Wikipedia:WikiProject Cities/Settlements: Article structure

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This reference is a supplement to specific guidelines on writing about U.K. cities and towns, U.S. cities, Canadian cities, Philippine cities and municipalities, and Indian cities. It does not replace those, but amalgamates the information in order to serve as advice for writing about settlements not in those geographic regions.

The suggested sections and headings are intended to serve as a starting point for writing a good article on settlements or places; they are not meant to enforce a single, binding structure on all such articles, nor to limit the topics a fully developed article will discuss.

The order and range of sections will vary according to need, although it is strongly recommended that articles conform to the basic structure of a lead section with infobox if appropriate, followed by a history section, main section(s) as appropriate, then finishing with See also (if appropriate), References, External links, and Nav boxes. Beyond that, editors are advised to come to a consensus that works best for the settlement/places article in question. References are required for every article.

See Wikipedia:Layout for the Wikipedia Manual of Style guidance to general structure of a Wikipedia article.

Lead

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WP:CITYLEAD

Appropriate sequence of items in lead section

Disambiguation and redirection links
Maintenance tags
An InfoBox or image (also see MOS:IMAGES#Images). Consideration should be given to the benefits of having both an InfoBox and an Image in the lead section, and in which order they would appear. If there are no compelling reasons to do otherwise, the usual practice is for an InfoBox to be alone in the lead, but if there are both, then the InfoBox is placed above the image. An InfoBox is not required.
NavBoxes can be contentious, so should be used sparingly and with care. They are usually placed at the bottom of articles after the References section.
Introductory text:
- First sentence: Context (what and where), total population (approximate, leave census data to infobox or later sections)
- Following sentences: name origin, article summary (major points)
The table of contents (TOC) automatically appears on pages with more than three headings. Avoid floating the table of contents if possible, as it breaks the standard look of pages.

Toponymy

This section may also be called Etymology or Name.

If there is sufficient material on the origin and meaning of the settlement's name to justify a section or subsection, then it may be titled as Toponymy, Etymology, or Name (least common), otherwise it can lie within the history section.

Toponymy is the umbrella term that should be used in a fully developed article; within it will be a paragraph describing the etymology of the elements. If the section only discusses the origins of the name and does not relate it to concrete geographical features or ownership, etymology is permissible. Name can be used as a holding term while the article is developed.

History

When material in this section becomes large enough, split out per summary style, using a {{Main}} template as:

This section provides a narrative of the settlement's history. Topics that can be covered include, but are not limited to:

original inhabitants
original settlements
occupying powers/transitions of power
population spikes
recessions
reasons for settlement/growth
dominant activities
events that shaped the community
A note on the earliest known history of the settlement (any Bronze Age or Roman artefacts for example), and the earliest known mentions of the settlement (e.g. in Domesday book).
Consider prose (or subheadings) on Industrial history, Social history or Political history where appropriate.
- If a settlement has a name in another recognized regional or national language, this can be presented here.
Avoid using headings that arrange the history of a settlement according to century or decade.
Avoid organising prose into timelines. If these exist (or are developed), consider placing them in a History of Foo or Timeline of Foo article.
Consider a note on the origin of the settlement's name; if details are lengthy, complex or technical, it may be appropriate to create an Etymology section or subsection (see above). As etymology is a branch of linguistics rather than a part of the settlement's development through the ages, it is more appropriate to place this info in the Etymology section than part of the History section.

Most libraries will have books on local history. Be wary of loose interpretations, especially when using internet or promotional sources.

Note: History sections can easily become very long with more detail than appropriate for a general overview. While there is no strict rule on how long a section may be, as a general rule of thumb, more than 10 paragraphs or the use of subsection headings might indicate that it should be accompanied by a History of Foo main article (using the main template). Only describe the minimum of what is required to understand where the community has come from and let the History of Foo article give the details.

Note 2: The geography and history sections can be reversed if desired, see Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Cities/Archive 14#Geography / History ordering.

Geography

Geographic setting, geographical features, subdivisions, climate (the climate section can also include information on effects of climate change in that city).

Most populated places will have documentation of other environmental issues (such as pollution, flooding or urban sprawl). These can be combined with the climate change conversation or be highlighted in the demographics or economy sections below depending on the focus of the sources.

Note: The geography and history sections can be reversed if desired, see Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Cities/Archive 14#Geography / History ordering.

Demographics

Population info, census data, ethnicity, language, religious affiliation. This section may also be titled Population. If it is a metropolis, mention the city and metropolitan population. Also mention the density, literacy, sex ratio. If information is available the slum population and crime rate statistics can be included.

Economy

Dominant industries, agriculture if applicable, major employers, breweries, exports, etc. Sub-sections may be created for particularly important local economic groups - coffee production, tourism, steel manufacturers, etc, or particularly important local businesses or companies.

Per WP:LOCAL, "initially, information on places of local importance should be added to an article on the community where that place is located", then "as the article becomes overly large due to more verifiable information being added, information on individual places can be broken out into individual articles."

When splitting out material into either an Economy of Foo article, or into an individual stand alone article, this should be done using the relevant guidelines: Wikipedia:Article size, Wikipedia:Splitting, Wikipedia:Merging, Wikipedia:Notability and Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not, and by using the method explained in WP:Summary style.

Governance

This section should contain details about the governing body of the settlement such as the council and the mayor, administrative bodies, political representation, etc.

Placement of this section varies - articles on American towns and cities tend to place it low down in the section list; articles on UK towns and cities tend to place it in second or third place; articles on towns and cities in other parts of the world vary, but on the whole tend to be closer to the top of the section list than articles on American settlements.

This section may also be titled Government or Politics.

Culture

Cultural venues, arts, artifacts, festivals, cuisine and significant cultural events

Attractions / Amenities

Museums and other points of interest, parks (local, regional, provincial parks), recreation venues, pubs, restaurants, etc

Sometimes may be termed Landmarks, or Points of interest or may be included in a Culture / Arts and culture section; perhaps under a subsection such as Tourism, Museums, or Pubs.

Sports

Sport teams, sporting culture, and significant athletic events.

Infrastructure

Transport, road network, utilities, health care, security/safety, amenities.

Education

Schools, colleges, responsible organizations.

Instead of just adding lists of schools, it is much better to add paragraphs in prose format on the prominent educational institutions and their achievements and influence on the city.

Media

Local newspapers, TV, and radio stations.

Notable people

Names of notable people born or residing in the locality (not ancestry). Include only people with a Wikipedia article, see also WP:NLIST.

Note: Leading world centres, with possibly thousands of notable individuals, usually do not include such a list, but may have a separate article ([[List of notable people from ...]]) that can be linked.

Sister cities/International relations

List of sister cities or twin towns (national and/or international)

Footers

References

Citations per Verifiability, see Citing sources. Use {{Reflist|30em}} instead of {{Reflist|2}}. A list of sources used is a form of definition list, which is placed below the reference section, separated with a ";" which creates a related but minor subsection. Texts which are suggested as further reading, but haven't been used as source material in the article, are placed in a separate section termed Further reading.