User talk:CUS1815

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Welcome to Wikipedia, CUS1815! I am Marek69 and have been editing Wikipedia for quite some time. I just wanted to say hi and welcome you to Wikipedia! If you have any questions, feel free to leave me a message on my talk page or by typing {{helpme}} at the bottom of this page. I love to help new users, so don't be afraid to leave a message! I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are some pages that you might find helpful:

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Marek.69 ^talk 00:43, 1 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Transliteration of kappa

Hello! First, nice job on the article on the Peiraiki-Patraiki. Now, on the names, kappa is almost always transliterated with "K" for modern Greek names. Sure, "Catsambas" is a possible alternative, but not to be preferred, per WP:GREEK. Your personal usage or experience doesn't come into this. Best regards, Constantine ✍ 14:12, 3 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

On a different note, it would be nice if you stayed around and contributed to other articles as well. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to help. Constantine ✍ 14:16, 3 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Well, it does not matter whether names in English usually begin with a K, since foreign names are not subject to the rules of the English language, but are transliterated. Only when they are anglicized does it matter, but this is not the case here. Personal experience is not a valid criterion for an encyclopedia due to lack of verifiability. To adopt an idiomatic spelling, there would have to be evidence that he was better or exclusively known under this name, just as "Costas Simitis" is apparently more common in English-language sources than "Kostas" or "Konstantinos". If you can provide a reliable & notable source in English that refers to him as "Catsambas", then it's OK. This can be either a third-party publication or a document or other primary source showing that he himself used that spelling (e.g. foreign correspondence or advertisements). Otherwise, we are simply transliterating the Greek name into English, and the rules here are clear. Anyhow, the matter is rather trivial. Constantine ✍ 16:35, 3 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Sure it is pedantic, but all great disputes start from little things like that and pedantic people who go on and on about them ;). Now, just like you, I want the name spelled "correctly", but outside the native language, the only "correct" way to do it is via certain transliteration rules, and these universally say that it must be "k". Writing it with "c" is idiomatic and should, as I explained above, be reserved for cases where it is proven to be used in this way. Anyhow, I won't insist any further if you are so determined. On a side not, I spell my name with C because it is Constantine, which is English, not transliterated Greek. Cheers, Constantine ✍ 07:34, 4 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]