 | This is a documentation subpage for Template:Self-reference. It may contain usage information, categories and other content that is not part of the original template page. |
 | This template is used on approximately 2,200 pages and changes may be widely noticed. Test changes in the template's /sandbox or /testcases subpages, or in your own user subpage. Consider discussing changes on the talk page before implementing them.
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 | This template should not be substituted. |
The {{Self-reference}} template generates a hatnote that will not appear in any reuse of Wikipedia article content, including the printable version of an article. The template's intended purpose is to display information that is relevant only to a reader viewing the article directly within Wikipedia. Such information might include a disambiguation statement that points to a Wikipedia help page or an instruction to editors. (In Wikipedia terminology, these are forms of self-reference.)
Unlike many hatnote templates, {{Self-reference}} has no preset text, link generation, or formatting other than italics. {{Self-reference|Foo}} simply returns Foo. Many hatnote templates that do contain helpful preset text and linking, such as {{for}} and {{about}}, support a |selfref= parameter that gives them the same functionality as {{Self-reference}}, making them better options in most circumstances.
In most cases, references to the Wikipedia project are discouraged, and the valid uses for this template are rare. Consultation of the list of Self-references to avoid is advisable.