View source for Wikipedia:Naming conventions (Chinese)

{{For|Wikipedia's style guide concerning articles related to [[China]]|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/China- and Chinese-related articles}}
{{Subcat guideline|naming convention|Chinese|WP:CHINESE|WP:NC-CHINA|WP:NC-ZH|WP:NC-CHN}}

Guidelines on this page concern the systematic {{em|titling of articles}} related to the [[Chinese language]]. Many are an elaboration on or extension of larger guidelines, such as [[WP:COMMONNAME]].

==People==
{{Shortcut|WP:ZHNAME}}

Per [[WP:COMMONNAME]], use the version of an individual's name that would be most familiar to an English-language readership. With important exceptions, the common form is often the [[Hanyu Pinyin]] romanization without diacritics.

* For most historical figures, use non-diacritical Hanyu Pinyin: write {{xt|Cai E}}, not {{!xt|Tsai Ao}}; write {{xt|Zheng He}}, not {{!xt|Cheng Ho}} or {{!xt|Zhèng Hé}}.
* However, if a customary transliteration or anglicization is more common, it should be used instead: write {{xt|Confucius}}, not {{!xt|Kongfuzi}}; write {{xt|Sun Yat-sen}}, not {{!xt|Sun Yixian}} or {{!xt|Sun Zhongshan}}. This is most common among figures from the Classical period and the early 20th century. 
* For individuals whose Chinese names are less commonly used, use the common name instead: write {{xt|Vera Wang}} and {{xt|Jeremy Lin}}, not {{!xt|Wang Weiwei}} and {{!xt|Lin Shuhao}}.
* Hanyu Pinyin is usually {{em|not}} the most common way of spelling names of people from Hong Kong ([[Leung Chun-ying]]), Singapore ([[Lee Kuan Yew]]), Taiwan ([[Lee Teng-hui]]), and older [[overseas Chinese]] communities.
* When using a [[Wade–Giles]] romanization, a hyphen should be used between the syllables of a two-character given name, with the second syllable uncapitalised (unless a different form is clearly preferred): write {{xt|Lee Teng-hui}}, not {{!xt|Lee Teng-Hui}}. Hong Kong names should also generally use the hyphenated style.

===Ordering===
Unlike with most Western names, Chinese personal names present the [[surname]] (either a [[family name]] or a [[Chinese clan name|clan name]]) before the [[given name]]. It is standard practice to adhere to this convention in English. However, when someone is commonly known by a Chinese name with given–surname order (e.g. [[Wen Ho Lee]]), this form should be used, and relevant redirects created from the surname–given ordering.

===Emperors===
{{seealso|Wikipedia:History standards for China-related articles|List of Chinese monarchs}}

While there are many exceptions, the common name to refer to a given emperor usually depends on era. In general:
# Emperors before the [[Tang dynasty]] use [[posthumous name]]s, e.g. [[Emperor Wu of Han]].
# Emperors of the [[Tang dynasty|Tang]], [[Song dynasty|Song]], [[Liao Dynasty|Liao]] and [[Jin Dynasty (1115–1234)|Jin (1115–1234)]] dynasties use [[temple name]]s, e.g. [[Emperor Taizong of Tang]].
# Emperors of the [[Ming dynasty]] and [[Qing dynasty]] use era names (also known as "reign names"), e.g. [[Kangxi Emperor]]. Because these are not personal names, the correct phrasing takes the form "Kangxi Emperor", rather than "Emperor Kangxi".

==Dynasties==
Use the non-diacritical Hanyu Pinyin romanization of Chinese dynastic names. For clarity, whenever a dynastic name appears in an article title it should be followed by the word "dynasty" written with a lowercase ''d''. Do not capitalize the word "dynasty", because it is not actually part of the dynastic name: write {{xt|Ming dynasty}}, not {{!xt|Ming Dynasty}}. Adjectives such as "Eastern" or "Western" {{em|should}} be capitalized because they are part of the dynastic name: write {{xt|Eastern Zhou dynasty}}, not {{!xt|eastern Zhou dynasty}}.

On the other hand, when the word "dynasty" appears as part of a proper noun (such as in the names of general historical periods), it should be capitalized: write {{xt|Six Dynasties}}, not {{!xt|Six dynasties}}.

==Groups==
The main entry for a Chinese group should be under the name most familiar to English speakers. In some cases, this will be the translated name (for example, [[Aluminum Corporation of China Limited]]). In other cases, this will be the transliterated name ([[Tzu Chi]] and [[Tongmenghui]]). When the name is transliterated, the name should use the spelling conventionally used by English speakers (for example, Tzu Chi). Where this is not the pinyin transliteration there should be a redirect to the article from the pinyin name.

When a group uses a translated name, the Chinese characters should always be included, because there is not always a 1:1 correspondence of terms between Chinese and English. For example, the People's Republic of China uses the term {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|主席}} ({{Transliteration|zh|zhǔxí}}) to mean "president", but there are other Chinese words usually translated as "president", such as {{lang|zh-Hant-TW|總統}} ({{Transliteration|zh|zǒngtǒng}}). Additionally, some English-language sources may misspell or otherwise alter Chinese romanizations as to create ambiguity: for example, writing "Liu" as "Lu", or "Chiang" as "Chang".

Some older institutions maintain idiosyncratic spellings, which are sometimes legally incorporated overseas. Examples include [[Peking University]], [[Peking Union Medical College]], [[Tsinghua University]], and [[Yenching University]].

===State organs===
This is an incomplete list of reference material. People who are familiar with the matter are welcomed to provide better source.

* {{cite web
| url=http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/15099752.html
| title=国家机关翻译表
|trans-title= Translation Table of State Organs
| work=Baidu Zhidao
| date=2006-11-10 <!-- 17:19 --> 
| author=sank0916 |no-tracking=y
}}
* {{cite web
| url=http://www.ncut.edu.cn/waiban/word/guowuyuan.doc
| title=国务院机构英文译名
|trans-title= English Translation of Agencies in State Council
| work=Center of International Cooperation and Exchanges (Hong Kong, Macao & Taiwan Affairs), [[North China University of Technology Office]]
| format=MS DOC
}}
* {{cite web
| url=http://blog.sciencenet.cn/home.php?mod=space&uid=66445&do=blog&id=41793
| title=单位及部门名称英译概述
|trans-title= A Summary of English Translation of Organizations and Departments
| work=junpengyuan
| date=2008-10-07 <!--12:39-->
| language=Chinese
}} This looks like an excerpt of a manual.
* [[Translation of Han dynasty titles]]. Wikipedia article. Discusses and compares translations, with Chinese characters provided.

==Places==
{{see also|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (Tibetan)}}
* As with personal names, pinyin should be used for [[place names in China]] unless another form is more common in contemporary English: write {{xt|Sichuan}} and {{xt|Hong Kong}}, not {{!xt|Szechwan}} or {{!xt|Xianggang}}.
* In comparison to personal names, historical romanizations of place names are much more likely to have fallen into disuse: write {{xt|Guangzhou}} and {{xt|Qingdao}}, not {{!xt|Canton}} or {{!xt|Tsingtao}}.
* For places without well-established names in English that may have distinct transliterations from different languages, which is often the case in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet, use the name preferred by [[Xinhua News Agency|Xinhua]] or similarly authoritative organs. For example, write {{xt|Kashgar}} and {{xt|Shigatse}},  instead of {{!xt|Kashi}} or {{!xt|Rikaze}}. Conversely, write {{xt|Baotou}} and {{xt|Kangding}}, instead of {{!xt|Bugat}} or {{!xt|Dartsedo}}.

The default naming pattern is "X Class", e.g. {{xt|Taihang Mountains}}, {{xt|Hai River}}, and {{xt|Fei County}}. Articles for provinces and cities may leave out the class name, e.g. {{xt|Liaobei}} or {{xt|Beijing}}. Avoid etymological [[Tautology (rhetoric)|tautologies]]: write {{xt|Mount Tai}} and {{xt|Xi River}}, not {{!xt|Mount Taishan}} or {{!xt|Xijiang River}}.

===Topographical features===
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Example article titles for Chinese-language topographical features
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:8em" | Feature
! scope="col" rowspan="2" | {{abbr|Char.|Number of characters}}
! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Systematic title
! scope="colgroup" colspan="2" | Disambiguating title
|-
! scope="col" | By location !! scope="col" | By type
|-
| scope="rowgroup" rowspan="2" | Mountain range {{nwr|({{lang|zh-hans|山脉}}、{{lang|zh-hant|山脈}})}}
| scope="row" | 1 || [[Qin Mountains]]{{discuss}} {{lang|zh-hans|秦岭}} || rowspan="2" colspan="2"{{n/a}}
|-
| scope="row" | 2+ || [[Taihang Mountains]] {{lang|zh-hans|太行山}}
|-
| scope="rowgroup" rowspan="4" | Mountain peak {{nwr|({{lang|zh|山峰}})}}
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 1 || rowspan="2" | [[Mount Tai]] {{lang|zh-hans|泰山}} || [[Mount Heng (Shanxi)]] {{lang|zh-hans|恒山}} || [[Huangshan]] {{lang|zh-hans|黄山}}
|-
| [[Mount Heng (Hunan)]] {{lang|zh-hans|衡山}} || [[Huangshan City]] {{lang|zh-hans|黄山市}}
|-
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2+ || rowspan="2" | {{ubl|[[Dahei Mountain]] {{lang|zh-hans|大黑山}}|[[Mount Wutai]] {{lang|zh-hans|五台山}}}} || rowspan="2"{{n/a}} || [[Wuzhi Mountain]] {{lang|zh-hans|五指山}}
|-
| [[Wuzhishan City]] {{lang|zh-hans|五指山市}}
|-
| scope="rowgroup" rowspan="4" | River {{nwr|({{lang|zh|河流)}}}}
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 1 || rowspan="2" | {{ubl|[[Huai River]] {{lang|zh-hans|淮河}}|[[Xiang River]] {{lang|zh-hans|湘江}}}} || [[Min River (Sichuan)]] {{lang|zh-hans|岷江}} || rowspan="2"{{n/a}}
|-
| [[Min River (Fujian)]] {{lang|zh-hans|闽江}}
|-
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2+ || rowspan="2" | [[Jinsha River]] {{lang|zh-hans|金沙江}} || rowspan="2"{{n/a}} || [[Mudan River]] {{lang|zh-hans|牡丹江}}
|-
| [[Mudanjiang]] {{lang|zh-hans|牡丹江市}}
|-
| scope="rowgroup" rowspan="4" | Lake {{nwr|({{lang|zh|湖泊}})}}
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 1 || rowspan="2" | {{ubl|[[Lake Tai]] {{lang|zh-hans|太湖}} | [[Chao Lake]] {{lang|zh-hans|巢湖}}}} || rowspan="2"{{n/a}} || [[Chao Lake]] {{lang|zh-hans|巢湖}}
|-
| [[Chaohu]] {{lang|zh-hans|巢湖市}}
|-
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2+ || rowspan="2" | [[Hongze Lake]] {{lang|zh-hans|洪泽湖}}  || rowspan="2"{{n/a}} || [[Poyang Lake]] {{lang|zh-hans|鄱阳湖}}
|-
| [[Poyang County]] {{lang|zh-hans|鄱阳县}}
|}

===Settlements and administrative units===
In general, when deciding to disambiguate a place name, those settlements ranked higher administratively (i.e. higher up the following table) are [[WP:Primary topic|primary topic]] over those ranked lower, unless sourcing exists to establish [[WP:N|significant notability]] of a lower-ranked division. Thus settlements below the province-level should not be disambiguated with ", China".

{| class="wikitable"
!rowspan="2"|Type!!rowspan="2"|char.!!rowspan="2"|Normal!!colspan="2"|Disambiguate
|-
!by location!!by type
|-
|rowspan="2"|Province {{lang|zh|省}}||rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Zhejiang]] {{lang|zh-hans|浙江省}}<br>[[Rehe]] {{lang|zh-hans|热河省}}||rowspan="2"|[[Fujian Province, Republic of China]]||[[Heilongjiang]] {{lang|zh-hans|黑龙江省}}
|-
|''[[Heilong River]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|黑龙江}} </small>
|-
|rowspan="2"|Aut. Region 自治区||rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Ningxia]] {{lang|zh-hans|宁夏回族自治区}}||rowspan="2"|''no example yet''||[[Tibet Autonomous Region]] {{lang|zh-hans|西藏自治区}}
|-
|''[[Tibet]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|藏区 / 吐蕃}} </small>
|-
|rowspan="4"|[[Municipality of China|Municipality]] / City<br>([[Prefecture-level city|plc]] / [[County-level city|clc]] / [[Provincial city|pc]] / [[County-controlled city|ccc]])<br>{{lang|zh-hans|直辖、地级、县级市}}<br>{{lang|zh-hans|直轄、省轄、縣轄市}}||rowspan="2"|1||rowspan="2"|''no example yet''||''no example yet''||[[Mangshi]] {{lang|zh-hans|芒市}}
|-
|''no example yet''||''[[Mang]]''
|-
|rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Beijing]] {{lang|zh-hans|北京市}}<br>[[Nanjing]] {{lang|zh-hans|南京市}}<br>[[Yiwu]] {{lang|zh-hans|义乌市}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[Taipei]] {{lang|zh-hant|臺北市}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[Keelung]] {{lang|zh-hant|基隆市}}||[[Yichun, Heilongjiang]] {{lang|zh-hans|伊春市}}||[[Jilin City]] {{lang|zh-hans|吉林市}}
|-
|[[Yichun, Jiangxi]] {{lang|zh-hans|宜春市}}||''[[Jilin]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|吉林省}} </small>
|-
|rowspan="2"|[[Leagues of China|League]] / [[Banner (Inner Mongolia)|Banner]]<br>{{lang|zh-hans|盟旗}}||rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Alxa League]] {{lang|zh-hans|阿拉善盟}}<br>[[Harqin Banner]] {{lang|zh-hans|喀喇沁旗}}||rowspan="2"|''no example yet''||[[Naiman Banner]] {{lang|zh-hans|奈曼旗}}
|-
|''[[Naiman (people)]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|奈曼部}} </small>
|-
|rowspan="2"|(Aut.) [[Prefecture of China|Prefecture]]<br>{{lang|zh-hans|地区 / 自治州}}||rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Daxing'anling Prefecture]] {{lang|zh-hans|大兴安岭地区}}<br>[[Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture]] {{lang|zh-hans|延边朝鲜族自治州}}||rowspan="2"|''no example yet''||[[Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture]] {{lang|zh-hans|海南藏族自治州}}
|-
|''[[Hainan]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|海南省}} </small>
|-
|rowspan="4"|(Aut.) [[County of China|County]]<br>{{lang|zh-hans|县 / 自治县}}<br>{{lang|zh-hant|縣}}||rowspan="2"|1||rowspan="2"|[[Zhao County]] {{lang|zh-hans|赵县}}||[[She County, Anhui]] {{lang|zh-hans|歙县}}||rowspan="2"|''N/A''
|-
|[[She County, Hebei]] {{lang|zh-hans|涉县}}
|-
|rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Fugou County]] {{lang|zh-hans|扶沟县}}<br>[[Dachang Hui Autonomous County]] {{lang|zh-hans|大厂回族自治县}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[Hsinchu County]] {{lang|zh-hant|新竹縣}}||[[Wushan County, Chongqing]] {{lang|zh-hans|巫山县}}||[[Poyang County]] {{lang|zh-hans|鄱阳县}}
|-
||[[Wushan County, Gansu]] {{lang|zh-hans|武山县}}||''[[Lake Poyang]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|鄱阳湖}} </small>
|-
|rowspan="4"|[[District of China|District]] {{lang|zh-hans|区}} {{lang|zh-hant|區}} <br> [[Subdistrict (China)|Subdistricts]] {{lang|zh|街道}} ||rowspan="2"|1||rowspan="2"|[[Xi District]] {{lang|zh-hans|西区}}||[[Jiaoqu, Jiamusi]] {{lang|zh-hans|佳木斯市郊区}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[East District, Taichung]] {{lang|zh-hant|臺中市東區}}||rowspan="2"|''no example yet''
|-
|[[Jiaoqu, Yangquan]] {{lang|zh-hans|阳泉市郊区}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[East District, Tainan]] {{lang|zh-hant|臺南市東區}}
|-
|rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Chongwen, Beijing]] {{lang|zh-hans|崇文区}}<br>''but also'': [[Pudong]] {{lang|zh-hans|浦东新区}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[Beitou District]] {{lang|zh-hant|北投區}}||[[Chaoyang, Beijing]] {{lang|zh-hans|北京市朝阳区}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[Da'an District, Taipei]] {{lang|zh-hant|臺北市大安區}}||[[Hebei, Tianjin]] {{lang|zh-hans|天津市河北区}}
|-
||[[Chaoyang, Changchun]] {{lang|zh-hans|长春市朝阳区}}<br>{{highlight|''ROC''|lightpink}}: [[Da'an District, Taichung]] {{lang|zh-hant|臺中市大安區}}||''[[Hebei]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|河北省}} </small>
|-
<!--
|rowspan="2"|[[Town (China)|Town]] / [[Townships of the People's Republic of China|Township]]*<br>{{lang|zh-hans|乡镇}}<br>{{lang|zh-hant|鄉鎮}}||rowspan="2"|>1||rowspan="2"|[[Zhouzhuang]] {{lang|zh-hans|周庄镇}}<br>||[[Huayuankou, Zhengzhou]] {{lang|zh-hans|郑州市花园口镇}}||[[Huanren Town]] {{lang|zh-hans|桓仁镇}}
|-
|[[Huayuankou, Jingyu County]] {{lang|zh-hans|靖宇县花园口镇}}||''[[Huanren Manchu Autonomous County]]'' <small> {{lang|zh-hans|桓仁满族自治县}} </small> -->
|}

[[Towns of China|Towns]], [[Townships of the People's Republic of China|townships]] and villages of the PRC are to be disambiguated according to the following procedure:
#By province-level division. Places in the districts of the following automatically go to 2A): All [[sub-provincial cities]] (except [[Jinan]]), [[Jilin City]], [[Wuxi]], [[Suzhou]], [[Wenzhou]], [[Fuzhou]], [[Kunming]], [[Lanzhou]], and [[Lhasa]]
#If the name is not unique within the province, disambiguate: A) By the <u>prefecture-level city</u> if the parent division is a <u>district</u>. B) By the county-level city, county, or banner otherwise; autonomous counties should omit the ethnic groups and the word "Autonomous" (e.g. Huanren Manchu Autonomous County → Huanren County) ''as long as no ambiguity is created by the short form''.
#If the name of the parent county-level city or county is ambiguous, revert to 2A). If the prefecture-level city is not primary topic within the PRC, revert to 2B).
#If the English name is not unique even within the county-level division, use pinyin tone marks. <!-- these DO exist-->

Occasionally, towns will have the same name as their parent division. "Town" must be used if the name of the town co-exists with subdistricts or townships of the same name in the same county-level division, i.e. if the town of XX and XX Township both exist in XY District. Otherwise, "Town" may be used ''only when'': A) The parent division is a district, county-level city or prefecture-level city, i.e. <nowiki>[[Jiangzhou Town]]</nowiki> in [[Jiangzhou District]] <u>and</u> B) Apart from the town and its parent(s), no other settlements exist.

[[Subdistrict (China)|Subdistricts]] always disambiguate according to Step 2 above.

===Established translations elsewhere===
Here are some established translations, officially used in China or frequently employed in [[sinological]] literature.
* [[Administrative divisions of China]]
* [[Administrative divisions of Taiwan]]
* [[History of the administrative divisions of China]]
* [http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/chin/hbgovernment-u.html Classical political divisions]

==Transport==
When naming articles of [[Expressways of China|expressways]], [[China National Highways|highways]], [[List of railway lines in China|railways]], railway stations, or [[List of airports in China|airports]] in China, use the common English name if it can be determined, e.g. [[Karakoram Highway]].  Otherwise, follow these rules to determine the article title name:

For roadways, highways, expressways and railways whose names in Chinese consist of two- or three-character abbreviations  (usually of terminal cities), do not simply adopt the [[pinyin]] version of the Chinese abbreviation as the English article name.  Instead, spell out the full English name of each location mentioned in the Chinese abbreviation and connect the location names by an [[WP:DASH|en dash (–)]]. 
*For the {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|宁芜铁路}}, use [[Nanjing–Wuhu Railway]] as the article name, not ''[[Ningwu Railway]]''.  
In this example, the character {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|宁}}, pinyin romanized as ''ning'' is a shorthand for the city of [[Nanjing]], the eastern terminal on this rail line, and the character {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|芜}}, pinyin romanized as ''wu'', is the shorthand for the other terminal city, [[Wuhu]].  ''Ningwu'' is an abbreviation for ''Nanjing–Wuhu''.

The [full English spelling of terminus 1]–[full English spelling of terminus 2] [Expressway/Railway] article naming format is intended to identify expressways and railways with precision  and avoid ambiguity. The Nanjing–Wuhu Railway from the example above, if written as Ningwu Railway in its article title, is confusingly similar to the [[Ningwu–Kelan Railway|Ningwu–Kelan]] and [[Ningwu–Jingle Railway]]s.

Similarly, [[Nanfu Railway]] may refer to:
*[[Nanchuan–Fuling Railway]], a railway in [[Chongqing]] built in 2012 or 
*[[Nanping–Fuzhou Railway]], a railway in [[Fujian]] built in 1959.

The Chinese abbreviated name, e.g. Ningwu Railway, should still be mentioned in the first sentence of the article as a secondary name of the expressway/railway, and should be made a redirect link to the article.  This Chinese abbreviated name can be freely used in the article itself and in other articles.  The rule above applies only to article names.  Where there is ambiguity in the pinyin version of the Chinese abbreviated name, create a disambiguation page for the ambiguous name.

Please connect location names with an [[WP:DASH|en dash (–)]] in the title instead of a hyphen.  The en-dash stands for ''to'' or ''through''.  The [[Nanjing–Wuhu Railway]], therefore means, the railway from Nanjing to Wuhu.  For the sake of convenience of writers who cite the article using hyphens, please also create a redirect to the hyphenated version of the article name, e.g. [[Nanjing-Wuhu Railway]].

===Railways===
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|京九铁路}}  – [[Beijing–Kowloon Railway]] not ''Jingjiu Railway''
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|宝成铁路}} – [[Baoji–Chengdu Railway]] not ''Baocheng Railway''
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|皖赣铁路}} – [[Anhui–Jiangxi Railway]] not ''Wan'gan Railway''
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|精伊霍铁路}} – [[Jinghe–Yining–Khorgos Railway]] not ''Jingyihuo Railway''

Where the pinyin spelling of a location name differs from the official English spelling of the place name (especially in the case of non-Chinese place names) use the official English spelling. 
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|滨州铁路}} – [[Harbin–Manzhouli Railway]] not ''Haerbin-Manzhouli Railway''
Use the location names mentioned in the Chinese abbreviation even if a location's actual name has changed.
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|临策铁路}} – [[Linhe–Ceke Railway]] not ''Bayan Nur–Ceke Railway''.  The article's introduction should explain that the railway's eastern terminal city, formerly known as [[Linhe]], is now called [[Bayan Nur]], but the railway name still uses Linhe. 
Use the same naming format for China's high-speed railways
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|武广高速铁路}} – [[Wuhan–Guangzhou high-speed railway]] not ''Wuguang high-speed railway''

Exceptions to the full-spelling naming format:

Where the Chinese name is descriptive, translate the descriptive name:
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北疆铁路}} – [[Northern Xinjiang Railway]] not ''Beijiang Railway''.

Where the Chinese abbreviation is no longer considered an abbreviation but a name into itself.  This usually occurs when the abbreviated name has survived changes in the underlying names. 
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|陇海铁路}} – [[Longhai Railway]] not ''Longxi–Haizhou Railway'' because Longxi is no longer used to describe eastern Gansu Province and Haizhou is now part of [[Lianyungang]]

===Roadways===
For [[Expressways of China|expressways]] that have a single numeral name, add this numeral name as a prefix to the expressway name in the article title.  The numeral name and the expressway name should be separated by a space. 
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|京沪高速公路}} – [[G2 Beijing–Shanghai Expressway]] not ''[[Jinghu Expressway]]''
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|大广高速公路}} – [[G45 Daqing–Guangzhou Expressway]] not ''[[Daguang Expressway]]''
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|沪芦高速公路}} – [[S2 Shanghai–Luchaogang Expressway]] not ''[[Hulu Expressway]]''

Note: some provincial-level expressways that cross provincial boundary lines carry different provincial highway numeral designations. In these cases, leave out the numeral name prefixes from the article title.  For example:

*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|申嘉湖高速公路}} – [[Shanghai–Jiaxing–Huzhou Expressway]] for the expressway between [[Shanghai]] and [[Huzhou]], in [[Jiangsu]] province, that is numbered S32 in Shanghai and S12 in Zhejiang, not ''[[Shanghai–Jiaxing–Huzhou Expressway|S12/S32 Shenjiahu Expressway]] or [[Shanghai–Jiaxing–Huzhou Expressway|Shenjiahu Expressway]]''.

The Chinese abbreviated name for the expressway should be mentioned in the first sentence of the article as an abbreviated/secondary name of the expressway and should be made a redirect link to the article.  Any numeral name designations should also be mentioned in the lede and redirects created as applicable. 

For National Highways that are numbered simply follow the format {China National Highway [number]}:
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|国道102}} – [[China National Highway 102]] 

National Highways can be abbreviated with "G{no. of highway}", e.g. [[G105]] as a redirect link for [[China National Highway 105]].

===Railway stations===
Articles for railway stations in China should be named using the city's name (or in some cases the station's unique name, for example {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|沙坪坝站}}) followed by the English translation of the cardinal direction in the railway station name, if applicable (North, South etc.), and then [railway station] ("railway station" is lowercase as per [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=810622340#RFC_on_Chinese_railway_station_title/style_conventions this 2017 RFC]):

*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北京站}} – [[Beijing railway station]]
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北京西站}} – [[Beijing West railway station]]
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|沙坪坝站}} – [[Shapingba railway station]]

For stations with cardinal directions in their names, use the Pinyin version of the direction in the infobox, and mention it in the article's first sentence as secondary names; also create a redirect with this name.  ([http://news.sina.com.cn/o/2012-09-18/080725196193.shtml Using Pinyin transliteration of cardinal directions has been the policy of China Railways since 2012]; see [[:zh:阳泉北站]])

*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北京西站}} – [[Beijing West railway station]] – <code><nowiki>{{Infobox station| name = Beijingxi}}</nowiki></code>  – Redirects from ''[[Beijingxi Railway Station]]'', ''[[Beijing West]]'' (Currently also ''[[Beijing Xi Railway Station]]'')
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北京南站}} – [[Beijing South railway station]] – <code><nowiki>{{Infobox station| name = Beijingnan}}</nowiki></code> – Redirects from ''[[Beijingnan Railway Station]]'', ''[[Beijing South Station]]''

===Metro stations===
All metro stations have their own English name, simply write the name that is already in use. However, consider creating a redirect for possible variants: for example,
''[[Binhai International Airport station]]'' to [[Binhaiguojijichang station]], or ''[[Nanjing East Road Station]]'' to [[East Nanjing Road Station]].

===Airports===
Airport articles should have the city's name followed by the [airport's name] if applicable, followed by [International Airport] or [Airport] as applicable:
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北京首都国际机场}} – [[Beijing Capital International Airport]]
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|上海浦东国际机场}} – [[Shanghai Pudong International Airport]] 
*{{lang|zh-Hans-CN|广州白云国际机场}} – [[Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport]]

==Culture==
For [[Chinese cuisine]], use established terms that are understandable, particularly if such names are in daily use in the English-speaking world. Avoid [[Chinese abbreviations]] and pre-pinyin romanizations no longer in use of modern scholarship, except when quoting sources.

*[[Sichuan cuisine]] ({{lang|zh|川菜}}) not ''Szechwan'' or "''Chuan'' cuisine"
*[[Cantonese cuisine]] ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|粤菜}}) not ''Yuecai'' or "''Yue'' cuisine"
*[[General Tso's chicken]] not "General ''Zuo'''s chicken"
*[[Kung Pao chicken]], not "''Gongbao'' chicken"
*[[Dim sum]] not ''Dianxin''

For the various Chinese operas or other performance arts, use an established translation, or, if that is not available (which is usual), use pinyin.

*[[Peking opera]] ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|京剧}}) not ''Jingju''
*[[Pingju]] ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|评剧}}) not "Hebei Opera" (that term is also used for [[Hebei Bangzi]] {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|河北梆子}})

And as always, work individual articles out on a case by case basis rather than let these conventions constrain you!

===Languages or dialects{{anchor|Language}}===<!--linked from Naming conventions (languages)-->
Chinese linguists classify local [[varieties of Chinese]] into dialect groups: [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]], [[Wu Chinese|Wu]], [[Gan Chinese|Gan]], [[Xiang Chinese|Xiang]], [[Min Chinese|Min]], [[Hakka Chinese|Hakka]], [[Yue Chinese|Yue]] and, in some classifications, [[Jin Chinese|Jin]], [[Huizhou Chinese|Hui]] and [[Pinghua]]. They have also subdivided these into subgroups at various levels. While these groups are sometimes referred to as dialects, this has been criticized as a confusing departure from usual uses of the term elsewhere in the world. Some call them languages, on the grounds that they are [[mutually unintelligible]], but this practice has been criticized both by those who feel it does not reflect the historical and cultural unity of Chinese, and by linguists who point to mutual unintelligibility within each of the groups.

Avoid explicitly naming the dialect groups as either languages or dialects. Simply use the name itself if there is no ambiguity. If there is, use "xxx Chinese" for top-level groups or "xxx Min", "xxx Mandarin" etc for lower-level divisions. For the local variety of a county or city, use "xxx dialect" unless another name is more common. In the event that the name of a variety is also the name used to refer to the people (e.g. Shanghainese), the variety should take precedence as the primary article name with a disambiguation link for the people.

Be aware that certain varieties of Chinese have multiple synonymous names in English, which can be alternately used to emphasize certain linguistic qualities. For example, Modern Standard Mandarin can be described as [[Standard Chinese]] to emphasize the fact that it is the [[standard language]]. The same language may be described as Modern Standard Mandarin to emphasize its difference from Standard Cantonese or Taiwanese Hokkien. It also may be called Modern Chinese to emphasize differences with [[Classical Chinese]]. Similarly, to call [[Taiwanese Hokkien]] simply by "Taiwanese" would de-emphasize its relationship to the broader Hokkien language group. The best name for each particular variety often depends on the article and its context.

The inclusion relationship between certain oft-confused groups and varieties is:

* [[Mandarin Chinese]] ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|北方话/官话}})
** [[Standard Chinese]] ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|普通话}})
*** [[Taiwanese Mandarin]] ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|國語}})
*** [[Singaporean Mandarin]] ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|華語}})
* [[Min Chinese]] ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|閩語}})
** [[Southern Min]] ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|閩南語}})
*** [[Hokkien]] ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|福建話}})
**** [[Taiwanese Hokkien]] ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|台語}})
* [[Yue Chinese]] ({{lang|zh-Hant|粵語}})
** [[Cantonese]] ({{lang|zh-Hant|廣東話}})

==Orthography==
{{See also|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/China-related articles#Romanisation}}

The titles of Chinese entries should follow current academic conventions, which generally means [[Hanyu Pinyin]] without tone marks. Pinyin is [[Pinyin#Words, capitalization, initialisms and punctuation|spaced according to words, not characters]]; the correct form of the title is ''[[Zizhi Tongjian]]'', not "Zi Zhi Tong Jian" or "ZiZhi TongJian". Exceptions include:
* When there is a [[WP:COMMONNAME|clearly more popular]] form in English (such as [[Yangtze River]])
* When the subject uses a non-pinyin form of their name that is adopted by secondary sources
When an entry is not in pinyin form, a redirect to the article from the pinyin form could be helpful. Redirects from old standards of romanization such as [[Wade–Giles]] are also useful, especially for articles of historical relevance. Use a template like {{tlx|lang|zh-Latn}} or {{tlx|transliteration|zh}} to tag romanized Chinese text and render it in italics.

To help you type pinyin, Wikipedia now has clickable characters with diacritics under the edit box; you can also use {{tlsp|pinyin|''input''}} which takes pinyin with tone numbers as input (e.g. {{code|Lv3shun4kou3}}) and converts it to the preferred form with diacritics ({{Transliteration|zh|Lǚshùnkǒu}}). Other options include [http://pinyinput.sourceforge.net/ Pinyinput] or [[Google Translate]]'s phonetic reading function. 

For information about the use of Cantonese romanization systems, see [[Romanization of Chinese]].

===Apostrophes===
{{Wikisource|zh:汉语拼音方案#五_隔音符号|汉语拼音方案 五 隔音符号}}

Apostrophes are crucial in both Pinyin and Wade–Giles. In Wade–Giles, an apostrophe is a part of the syllable, while in Pinyin it serves as a syllable delimiter. In Mandarin, the syllable delimiting apostrophe is referred to as a {{linktext|lang=zh|隔音符号}} ({{Transliteration|zh|géyīn fúhào}}).

''Chinese Romanization: Pronunciation and Orthography'' [http://pinyin.info/romanization/hanyu/apostrophes.html gives] the following rules for using the apostrophe in Hanyu Pinyin:

# Use when a syllable begins with ''a'', ''o'', or ''e'', and follows another syllable: {{Transliteration|zh|fāng'àn}} ({{linktext|lang=zh|方案}}), {{Transliteration|zh|Cháng'é}} ({{linktext|lang=zh|嫦娥}}), {{Transliteration|zh|Jiàn'ōu}} ({{linktext|lang=zh-Hans-CN|建瓯}}). 
# Do not use when the syllable starts a word: {{Transliteration|zh|Àomén}} ({{linktext|lang=zh-Hant-HK|澳門}}), or is separated by a hyphen: {{Transliteration|zh|Rì-É Zhànzhēng}} ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|日俄战争}})
# In the case of the [[erhua]], omit the ''e'' in {{Transliteration|zh|ér}}: {{Transliteration|zh|tàngr}} ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|趟儿}}), {{Transliteration|zh|gōngyuánr}} ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|公園兒}}), {{Transliteration|zh|xiǎoháir}} ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|小孩儿}}).

In many cases, the apostrophe reduces ambiguity in word boundaries. {{Transliteration|zh|Xī'ān}} ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|西安}}), for example, might be interpreted as a single syllable {{Transliteration|zh|xiān}} ({{lang|zh|先}}) if the apostrophe and the tones were not present. <!-- This is the most favored example in Chinese textbooks on pinyin =) --> Without the apostrophe, {{Transliteration|zh|fāng'àn}} ({{lang|zh|方案}}) could be confused with {{Transliteration|zh|fǎngǎn}} ({{lang|zh|反感}}). (Some writers, such as the [http://www.loc.gov/catdir/pinyin/romcover.html Library of Congress], write {{Transliteration|zh|fǎn'gǎn}}, but this reading is already implied in the absence of the apostrophe- for this reason, [[Henan Province]] isn't allowed to use an apostrophe between ''He'' and ''nan'' despite the technical plausibility of some other word spelled "{{Transliteration|zh|hen'an}}") Note that not every required apostrophe reduces ambiguity, as in {{Transliteration|zh|Tiān'é}} ({{lang|zh-Hans-CN|天峨}}) despite the fact that {{Transliteration|zh|tia}} (any tone) is not the Mandarin pronunciation for any character.

===Hyphenation===
{{further|Pinyin#Hyphenation}}
In pinyin, hyphens are mainly used for the conjunction of independent words, abbreviated compounds ({{Transliteration|zh|lüèyǔ}}), and [[Chengyu|four-character idioms]], including double reduplication of the schema AA-BB. Character sequences for words with a single meaning, often consisting of two characters, seldom three, are written without intervening hyphen or space. This also holds for compound words combining two words to one meaning: {{Transliteration|zh|hǎifēng}} ({{zh|s=海风|t=海風}}, sea breeze).

Summary from the Library of Congress:
* Join, without [[hyphen]] or space, multi-[[Chinese characters|character]] [[proper noun]]s, for example:
** Person's name
*** [[Chinese family name|Family/clan name]] ({{lang|zh|姓}})
*** [[Given name]] ({{lang|zh|名}})
*** [[Courtesy name]] ({{lang|zh|字}})
*** [[Pseudonym]]
*** [[Buddhist]] name
** [[Placename]]
*** But separate the following from the placename proper:
**** [[Jurisdiction]]al name, such as {{Transliteration|zh|shì}} ({{lang|zh|市}}, 'city')
**** [[Topography|Topographi]]cal name, such as {{Transliteration|zh|shān}} ({{lang|zh|山}}, 'mountain')
** [[Era name]]
** [[Ethnic group]] name
** [[Religion]] name
** [[Language]] name

Names not transliterated with Hanyu Pinyin will often have hyphenation or spacing between syllables, for example [[Aaron Kwok|Kwok Fu-shing]], [[Tsai Ing-wen]], and [[Mong Kok]].

==See also==
* [[Template:wg-apos]]
[[Category:Wikipedia romanization systems|Chinese]]