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Purpose of listsLists have three main purposes:
Like categories, lists can be used for keeping track of changes in the listed pages, using the Related Changes feature. Unlike a category, a list also allows detection of deletion of pages from it, and, more generally, a history of its contents is available. List naming and list contents
The contents of a list should be obvious. If the title does not already clarify what the list includes, then the list's lead section should do so. Don't leave editors guessing what can be added to the list. List titleFor a stand-alone list the list's title is the page name. For an embedded list, the list's title is usually a section title (for instance Latin Empire#Latin Emperors of Constantinople, 1204–1261), but it can be shorter, see for example Streamlined style or horizontal style below. A list's title should be as clear and unambiguous as possible, as it reports the contents of the list. But sometimes this is not possible, as when the name of the subject is itself misleading or ambiguous. In such a case, the lead section should remedy this problem (see below). For a navigational template used as an embedded list (often called "series box", see for example {{IsaacNewtonSegments}}, {{Princess Royal}},...):
Lead sectionStand-alone lists are a type of article. All articles should include a lead section, and stand-alone lists are no exception. Even when the meaning of the page's title seems obvious, a lead section should be provided which briefly and clearly describes the list. If the meaning of the list's title seems obvious, e.g. List of dog breeds, the article may open with a simple statement using wikilinks, e.g. "This is a list of dog breeds." If the list's title does not seem obvious, e.g. List of scholastic philosophers, the lead section should clarify the meaning of the title, e.g. "This is a list of philosophers working in the Christian tradition in Western Europe during the medieval period. See also scholasticism." However short or schematic a list description, Wikipedia:Neutral point of view applies, including:It should not be asserted that the most popular view or some sort of intermediate view among the different views is the correct one. Non-obvious characteristics of the list, for instance regarding the list structure, should also be explained in the lead section. For example, the lead section of the list enclosed in {{Princess Royal}} explains "dates they were Princess Royal in brackets". Embedded lists don't always have a lead section, but should in cases where the title is ambiguous or when the list has non-obvious characteristics. References for list itemsLists should always include unambiguous statements of membership criteria based on definitions made by reputable sources, especially in difficult or contentious topics. Beware of those cases in which the definitions themselves are disputed. Many lists on Wikipedia have been created without any membership criteria, and editors are left to guess about what or whom should be included only from the name of the list. Even if it might "seem obvious" what qualifies for membership in a list, explicit is better than implicit. The attribution policy states that "articles should contain only material that has been published by reputable sources. Editors should therefore provide references." The responsibility for providing a citation rests "with the editors who have made an edit or wish an edit to remain." Inclusion on the list should be based on what reliable sources say, not on what the editor interprets the source to be saying. In the case of edits lacking citations, according to Wikipedia:Attribution: Any edit lacking a source may be removed, but some editors may object if you remove material without giving people a chance to provide references. If you want to request a source for an unsourced statement, a good idea is to move it to the talk page. Alternatively, you may tag the sentence by adding the {{fact}} template, or tag the article by adding {{not verified}} or {{unsourced}}. Also in that case it may be helpful for your co-editors to leave a clarifying note on the talk page, for instance indicating which sources you already checked. You can also make the unsourced sentences invisible in the article by adding <!-- before the section you want to comment out and --> after it, until reliable sources have been provided. When using this "commenting out" technique it is usually best to leave a clarifying note on the talk page. However, in lists that involve living persons, the following policy related to Biographies of living persons applies: Be very firm about high quality references, particularly about details of personal lives. Unsourced or poorly sourced negative material about living persons should be removed immediately from both the article and the talk page. These principles also apply to biographical material about living persons in other articles. CategoryYou can add Category:Lists at the bottom of the page. List stylesThere are four common ways of presenting lists on Wikipedia: Unordered (bullet) listsThe format is: == Title of list == * Example 1 * Example 2 * Example 3 Title of list
As a matter of style, list items should start with a capital letter. They should not have a punctuation mark such as a period, a comma or a semi-colon at the end, except if a list item is one or more full sentences, in which case there is a period at the end. This style is appropriate for long lists, or lists of entries which consist of both a link and explanatory text. Also, it is appropriate when the article already has several titles and/or subtitles. The Title provides a direct edit point, if one enables section editing. It also enables the automatic table of contents system to detect the list. It is not required, however. Many Wikipedians feel this style is the easiest to read. Ordered (numeric) listsSimilar to the above, use a # symbol to obtain a numbered list. The format is (note that to ensure sequential numbering, list items must not be separated by empty lines): == Title of list == # Example 1 # Example 2 # Example 3 Title of list
Streamlined style or horizontal styleThe format is: ''Title of list:'' example 1, example 2, example 3 Title of list: example 1, example 2, example 3 The style requires less space on the page, and is preferred if there are only a few entries in the list, it can be read easily, and a direct edit point is not required. The list items should start with a lowercase letter unless they are proper nouns. Definition listsThe format is: ; Term 1 : Definition 1 ; Term 2 : Definition 2 ; Term 3 : Definition 3
Use these real definition lists instead of fake ones like * Term — Definition
or * '''Term''': Definition
In many cases tables are better suited than definition lists. TablesAlthough the use of tables to display lists is discouraged (because it introduces unnecessarily complex code and makes editing difficult), there are some instances where they can be useful, such as when three, or more, columns are required. See Wikipedia:When to use tables Types of listsA list can stand alone as a self contained page, or it can be embedded in an article.
Boilerplate textBefore or after an incomplete list, insert the following text which will be automatically substituted: {{expand list}}
which produces: This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
See also
de:Wikipedia:Listen lb:Wikipedia:Lëschten id:Wikipedia:Daftar it:Wikipedia:Liste nl:Wikipedia:Lijst ro:Wikipedia:Liste ru:Википедия:Списки tr:Vikipedi:Listeler zh:Wikipedia:列表
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