3.2 Standardization

Standardization of dates and places brings order and clarity to genealogical data. Dates are listed as follows: The day comes first and is presented in number form. Often numbers are used to denote the day and the month, but some cultures list the day first and others the month first, so, when numerals are used for both, it can be difficult to determine the date accurately. For example, if the date is written 06/07/20, it could be interpreted as June 7th or July 6th plus the year could be 2020, 1920, 1820, or earlier. By writing the day in number form and spelling out the month, the proper date is accurately communicated. The year should be written as a four-digit number. If the event happened on the 6th of July in 1920, a genealogist records it as 6 July 1920.

Despite the variety in political boundaries and ways to create jurisdictions, just as there is a standard way to format dates, there is a standard way of writing places in family history. Places are always presented from smallest to largest. For example, the city of Bellevue, Nebraska, would be written out Bellevue, Sarpy, Nebraska, United States; Bellevue is the city, Sarpy is the county, Nebraska is the state, and United States is the country. In some countries, like Canada, there aren’t states. Canada has provinces, so following the smallest to largest formula the city of Boyer would be recorded as Boyer, Alberta, Canada. For a more specific place, such as a school or church or cemetery, the same rule applies. The place referencing a record from Our Lady of Angels Catholic Church would be written out as Our Lady of Angels Catholic Church, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States. Notice the name of the church, the city, county, state, country. Clarifying words, like city, province, state, and county are not used in standardized place names unless they are a part of the proper name of the place. For clarification, consider New York City. The word “City” is part of the proper name of the place. The standardize version of the Manhattan area of New York City in New York County in the state of New York would be New York City, New York, New York, United States but it is rare to have the word “city” in the standardize name. Most cities are standardized like Cheyenne, Wyoming which should be written as Cheyenne, Laramie, Wyoming, United States.

Genealogical research is done by hobbyists and professionals, so there are a variety of ways that different researchers represent dates and places. Even the big four websites vary in standardization. One common example is using abbreviations for months. Another is that the website standard may not accommodate places like schools or churches. The website standard might suggest just using the city, state, country, but the researcher can usually enter the place in proper form even if it does not comply with the website standard. Standardization of places and dates as outlined above will assure accurate communication and help in organizing, storing, and sharing research data.