View source for Manual of Style:Naming conventions

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{{Manual of Style|Article names must use <code>Title Case</code> and should be named according the first appearance of the subject.}}
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This page documents the Official ''[[GTA Wiki]]'' [[Manual of Style]] on '''article naming conventions'''.

==Formatting==
===General principles===
Page names should:
#Be clear and unambiguous.
#Follow established patterns and conventions for similar types of articles.
#Be relevant to the subject and widely accepted.
#Follow <code>Title Case</code> (see [[#Capitalization|capitalization]]).

===Capitalization===
{{Redirect|MOS:CAPITALNAME}}
Titles for main content articles should follow <code>Title Case</code>:
#Always capitalize the first and last words of the title.
#Always capitalize proper nouns (such as names of places, people, entities, etc).
#Do not capitalize definitive or indefinite articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (and, but, for, or, nor), and prepositions of four letters or fewer (e.g., in, on, at, by, with).

Exceptions:
*Do not change the capitalization of '''[[#Official_vs_unofficial_names|official]]''' titles (such as the official name for a character, vehicle or weapon).

===Official vs unofficial names===
{{Redirect|MOS:OFFICIALNAME}}
Choosing the most suitable name for a page may sometimes result in [[MOS:NORULES|going against the rules]] in order to preserve one or many of the general naming convention principles. One such example includes the choice between the "official" name given to a subject and a popularized but otherwise "unofficial" name.

An official name refers to the title given to a subject by [[Rockstar Games]] in or outside of a ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]'' game. This may be via in-game dialogue, media, or [[HUD]] text.

An unofficial name refers to a title or label used by the ''GTA'' community to refer to a character, location, item, or concept within a game. This is often done to bridge the ambiguity of official title, or to label something that is never named in-game.

The choice of an official or unofficial name should be made in the following priority:
#Where possible, articles should be named after their first official in-game name, regardless of whether they have unofficial titles (see [[#Recurring_content|recurring content]]).
#In situations where there is ambiguity, an unofficial title may be used in a disambiguous page name (see [[#Disambiguous names|disambiguous names]]).

===Conflicting names===
{{Redirect|MOS:CONFLICTNAME|MOS:COMMONNAME}}
Content may sometimes be given multiple common names which conflict with one another. In such situations, it may be difficult to determine what name to choose for the page's title.

Where possible, the most clear and concise name for a subject should be used as the page title. In situations where other, existing content may easily be confused (or even clash) with the new page, the specific instance of a subject name should be used (for example, [[Staunton Island City Hall]] rather than [[City Hall]]. Conflicting names may require [[MOS:DISAMBIG|disambiguation pages]] and consideration for disambiguous page names (see [[#Disambiguous names|disambiguous names]]).

Subjects with multiple conflicting names should always make it clear where each name is mentioned, be it in-game or via other official sources. This may include mentioning them in parenthesis in the [[MOS:LEAD|lead section]] and/or listing them in the "also known as" section of an [[MOS:INFOBOX|infobox]].

===Disambiguous names===
{{Redirect|MOS:DISAMBIGNAME}}
A disambiguous name refers to a page title which is appended a piece of information within parentheses to differentiate it from another piece of conflicting material. This is not to be confused with a [[#Conflicting_names|conflicting name]] which is when a single subject is given multiple names.

Page names containing official titles which conflict with other page names should should be appended a concise piece of disambiguous information, in the following priority:
#A concise description (one or two words), if the subjects are entirely different types of content (for example, [[Dukes (car)]]),
#An abbreviated game title, if separate subjects of the same type (i.e, a character, location or mission) appear in different games - this can only be true if the subjects each appear in only one game (for example, [[Chinatown (GTA IV)]] and [[Chinatown (GTA San Andreas)]], two entirely separate locations in different games).
##A game [[Universes|universe]], if separate subjects appear in multiple games within different universes (for example, [[Los Santos (3D Universe)]] and [[Los Santos (HD Universe)]]).
#A relevant official title, such as a mission (for example, [[Mule (Short Trips)]], a vehicle which is only used during [[Short Trips]] and its disambiguous name is used to differentiate it from [[Mule|other models]]).
#A widely accepted unofficial title (see [[#Official vs unofficial names|official vs unofficial names]]) (for example, [[Police Cruiser (interceptor)]], which is used to differentiate it from [[Police Cruiser (Buffalo)|two]] [[Police Cruiser|other]] police cars of the same name; "interceptor" is a widely accepted name given to this particular vehicle).

In cases where there is a clear bias towards a more notable page (such as the [[Rogue]] - a plane in ''GTA Online'', clearly more significant than the [[Rogue (magazine)|magazine of the same name]]), it may be necessary to move or rename one or more pages so the most notable page holds the non-disambiguous name.

Pages with disambiguous pages are generally grouped at a [[MOS:DISAMBIG|disambiguation page]]. This is only necessary if there are '''three or more''' pages affected by disambiguation, or if the pages refer to the same subject but in separate [[universes]] (such as [[Admiral]] or [[Vice City]]).

{{Example|Chinatown (Liberty City)|[[Chinatown (GTA IV)]]|Conflicting with [[Chinatown (GTA San Andreas)]]; "Liberty City" does not work as a disambiguous title because it may conflict with Liberty City in other titles (such as {{III}} and {{LCS}}). Using a game title is always preferred over using another subject title.}}
{{Example|Vortex (GTA Online)|[[Vortex (motorcycle)]]|Conflicting with [[Vortex]]; "GTA Online" does not work as a disambiguous title because it does not clearly differentiate the two subjects. Using a concise description is always preferred over using a game title.}}

===Typographical errors===
{{Redirect|MOS:TYPONAME}}
The name of a subject may sometimes be mistyped in-game. If the typographical error is obvious, the page name should use a corrected version of the subject name (for example, [[Edgar Carlos]], whose name is misspelled "Edgar '''Clar'''os" in-game). A [[MOS:REDIRECT|redirect]] using the mistyped name should be created and directed to the (correct) page name and the mistyped name should be mentioned in the [[MOS:LEAD|lead section]].

===Plurals===
{{Redirect|MOS:PLURALNAME}}
The use of singular and plural titles depends on the context of the article's subject and its purpose.

#Subjects which refer to groups and classes of specific things should have plural titles (for example, [[Vehicles]], not Vehicle).
#A subject which is generally referred to in its plural form can have a plural title (for example, [[Cats]] and [[Dogs]], not Cat and Dog).
#Subjects with an [[#Official_vs_unofficial names|official name]] should have a singular title (for example, [[Tow Truck]]).
#Subjects which include a plural in their official name should also have a plural title (for example, the ''GTA V'' mission [[Carbine Rifles]]).

Any page which uses a plural title should have a singular title equivalent created as a [[MOS:REDIRECT|redirect]], unless it already exists, in which case a [[MOS:DISAMBIG|disambiguation page]] may be required.

===Recurring content===
{{Redirect|MOS:FIRSTNAME}}
Recurring content refers to a subject which makes appearances in multiple ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]'' titles. The choice of page name for recurring content can be particular difficult, especially when the page is not written immediately after the subject's first appearance, or when the subject has been given multiple, alternating names throughout the series.

#If the subject has an official name, the page title should reflect the subject's name in its first release (for example, the [[Jetmax]], which was known as the [[Cuban Jetmax]] in its first appearance).
#If the subject does not have an official name, but is later given one, the page should be named (or [[Template:Move|moved]]) to the official name. The page should also document that the subject was not given an official name until later on.
#Recurring content should always use the name given in its latest [[Timeline|chronological appearance]] as the display title. This is achieved by adding <code><nowiki>{{DISPLAYTITLE:Your text here}}</nowiki></code> to the bottom of an article. This chronology should also be applied to the article's [[MOS:INFOBOX|infobox image]] and [[MOS:LEAD|lead section]] subject name.

==Non-article naming conventions==
===Capitalization===
Titles for [[:Category:Manual of Style non-article content|non-article content]] such as [[:Category:Templates|templates]], [[MOS:CAT|categories]], ''GTA Wiki'' [[:Category:Policy|Policy]] and [[:Category:Manual of Style|Manual of Style]] pages, should use <code>Sentence case</code>:
#Only capitalize the first word of the title (For example, {{y|Category:Public transportation}}, not {{n|Category:Public Transportation}}).
#Always capitalize proper names (such as names of places, people, entities, etc) (for example, {{y|Category:Members of the Epsilon Program}}, not {{n|Category:Members of the Epsilon program}}).

===File uploads===
{{Main|Manual of Style:File uploads#Naming_conventions}}
Any media uploaded to ''GTA Wiki'' must be named appropriately and conventionally:
#Use <code>TitleCase</code> and avoid spaces.
#Follow a naming convention of <code>SubjectName-GTAgame-Description.png</code>.
#Use hyphens (<code>-</code>) to separate the subject, game and description.
#Do not use full or brief game titles (for example, <code>Adder-GrandTheftAutoV.jpg</code> or <code>CarlJohnson-SA.png</code>)
#Do not use meaningless or broad file names (for example, <code>Screenshot1234.jpg</code> or <code>IMG_20220513_215214.png</code>).
#Prepending the "<code>File:</code>" namespace manually should not be required as this is automatically included when uploading using [[Special:Upload]] or uploading/adding media directly inside the Visual Editor.

{{Example|File:HUNTERGTAVCFRONT.JPG|File:Hunter-GTAVC-Front.jpg}}
{{Example|File:Sprunk-vending-machine-in-GTAV.jpg|File:Sprunk-GTAV-VendingMachine.jpg}}
{{Example|File:LIOTTA, RAY.jpg|File:RayLiotta-VoiceActor.jpg}}

===Navigation templates===
{{Main|Manual of Style:Navigation boxes}}
Navigation box templates should generally follow a naming convention of <code><nowiki>Navbox name</nowiki></code>.

===Infobox templates===
{{Main|Manual of Style:Infoboxes}}
Infobox templates should generally follow a naming convention of <code><nowiki>Infobox name</nowiki></code>.

===Category pages===
{{Main|Manual of Style:Categories#Naming_conventions}}

==Navigation==
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[[Category:Manual of Style general practices]]