MOS:NICKNAMETHE

Tɛmplet:ANCHOR

MoS guidelines for opening paragraphs and lead sentences should generally be followed. The opening paragraph of a biographical article should neutrally describe the person, provide context, establish notability and explain why the person is notable, and reflect the balance of reliable sources.

Standard English-language text formatting and capitalization rules apply to the names of individuals and groups, such as bands, troupes, teams/squads, and families.^{[lower-alpha 4]} Example: in running text, the team is the Miami Heat, not The Miami Heat, except at the beginning of a sentence.^{[lower-alpha 5]} (See also: WP:Manual of Style/Trademarks; WP:Manual of Style/Capital letters § Institutions; WP:Manual of Style/Capital letters § Proper names).

For capitalization details, see Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters § Personal names.

While the article title should generally be the name by which the subject is most commonly known, the subject's full name, if known, should usually be given in the lead sentence (including middle names, if known, or middle initials). Many cultures have a tradition of not using the full name of a person in everyday reference, but the article should start with the complete version in most cases. For example:

• From Fidel Castro: Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (August 13, 1926 – November 25, 2016) ...

But remember that editors need to balance the desire to maximize the information available to the reader with the need to maintain readability. For example, the case of Muammar Gaddafi.

• Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (Arabic: معمر محمد أبو منيار القذافي‎; /ˈmoʊ.əmɑːr ɡəˈdɑːfi/; c. 1942 – 20 October 2011), also known as Colonel Gaddafi, was a Libyan politician, revolutionary, and political theorist.

The sentence seems to contain unnecessary clutter—a more readable form would be preferable. In addition, more relevant information should be included instead of alternative or very long names, which can be spread out in the paragraph, lead, or kept just in the body. But remember, it's on a case by case basis and subject to consensus.

• Muammar Gaddafi^{[pron 1]} (c. 1942 – 20 October 2011) was a Libyan politician, revolutionary, and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until his assassination. Born Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi,...

In some cases, a subject may have changed their full name at some point after birth. In these cases, the birth name may be given in the lead as well, if relevant:^{[lower-alpha 6]}

• From Jack Benny: Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) ...
• From Bill de Blasio: Bill de Blasio (/dɪˈblɑːzioʊ/; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961) ...

Specific guidelines apply to living transgender and non-binary people Tɛmplet:See below.

In other cases, a subject may have changed name multiple times.^{[lower-alpha 7]} Multiple former names may be mentioned in the lead, boldfaced if they redirect to the article. However, it is not always appropriate to list every previous name of a subject, only the birth name and those that were in use during the period of notability:

• Bill de Blasio (born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961)  is a politician .... He was briefly known as Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm ...

The names should be distributed throughout the lead to mark major transitions in the subject's life:

• Augustus (63 BC – 14 AD) was a Roman emperor .... He was born Gaius Octavius Thurinus into a wealthy family .... He assumed the name Octavian after his adoption ...

A person named in an article of which they are not the subject should be referred to by the name they used at the time being described in the article. For example, Pope John Paul I was known as Albino Luciani before he was elevated to the papacy, so material about the time before he became pope should use the name Albino Luciani. In some cases, it is helpful to the reader to clarify, e.g., Albino Luciani (later to become Pope John Paul I). The principle of avoiding anachronistic naming is also usually employed in the subject's own biography (including that of John Paul I), especially when the article is no longer a short stub.

If a subject changed their surname (last name) for whatever reason (e.g., marriage, adoption, personal preference), then their surname at birth should generally also be given in the lead. Editors may denote this with "born" followed by the subject's surname or full name; for name changes due to marriage, they may also use née (feminine) and né (masculine) followed by the surname, provided the term is linked at first occurrence. The templates {{nee}} and {{ne}} provide this linking and do not require typing the é character.

Some practical examples:

• From Courtney Love: Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, actress ...
• From Jack White: John Anthony White (né Gillis; born July 9, 1975) is an American musician, singer, songwriter ...
• From Barbara Flynn: Barbara Flynn (born Barbara Joy McMurray, 5 August 1948) is an English actress ...
• From Marion Worth: Marion Worth (born Mary Ann Ward; July 4, 1930 – December 19, 1999) was an American country music singer ...

Use initials in a personal name^{[lower-alpha 8]} only if the name is commonly written that way.

An initial is capitalized and is followed by a full point (period) and a space (e.g. J. R. R. Tolkien), unless:

• the person demonstrably has a different, consistently preferred style for their own name; and
• an overwhelming majority of reliable sources use that variant style for that person.

In such a case, treat it as a self-published name change. Examples include k.d. lang, CC Sabathia, and CCH Pounder.

In article text, a space after an initial (or an initial and a full point) and before another initial should be a non-breaking space: J.Tɛmplet:MxtR.Tɛmplet:MxtR. Tolkien (or use the {{nbsp}} template). This also works inside links: [[J.Tɛmplet:MxtR.Tɛmplet:MxtR. Tolkien]], though only with   markup, not the template.

Initials in other languages are sometimes treated differently from usual English practice. For example, a name beginning with two letters representing a single sound is treated as a single two-character initial in some European languages (e.g., Th. for Theophilus), and hyphenated given names are sometimes abbreviated with the hyphen (J.-P. for Jean-Pierre). If reliable sources consistently use such a form for a particular person, use it on Wikipedia as well.

Avoid formerly common multi-letter abbreviations used in English as a shorthand in letter-writing, genealogies, etc. (examples: Geo. = George; Jno. = John; Jna. = Jonathan; Thos. = Thomas; Jas. = James, Chas. = Charles), except in quotations and as they survive in trademarks (Geo. Hall & Sons). E.g., refer to the author as George W. Proctor, though some of his books have Geo. W. Proctor on the cover (the alternative form should redirect to his article).

With initials, it is not necessary to spell out why the article title and lead paragraph give a different name. For example, H. P. Lovecraft has that title, H. P. Lovecraft appears in his infobox, and his lead sentence just gives Howard Phillips Lovecraft ... was an American writer ..., without "explaining" to the reader what "H. P." stands for. Initials are not nicknames; do not put them in quotation marks or insert them in mid-name, as in John Thomas Smith better known as "J. T." Smith or John Thomas (J. T.) Smith.

Tɛmplet:Redirects

Using Jr., Sr., or other such distinctions, including in the lead sentence of an article, is only for cases in which the name with the suffix is commonly used in reliable sources.

Do not put a comma before Jr., Sr. (or variations such as Jnr), or a Roman numeral name suffix, whether it is patronymic or regnal: use Otis D. Wright II, not Otis D. Wright, II.

When the surname is shown first, the suffix follows the given name, as Kennedy, John F. Jr. or Wright, Otis D. II.^{[lower-alpha 9]} When the given name is omitted, omit the suffix—Kennedy, not Kennedy Jr.—except where the context requires disambiguation. If necessary, explain in longer form which party is meant, e.g. The younger Jackson was elected mayor of Wolverham in 1998.

The French fils ('son') and père ('father') can be used for subjects for whom this usage is typical in English-language works: Alexandre Dumas fils. These terms are not capitalized.

See § People with the same surname for an additional usage note.

For people who are best known by a pseudonym, the legal name should usually appear first in the article, followed closely by the pseudonym. Follow this practice even if the article itself is titled with the pseudonym:

• Louis Bert Lindley Jr. (June 29, 1919 – December 8, 1983), better known by the stage name Slim Pickens

Investigation in reliable sources may be needed to determine whether a subject known usually by a pseudonym has actually changed their legal name to match (e.g., Reginald Kenneth Dwight formally changed his name to Elton Hercules John early in his musical career). Where this is not the case, and where the subject uses a popular form of their name in everyday life, then care must be taken to avoid implying that a person who does not generally use all their forenames or who uses a familiar form has actually changed their name. Do not write, for example:

• John Edwards (born Johnny Reid Edwards, June 10, 1953).

It is not always necessary to spell out why the article title and lead paragraph give a different name. If a person has a common English-language hypocorism (diminutive or abbreviation) used in lieu of a given name,^{[lower-alpha 10]} it is not presented between quotation marks or parentheses within or after their name. Example:

• Use: William Henry Gates III
• Avoid: William Henry "Bill" Gates III

For any kind of alternative name, use formulations like the following (as applicable):

• Timothy Alan Dick (born June 13, 1953), known professionally as Tim Allen
• Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi (c. 1445 – May 17, 1510), better known as Sandro Botticelli
• Ariadna Thalía Sodi Miranda (born 26 August 1971), known mononymously as Thalía

If a person is known by a nickname used in lieu of or in addition to a given name, and it is not a common hypocorism^{[lower-alpha 10]} of one of their names, or a professional alias, it is usually presented between double quotation marks following the last given name or initial. The quotation marks are not put in lead-section boldface. Example:

• From Bunny Berigan: Roland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan.
• From Tina Fey: Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey.

A nickname can eventually become a professional alias, even the most common name for a person. Such a case loses the quotation marks, other than in the subject's lead section if introducing the nickname in mid-name. If the nickname is dominant (in general or in a particular context) it can often be used in other articles without further elaboration. Example:

• From Magic Johnson: Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is ...

In the article (and in other articles) use: Magic Johnson left Michigan State after his sophomore season to enter the NBA draft. Dr. Ruth and Dr. Drew (covered in more detail in § Academic or professional titles and degrees, below) are trademarks; though they originated as informal nicknames, they do not require quotation marks.

If a nickname is used in place of the subject's entire name, it is usually given separately:

• Alphonse Gabriel Capone ... sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface".

A leading "the" is not capitalized in a nickname, pseudonym, or other alias (except when the alias begins a sentence^{[lower-alpha 5]}):

• Use: Jack "the Assassin" Tatum; or: Jack Tatum, nicknamed "the Assassin"
• Avoid: Jack "The Assassin" Tatum; and: Jack Tatum, nicknamed "The Assassin"

Nicknames should not be re-presented with additional name parts unless necessary for usage clarity.

• Use: Earl "the Pearl" Strickland; or: Earl Strickland, nicknamed "Earl the Pearl"
• Avoid: Earl Strickland, nicknamed "Earl the Pearl" Strickland

Common nicknames, aliases, and variants are usually given in boldface in the lead, especially if they redirect to the article, or are found on a disambiguation page or hatnote and link from those other names to the article. Boldface is not needed for obscure ones or a long list, and those that are not well known to our readers may not need to be in the lead at all.^{[lower-alpha 11]}

• Use: Genghis Khan or Chinggis Khaan (born Temüjin; c. 1162 – August 18, 1227) was the founder of the Mongol Empire.
• Avoid: 2</sup>-chi²-szu¹ Han⁴|p=Chéngjísī Hán|first=t}}; c. 1162 – August 18, 1227), born '''Temüjin''' ({{lang|mn|Тэмүжин}} ''Temüjin''; {{zh|t=鐵木真|s=铁木真|w=T'ieh³-mu⁴-chen¹|p=Tiěmùzhēn|first=t}}), was the founder of the Mongol Empire."}},"i":0}}]}">Genghis Khan or Chinggis Khaan (Tɛmplet:Lang-mn; Chinese: 成吉思汗; pinyin: Chéngjísī Hán; Wade–Giles: Ch'eng²-chi²-szu¹ Han⁴; c. 1162 – August 18, 1227), born Temüjin (Тэмүжин Temüjin; traditional Chinese: 鐵木真; simplified Chinese: 铁木真; pinyin: Tiěmùzhēn; Wade–Giles: T'ieh³-mu⁴-chen¹), was the founder of the Mongol Empire.
  Excessive foreign language details can make the lead sentence difficult to understand.
• Use: Joseph John Aiuppa (December 1, 1907 – February 22, 1997), also known as "Joey O'Brien" and later as "Joey Doves", was a Chicago mobster.
• Avoid: Joseph John Aiuppa (December 1, 1907 – February 22, 1997), also known as "Joey O'Brien", "Joey O.", "O'Brien", "Joey Doves'", "Joey the Doves", and "Mourning Doves", was a Chicago mobster.
  The various nicknames are mostly how other mobsters—not so much the reliable sources—referred to Joey Aiuppa, and only two of them were widely reported, the rest being minor variants.

Nicknames and other aliases included must be frequently used by reliable sources in reference to the subject. For example, a sports journalist's one-off reference to a player as "the Atlanta panther" in purple prose does not constitute a nickname, and treating it as one is original research. Highlighting uncommon or disputed appellations in the lead section gives them undue weight, and may also be a more general neutrality problem if the phrase is laudatory or critical. Example: "Tricky Dick" does not appear in the lead of Richard Nixon; this label by his political opponents is covered, with context, in the article body. Nicknames that are sourceable but not generally known to the public (e.g., a childhood nickname, a hypocorism only used in private life, or a term of spousal endearment revealed in an in-depth biographical book) are not encyclopedic.

Do not cram multiple hypocorisms and nicknames into the name in the lead sentence; complicated naming should be explained separately.

• Poor, confusing example: William Emery "Emory, Spunk" Sparrow (September 15, 1897 – February 2, 1965) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward....
• Clear rewrite: William Emery Sparrow (September 15, 1897 – February 2, 1965) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward.... As a professional player, he spelled his name Emory, and was commonly known by the nickname Spunk Sparrow. (The article title is Emory Sparrow, already establishing that as the common, primary name.)

After the initial mention, a person should generally be referred to by surname only – without an honorific prefix such as "Mr.", "Mrs.", or "Ms.", and without academic or professional prefixes like "Dr.", "Prof.", "Rev.", etc. – or may be referred to by a pronoun. For example:

• Fred Smith was a Cubist painter in the early 20th century. He moved to Genoa, where he met singer Gianna Doe. Smith and Doe later married.

However, where a person does not have a surname but a patronymic (like many Icelanders, some Mongols, and those historical persons who are known by names-and-patronymics instead of surnames), then the proper form of reference is usually the given name. (See also § Culture-specific usages, below.) For example:

• Iceland's 24th prime minister was Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir. Jóhanna was elected to the Althing in 1978.

Generally speaking, subjects should not otherwise be referred to by their given name; exceptions include royalty, e.g. Prince William or William. Any subject whose surname has changed should be referred to by their most commonly used name. If their most commonly used name includes their earlier surname, and you're discussing a period of their life before the surname change, refer to them by their prior surname. In other words, when discussing the early lives of Hillary and Bill Clinton, use "Rodham met Clinton while they were students at Yale", referring to Hillary using her then-current surname.

A member of the nobility may be referred to by title if that form of address would have been the customary way to refer to him or her; for example Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, may become the Earl of Leicester, the Earl, or just Leicester (if the context is clear enough) in subsequent mentions. For modern-day nobility it is better to use name and title; at some time in the future the Prince of Wales will be a different person than William, Prince of Wales, and a great many articles risk becoming out of date. Be careful not to give someone a title too soon; for example, one should use Robert Dudley or Dudley when describing events before his elevation to the peerage in 1564.

When a majority of reliable secondary sources refer to persons by a pseudonym, they should be subsequently referred to by their pseudonymous surnames, unless they do not include a recognizable surname in the pseudonym (e.g. Sting, Snoop Dogg, the Edge), in which case the whole pseudonym is used. For people well known by one-word names, nicknames, or pseudonyms, but who often also use their legal names professionally – e.g., André Benjamin ("André 3000"), Jennifer Lopez ("J.Lo"); doctor/broadcaster Drew Pinsky ("Dr. Drew") – use the legal surname. If they use their mononym or pseudonym exclusively, then use that name (e.g. Aaliyah, Selena, and Usher).

For fictional entities, use common names. For example, Jason, Luigi, and Wesker.

• Burmese names are personal names that consist of one or more words, with no patronymic or surname. Always use the full form of the person's name. (See Wikipedia:Naming conventions (Burmese).)
• Ethiopian and Eritrean people are almost always referred to by their given name as they do not have a family name. There are some rare exceptions to this: where the person—usually a member of the later generations of the Eritrean diaspora or Ethiopian diaspora—has adopted the patronymic as a formal family name. Consider using the template {{Patronymic name}}.
• Icelandic people with patronymics (which is most of them) may be referred to by their given name or their given name and patronymic, but not by their patronymic alone. Consider using {{Icelandic name}}.
• Japanese historical (and some modern) figures may be conventionally known by either their family (clan) name and their given name or their given name only but not their family name only.
• In Southeast and South Asia, many people use only a personal name, which may be followed by a patronymic; in such cases, they should be referred to by their personal name.
• Mongolian people are referred to by their given name, with their patronymic placed in front of it, usually in genitive case. There are no family names. For more details, see Mongolian name and Wikipedia:Naming conventions (Mongolian); consider placing {{Family name hatnote}}.
• Spanish and Portuguese naming customs generally call for one or more given names followed by a patronymic then a matronymic (and the latter two may be separated by y or another article). In most cases, the common name of such a person lacks the matronymic. Consider using {{Family name hatnote}} or {{Portuguese name}}.
• Thai people are almost always known and addressed by their first name (i.e. given name). Hence, on second and subsequent mentions, they should be referred to by first name alone.
• In Vietnamese names, given names also take priority over family names. The given name, not the surname, should be used to refer to the person. The given name is nevertheless placed after the family name, following the East Asian naming scheme, even when written about in English.

See also Wikipedia:Categorization of people § Sort by surname, on the proper sorting of these names.

To distinguish between people with the same surname in the same article or page, use given names or complete names to refer to each of the people upon first mention. For subsequent uses, refer to them by their given names for clarity and brevity. When referring to the person who is the subject of the article, use just the surname unless the reference is part of a list of family members or if use of the surname alone will be confusing. This applies to minors as well as adults.^{[lower-alpha 12]} While citations and bibliographies should use full names even in subsequent mentions (if full names are the style for citations and bibliographies in the article), the body of an article should not unless confusion could result.

For example, in the text of an article on Ronald Reagan:

• Correct: Ronald and Nancy Reagan arrived separately, Ronald by helicopter and Nancy by car.
• Correct: The Reagans arrived separately, Ronald by helicopter and Nancy by car.
• Redundant: Ronald and Nancy Reagan arrived separately; Ronald Reagan by helicopter and Nancy Reagan by car.

In the text of an article about the Brothers Grimm:

• Correct: Jacob Grimm was 14 months older than his brother Wilhelm.
• Redundant: Jacob Grimm was 14 months older than his brother Wilhelm Grimm.

Individuals distinguished with a generational suffix can be written about in Forename Suffix style to disambiguate from other family members in the same article: William Sr., John Jnr, James III. No comma is used in these short constructions.

If an article about a person mentions another person with the same surname who is not related by family or marriage, subsequent mentions of the other person should use the full name:

• Correct: Andrea Dworkin was the subject of biographical writing by Ronald Dworkin

In an article that is not about either unrelated person with the same surname, continue to refer to them both by their full names. Source citations, bibliographies, and in-text attributions usually include names of authors and others. Consider them when checking for people with the same surname.

Eponyms – derived usage of personal (or other) names, as in Parkinson's disease – capitalize the name portion, aside from conventionalized exceptions.

Offices, titles, and positions such as president, king, emperor, grand duke, lord mayor, pope, bishop, abbot, prime minister, leader of the opposition, chief financial officer, and executive director are common nouns and therefore should be in lower case when used generically: Mitterrand was the French president or There were many presidents at the meeting. They are capitalized only in the following cases:

• When followed by a person's name to form a title, i.e., when they can be considered to have become part of the name: President Nixon, not president Nixon; Pope John XXIII, not pope John XXIII.
• When a title is used to refer to a specific person as a substitute for their name during their time in office, e.g., the Queen, not the queen (referring to Elizabeth II); the Pope, not the pope (referring to Francis).
• When a formal title for a specific entity (or conventional translation thereof) is addressed as a title or position in and of itself, is not plural, is not preceded by a modifier (including a definite or indefinite article), and is not a reworded description:

Even when used with a name, capitalization is not required for commercial and informal titles: OtagoSoft vice-president Chris Henare; team co-captain Chan.

The formality (officialness), specificity, or unusualness of a title is not a reason to capitalize it.

Note that for "Tɛmplet:Xtn" or "Tɛmplet:Xtn", the name of the country remains capitalized even when the title is not, as it is always a proper noun. When writing "Tɛmplet:Xtn" or "Tɛmplet:Xtn", the portfolio should be lower cased as it is not a proper noun on its own (i.e. write minister of foreign affairs or, as a proper noun, Minister of Foreign Affairs; do not write minister of Foreign Affairs).

When the subject of an article has received honours or appointments issued either by the subject's state of citizenship or residence, or by a widely recognized organization that reliable sources regularly associate with the subject, post-nominal letters may be included in the main body of the article.

The lead sentence should be concise: Academic (including honorary) degrees and professional qualifications may be mentioned in the article, along with the above, but should be omitted from the lead, as should superseded honors (e.g., the lesser of two grades in an order), and those issued by other entities (e.g., sub-national organizations).

Post-nominal letters should either be separated from the name by a comma and each set divided by a comma, or no commas should be used at all. If a baronetcy or peerage is held, then commas should always be used for consistency's sake, as the former are separated from the name by a comma.

When an individual holds a large number of post-nominal letters or seldom uses them (common among heads of state and members of royal families), they should only be described in the main body of the article and not in the lead.

Post-nominals for honours awarded by the United Kingdom (e.g. KCB, CBE) may be used as soon as they are gazetted; investiture is not necessary.

Post-nominals should only be mentioned at relevant places in the main body of a biography subject's own article, in an infobox parameter for post-nominals, when the post-nominals themselves are under discussion in the material, and in other special circumstances such as a list of recipients of an award or other honour. For example, "Brian Lara TC OCC AM" should not appear in an article like Warwickshire County Cricket Club.

Honorifics and styles of nobility should normally be capitalized, e.g., Her Majesty, His Holiness. They are not usually used in running text, though some may be appropriate in the lead sentence of a biographical article, as detailed below, or in a section about the person's titles and styles.

If a person exclusively goes by neopronouns such as ze/hir, then the singular they should generally be used instead of neopronouns when referring to that individual, though their requested pronouns should usually be mentioned in their biography (such as in prose or in a footnote).^{[lower-alpha 14]} Singular they pronouns are appropriate to use in reference to a person who goes by them.