic'''. This is the topic to which the term should lead, serving as the title of (or a redirect to) the relevant article. If no primary topic exists, then the term should be the title of a disambiguation page (or should redirect to a disambiguation page on which more than one term is disambiguated). The primary topic might be a [[#Broad-concept articles|broad-concept article]], as mentioned above.
While Wikipedia has no single criterion for defining a primary topic, two major aspects that editors commonly consider are these:
<section begin=primarytopic />
* A topic is '''primary''' for a term with respect to {{em|usage}} if it is highly likely—much more likely than any other single topic, and more likely than all the other topics combined—to be the topic sought when a reader searches for that term.
* A topic is '''primary''' for a term with respect to {{em|long-term significance}} if it has substantially greater enduring notability and educational value than any other topic associated with that term.
<section end=primarytopic />
In most cases, the topic that is primary with respect to usage is also primary with respect to long-term significance; in many other cases, only one sense of primacy is relevant. In a few cases, there is some conflict between a topic of {{em|primary usage}} ([[Apple Inc.]]) and one of {{em|primary long-term significance}} ([[Apple]]). In such a case, [[Wikipedia:Consensus|consensus]] may be useful in determining which topic, if any, is the primary topic.
=== Determining a primary topic ===
{{shortcut|WP:DETERMINEPRIMARY}}
There are no absolute rules for determining whether a primary topic exists and what it is; decisions are made by discussion among editors, often as a result of a [[Wikipedia:Requested moves|requested move]]. Tools that {{em|may}} help to support the determination of a primary topic in a discussion (but are not considered absolute determining factors, due to unreliability, potential bias, and other reasons) include:
* Incoming wikilinks from [[Special:WhatLinksHere]]
* Wikipedia [https://tools.wmflabs.org/pageviews article traffic statistics] (for the exact title of a page or a redirect) and [https://tools.wmflabs.org/redirectviews redirect traffic statistics] (for the total views of a page including traffic coming from its redirects)
* Usage in [[Wikipedia:Identifying reliable sources|English reliable sources]] demonstrated with [[Google]] [https://books.google.com/ngrams Ngram viewer], [https://books.google.com/ Books], [https://scholar.google.com/ Scholar], [https://news.google.com/ News], and [https://trends.google.com/trends/ Trends].
* Simple web searches may be problematic due to limited sources, open interpretation, and [[Google Personalized Search|personal search]] bias, which can be eliminated with [https://encrypted.google.com/webhp?complete=0&hl=en&pws=0 this modified Google search string], but may be helpful if other methods are inconclusive.
Some general principles for determining a primary topic include:
*While long-term significance is a factor, historical age is not determinative.
*Being the original source of the name is also not determinative. [[Boston, Massachusetts]] is the primary topic for [[Boston]], not [[Boston, Lincolnshire|the English town from which it took its name]].
*A topic may have principal relevance for a specific group of people (for example, as the name of a local place, or software), but not be the primary meaning among a general audience. An attorney may read the word "[[hearing]]" and immediately think [[hearing (law)|of a courtroom]], but the auditory sense is still the primary topic.
==== Not "what first comes to (your) mind" ====
{{shortcut|WP:NWFCTM|WP:BUTIDONTKNOWABOUTIT|WP:TITLEPTM|WP:TPTM}}
Perhaps the most commonly rejected criterion is that the primary topic should only belong to what "first comes to mind". This argument is inevitably tainted by the personal background, location, biases, ethnicity, and other pieces of one's own life, but we are trying to build an encyclopedia that is untainted by systemic bias. The primary topic is therefore determined without regard to (for example) the national origin, if any, of the article or articles in question.
Because many topics on Wikipedia are more interesting or pertinent to particular groups, one potential criterion to commonly avoid is what "first comes to mind". An American might first think of [[Birmingham, Alabama|the city in Alabama]] when Birmingham is mentioned, but primary topic belongs to the [[Birmingham|city in England]], which is far more notable and whose article is read much more often. A Scot might think of [[Perth, Scotland|the Scottish city]] when the city of Perth is referred to, but the primary topic belongs to [[Perth|the Australian city]] for essentially the same reasons as for Birmingham. "Raleigh" takes you directly to [[Raleigh, North Carolina|the American city]], even though a Brit may not even know of the city and only think of [[Walter Raleigh|the explorer]] or [[Raleigh Bicycle Company|bicycle manufacturer]] when Raleigh is mentioned. What first comes to your mind when you hear the word "Java"? It may be [[Java (coffee)|coffee]] or [[Java (programming language)|a programming language]], but the primary topic belongs to [[Java|the island]] with over 150 million people living on it.
[[WP:PTM|Partial title matches]] should also be considered. For instance, [[New York City]] is far more notable than [[York|the British city]] from which it got its name, and the vast majority of the time that "York" is used in books, it is used in the names "New York City" and its containing state of "New York".{{efn|1=See [[Google Ngram Viewer]] results for [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=York%2CNew+York&year_start=1808&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2CYork%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CNew%20York%3B%2Cc0 York/New York] and [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=York+is%2CNew+York+is&year_start=1808&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2CYork%20is%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CNew%20York%20is%3B%2Cc0 York is/New York is].}} However, since sources rarely use an unqualified "York" to refer to "New York", [[York]] still hosts an article on the British city, and no suggestion to change that would be seriously entertained. Likewise, "Sofia" has been the first name of countless girls and women throughout history; however, as a single term it most commonly refers to [[Sofia|the Bulgarian capital]].{{efn|US cities (such as [[Anaheim, California]]) are {{em|not}} considered as partial title matches when deciding whether they are the primary topic for the base name ("[[Anaheim]]"). They are considered full title matches for [[WP:PRIMARYREDIRECT|primary redirect]] concern; the only reason that many US city articles are located at the elongated title is the [[WP:USPLACENAMES|Wikipedia guideline]] to keep state names in titles for virtually all US cities and counties.}}
We certainly [[Wikipedia:Writing better articles#Principle of least astonishment|don't want to astonish our readers]], and the topic that comes first to mind indeed often is suitable as the primary topic. [[Anne Hathaway]], as one of countless examples, takes the reader to the modern-day American movie star's page, not to the article on [[Anne Hathaway (wife of Shakespeare)|the wife of William Shakespeare]]. But in no case does "what comes first to mind" to any ''particular'' person have much bearing, either positive or negative, on which topic, if any, actually is the primary topic.
=== Redirecting to a primary topic ===
{{Shortcut|WP:PRIMARYREDIRECT}}
{{anchor|PRIMARYREDIRECT}}
The title of the primary topic article may be different from the ambiguous term. This may happen when the topic is primary for more than one term, when the article covers a wider topical scope, or when it is titled differently according to the [[Wikipedia:Article titles|naming conventions]]. When this is the case, the term should [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] to the article (or a section of it). The fact that an article has a different title is not a factor in determining whether a topic is primary. For example:
* The city which is the subject of the article on [[Gdańsk]] used to be called Danzig in English, but is now usually referred to as Gdańsk. Thus the primary topic for "Danzig" is this city; [[Danzig]] redirects to [[Gdańsk]], and the latter page contains a {{tlx|redirect}} hatnote linking to [[Danzig (disambiguation)]].
* The primary topic for the search term "Einstein" is the physicist, but the article title is [[Albert Einstein]]. Here [[Einstein]] redirects to [[Albert Einstein]], and a hatnote then links to [[Einstein (disambiguation)]].
* The article at [[Defamation]] is the primary topic for five terms: "[[defamation]]", "[[libel]]", "[[slander]]", "[[vilification]]", and "[[calumny]]". Even though [[Libel (film)|there is a film with the title ''Libel'']], the article at [[Defamation]] is still the primary topic for that title and the film must be disambiguated.
Sometimes, a disambiguated article title, such as [[Apostrophe (punctuation)]], may be moved to an unqualified title based on a consensus that this is the primary topic for the unqualified term. When such a page move is made, the redirect template {{tlx|R from unnecessary disambiguation}} can be used to categorize the redirect that results from the move
under [[:Category:Redirects from unnecessary disambiguation]]. Using the above example, [[Apostrophe (punctuation)]] would redirect as follows (where [[Apostrophe]]'s topic is primary):
<pre>
#REDIRECT [[Apostrophe]]
{{Redirect category shell|
{{R from unnecessary disambiguation}}
{{R unprintworthy}}
}}
</pre>
=== Primary topic when a disambiguation page lists only one existing article by that name ===
When a disambiguation page lists only one existing article by that name (all other suggested articles are red-linked), the normal rules for determining the primary topic still apply. The existing article does not automatically become the primary topic. So:
* If the article with the blue link is chosen to be the primary topic, it becomes the primary article. The disambiguation page is then moved to a page carrying the ''(disambiguation)'' qualifier.
* On the rare occasions that a red-linked article is preferred to be the primary topic, the disambiguation page will still occupy the primary position as long as the red-linked article has not been written.
* If no article is preferred to be the primary topic, then the disambiguation page will remain the [[WP:primary landing page|primary landing page]].
Example of such a page:
:{| style="border: 1px solid black" width=80%
|-
|
'''Urney''' may refer to:
*[[Urney, County Cavan]], a civil parish and [[List of townlands of County Cavan|townland in County Cavan]], Ireland
*[[Urney, County Donegal]], a civil parish in County Donegal, Ireland
*[[Urney, County Offaly]], a [[List of townlands of County Offaly|townland in County Offaly]], Ireland
*[[Urney, County Tyrone]], a civil parish and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
|}
In this case, the Urney disambiguation page is the primary landing page, as neither of the mentioned parishes can claim to be the primary topic.
Please note, [[MOS:DABMENTION]] and [[MOS:DABENTRY]] rules still apply: any red-linked article must still be complemented by a blue-linked article, and each entry should contain no more than one blue link.
{{anchor|Disambiguation page or hatnotes}}
==Disambiguation page or hatnotes?==
{{see also|WP:DIFFCAPS|WP:Hatnotes are cheap|WP:2DABPRIMARY}}
{{Shortcut|WP:MULTIDABS|WP:2DABS|WP:TWODABS}}
{{Hatnote|For more about hatnotes, see {{section link||Hatnotes}}, below.}}
{{Hatnote|For rules about naming disambiguation pages and combining similar terms on a single page, see {{section link||Disambiguation pages}}.}}
As discussed above, if an ambiguous term has no primary topic, then that term needs to lead to a disambiguation page. In other words, where no topic is primary, the disambiguation page is placed at the base name.
If a disambiguation page is needed, but one of the other topics is of particular interest, then it may be appropriate to link to it explicitly {{em|as well}} as linking to the disambiguation page. For example, [[Inflation]] is about the primary topic—a rise in prices—and a hatnote links to both [[Inflation (cosmology)]] and [[Inflation (disambiguation)]].
=== No primary topic ===
{{Shortcut|WP:NOPRIMARY}}
If there are multiple topics (even just two) to which a given title might refer, but per the criteria at [[#Is there a primary topic?|Is there a primary topic?]] there is no primary topic, then the base name should lead the reader to the disambiguation page for the term. For example, [[John Quested]] is a disambiguation page for the two people by that name who can be found in the encyclopedia:
{{block indent|1=
'''John Quested''' may refer to:
* [[John Quested (RAF officer)]] (1893–1948), English World War I flying ace
* [[John Quested (producer)]] (born 1935), film producer and owner and chairman of Goldcrest Films
}}
=== Primary topic with only one other topic ===
{{Shortcut|WP:ONEOTHER}}
{{em|If there is a primary topic}} located at the base name, then the question arises whether to create a disambiguation page, or merely to link to all the other meanings from a hatnote on the primary topic article.
If there are only two topics to which a given title might refer, and one is the primary topic, then a disambiguation page is not needed—it is sufficient to use a hatnote on the primary topic article, pointing to the other article. (This means that readers looking for the second topic are spared the extra navigational step of going through the disambiguation page.)
If a disambiguation page does not appear to be needed because there are only two topics for the ambiguous title and one of them is the primary topic, but there could reasonably be other topics ambiguous with the title on Wikipedia now or in the future, an {{tlx|about}} hatnote can be used to link to a disambiguation page (either in addition to or instead of a link directly to the other article). At the same time, the {{txl|One other topic}} template should be added to the top of the disambiguation page, which will inform users that the page has only two ambiguous terms, one of them primary; thus it may be deleted if, after a period of time no additional ambiguous topics are found to expand the disambiguation page. The {{tlx|One other topic}} template will also list the article in {{cl|Disambiguation pages containing one non-primary topic}}, allowing other editors to locate these pages and help in expanding them. If the two-dab page has been expanded to include additional ambiguous topics, {{tlx|One other topic}} template should be removed and a direct link in the primary article to the other article may not be needed anymore as a link to the disambiguation page alone may be sufficient.
For example, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Retrograde_motion_(disambiguation)&oldid=547937411 Retrograde motion (disambiguation)] contained links to only two articles, of which [[Retrograde motion]] was the primary topic. The disambiguation page is not needed, as the article links to the other meaning [[Apparent retrograde motion]] with a hatnote. However, if some more disambiguation links can be added, it would be useful to expand the hatnote with a link to the disambiguation page.
=== Primary topic with two or more other topics ===
If there are two or three other topics, it is still possible to use a hatnote which lists the other topics explicitly, but if this would require too much text (roughly, if the hatnote would extend well over one line on a standard page), then it is better to create a disambiguation page and refer only to that.
=== Different spelling variants ===
If the titles of two articles differ only in capitalization or the separation or non-separation of components (as per [[WP:DIFFCAPS]] or [[WP:PLURALPT]]), the articles each should contain a hatnote to link to each other.
==Naming the specific topic articles==
{{naming conventions}}
{{Shortcut|WP:NCDAB}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Article titles#Disambiguation}}
For disambiguating specific topic pages by using an unambiguous article title, several options are available:
# '''Natural disambiguation'''. When there is another term (such as [[Apartment]] instead of [[Flat]]) or more complete name (such as [[English language]] instead of [[English]]) that is unambiguous, commonly used in English (even without being the most common term), and equally clear, that term is typically the best to use.
# '''Comma-separated disambiguation'''. Ambiguous geographic names are often disambiguated by adding the name of a higher-level administrative division, separated by a comma, as in [[Windsor, Berkshire]].{{efn|In running prose, it is more common in British and some other [[Commonwealth English]] varieties to use a "Windsor in Berkshire" pattern, while "Windsor, Ontario," is more common in [[North American English]]. This [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#National varieties of English|dialectal distinction]] does not apply to article titles, which follow [[WP:CONSISTENCY|consistent]], prescribed patterns.}} See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (geographic names)|Naming conventions (geographic names)]].
# '''Parenthetical disambiguation'''. A disambiguating word or phrase can be added in parentheses. The word or phrase in parentheses should be:
#* the generic {{em|class}} (avoiding [[proper nouns]], as much as possible) that includes the topic, as in [[Mercury (element)]], [[Seal (emblem)]]; or
#* the {{em|subject}} or {{em|context}} to which the topic applies, as in [[Union (set theory)]], [[Inflation (cosmology)]]; or
#* rarely, an adjective describing the topic can be used, as in [[Vector (spatial)]], but it is usually better to rephrase such a title to avoid parentheses (for instance, [[Vector (spatial)]] was renamed to [[Euclidean vector]]).
Natural disambiguation that is '''unambiguous''', '''commonly used''', and '''clear''' is generally preferable to parenthetical disambiguation; for instance, [[Fan district]] and [[hand fan]] are used instead of [[Fan (district)]] and [[fan (implement)]]. If no unambiguous, commonly used, and clear natural disambiguation is available, another type of disambiguation is used. If there are several possible choices for parenthetical disambiguation, use the same disambiguating phrase already commonly used for other topics within the same class and context, if any. Otherwise, choose whichever is simpler. For example, use "(mythology)" rather than "(mythological figure)".
Naming conventions applicable to certain subject areas are listed in the box to the right; these often contain detailed guidance about how to disambiguate. In particular, for articles about people, see the [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (people)#Disambiguating|Disambiguating]] section in the [[WP:NCP|people naming convention]].
===Format===
To conform to the [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions|naming conventions]], the phrase in parentheses should be treated just as any other word in a title: normally lowercase, unless it is a proper noun (like a book title) that would appear capitalized even in running text.
For common disambiguation words, see [[User:Jarry1250/Findings]].
=={{anchor|Disambiguation links}} Hatnotes==
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not move it out of the section heading, even though it disrupts edit summary generation (you can manually fix the edit summary before saving your changes). Please do not modify it, even if you modify the section title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. (This text: [[Template:Anchor comment]]) -->{{shortcut|WP:DLINKS|WP:DABLINK|WP:DABLINKS}}
{{main|Wikipedia:Hatnote}}
{{For|a complete listing of disambiguation hatnote templates|Template:Hatnote templates documentation}}
{{Redirect|WP:DABLINK|Links to disambiguation pages|#Links to disambiguation pages}}
Users searching for what turns out to be an ambiguous term may not reach the article they expected. Therefore, any article with an ambiguous title should contain helpful links to alternative Wikipedia articles or disambiguation pages, placed at the top of the article using one or more of the templates shown below.
Disambiguation hatnotes are not article content—they are associated with the title, rather than any article topic content.
Most hatnote templates generate links automatically, so double square brackets are not normally used within the templates. In some cases there are multiple templates available, one including and another omitting information about the topic of the article. The shorter hatnote may be chosen if omitting the information is not likely to confuse the reader.
'''On a primary topic page for a term that has one secondary topic only (no disambiguation page):'''
* Type {{tlx|about|TOPIC|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}} to produce:{{about|TOPIC|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}}
* Type {{tlx|for|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}} to produce:{{for|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}}
* Type {{tlx|see also|ARTICLE (2)}} to produce:{{see also|ARTICLE (2)}}
'''On a secondary topic page for a term that has one other topic only (no disambiguation page):'''
* As above, but consider whether the hatnote is really necessary (see the first of the [[#Usage guidelines|usage guidelines]] below).
'''On a primary topic page that has an associated disambiguation page:'''
* Type {{tlx|about|TOPIC}} to produce:{{about|TOPIC||ARTICLE NAME (disambiguation)}}
* Type {{tlx|otheruses}} to produce:{{otheruses|ARTICLE NAME (disambiguation)}}
* or, if the disambiguation page is not in the default location, type {{tlx|otheruses|NAME}} to produce:{{otheruses|NAME}}
'''When the primary topic redirects to another page:'''
* If there is only one secondary topic, type {{tlx|redirect|REDIRECT|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}} on the target page to produce:{{redirect|REDIRECT|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}}
* If there is a disambiguation page, type {{tlx|redirect|REDIRECT}} to produce:{{redirect|REDIRECT}}
Other variations on these templates are available, including templates for specific subjects such as places, numbers, etc. Templates are listed and illustrated at [[Template talk:About]] and [[Wikipedia:Otheruses templates (example usage)]]. A longer list of disambiguation templates is found at [[Wikipedia:Template messages/General#Disambiguation and redirection]]; further style information is given at [[Wikipedia:Hatnotes#Templates]]. Many more templates are listed in [[:Category:Disambiguation and redirection templates]].
===Usage guidelines===
* There is not always a need to add disambiguation links to a page whose name already clearly distinguishes itself from the generic term. However, for some topics this is a good idea. For example, [[Treaty of Paris (1796)]] should include a hatnote point to the disambiguation page [[Treaty of Paris (disambiguation)]], since many users might not know that there is more than one treaty with this name, and we cannot predict what external search engines will link to. In other cases, such a hatnote is not necessary. For example, [[Solaris (1972 film)]] is clearly about one specific movie and not about any of the many other meanings of "Solaris", and most users will know to type Solaris in the search box to find other topics.
* As noted above, disambiguation links should be placed at the top of an article, where they are most visible. For alternatives that are related to the article but are not a source of ambiguity, the [[Wikipedia:See also|"See also" section]] at the end of the article is more appropriate.
* Do not use [[Wikipedia:Piped link|piping]] to change the title of disambiguation entry links. Showing the actual linked entry title avoids confusion. (Piping may be used for formatting or technical reasons; see the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#Where piping may be appropriate|Manual of Style exceptions]].)
* Consolidate multiple disambiguation links into as few dablink hatnotes as possible.
* See [[Wikipedia:Hatnote]] for other guidelines on the proper use of disambiguation links.
==Disambiguation pages==
{{shortcut||WP:DPAGE|WP:DPAGES}}
A disambiguation page is a non-article page that lists and links to encyclopedia articles covering topics that could have had the same title. The purpose of disambiguation pages is allowing [[WP:BUILDTHEWEB|navigation]] to the article on the topic being sought. The information on a disambiguation page should be focused on getting the reader to their desired article.
===Combining terms on disambiguation pages===
A single disambiguation page may be used to disambiguate a number of similar terms. Sets of terms which are commonly so combined include:
* Terms that differ only in capitalization, punctuation and diacritic marks. These should almost always share a disambiguation page. For example, the terms ''Oe'', ''Ōe'', ''OE'' and ''O.E.'' are disambiguated on a single page ([[Oe (disambiguation)|Oe]]).
* Corresponding singular, plural and possessive forms, or compound words. For example, the terms ''Eaglenest'', ''Eagle Nest'', ''Eagle's Nest'' and ''Eagle Nests'' all appear at [[Eagle's Nest (disambiguation)|Eagle's Nest]], and [[Stars (disambiguation)]] redirects to [[Star (disambiguation)]].
* Variant spellings. For example, ''Honor'' and ''Honour'' both appear at [[Honor (disambiguation)]].
* Variant forms of names. For example, [[Fred Smith (disambiguation)|Fred Smith]] also includes persons named ''Frederick Smith''.
* Terms which differ by the presence or absence of an [[article (grammar)|article]] (i.e., "a", "an", or "the" in English). For example, [[Cure (disambiguation)]] also contains instances of ''The Cure''.
Editorial judgement should be used in deciding whether to combine terms in the ways described above. If a combined disambiguation page would be inconveniently long, it may be better to split the disambiguation page into separate pages.
When a combined disambiguation page is used, redirects to it (or hatnotes, as appropriate) should be set up from all the terms involved.
===<span id="NAME"></span> Naming the disambiguation page ===
{{shortcut|WP:DABNAME}}
{{redirect|WP:DABNAME|the Manual of Style guideline on people's names in disambiguation pages|MOS:DABNAME}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Article titles}}
The title of a disambiguation page is the ambiguous term itself, provided there is no primary topic for that term. If there is a primary topic, then the tag "(disambiguation)" is added to the name of the disambiguation page, as in [[Jupiter (disambiguation)]].
When a disambiguation page combines several similar terms, one of them must be selected as the title for the page (with the "(disambiguation)" tag added if a primary topic exists for that term); the choice should be made in line with the following principles:
* A word is preferred to an abbreviation, for example [[Arm (disambiguation)]] over [[ARM]].
* When no word can be formed, all capitals is preferred. For example, the disambiguation page for "ddb" is [[DDB (disambiguation)]], not "Ddb".
* English spelling is preferred to that of non-English languages.
* Singulars are preferred to plurals.
* The simplest form of the term is preferred to those containing punctuation, [[diacritic]]s and articles; for example [[SA (disambiguation)|SA]] is preferred to [[S.A. (disambiguation)|S.A.]], and [[Shadow (disambiguation)]] is preferred to [[The Shadow (disambiguation)]].
* The spelling that reflects the majority of items on the page is preferred to less common alternatives.
In addition, when a disambiguation page exists at the ambiguous term, there should also be a redirect to it from the "(disambiguation)" title; in other words, if "Term ABC" is a disambiguation page, a redirect from "Term ABC (disambiguation)" should be created if it does not already exist. This type of redirect is used to indicate any intentional links to the disambiguation page, to distinguish them from accidental or erroneous incoming links that should be disambiguated to the appropriate article.
===Page style===
{{shortcut|WP:DABSTYLE}}
{{main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages}}
Each disambiguation page comprises a list (or multiple lists, for multiple senses of the term in question) of similarly titled links.
* Link to the primary topic (if there is one):
*:A '''[[school]]''' is an institution for learning.
* Start each list with a short introductory sentence fragment with the title in '''bold''', and ending with a colon. For example:
*:'''Blockbuster''' may refer to:
* Try to start each entry in the list with a link to the target page, unless the link provided gives context rather than a synonymous meaning.
* {{anchor|oneblue}} Each bulleted entry should have a navigable (blue) link, normally as the entry itself (see the previous bullet), or in the description if the entry is red-linked or unlinked.
** Rarely should a bulleted entry have more than one navigable link; including more than one link can confuse the reader.
* Do not [[Wikipedia:Piped link|pipe]] the name of the links to the articles being listed.{{efn|1=Integral to purpose of a DAB page is to communicate the actual titles of entries that are at variance with the base title one might expect—were the entries not ambiguous with each other.}} (See [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#Piping and redirects|exceptions]].)
* Entries are sentence fragments; do not end them with periods or other punctuation.
Include the template {{tl|disambiguation}} (or another disambiguation template, such as {{tlx|Geodis}} or {{tlx|Hndis}}) at the bottom as an indicator of the page's status. For more information, see the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#The disambig notice and categorization|relevant style guide section]].
For prime examples of disambiguation pages, see [[Lift (disambiguation)|Lift]] and [[Aurora (disambiguation)]].
===What not to include===
{{shortcut|WP:DABNOT|WP:DABNOINCLUDE}}
The purpose of a disambiguation page is to direct a reader seeking information on a specific topic to the right page. Strictly speaking, entries should be just sufficient for this purpose. It is common to add {{em|a little}} additional information (which may make reference to the full article unnecessary). For example, consider the text "[[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]], US president 1933–1945, Democratic Party, a central figure in world events, creator of the [[New Deal]], in a wheelchair from polio since 1921, died in office". The name only is sufficient in [[FDR (disambiguation)]] (for example, to distinguish the president from a [[flight data recorder]]). The next phrase, office held and incumbency, is unlikely to be objected to. The rest is unnecessary and inappropriate; it very briefly summarises the article, rather than merely disambiguating.
====Dictionary definitions====
{{Shortcut|WP:DABDIC}}
A disambiguation page is not a list of dictionary definitions. A short description of the common general meaning of a word can be appropriate for helping the reader determine context. Otherwise, there are templates for linking the reader to [[Wiktionary]], the wiki dictionary; see [[Template:Wiktionary]]. It is also not an interlanguage dictionary; while [[Geneva]] is Ginebra in Spanish and other languages, this is not listed in the article, so the [[Ginebra]] disambiguation page should not include Geneva.
====<span id="Lists"></span>{{anchor|Partial-title-match}}Partial title matches====
{{Shortcut||WP:PARTIAL|WP:PTM}}
A disambiguation page is not a search index. Do not add a link that merely contains part of the page title, or a link that includes the page title in a longer proper name, where there is no significant risk of confusion between them. For example, [[Louisville Zoo]] is not included at [[Zoo (disambiguation)]] because people outside [[Louisville]] would not readily identify it as {{em|the}} "Zoo", and including all zoos in the world in the disambiguation page is impractical (though [[List of zoos]] {{em|is}} listed in the "See also" section). Add a link only if the article's subject (or the relevant subtopic thereof) could plausibly be referred to by essentially the {{em|same}} name as the disambiguated term in a sufficiently generic context—regardless of the article's title. For instance, the [[Mississippi River]] article could not feasibly be titled [[Mississippi]], since that name is used by the US state article, but it is included at [[Mississippi (disambiguation)]] because its subject is often called "the Mississippi".
Place names are often divided between a specific and generic part: "North Carolina" (where "Carolina" is the specific, and "North" the generic part). Other common generics are compass points, upper/lower, old/new, big/small, etc. It is entirely proper to include such place names in disambiguation pages with the specific title ([[North Carolina]] is properly listed at [[Carolina (disambiguation)]]); but only exceptionally in the generic title (we do not expect to see North Carolina in [[North (disambiguation)]], just as we do not expect to see Mississippi River in [[River (disambiguation)]]).
Instead of listing partial title matches, consider adding the {{tlx|look from}} or {{tlx|intitle}} templates in the "See also" section, which link to all articles starting with or containing a particular term, respectively.
===={{anchor|Names}} Lists of names====
{{shortcut|WP:NAMELIST}}
To prevent disambiguation pages from getting too long, [[WP:BLP|articles on people]] should be listed at the disambiguation page for their first or last name only if they are reasonably well known by it. We reasonably expect to see [[Abraham Lincoln]] at [[Lincoln (disambiguation)]], but very few sources would refer to the waltz composer [[Harry J. Lincoln]] by an unqualified "Lincoln", so he is only listed at the [[Lincoln (surname)]] anthroponymy article. This is even more widespread for first names—many highly notable people are called [[Herb (given name)|Herb]], but typing in [[Herb]] gets you an article on plants. [[Herb (disambiguation)]] does not even list any people named "Herb", but instead links to [[Herb (surname)]] and [[Herb (given name)]], where articles on people named "Herb" are listed. Consensus among editors determines if an article should be listed on the disambiguation page.
====Related subjects====
{{Shortcut|WP:DABRELATED}}
Include articles only if the term being disambiguated is actually described in the target article. For example, a use of the term "set" is discussed in the article on [[Volleyball]], so [[Set (disambiguation)]] legitimately includes "Set, the second contact in <nowiki>[[volleyball]]</nowiki>".
===={{Anchor|Related subjects, abbreviations and acronyms|Related subjects, abbreviations, initials and acronyms}}Abbreviations, initials and acronyms====
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not move it out of the section heading, even though it disrupts edit summary generation (you can manually fix the edit summary before saving your changes). Please do not modify it, even if you modify the section title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. (This text: [[Template:Anchor comment]]) -->{{Shortcut|WP:DABABBREV|WP:DABACRONYM}}
Do not add articles to abbreviation or acronym disambiguation pages unless the target article includes the acronym or abbreviation—we are resolving an ambiguity, not making yet another dictionary of abbreviations. If an abbreviation is [[Wikipedia:Verifiability|verifiable]], but not mentioned on the target article, consider adding it to the target article and then adding the entry to the disambiguation page. In particular, do not include people and other things simply because of their initials, unless those initials have been widely used. [[John Fitzgerald Kennedy]] is widely known as [[JFK]] and this is discussed in the article, so the initials are appropriately disambiguated; however, [[Marilyn Monroe]] was never commonly known as "MM", nor was [[A. A. Milne]] known as either "AA" or "AAM". {{crossref|(See also [[MOS:DABACRO]].)}}
====Sister projects====
{{shortcut|WP:DABSISTER}}
Disambiguation entries should not be created for subjects whose only content is on pages of [[WP:SISTER|sister projects]] (including other-language Wikipedias).
====References====
{{shortcut|WP:DABREF}}
Do not include references in disambiguation pages; disambiguation pages are not articles. Incorporate references into the articles linked from the disambiguation page, as needed.
====External links====
Do not include external links, either as entries or in descriptions. Disambiguation pages disambiguate Wikipedia articles, not the World Wide Web. To note URLs that might be helpful in the future, include them on the talk page. An exception is [[WP:MOSDAB#Linking to Wiktionary|linking to Wiktionary]] for the dictionary definition of the disambiguated topic.
===Preparation===
Before constructing a new disambiguation page, determine a [[#Naming the specific topic articles|specific topic]] name for all existing pages, and the [[#Naming the disambiguation page|name for the disambiguation page]]. [[Help:Moving a page|Move]] any page with a conflicting title (i.e., the same exact title) to its more specific name. Use the [[Help:What links here|What links here]] list for the moved page to update pages that [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation#Links to disambiguated topics|link to that page]].
===Construction===
If an article has been moved to make way for the disambiguation page, use the <u>What links here</u> list of the moved page to access the redirect page created by the move, and replace that redirect page with the new disambiguation page.
Use the new disambiguation page to find and replace (see [[Table of keyboard shortcuts#Text editing]]) any existing [[#Disambiguation links|disambiguation links]] in existing pages with a link to the new disambiguation page.
Note that the standard link templates will actually point to a ''Term XYZ (disambiguation)'' version of the new name.
Use the [[Wikipedia:Red link|red-link]] on an existing page to create a [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] page marked with the {{tlx|R to disambiguation page}} template.
For example, ''Term XYZ (disambiguation)'' could be redirected to the new disambiguation page ''Term XYZ'' as follows:
<pre>
#REDIRECT [[Term XYZ]]
{{R to disambiguation page}}
</pre>
==Links==
===Double disambiguation===
{{shortcut|WP:DDAB|WP:DOUBLEDAB}}
A double disambiguation is a link to a disambiguation page from another disambiguation page. This kind of disambiguation is typically more specific than one with a simplified name. This kind of disambiguation is relatively rare on Wikipedia.
:For example, [[Montgomery (disambiguation)|Montgomery]] is a disambiguation page that includes a link to [[Montgomery County (disambiguation)|Montgomery County]], a secondary disambiguation page. Because the intended target page is also a disambiguation page, the link is to "[[Montgomery County (disambiguation)]]" rather than directly to "Montgomery County". There are two reasons for this: One is so the page will not show up as an error needing to be fixed, and the other is so our readers know it is a link to a disambiguation page. See [[WP:INTDABLINK]] for further information on creating intentional links to disambiguation pages.
===Incomplete disambiguation===
{{shortcut|WP:INCDAB|WP:INCOMPDAB}}
When a more specific title is still ambiguous, but not enough so to call for double disambiguation, it should [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] back to the main disambiguation page (or a section of it). This aids navigation, and helps editors to avoid creating new articles under the ambiguous title by accident.
Such redirects should be marked with {{tlx|R from incomplete disambiguation}} (which places them under [[:Category:Redirects from incomplete disambiguations]]). For example, [[Aurora (album)|''Aurora'' (album)]] could redirect as follows (where [[Aurora (disambiguation)]] is a disambiguation page):
<pre>
#REDIRECT [[Aurora (disambiguation)#Albums]]
{{R from incomplete disambiguation}}
</pre>
In some cases, information may be more appropriate as a list than a disambiguation. For example, [[Cleveland (NFL)]] should not be a disambiguation page, but should instead redirect to [[List of Cleveland sports teams#Football]].
===Interlanguage links===
Pure disambiguation pages should contain interlanguage links only where a similar problem of disambiguation exists in the target language; that is, they should refer to another disambiguation page, not to one of the many meanings from the list.
{{anchor|Links to disambiguated topic}}
===Links to disambiguated topics===
{{shortcut|WP:FIXDABLINKS}}
'''When creating disambiguation pages, fix all resulting mis-directed links.'''
{{em|Before}} moving an article to a qualified name (in order to create a disambiguation page at the base name, to move an existing disambiguation page to that name, or to redirect that name to a disambiguation page), click on <u>What links here</u> to find all of the incoming links and repair them.
When repairing a link, use [[Wikipedia:Piped link|pipe syntax]] so that the link does not show the new qualifier. For example, when renaming ''Topic Name'' to ''Topic Name (qualifier)'', <code><nowiki>[[Topic Name (qualifier)|Topic Name]]</nowiki></code> will render as ''Topic Name'' just like the original.
A shorter alternative is to use empty pipe syntax, also known as the [[Help:Pipe trick|pipe trick]]. This allows editors to leave out the piped alternative when editing. For example, typing <code><nowiki>[[Topic Name (qualifier)| ]]</nowiki></code> will automatically produce <code><nowiki>[[Topic Name (qualifier)|Topic Name]]</nowiki></code>. {{Crossref|(See [[Help:Pipe trick]] for more information.)}}
[[Wikipedia:Disambiguation pages with links|Ambiguous links]] are periodically checked and repaired, but even if some ambiguous links remain, one of the primary reasons for making a disambiguation page is so that following such links will still be useful to the reader.
There is a tool to facilitate ambiguous link repair in the [[SourceForge:projects/pywikipediabot/|Python Wikipedia Robot]]. The [[Wikipedia:Bots|bot]] offers to update links to choices listed on the disambiguation page. Do not forget to seek approval on the [[Wikipedia:Bots/Requests for approval]] page if doing extensive or fast runs.
===Links to disambiguation pages===
{{shortcut|WP:INTDABLINK|WP:INTDAB|WP:INTDABS}}<!-- This paragraph is linked as a shortcut and thus from summaries of edits that it justifies -->Links to disambiguation pages from mainspace are typically errors. In order to find and fix those errors, disambiguators generate a wide array of reports of links needing to be checked and fixed. Because these reports can not distinguish instances where an editor has made such a link with the {{em|intent}} to point to the disambiguation page, the community has adopted the procedure of rerouting {{em|all}} intentional disambiguation links in mainspace through "Foo (disambiguation)" redirects. This makes it clear that such links are intended to point to the disambiguation page.
For example:
* In text or in a "See also" section of an article that is not itself a disambiguation page:
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|There are many places named <nowiki>[[Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
** Correct: {{mxt|There are many places named <nowiki>[[Springfield (disambiguation)|Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
* On a disambiguation page, an intentional link to another disambiguation page that does not contain "(disambiguation)" in the title:
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield (disambiguation)|Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield|Springfield (disambiguation)]]</nowiki>}}
** Correct: {{mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield (disambiguation)]]</nowiki>}}
* In a hatnote:
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>{{for|other uses|Springfield}}</nowiki>}}
** Correct: {{mxt|<nowiki>{{for|other uses|Springfield (disambiguation)}}</nowiki>}}, or
** Correct: {{mxt|<nowiki>{{for|other uses|Springfield (disambiguation){{!}}Springfield}}</nowiki>}}
With few exceptions, creating links to disambiguation pages is erroneous. Links should instead point to a relevant article. The purpose of a disambiguation page is to give a list of articles that is likely to include what a reader is looking for when they have typed an ambiguous term into the search box. Disambiguation pages are not articles and so should not be tagged as orphans per the [[Wikipedia:Orphan#Criteria|Orphan criteria]].
====When to link to a disambiguation page====
The exceptions, when an intentional link to a disambiguation page is appropriate, are:
* Disambiguation hatnotes: [[Watergate]] redirects to [[Watergate scandal]], which carries a [[Wikipedia:Hatnote|hatnote]] linking to [[Watergate (disambiguation)]] for other uses.
* <!-- This bullet point is linked as a shortcut and thus from summaries of edits that it justifies -->Links from one disambiguation page to another for further disambiguation: [[British]] has a link to [[Britain (disambiguation)]] for further disambiguation.{{shortcut|WP:FURTHERDAB}}{{anchor|FurtherDab}}
* Links from set indexes: [[Laing (surname)]] contains a link to [[Laing (disambiguation)]].
* Exceptionally, in a "See also" list of interesting internal links where several different articles might be of interest to the reader and multiple ones are listed on the disambiguation page.
* In a redirect page ([[#REDIRECT|below]])
===={{anchor|HOWTODAB}}How to link to a disambiguation page====
{{shortcut|WP:HOWTODAB}}
To link to a disambiguation page (rather than to a page whose topic is a specific meaning), link to the title that includes the text {{nowrap|"(disambiguation)"}}, {{em|even if that is a redirect}}—for example, link to the redirect [[American (disambiguation)]] rather than the target page at "American".
* If the redirect does not yet exist, create it and tag it with {{tlx|R to disambiguation page}}.
* If you are linking within a template, such as a hatnote template, you can still use pipe syntax so that the link does not show the new qualifier. To do this, use the {{tlx|!}} character-substitution template.
This helps distinguish accidental links to the disambiguation page from intentional ones. (For use in [[WP:Navbox|navboxes]], see the {{tlx|D'}} template.) There is nothing wrong with linking to a redirect instead of linking directly to the disambiguation page; [[Wikipedia:Redirects are cheap|redirects are "cheap"]] and are basically transparent to the reader.
====Redirects to disambiguation pages====
{{anchor|REDIRECT}}
Valid causes for redirecting to a disambiguation page include:
* Incomplete disambiguation (see [[#Incomplete disambiguation|above]])
* Redirects from misspellings: [[Britian]] redirects to the "Britain" disambiguation page.
* Redirects from alternative spellings if separate disambiguation pages are not warranted: [[Türk]] redirects to the [[Turk]] disambiguation page.
* Redirects from variations in capitalisation, word separation, or punctuation, if separate disambiguation pages are not warranted: [[Bullet Proof]] redirects to "Bulletproof (disambiguation)".
The rule about linking through a "(disambiguation)" redirect does not apply to {{em|redirects}} to disambiguation pages: Do not create a double redirect, but make a redirect to the disambiguation page directly (thus [[Bill Cox]], a redirect from an alternative name, redirects to the disambiguation page and does not go through the redirect [[William Cox (disambiguation)]]). Although it is permissible for this redirect to be made, it generally should not be linked to in an article for the same reasons direct links to disambiguation pages are discouraged.
See [[:Category:Redirects to disambiguation pages]].
===={{anchor|DABDISPLAY}}Visualizing links to disambiguation pages====
{{shortcut|WP:DABDISPLAY}}
Links to disambiguation pages can be displayed in orange [[Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-gadgets|in the settings under "Gadgets"]] by checking "Display links to disambiguation pages in orange".
==Deletion==
Although disambiguation pages are not articles, a disambiguation page may be listed at [[Wikipedia:Articles for deletion|Articles for deletion]] to discuss whether the disambiguation page should be deleted. Disambiguation pages may also be deleted as the result of consensus at a [[Wikipedia:Requested moves|Requested moves]] discussion.
== Categories ==
{{Shortcut|WP:DBC}}
Disambiguation pages are not articles and should not be categorized as such. Article categories should lead readers to relevant articles; disambiguation pages should be placed in disambiguation categories only. Some categories are automatically provided by use of the {{tlx|disambiguation}} template and parameters (geo, surname, etc.). Hidden categories may appear due to maintenance or other tags and templates, but other explicit categories (such as "Category:Mountains of Fooland" should not be used on disambiguation pages. When a disambiguation page includes a list of name-holders (in cases where the separate [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Anthroponymy|anthroponymy]] list article has not yet been created), explicit categories such as "Category:Fooish surnames" are acceptable on the disambiguation page until the anthroponymy article is split from the disambiguation page.
==Set index articles==<!--[[Wikipedia:Multi-stub]] redirects here-->
{{main|Wikipedia:Set index articles}}
{{Shortcut|WP:NOTDAB}}
A set index article (SIA) is a list article about a set of items {{em|of a specific type}} that share the same (or similar) name. For example, [[Dodge Charger]] describes a set of cars, [[List of peaks named Signal Mountain]] describes a set of mountain peaks, and [[List of ships of the United States Navy named Enterprise]] describes a set of ships. Being "of a specific type" means that they share a common characteristic {{em|in addition to}} the similarity of name. A list is only a SIA if inclusion of an item in the list is due to the name of the item—e.g., every entry in a list of earthquakes may include the word "earthquake", but that does not mean the list is a SIA.
'''A set index article is not a disambiguation page'''.
==See also==
{{Wikipedia glossary}}
* [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages]]
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Disambiguation]]
** [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation pages with links]]
* [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation dos and don'ts]]
* [[Help:Disambiguation]]
* {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages|Red links}}
* [[Wikipedia:Partially disambiguated page names]] (essay)
== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}
== External links ==
<!--* [[tools:~dispenser/cgi-bin/dablinks.py|Dablinks]], a [[m:Toolserver|Toolserver]] [[Wikipedia:Tools|tool]] that lists ambiguous internal links-->
* [//tools.wmflabs.org/wikiviewstats/ Wiki ViewStats], a [[toolforge:|Toolforge]] tool that shows global and per language / project traffic statistics with disambiguation support.
{{Wikipedia policies and guidelines}}
[[Category:Wikipedia disambiguation| ]]
[[Category:Wikipedia article title help]]
[[da:Wikipedia:Stilmanual#Flertydige artikler]]
{{Redirect|WP:D|information about deletion on Wikipedia|Wikipedia:Deletion policy}}
{{For|a short introduction written for encyclopedia readers|Help:Disambiguation}}
{{For|the Manual of Style guideline about disambiguation pages|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages}}
{{Subcat guideline|editing guideline|Disambiguation|WP:D|WP:DAB|WP:DISAMBIG}}
{{Nutshell|It is necessary to provide links and disambiguation pages so that readers typing in a reasonably likely topic name for more than one Wikipedia topic can quickly navigate to the article they seek.}}
{{Guideline list}}
{{Dabnav}}
'''Disambiguation''' in Wikipedia is the process of resolving conflicts that arise when a potential article title is [[Ambiguity|ambiguous]], most often because it refers to more than one subject covered by Wikipedia, either as the main topic of an article, or as a subtopic covered by an article in addition to the article's main topic. For example, the word "[[Mercury]]" can refer to a chemical element, a planet, a Roman god, and many other things.
There are three important aspects to disambiguation:
* Naming articles in such a way that each has a unique title. For example, three of the articles dealing with topics ordinarily called "Mercury" are titled [[Mercury (element)]], [[Mercury (planet)]] and [[Mercury (mythology)]].
* Making the [[Help:Link|links]] for ambiguous terms point to the correct article title. For example, an editor of an astronomy article may have created a link to [[Mercury]], and this should be corrected to point to [[Mercury (planet)]].
* Ensuring that a reader who searches for a topic using a particular term can get to the information on that topic quickly and easily, whichever of the possible topics it might be. For example, the page [[Mercury (disambiguation)|Mercury]] is a ''disambiguation page''—a non-article page which lists various meanings of "Mercury" and which links to the articles that cover them. (As discussed below, however, ambiguous terms {{em|do not always}} require a disambiguation page.)
This page discusses the standard ways of handling the above issues. For detailed advice about the format of disambiguation pages, see the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages|style manual]].
==Deciding to disambiguate==
Disambiguation is required whenever, for a given word or phrase on which a reader might search, there is more than one existing Wikipedia article to which that word or phrase might be expected to lead. In this situation there must be a way for the reader to navigate quickly from the page that first appears to any of the other possible desired articles.
There are three principal disambiguation scenarios, of which the following are examples:
* The page at '''[[Joker]]''' is a ''disambiguation page'', leading to all the alternative uses of "Joker".
* The page at '''[[Rice]]''' is about one usage, called the ''primary topic'', and there is a [[Wikipedia:Hatnote|hatnote]] guiding readers to [[Rice (disambiguation)]] to find the other uses.
* The page at '''[[Michael Dobbs]]''' is about the primary topic, and there is only one other use. The other use is linked directly using a hatnote; no disambiguation page is needed.
For how to decide which of these scenarios is appropriate in a given case, see the following two sections:
===Broad-concept articles===
{{main|Wikipedia:Broad-concept article}}
{{see also|Category:Disambiguation pages to be converted to broad concept articles}}
{{shortcut|WP:CONCEPTDAB|WP:DABCONCEPT}}
If the ''primary meaning'' of a term proposed for disambiguation is a broad concept or type of thing that is {{em|capable of being described in an article}}, and a substantial portion of the links asserted to be ambiguous are instances or examples of that concept or type, then the page located at that title should be an article describing it and not a disambiguation page. Where the primary topic of a term is a general topic that can be divided into subtopics, such as chronologically (e.g., [[History of France]]) or geographically (e.g., [[Rugby union in the British Isles]]), the unqualified title should contain an article about the general topic rather than a disambiguation page. A disambiguation page should {{em|not}} be created just because it is difficult to write an article on a topic that is broad, vague, abstract, or highly conceptual. Where there are additional meanings that are not instances or examples of a "Foo" primary concept or type, those should be included on a "Foo (disambiguation)" page.
For example:
* [[Particle]] (previously a disambiguation page) is a broad and abstract concept used to address many different ideas in physics, generally relating to small units from which larger things are composed. Although there are many different kinds of particles at levels ranging from the subatomic to the macroscopic, the broad concept is properly susceptible to explanation in an article. Truly unrelated meanings, such as [[Particle (band)]], are only presented at [[Particle (disambiguation)]].
* A [[Supreme court]], [[National Trust]], or [[Finance minister]] (or [[Ministry of Finance]]) is each a kind of entity occurring in multiple countries and possibly in other political entities and serving the same purpose in each. Rather than having disambiguation pages at these titles linking to existing articles on these entities by nation, each should contain an article describing in general terms what the concept is and how the different examples of this concept relate to each other.
* [[Central Asia]], [[Northern Europe]], and [[Southern United States]] are geographic designations that have been used with respect to different specific boundaries over time. Varying uses for broad geographic terms can be discussed in the context of an article describing the overall agreement of which areas definitely fall within that designation and which areas are only occasionally described as falling within that designation, for certain purposes.
* The [[Nokia Lumia]] is a cell phone with many different design models. The fact that different models in the same series of product by the same manufacturer may have the same name, or the same combination of name and number, does not make them ambiguous. The relationship between these design models can and should be discussed on a page describing products created by or licensed by the same manufacturer.
* [[Football]] may refer to one of a number of team sports which all involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball with the foot. Although the word "football" can apply to whichever form of football is the most popular in the regional context in which the word appears, all of these variations share some common elements and can be traced to a common origin. Thus, the history and development of the general concept of football can be explained in its own article. [[Football (disambiguation)]] describes the various literal uses of the word including the actual balls.
* Many definitions of [[triangle center]] are used in Euclidean geometry, which coincide only in the special case of equilateral triangles. The article lists a dozen of these and also gives a validity criterion applicable to various definitions of "center".
In writing articles on these subjects, it is useful to directly address the scope of the term and the history of how the concept has developed. Each of the examples of the concept or type of thing should be included at some point in the article, possibly in a list, so that no information is lost from what would have been presented in the disambiguation page format. Consider using [[Wikipedia:Summary style|summary style]] to incorporate information about the subtopics into the main article.
Pages needing to be expanded to describe the concept may be tagged with {{tlx|dabprimary}}.
=={{Anchor|Primary topic}}Is there a primary topic?==
{{Redirect|WP:PRIMARYTOPIC|the Manual of Style guideline|MOS:DABPRIMARY}}
{{see also|#Incomplete disambiguation}}
{{hatnote|This guideline section should be read in conjunction with the [[Wikipedia:Article titles#Disambiguation|article titles disambiguation policy]].}}
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not move it out of the section heading, even though it disrupts edit summary generation (you can manually fix the edit summary before saving your changes). Please do not modify it, even if you modify the section title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. (This text: [[Template:Anchor comment]]) -->{{shortcut|WP:PRIMARYTOPIC|WP:PRIMARYUSAGE|WP:PTOPIC}}
Although a word, name, or phrase may refer to more than one topic, sometimes one of these topics can be identified as the term's '''primary topic'''. This is the topic to which the term should lead, serving as the title of (or a redirect to) the relevant article. If no primary topic exists, then the term should be the title of a disambiguation page (or should redirect to a disambiguation page on which more than one term is disambiguated). The primary topic might be a [[#Broad-concept articles|broad-concept article]], as mentioned above.
While Wikipedia has no single criterion for defining a primary topic, two major aspects that editors commonly consider are these:
<section begin=primarytopic />
* A topic is '''primary''' for a term with respect to {{em|usage}} if it is highly likely—much more likely than any other single topic, and more likely than all the other topics combined—to be the topic sought when a reader searches for that term.
* A topic is '''primary''' for a term with respect to {{em|long-term significance}} if it has substantially greater enduring notability and educational value than any other topic associated with that term.
<section end=primarytopic />
In most cases, the topic that is primary with respect to usage is also primary with respect to long-term significance; in many other cases, only one sense of primacy is relevant. In a few cases, there is some conflict between a topic of {{em|primary usage}} ([[Apple Inc.]]) and one of {{em|primary long-term significance}} ([[Apple]]). In such a case, [[Wikipedia:Consensus|consensus]] may be useful in determining which topic, if any, is the primary topic.
=== Determining a primary topic ===
{{shortcut|WP:DETERMINEPRIMARY}}
There are no absolute rules for determining whether a primary topic exists and what it is; decisions are made by discussion among editors, often as a result of a [[Wikipedia:Requested moves|requested move]]. Tools that {{em|may}} help to support the determination of a primary topic in a discussion (but are not considered absolute determining factors, due to unreliability, potential bias, and other reasons) include:
* Incoming wikilinks from [[Special:WhatLinksHere]]
* Wikipedia [https://tools.wmflabs.org/pageviews article traffic statistics] (for the exact title of a page or a redirect) and [https://tools.wmflabs.org/redirectviews redirect traffic statistics] (for the total views of a page including traffic coming from its redirects)
* Usage in [[Wikipedia:Identifying reliable sources|English reliable sources]] demonstrated with [[Google]] [https://books.google.com/ngrams Ngram viewer], [https://books.google.com/ Books], [https://scholar.google.com/ Scholar], [https://news.google.com/ News], and [https://trends.google.com/trends/ Trends].
* Simple web searches may be problematic due to limited sources, open interpretation, and [[Google Personalized Search|personal search]] bias, which can be eliminated with [https://encrypted.google.com/webhp?complete=0&hl=en&pws=0 this modified Google search string], but may be helpful if other methods are inconclusive.
Some general principles for determining a primary topic include:
*While long-term significance is a factor, historical age is not determinative.
*Being the original source of the name is also not determinative. [[Boston, Massachusetts]] is the primary topic for [[Boston]], not [[Boston, Lincolnshire|the English town from which it took its name]].
*A topic may have principal relevance for a specific group of people (for example, as the name of a local place, or software), but not be the primary meaning among a general audience. An attorney may read the word "[[hearing]]" and immediately think [[hearing (law)|of a courtroom]], but the auditory sense is still the primary topic.
==== Not "what first comes to (your) mind" ====
{{shortcut|WP:NWFCTM|WP:BUTIDONTKNOWABOUTIT|WP:TITLEPTM|WP:TPTM}}
Perhaps the most commonly rejected criterion is that the primary topic should only belong to what "first comes to mind". This argument is inevitably tainted by the personal background, location, biases, ethnicity, and other pieces of one's own life, but we are trying to build an encyclopedia that is untainted by systemic bias. The primary topic is therefore determined without regard to (for example) the national origin, if any, of the article or articles in question.
Because many topics on Wikipedia are more interesting or pertinent to particular groups, one potential criterion to commonly avoid is what "first comes to mind". An American might first think of [[Birmingham, Alabama|the city in Alabama]] when Birmingham is mentioned, but primary topic belongs to the [[Birmingham|city in England]], which is far more notable and whose article is read much more often. A Scot might think of [[Perth, Scotland|the Scottish city]] when the city of Perth is referred to, but the primary topic belongs to [[Perth|the Australian city]] for essentially the same reasons as for Birmingham. "Raleigh" takes you directly to [[Raleigh, North Carolina|the American city]], even though a Brit may not even know of the city and only think of [[Walter Raleigh|the explorer]] or [[Raleigh Bicycle Company|bicycle manufacturer]] when Raleigh is mentioned. What first comes to your mind when you hear the word "Java"? It may be [[Java (coffee)|coffee]] or [[Java (programming language)|a programming language]], but the primary topic belongs to [[Java|the island]] with over 150 million people living on it.
[[WP:PTM|Partial title matches]] should also be considered. For instance, [[New York City]] is far more notable than [[York|the British city]] from which it got its name, and the vast majority of the time that "York" is used in books, it is used in the names "New York City" and its containing state of "New York".{{efn|1=See [[Google Ngram Viewer]] results for [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=York%2CNew+York&year_start=1808&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2CYork%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CNew%20York%3B%2Cc0 York/New York] and [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=York+is%2CNew+York+is&year_start=1808&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2CYork%20is%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CNew%20York%20is%3B%2Cc0 York is/New York is].}} However, since sources rarely use an unqualified "York" to refer to "New York", [[York]] still hosts an article on the British city, and no suggestion to change that would be seriously entertained. Likewise, "Sofia" has been the first name of countless girls and women throughout history; however, as a single term it most commonly refers to [[Sofia|the Bulgarian capital]].{{efn|US cities (such as [[Anaheim, California]]) are {{em|not}} considered as partial title matches when deciding whether they are the primary topic for the base name ("[[Anaheim]]"). They are considered full title matches for [[WP:PRIMARYREDIRECT|primary redirect]] concern; the only reason that many US city articles are located at the elongated title is the [[WP:USPLACENAMES|Wikipedia guideline]] to keep state names in titles for virtually all US cities and counties.}}
We certainly [[Wikipedia:Writing better articles#Principle of least astonishment|don't want to astonish our readers]], and the topic that comes first to mind indeed often is suitable as the primary topic. [[Anne Hathaway]], as one of countless examples, takes the reader to the modern-day American movie star's page, not to the article on [[Anne Hathaway (wife of Shakespeare)|the wife of William Shakespeare]]. But in no case does "what comes first to mind" to any ''particular'' person have much bearing, either positive or negative, on which topic, if any, actually is the primary topic.
=== Redirecting to a primary topic ===
{{Shortcut|WP:PRIMARYREDIRECT}}
{{anchor|PRIMARYREDIRECT}}
The title of the primary topic article may be different from the ambiguous term. This may happen when the topic is primary for more than one term, when the article covers a wider topical scope, or when it is titled differently according to the [[Wikipedia:Article titles|naming conventions]]. When this is the case, the term should [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] to the article (or a section of it). The fact that an article has a different title is not a factor in determining whether a topic is primary. For example:
* The city which is the subject of the article on [[Gdańsk]] used to be called Danzig in English, but is now usually referred to as Gdańsk. Thus the primary topic for "Danzig" is this city; [[Danzig]] redirects to [[Gdańsk]], and the latter page contains a {{tlx|redirect}} hatnote linking to [[Danzig (disambiguation)]].
* The primary topic for the search term "Einstein" is the physicist, but the article title is [[Albert Einstein]]. Here [[Einstein]] redirects to [[Albert Einstein]], and a hatnote then links to [[Einstein (disambiguation)]].
* The article at [[Defamation]] is the primary topic for five terms: "[[defamation]]", "[[libel]]", "[[slander]]", "[[vilification]]", and "[[calumny]]". Even though [[Libel (film)|there is a film with the title ''Libel'']], the article at [[Defamation]] is still the primary topic for that title and the film must be disambiguated.
Sometimes, a disambiguated article title, such as [[Apostrophe (punctuation)]], may be moved to an unqualified title based on a consensus that this is the primary topic for the unqualified term. When such a page move is made, the redirect template {{tlx|R from unnecessary disambiguation}} can be used to categorize the redirect that results from the move
under [[:Category:Redirects from unnecessary disambiguation]]. Using the above example, [[Apostrophe (punctuation)]] would redirect as follows (where [[Apostrophe]]'s topic is primary):
<pre>
#REDIRECT [[Apostrophe]]
{{Redirect category shell|
{{R from unnecessary disambiguation}}
{{R unprintworthy}}
}}
</pre>
=== Primary topic when a disambiguation page lists only one existing article by that name ===
When a disambiguation page lists only one existing article by that name (all other suggested articles are red-linked), the normal rules for determining the primary topic still apply. The existing article does not automatically become the primary topic. So:
* If the article with the blue link is chosen to be the primary topic, it becomes the primary article. The disambiguation page is then moved to a page carrying the ''(disambiguation)'' qualifier.
* On the rare occasions that a red-linked article is preferred to be the primary topic, the disambiguation page will still occupy the primary position as long as the red-linked article has not been written.
* If no article is preferred to be the primary topic, then the disambiguation page will remain the [[WP:primary landing page|primary landing page]].
Example of such a page:
:{| style="border: 1px solid black" width=80%
|-
|
'''Urney''' may refer to:
*[[Urney, County Cavan]], a civil parish and [[List of townlands of County Cavan|townland in County Cavan]], Ireland
*[[Urney, County Donegal]], a civil parish in County Donegal, Ireland
*[[Urney, County Offaly]], a [[List of townlands of County Offaly|townland in County Offaly]], Ireland
*[[Urney, County Tyrone]], a civil parish and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
|}
In this case, the Urney disambiguation page is the primary landing page, as neither of the mentioned parishes can claim to be the primary topic.
Please note, [[MOS:DABMENTION]] and [[MOS:DABENTRY]] rules still apply: any red-linked article must still be complemented by a blue-linked article, and each entry should contain no more than one blue link.
{{anchor|Disambiguation page or hatnotes}}
==Disambiguation page or hatnotes?==
{{see also|WP:DIFFCAPS|WP:Hatnotes are cheap|WP:2DABPRIMARY}}
{{Shortcut|WP:MULTIDABS|WP:2DABS|WP:TWODABS}}
{{Hatnote|For more about hatnotes, see {{section link||Hatnotes}}, below.}}
{{Hatnote|For rules about naming disambiguation pages and combining similar terms on a single page, see {{section link||Disambiguation pages}}.}}
As discussed above, if an ambiguous term has no primary topic, then that term needs to lead to a disambiguation page. In other words, where no topic is primary, the disambiguation page is placed at the base name.
If a disambiguation page is needed, but one of the other topics is of particular interest, then it may be appropriate to link to it explicitly {{em|as well}} as linking to the disambiguation page. For example, [[Inflation]] is about the primary topic—a rise in prices—and a hatnote links to both [[Inflation (cosmology)]] and [[Inflation (disambiguation)]].
=== No primary topic ===
{{Shortcut|WP:NOPRIMARY}}
If there are multiple topics (even just two) to which a given title might refer, but per the criteria at [[#Is there a primary topic?|Is there a primary topic?]] there is no primary topic, then the base name should lead the reader to the disambiguation page for the term. For example, [[John Quested]] is a disambiguation page for the two people by that name who can be found in the encyclopedia:
{{block indent|1=
'''John Quested''' may refer to:
* [[John Quested (RAF officer)]] (1893–1948), English World War I flying ace
* [[John Quested (producer)]] (born 1935), film producer and owner and chairman of Goldcrest Films
}}
=== Primary topic with only one other topic ===
{{Shortcut|WP:ONEOTHER}}
{{em|If there is a primary topic}} located at the base name, then the question arises whether to create a disambiguation page, or merely to link to all the other meanings from a hatnote on the primary topic article.
If there are only two topics to which a given title might refer, and one is the primary topic, then a disambiguation page is not needed—it is sufficient to use a hatnote on the primary topic article, pointing to the other article. (This means that readers looking for the second topic are spared the extra navigational step of going through the disambiguation page.)
If a disambiguation page does not appear to be needed because there are only two topics for the ambiguous title and one of them is the primary topic, but there could reasonably be other topics ambiguous with the title on Wikipedia now or in the future, an {{tlx|about}} hatnote can be used to link to a disambiguation page (either in addition to or instead of a link directly to the other article). At the same time, the {{txl|One other topic}} template should be added to the top of the disambiguation page, which will inform users that the page has only two ambiguous terms, one of them primary; thus it may be deleted if, after a period of time no additional ambiguous topics are found to expand the disambiguation page. The {{tlx|One other topic}} template will also list the article in {{cl|Disambiguation pages containing one non-primary topic}}, allowing other editors to locate these pages and help in expanding them. If the two-dab page has been expanded to include additional ambiguous topics, {{tlx|One other topic}} template should be removed and a direct link in the primary article to the other article may not be needed anymore as a link to the disambiguation page alone may be sufficient.
For example, [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Retrograde_motion_(disambiguation)&oldid=547937411 Retrograde motion (disambiguation)] contained links to only two articles, of which [[Retrograde motion]] was the primary topic. The disambiguation page is not needed, as the article links to the other meaning [[Apparent retrograde motion]] with a hatnote. However, if some more disambiguation links can be added, it would be useful to expand the hatnote with a link to the disambiguation page.
=== Primary topic with two or more other topics ===
If there are two or three other topics, it is still possible to use a hatnote which lists the other topics explicitly, but if this would require too much text (roughly, if the hatnote would extend well over one line on a standard page), then it is better to create a disambiguation page and refer only to that.
=== Different spelling variants ===
If the titles of two articles differ only in capitalization or the separation or non-separation of components (as per [[WP:DIFFCAPS]] or [[WP:PLURALPT]]), the articles each should contain a hatnote to link to each other.
==Naming the specific topic articles==
{{naming conventions}}
{{Shortcut|WP:NCDAB}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Article titles#Disambiguation}}
For disambiguating specific topic pages by using an unambiguous article title, several options are available:
# '''Natural disambiguation'''. When there is another term (such as [[Apartment]] instead of [[Flat]]) or more complete name (such as [[English language]] instead of [[English]]) that is unambiguous, commonly used in English (even without being the most common term), and equally clear, that term is typically the best to use.
# '''Comma-separated disambiguation'''. Ambiguous geographic names are often disambiguated by adding the name of a higher-level administrative division, separated by a comma, as in [[Windsor, Berkshire]].{{efn|In running prose, it is more common in British and some other [[Commonwealth English]] varieties to use a "Windsor in Berkshire" pattern, while "Windsor, Ontario," is more common in [[North American English]]. This [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#National varieties of English|dialectal distinction]] does not apply to article titles, which follow [[WP:CONSISTENCY|consistent]], prescribed patterns.}} See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (geographic names)|Naming conventions (geographic names)]].
# '''Parenthetical disambiguation'''. A disambiguating word or phrase can be added in parentheses. The word or phrase in parentheses should be:
#* the generic {{em|class}} (avoiding [[proper nouns]], as much as possible) that includes the topic, as in [[Mercury (element)]], [[Seal (emblem)]]; or
#* the {{em|subject}} or {{em|context}} to which the topic applies, as in [[Union (set theory)]], [[Inflation (cosmology)]]; or
#* rarely, an adjective describing the topic can be used, as in [[Vector (spatial)]], but it is usually better to rephrase such a title to avoid parentheses (for instance, [[Vector (spatial)]] was renamed to [[Euclidean vector]]).
Natural disambiguation that is '''unambiguous''', '''commonly used''', and '''clear''' is generally preferable to parenthetical disambiguation; for instance, [[Fan district]] and [[hand fan]] are used instead of [[Fan (district)]] and [[fan (implement)]]. If no unambiguous, commonly used, and clear natural disambiguation is available, another type of disambiguation is used. If there are several possible choices for parenthetical disambiguation, use the same disambiguating phrase already commonly used for other topics within the same class and context, if any. Otherwise, choose whichever is simpler. For example, use "(mythology)" rather than "(mythological figure)".
Naming conventions applicable to certain subject areas are listed in the box to the right; these often contain detailed guidance about how to disambiguate. In particular, for articles about people, see the [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (people)#Disambiguating|Disambiguating]] section in the [[WP:NCP|people naming convention]].
===Format===
To conform to the [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions|naming conventions]], the phrase in parentheses should be treated just as any other word in a title: normally lowercase, unless it is a proper noun (like a book title) that would appear capitalized even in running text.
For common disambiguation words, see [[User:Jarry1250/Findings]].
=={{anchor|Disambiguation links}} Hatnotes==
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not move it out of the section heading, even though it disrupts edit summary generation (you can manually fix the edit summary before saving your changes). Please do not modify it, even if you modify the section title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. (This text: [[Template:Anchor comment]]) -->{{shortcut|WP:DLINKS|WP:DABLINK|WP:DABLINKS}}
{{main|Wikipedia:Hatnote}}
{{For|a complete listing of disambiguation hatnote templates|Template:Hatnote templates documentation}}
{{Redirect|WP:DABLINK|Links to disambiguation pages|#Links to disambiguation pages}}
Users searching for what turns out to be an ambiguous term may not reach the article they expected. Therefore, any article with an ambiguous title should contain helpful links to alternative Wikipedia articles or disambiguation pages, placed at the top of the article using one or more of the templates shown below.
Disambiguation hatnotes are not article content—they are associated with the title, rather than any article topic content.
Most hatnote templates generate links automatically, so double square brackets are not normally used within the templates. In some cases there are multiple templates available, one including and another omitting information about the topic of the article. The shorter hatnote may be chosen if omitting the information is not likely to confuse the reader.
'''On a primary topic page for a term that has one secondary topic only (no disambiguation page):'''
* Type {{tlx|about|TOPIC|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}} to produce:{{about|TOPIC|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}}
* Type {{tlx|for|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}} to produce:{{for|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}}
* Type {{tlx|see also|ARTICLE (2)}} to produce:{{see also|ARTICLE (2)}}
'''On a secondary topic page for a term that has one other topic only (no disambiguation page):'''
* As above, but consider whether the hatnote is really necessary (see the first of the [[#Usage guidelines|usage guidelines]] below).
'''On a primary topic page that has an associated disambiguation page:'''
* Type {{tlx|about|TOPIC}} to produce:{{about|TOPIC||ARTICLE NAME (disambiguation)}}
* Type {{tlx|otheruses}} to produce:{{otheruses|ARTICLE NAME (disambiguation)}}
* or, if the disambiguation page is not in the default location, type {{tlx|otheruses|NAME}} to produce:{{otheruses|NAME}}
'''When the primary topic redirects to another page:'''
* If there is only one secondary topic, type {{tlx|redirect|REDIRECT|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}} on the target page to produce:{{redirect|REDIRECT|TOPIC 2|ARTICLE (2)}}
* If there is a disambiguation page, type {{tlx|redirect|REDIRECT}} to produce:{{redirect|REDIRECT}}
Other variations on these templates are available, including templates for specific subjects such as places, numbers, etc. Templates are listed and illustrated at [[Template talk:About]] and [[Wikipedia:Otheruses templates (example usage)]]. A longer list of disambiguation templates is found at [[Wikipedia:Template messages/General#Disambiguation and redirection]]; further style information is given at [[Wikipedia:Hatnotes#Templates]]. Many more templates are listed in [[:Category:Disambiguation and redirection templates]].
===Usage guidelines===
* There is not always a need to add disambiguation links to a page whose name already clearly distinguishes itself from the generic term. However, for some topics this is a good idea. For example, [[Treaty of Paris (1796)]] should include a hatnote point to the disambiguation page [[Treaty of Paris (disambiguation)]], since many users might not know that there is more than one treaty with this name, and we cannot predict what external search engines will link to. In other cases, such a hatnote is not necessary. For example, [[Solaris (1972 film)]] is clearly about one specific movie and not about any of the many other meanings of "Solaris", and most users will know to type Solaris in the search box to find other topics.
* As noted above, disambiguation links should be placed at the top of an article, where they are most visible. For alternatives that are related to the article but are not a source of ambiguity, the [[Wikipedia:See also|"See also" section]] at the end of the article is more appropriate.
* Do not use [[Wikipedia:Piped link|piping]] to change the title of disambiguation entry links. Showing the actual linked entry title avoids confusion. (Piping may be used for formatting or technical reasons; see the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#Where piping may be appropriate|Manual of Style exceptions]].)
* Consolidate multiple disambiguation links into as few dablink hatnotes as possible.
* See [[Wikipedia:Hatnote]] for other guidelines on the proper use of disambiguation links.
==Disambiguation pages==
{{shortcut||WP:DPAGE|WP:DPAGES}}
A disambiguation page is a non-article page that lists and links to encyclopedia articles covering topics that could have had the same title. The purpose of disambiguation pages is allowing [[WP:BUILDTHEWEB|navigation]] to the article on the topic being sought. The information on a disambiguation page should be focused on getting the reader to their desired article.
===Combining terms on disambiguation pages===
A single disambiguation page may be used to disambiguate a number of similar terms. Sets of terms which are commonly so combined include:
* Terms that differ only in capitalization, punctuation and diacritic marks. These should almost always share a disambiguation page. For example, the terms ''Oe'', ''Ōe'', ''OE'' and ''O.E.'' are disambiguated on a single page ([[Oe (disambiguation)|Oe]]).
* Corresponding singular, plural and possessive forms, or compound words. For example, the terms ''Eaglenest'', ''Eagle Nest'', ''Eagle's Nest'' and ''Eagle Nests'' all appear at [[Eagle's Nest (disambiguation)|Eagle's Nest]], and [[Stars (disambiguation)]] redirects to [[Star (disambiguation)]].
* Variant spellings. For example, ''Honor'' and ''Honour'' both appear at [[Honor (disambiguation)]].
* Variant forms of names. For example, [[Fred Smith (disambiguation)|Fred Smith]] also includes persons named ''Frederick Smith''.
* Terms which differ by the presence or absence of an [[article (grammar)|article]] (i.e., "a", "an", or "the" in English). For example, [[Cure (disambiguation)]] also contains instances of ''The Cure''.
Editorial judgement should be used in deciding whether to combine terms in the ways described above. If a combined disambiguation page would be inconveniently long, it may be better to split the disambiguation page into separate pages.
When a combined disambiguation page is used, redirects to it (or hatnotes, as appropriate) should be set up from all the terms involved.
===<span id="NAME"></span> Naming the disambiguation page ===
{{shortcut|WP:DABNAME}}
{{redirect|WP:DABNAME|the Manual of Style guideline on people's names in disambiguation pages|MOS:DABNAME}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Article titles}}
The title of a disambiguation page is the ambiguous term itself, provided there is no primary topic for that term. If there is a primary topic, then the tag "(disambiguation)" is added to the name of the disambiguation page, as in [[Jupiter (disambiguation)]].
When a disambiguation page combines several similar terms, one of them must be selected as the title for the page (with the "(disambiguation)" tag added if a primary topic exists for that term); the choice should be made in line with the following principles:
* A word is preferred to an abbreviation, for example [[Arm (disambiguation)]] over [[ARM]].
* When no word can be formed, all capitals is preferred. For example, the disambiguation page for "ddb" is [[DDB (disambiguation)]], not "Ddb".
* English spelling is preferred to that of non-English languages.
* Singulars are preferred to plurals.
* The simplest form of the term is preferred to those containing punctuation, [[diacritic]]s and articles; for example [[SA (disambiguation)|SA]] is preferred to [[S.A. (disambiguation)|S.A.]], and [[Shadow (disambiguation)]] is preferred to [[The Shadow (disambiguation)]].
* The spelling that reflects the majority of items on the page is preferred to less common alternatives.
In addition, when a disambiguation page exists at the ambiguous term, there should also be a redirect to it from the "(disambiguation)" title; in other words, if "Term ABC" is a disambiguation page, a redirect from "Term ABC (disambiguation)" should be created if it does not already exist. This type of redirect is used to indicate any intentional links to the disambiguation page, to distinguish them from accidental or erroneous incoming links that should be disambiguated to the appropriate article.
===Page style===
{{shortcut|WP:DABSTYLE}}
{{main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages}}
Each disambiguation page comprises a list (or multiple lists, for multiple senses of the term in question) of similarly titled links.
* Link to the primary topic (if there is one):
*:A '''[[school]]''' is an institution for learning.
* Start each list with a short introductory sentence fragment with the title in '''bold''', and ending with a colon. For example:
*:'''Blockbuster''' may refer to:
* Try to start each entry in the list with a link to the target page, unless the link provided gives context rather than a synonymous meaning.
* {{anchor|oneblue}} Each bulleted entry should have a navigable (blue) link, normally as the entry itself (see the previous bullet), or in the description if the entry is red-linked or unlinked.
** Rarely should a bulleted entry have more than one navigable link; including more than one link can confuse the reader.
* Do not [[Wikipedia:Piped link|pipe]] the name of the links to the articles being listed.{{efn|1=Integral to purpose of a DAB page is to communicate the actual titles of entries that are at variance with the base title one might expect—were the entries not ambiguous with each other.}} (See [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#Piping and redirects|exceptions]].)
* Entries are sentence fragments; do not end them with periods or other punctuation.
Include the template {{tl|disambiguation}} (or another disambiguation template, such as {{tlx|Geodis}} or {{tlx|Hndis}}) at the bottom as an indicator of the page's status. For more information, see the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages)#The disambig notice and categorization|relevant style guide section]].
For prime examples of disambiguation pages, see [[Lift (disambiguation)|Lift]] and [[Aurora (disambiguation)]].
===What not to include===
{{shortcut|WP:DABNOT|WP:DABNOINCLUDE}}
The purpose of a disambiguation page is to direct a reader seeking information on a specific topic to the right page. Strictly speaking, entries should be just sufficient for this purpose. It is common to add {{em|a little}} additional information (which may make reference to the full article unnecessary). For example, consider the text "[[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]], US president 1933–1945, Democratic Party, a central figure in world events, creator of the [[New Deal]], in a wheelchair from polio since 1921, died in office". The name only is sufficient in [[FDR (disambiguation)]] (for example, to distinguish the president from a [[flight data recorder]]). The next phrase, office held and incumbency, is unlikely to be objected to. The rest is unnecessary and inappropriate; it very briefly summarises the article, rather than merely disambiguating.
====Dictionary definitions====
{{Shortcut|WP:DABDIC}}
A disambiguation page is not a list of dictionary definitions. A short description of the common general meaning of a word can be appropriate for helping the reader determine context. Otherwise, there are templates for linking the reader to [[Wiktionary]], the wiki dictionary; see [[Template:Wiktionary]]. It is also not an interlanguage dictionary; while [[Geneva]] is Ginebra in Spanish and other languages, this is not listed in the article, so the [[Ginebra]] disambiguation page should not include Geneva.
====<span id="Lists"></span>{{anchor|Partial-title-match}}Partial title matches====
{{Shortcut||WP:PARTIAL|WP:PTM}}
A disambiguation page is not a search index. Do not add a link that merely contains part of the page title, or a link that includes the page title in a longer proper name, where there is no significant risk of confusion between them. For example, [[Louisville Zoo]] is not included at [[Zoo (disambiguation)]] because people outside [[Louisville]] would not readily identify it as {{em|the}} "Zoo", and including all zoos in the world in the disambiguation page is impractical (though [[List of zoos]] {{em|is}} listed in the "See also" section). Add a link only if the article's subject (or the relevant subtopic thereof) could plausibly be referred to by essentially the {{em|same}} name as the disambiguated term in a sufficiently generic context—regardless of the article's title. For instance, the [[Mississippi River]] article could not feasibly be titled [[Mississippi]], since that name is used by the US state article, but it is included at [[Mississippi (disambiguation)]] because its subject is often called "the Mississippi".
Place names are often divided between a specific and generic part: "North Carolina" (where "Carolina" is the specific, and "North" the generic part). Other common generics are compass points, upper/lower, old/new, big/small, etc. It is entirely proper to include such place names in disambiguation pages with the specific title ([[North Carolina]] is properly listed at [[Carolina (disambiguation)]]); but only exceptionally in the generic title (we do not expect to see North Carolina in [[North (disambiguation)]], just as we do not expect to see Mississippi River in [[River (disambiguation)]]).
Instead of listing partial title matches, consider adding the {{tlx|look from}} or {{tlx|intitle}} templates in the "See also" section, which link to all articles starting with or containing a particular term, respectively.
===={{anchor|Names}} Lists of names====
{{shortcut|WP:NAMELIST}}
To prevent disambiguation pages from getting too long, [[WP:BLP|articles on people]] should be listed at the disambiguation page for their first or last name only if they are reasonably well known by it. We reasonably expect to see [[Abraham Lincoln]] at [[Lincoln (disambiguation)]], but very few sources would refer to the waltz composer [[Harry J. Lincoln]] by an unqualified "Lincoln", so he is only listed at the [[Lincoln (surname)]] anthroponymy article. This is even more widespread for first names—many highly notable people are called [[Herb (given name)|Herb]], but typing in [[Herb]] gets you an article on plants. [[Herb (disambiguation)]] does not even list any people named "Herb", but instead links to [[Herb (surname)]] and [[Herb (given name)]], where articles on people named "Herb" are listed. Consensus among editors determines if an article should be listed on the disambiguation page.
====Related subjects====
{{Shortcut|WP:DABRELATED}}
Include articles only if the term being disambiguated is actually described in the target article. For example, a use of the term "set" is discussed in the article on [[Volleyball]], so [[Set (disambiguation)]] legitimately includes "Set, the second contact in <nowiki>[[volleyball]]</nowiki>".
===={{Anchor|Related subjects, abbreviations and acronyms|Related subjects, abbreviations, initials and acronyms}}Abbreviations, initials and acronyms====
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not move it out of the section heading, even though it disrupts edit summary generation (you can manually fix the edit summary before saving your changes). Please do not modify it, even if you modify the section title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. (This text: [[Template:Anchor comment]]) -->{{Shortcut|WP:DABABBREV|WP:DABACRONYM}}
Do not add articles to abbreviation or acronym disambiguation pages unless the target article includes the acronym or abbreviation—we are resolving an ambiguity, not making yet another dictionary of abbreviations. If an abbreviation is [[Wikipedia:Verifiability|verifiable]], but not mentioned on the target article, consider adding it to the target article and then adding the entry to the disambiguation page. In particular, do not include people and other things simply because of their initials, unless those initials have been widely used. [[John Fitzgerald Kennedy]] is widely known as [[JFK]] and this is discussed in the article, so the initials are appropriately disambiguated; however, [[Marilyn Monroe]] was never commonly known as "MM", nor was [[A. A. Milne]] known as either "AA" or "AAM". {{crossref|(See also [[MOS:DABACRO]].)}}
====Sister projects====
{{shortcut|WP:DABSISTER}}
Disambiguation entries should not be created for subjects whose only content is on pages of [[WP:SISTER|sister projects]] (including other-language Wikipedias).
====References====
{{shortcut|WP:DABREF}}
Do not include references in disambiguation pages; disambiguation pages are not articles. Incorporate references into the articles linked from the disambiguation page, as needed.
====External links====
Do not include external links, either as entries or in descriptions. Disambiguation pages disambiguate Wikipedia articles, not the World Wide Web. To note URLs that might be helpful in the future, include them on the talk page. An exception is [[WP:MOSDAB#Linking to Wiktionary|linking to Wiktionary]] for the dictionary definition of the disambiguated topic.
===Preparation===
Before constructing a new disambiguation page, determine a [[#Naming the specific topic articles|specific topic]] name for all existing pages, and the [[#Naming the disambiguation page|name for the disambiguation page]]. [[Help:Moving a page|Move]] any page with a conflicting title (i.e., the same exact title) to its more specific name. Use the [[Help:What links here|What links here]] list for the moved page to update pages that [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation#Links to disambiguated topics|link to that page]].
===Construction===
If an article has been moved to make way for the disambiguation page, use the <u>What links here</u> list of the moved page to access the redirect page created by the move, and replace that redirect page with the new disambiguation page.
Use the new disambiguation page to find and replace (see [[Table of keyboard shortcuts#Text editing]]) any existing [[#Disambiguation links|disambiguation links]] in existing pages with a link to the new disambiguation page.
Note that the standard link templates will actually point to a ''Term XYZ (disambiguation)'' version of the new name.
Use the [[Wikipedia:Red link|red-link]] on an existing page to create a [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] page marked with the {{tlx|R to disambiguation page}} template.
For example, ''Term XYZ (disambiguation)'' could be redirected to the new disambiguation page ''Term XYZ'' as follows:
<pre>
#REDIRECT [[Term XYZ]]
{{R to disambiguation page}}
</pre>
==Links==
===Double disambiguation===
{{shortcut|WP:DDAB|WP:DOUBLEDAB}}
A double disambiguation is a link to a disambiguation page from another disambiguation page. This kind of disambiguation is typically more specific than one with a simplified name. This kind of disambiguation is relatively rare on Wikipedia.
:For example, [[Montgomery (disambiguation)|Montgomery]] is a disambiguation page that includes a link to [[Montgomery County (disambiguation)|Montgomery County]], a secondary disambiguation page. Because the intended target page is also a disambiguation page, the link is to "[[Montgomery County (disambiguation)]]" rather than directly to "Montgomery County". There are two reasons for this: One is so the page will not show up as an error needing to be fixed, and the other is so our readers know it is a link to a disambiguation page. See [[WP:INTDABLINK]] for further information on creating intentional links to disambiguation pages.
===Incomplete disambiguation===
{{shortcut|WP:INCDAB|WP:INCOMPDAB}}
When a more specific title is still ambiguous, but not enough so to call for double disambiguation, it should [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] back to the main disambiguation page (or a section of it). This aids navigation, and helps editors to avoid creating new articles under the ambiguous title by accident.
Such redirects should be marked with {{tlx|R from incomplete disambiguation}} (which places them under [[:Category:Redirects from incomplete disambiguations]]). For example, [[Aurora (album)|''Aurora'' (album)]] could redirect as follows (where [[Aurora (disambiguation)]] is a disambiguation page):
<pre>
#REDIRECT [[Aurora (disambiguation)#Albums]]
{{R from incomplete disambiguation}}
</pre>
In some cases, information may be more appropriate as a list than a disambiguation. For example, [[Cleveland (NFL)]] should not be a disambiguation page, but should instead redirect to [[List of Cleveland sports teams#Football]].
===Interlanguage links===
Pure disambiguation pages should contain interlanguage links only where a similar problem of disambiguation exists in the target language; that is, they should refer to another disambiguation page, not to one of the many meanings from the list.
{{anchor|Links to disambiguated topic}}
===Links to disambiguated topics===
{{shortcut|WP:FIXDABLINKS}}
'''When creating disambiguation pages, fix all resulting mis-directed links.'''
{{em|Before}} moving an article to a qualified name (in order to create a disambiguation page at the base name, to move an existing disambiguation page to that name, or to redirect that name to a disambiguation page), click on <u>What links here</u> to find all of the incoming links and repair them.
When repairing a link, use [[Wikipedia:Piped link|pipe syntax]] so that the link does not show the new qualifier. For example, when renaming ''Topic Name'' to ''Topic Name (qualifier)'', <code><nowiki>[[Topic Name (qualifier)|Topic Name]]</nowiki></code> will render as ''Topic Name'' just like the original.
A shorter alternative is to use empty pipe syntax, also known as the [[Help:Pipe trick|pipe trick]]. This allows editors to leave out the piped alternative when editing. For example, typing <code><nowiki>[[Topic Name (qualifier)| ]]</nowiki></code> will automatically produce <code><nowiki>[[Topic Name (qualifier)|Topic Name]]</nowiki></code>. {{Crossref|(See [[Help:Pipe trick]] for more information.)}}
[[Wikipedia:Disambiguation pages with links|Ambiguous links]] are periodically checked and repaired, but even if some ambiguous links remain, one of the primary reasons for making a disambiguation page is so that following such links will still be useful to the reader.
There is a tool to facilitate ambiguous link repair in the [[SourceForge:projects/pywikipediabot/|Python Wikipedia Robot]]. The [[Wikipedia:Bots|bot]] offers to update links to choices listed on the disambiguation page. Do not forget to seek approval on the [[Wikipedia:Bots/Requests for approval]] page if doing extensive or fast runs.
===Links to disambiguation pages===
{{shortcut|WP:INTDABLINK|WP:INTDAB|WP:INTDABS}}<!-- This paragraph is linked as a shortcut and thus from summaries of edits that it justifies -->Links to disambiguation pages from mainspace are typically errors. In order to find and fix those errors, disambiguators generate a wide array of reports of links needing to be checked and fixed. Because these reports can not distinguish instances where an editor has made such a link with the {{em|intent}} to point to the disambiguation page, the community has adopted the procedure of rerouting {{em|all}} intentional disambiguation links in mainspace through "Foo (disambiguation)" redirects. This makes it clear that such links are intended to point to the disambiguation page.
For example:
* In text or in a "See also" section of an article that is not itself a disambiguation page:
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|There are many places named <nowiki>[[Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
** Correct: {{mxt|There are many places named <nowiki>[[Springfield (disambiguation)|Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
* On a disambiguation page, an intentional link to another disambiguation page that does not contain "(disambiguation)" in the title:
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield (disambiguation)|Springfield]]</nowiki>}}
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield|Springfield (disambiguation)]]</nowiki>}}
** Correct: {{mxt|<nowiki>[[Springfield (disambiguation)]]</nowiki>}}
* In a hatnote:
** Incorrect: {{!mxt|<nowiki>{{for|other uses|Springfield}}</nowiki>}}
** Correct: {{mxt|<nowiki>{{for|other uses|Springfield (disambiguation)}}</nowiki>}}, or
** Correct: {{mxt|<nowiki>{{for|other uses|Springfield (disambiguation){{!}}Springfield}}</nowiki>}}
With few exceptions, creating links to disambiguation pages is erroneous. Links should instead point to a relevant article. The purpose of a disambiguation page is to give a list of articles that is likely to include what a reader is looking for when they have typed an ambiguous term into the search box. Disambiguation pages are not articles and so should not be tagged as orphans per the [[Wikipedia:Orphan#Criteria|Orphan criteria]].
====When to link to a disambiguation page====
The exceptions, when an intentional link to a disambiguation page is appropriate, are:
* Disambiguation hatnotes: [[Watergate]] redirects to [[Watergate scandal]], which carries a [[Wikipedia:Hatnote|hatnote]] linking to [[Watergate (disambiguation)]] for other uses.
* <!-- This bullet point is linked as a shortcut and thus from summaries of edits that it justifies -->Links from one disambiguation page to another for further disambiguation: [[British]] has a link to [[Britain (disambiguation)]] for further disambiguation.{{shortcut|WP:FURTHERDAB}}{{anchor|FurtherDab}}
* Links from set indexes: [[Laing (surname)]] contains a link to [[Laing (disambiguation)]].
* Exceptionally, in a "See also" list of interesting internal links where several different articles might be of interest to the reader and multiple ones are listed on the disambiguation page.
* In a redirect page ([[#REDIRECT|below]])
===={{anchor|HOWTODAB}}How to link to a disambiguation page====
{{shortcut|WP:HOWTODAB}}
To link to a disambiguation page (rather than to a page whose topic is a specific meaning), link to the title that includes the text {{nowrap|"(disambiguation)"}}, {{em|even if that is a redirect}}—for example, link to the redirect [[American (disambiguation)]] rather than the target page at "American".
* If the redirect does not yet exist, create it and tag it with {{tlx|R to disambiguation page}}.
* If you are linking within a template, such as a hatnote template, you can still use pipe syntax so that the link does not show the new qualifier. To do this, use the {{tlx|!}} character-substitution template.
This helps distinguish accidental links to the disambiguation page from intentional ones. (For use in [[WP:Navbox|navboxes]], see the {{tlx|D'}} template.) There is nothing wrong with linking to a redirect instead of linking directly to the disambiguation page; [[Wikipedia:Redirects are cheap|redirects are "cheap"]] and are basically transparent to the reader.
====Redirects to disambiguation pages====
{{anchor|REDIRECT}}
Valid causes for redirecting to a disambiguation page include:
* Incomplete disambiguation (see [[#Incomplete disambiguation|above]])
* Redirects from misspellings: [[Britian]] redirects to the "Britain" disambiguation page.
* Redirects from alternative spellings if separate disambiguation pages are not warranted: [[Türk]] redirects to the [[Turk]] disambiguation page.
* Redirects from variations in capitalisation, word separation, or punctuation, if separate disambiguation pages are not warranted: [[Bullet Proof]] redirects to "Bulletproof (disambiguation)".
The rule about linking through a "(disambiguation)" redirect does not apply to {{em|redirects}} to disambiguation pages: Do not create a double redirect, but make a redirect to the disambiguation page directly (thus [[Bill Cox]], a redirect from an alternative name, redirects to the disambiguation page and does not go through the redirect [[William Cox (disambiguation)]]). Although it is permissible for this redirect to be made, it generally should not be linked to in an article for the same reasons direct links to disambiguation pages are discouraged.
See [[:Category:Redirects to disambiguation pages]].
===={{anchor|DABDISPLAY}}Visualizing links to disambiguation pages====
{{shortcut|WP:DABDISPLAY}}
Links to disambiguation pages can be displayed in orange [[Special:Preferences#mw-prefsection-gadgets|in the settings under "Gadgets"]] by checking "Display links to disambiguation pages in orange".
==Deletion==
Although disambiguation pages are not articles, a disambiguation page may be listed at [[Wikipedia:Articles for deletion|Articles for deletion]] to discuss whether the disambiguation page should be deleted. Disambiguation pages may also be deleted as the result of consensus at a [[Wikipedia:Requested moves|Requested moves]] discussion.
== Categories ==
{{Shortcut|WP:DBC}}
Disambiguation pages are not articles and should not be categorized as such. Article categories should lead readers to relevant articles; disambiguation pages should be placed in disambiguation categories only. Some categories are automatically provided by use of the {{tlx|disambiguation}} template and parameters (geo, surname, etc.). Hidden categories may appear due to maintenance or other tags and templates, but other explicit categories (such as "Category:Mountains of Fooland" should not be used on disambiguation pages. When a disambiguation page includes a list of name-holders (in cases where the separate [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Anthroponymy|anthroponymy]] list article has not yet been created), explicit categories such as "Category:Fooish surnames" are acceptable on the disambiguation page until the anthroponymy article is split from the disambiguation page.
==Set index articles==<!--[[Wikipedia:Multi-stub]] redirects here-->
{{main|Wikipedia:Set index articles}}
{{Shortcut|WP:NOTDAB}}
A set index article (SIA) is a list article about a set of items {{em|of a specific type}} that share the same (or similar) name. For example, [[Dodge Charger]] describes a set of cars, [[List of peaks named Signal Mountain]] describes a set of mountain peaks, and [[List of ships of the United States Navy named Enterprise]] describes a set of ships. Being "of a specific type" means that they share a common characteristic {{em|in addition to}} the similarity of name. A list is only a SIA if inclusion of an item in the list is due to the name of the item—e.g., every entry in a list of earthquakes may include the word "earthquake", but that does not mean the list is a SIA.
'''A set index article is not a disambiguation page'''.
==See also==
{{Wikipedia glossary}}
* [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages]]
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Disambiguation]]
** [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation pages with links]]
* [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation dos and don'ts]]
* [[Help:Disambiguation]]
* {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Disambiguation pages|Red links}}
* [[Wikipedia:Partially disambiguated page names]] (essay)
== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}
== External links ==
<!--* [[tools:~dispenser/cgi-bin/dablinks.py|Dablinks]], a [[m:Toolserver|Toolserver]] [[Wikipedia:Tools|tool]] that lists ambiguous internal links-->
* [//tools.wmflabs.org/wikiviewstats/ Wiki ViewStats], a [[toolforge:|Toolforge]] tool that shows global and per language / project traffic statistics with disambiguation support.
{{Wikipedia policies and guidelines}}
[[Category:Wikipedia disambiguation| ]]
[[Category:Wikipedia article title help]]
[[da:Wikipedia:Stilmanual#Flertydige artikler]]
