Talk:Yichang–Wanzhou Railway

Full name of the railway for the article name

Use full descriptive name of railway for the article names of railways in China For article names of Chinese railways, the full name of the railway (i.e. both terminal cities) should always be spelled out, rather than merely the two character abbreviation. When the abbreviations are transliterated into English, essential identifying information is lost. E.g.

• Xiangyu, Xianggui, Xiangpu Railways all have different “Xiang” characters;
• Xianggui and Guikun Lines have different “Gui” characters;
• Yiwan and Yijia Lines have different “Yi” characters;
• Yiwan and Wan’gan Railways have different “Wan” characters;
• Yuli and Licha Railways have different “Li” characters;
• Baolan and Baocheng Railways have different “Bao” characters;
• Lanxin and Lanyan Lines have different “Lan” characters;
• Jiaoji, and Jiaoliu Railways have different “Jiao” characters
• Jiaoji and Jitong Railways have different “Ji” characters;
• Jitong and Tongpu Lines have different “Tong” characters;

The list goes on and on. Many English readers may be unfamiliar with one-character abbreviations of certain Chinese cities and provinces. So Yu for Chongqing, Hu for Shanghai, Jiu for Kowloon adds to the confusion. For consistency and clarity, Wikipedia article names of Chinese railways should always feature the full names. In-article references can use abbreviated names. The only exception may be the Longhai Line, which has become a two-character word in itself. ContinentalAve (talk) 18:25, 10 April 2011 (UTC)