 | This RFC was complex and it took some time for us to close. We appreciate the community's patience while deliberations were being made. Furthermore, we would like to thank the community for its participation in this RfC and for the generally civil discussion. In accordance with the directive from the Arbitration Committee in 2018, we have considered only those comments accompanied by "a clear and reasonable rationale explained by reference to the principles of naming conventions and of disambiguation," and have disregarded comments that lacked such a rationale or were inconsistent with the principles of the neutral point of view policy or the reliable sources guideline. Following this directive, and in the exercise of our own judgment, we also accorded diminished weight to single-purpose accounts, the comments of which generally failed the test set forth by the Arbitration Committee. There is new consensus in this RfC that we have to accept as a community, a detailed summarization of which is given below:
Detailed consensus
|
- Disambiguation: What should be the entry for "Republic of Macedonia"/"North Macedonia"? Additionally, the following four entries are in the first section of the Macedonia disambiguation page (Macedonia most commonly refers to) [...] What should the order of these items be?
- Option A: "North Macedonia, formerly the Republic of Macedonia, a country of southeastern Europe"
- The closing panel agrees that there is consensus for Option A. As many editors noted, this option is supported by policy, as it is the official (WP:OFFICIAL) and current short-form name (WP:CONCISE), and is commonly used within the universe of reliable sources. (WP:COMMON). The panel found many Option B comments to be not supported by policy.
- The closing panel finds no clear consensus as to the ordering of articles on the disambiguation page, and therefore we default to retention of the status quo until a new consensus emerges.
- Nationality of people: What should people from North Macedonia be called?
- The closing panel finds no consensus to adopt a mandatory rule for how to refer to people from North Macedonia. However, there is a preference among non-SPA editors for Option B, and this option is also supported by both the universe of available sources (WP:COMMONNAME) as well as the principles of WP:OFFICIALNAME and WP:CONCISE. Therefore, use of "Macedonian(s)" to refer to people from North Macedonia should not be changed to "North Macedonian(s)" universally. However, the closing panel does find a consensus that "North Macedonian(s)" may be used in particular cases where necessary to avoid ambiguity or confusion; for example, in articles or sections of articles that discuss both Macedonians as a nationality and Macedonians as an ethnicity.
- State-associated and other public entities: What term should be used when referring to state-associated entities, including governmental organisations and official ranks, as well as other public entities from North Macedonia as specified in Prespa agreement?
- Option B: Both "North Macedonian" and "... of North Macedonia", where a similar form would be used for other countries. e.g. the North Macedonian Government or the Government of North Macedonia.
- The closing panel agrees that there is consensus for Option B. Furthermore, noting the fact that public entities are being retitled per Prespa agreement, newer sources find "North Macedonia"-related terminology more common, and we have the existing policies of WP:NAMECHANGES and WP:COMMONNAME.
- Adjective: What adjective should be used to refer to other entities from North Macedonia, not specified above?
- The closing panel finds no consensus to mandate the use of one adjective or the other at all times and in all places. Rather, the closing panel finds that the consensus, based on policy, is to follow the usage of the reliable sources with respect to the specific topic at issue. The usage of the reliable sources will often be dependent on context and common sense (for example, whether there is any meaningful risk of confusion or ambiguity exists in the specific context).
- Historical names: What should be used in place of Macedonia and Republic of Macedonia in other articles about the periods and events between 1991 and 2019?
- Option B: Macedonia and Republic of Macedonia should still be used in historical articles, with an optional note similar to "now North Macedonia".
- The closing panel agrees that there is a clear consensus for Option B. The terms "Macedonia" and "Republic of Macedonia" retain their meanings within the context of articles about the periods and events between 1991 and 2019 and thus, should not be changed, although an optional note such as "now North Macedonia" may be added where appropriate.
- Non-contentious housekeeping
- Option A:
- The main article should be titled North Macedonia
- North Macedonia and Republic of North Macedonia should be used in place of Macedonia and Republic of Macedonia in articles about the present.
- The language, ethnicity, and culture should be called Macedonian.
- The closing panel agrees that there is a clear consensus for Option A.
- Redirects: Northern Macedonia and Southern Macedonia are redirects that are potentially ambiguous terms. To what article(s) should these two titles redirect?
- The closing panel agrees that there is a consensus for "Northern Macedonia" to redirect to North Macedonia. The closing panel finds no consensus as to the title to which "Southern Macedonia" should redirect. Therefore, we default to maintaining the status quo—keeping the current redirect to Macedonia (Greece)—but without prejudice against a separate RfC being opened with respect to that specific redirect.
|
Closed by:
Date: 15:13, 11 April 2019 (UTC) |
/2019_RFC&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Consensus_icon.svg){kind=icon}