Talk:Kerb (disambiguation)

Kerb versus Curb

Relocated from Talk:Curb#Curb versus Kerb.

My understanding is that "kerb" and "curb" are the same word, just spelled differently in British and US english. However, the current state of the pages kerb and curb would seem to indicate that this is not the case. If they are just different spellings then I propose we harmonize the pages so that each pair of pages point to the same place: curb and kerb; curb (road) and kerb (road); etc. I wouldn't care whether the ultimate page is kerb or curb i.e. curb as a redirect to kerb while kerb (road) redirects to curb (road) is fine with me. Ewlyahoocom 08:13, 30 March 2006 (UTC)

If it really troubles you, you could suggest moving kerb to peristalith and doing whatever you want with kerb and curb. Can't say I see any overwhelming need to change the current situation myself though. The Kerb article makes it clear that roadside feature enthusiasts can get their info from the US English spelling page and I prefer seeing spelling diversity in wiki titles rather than encouraging spelling homogenisation in either direction across The Atlantic. I find that adding bracketed descriptions to disambiguate is rarely satisfactory. adamsan 17:18, 30 March 2006 (UTC)

In standard English spoken and written in England, "kerb" is a noun meaning the edge of the pavement, whereas "curb" is a verb meaning "to restrain" (for example "to curb one's spending"). According to the dictionary, "curb" is also a noun meaning a restraint (perhaps an equestrian term). I think that the kerb page should be changed into a disambiguation page (like the curb disambiguation page), as they both have multiple meanings. NFH 21:42, 30 March 2006 (UTC)

Requested move

Kerb → Peristalith – less ambiguous, Kerb to become a redirect to the disambiguation page at Curb, etc. — Ewlyahoocom 07:17, 14 April 2006 (UTC

Survey

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• Support - the current article represents an unusual meaning of "kerb" and causes confusion when linked to by other articles. The most common meaning is the edge of the pavement where it meets the road. NFH 07:34, 14 April 2006 (UTC)
• I oppose but would consider other proposed schemes. See discussion below.adamsan 09:43, 14 April 2006 (UTC)

Discussion

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One problem I have is that the current proposal assumes without any discussion that the wiki should make kerb a redirect, thereby automatically giving prominence to a US English spelling at the expense of a valid alternative on a more established page. Additionally, there is no reason for Kerb (meaning peristalith) to redirect to curb as the latter could not reasonably serve as a disambig for the former's entirely different spelling and meaning. If there really is an overwhelming need to change things (and again I stress that I can't see any practical reason to do so), it it seems to me that it would be more efficient to have Peristalith for the archaeoloical term, kerb for the roadside feature and curb for the guard or restraint (windmills and other machines have curbs as well as equestrian tracks and there is a potential article there). You'd need some 'see also's of course but that seems neater to me than shuttling readers to unintuitively-titled disambig pages. adamsan 09:43, 14 April 2006 (UTC)