Template:Use dmy dates/doc

Usage

To promote consistent date formatting, place this template with other maintenance tags near the top of articles that use the d mmmm yyyy date format (below hatnotes, but above infoboxes, as per the Manual of Style).The template is invisible except in edit mode.

The template is useful to the editors to quickly know which date format is to be used when adding new dates into an article. It also facilitates article maintenance by recognising the use of this format, and by adding the article to the hidden category Use dmy dates.

Use of this template is part of a continuing effort to monitor the date formats used in articles, to assist in maintaining consistent formatting within an article. It is not a temporary "cleanup" template. Therefore, do not remove the template without valid reason, such as a determination that the article uses or should use a different date format.

Auto-formatting citation template dates

Citation Style 1 and 2 (collectively cs1|2) templates automatically render dates (|date=, |access-date=, |archive-date=, etc.) in the style specified by this template. Because it is allowed by BTW:MOSDATES, the cs1|2 templates can automatically format dates in a variety of styles. Editors may choose how cs1|2 templates render dates by the use of |cs1-dates=<keyword>. {{#lst:Help:Citation Style 1|auto_date_format_table}} An example is given at Help:Citation Style 1 § Auto-formatting citation template dates.

cs1|2 auto-date formatting does not apply when previewing an article section that does not contain a {{use xxx dates}} template. When editing with the visual editor, changes to this template do not take effect until the page is saved.

Syntax

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}

Notes:

• The template should be inserted in one of the first few lines of code of an article (to improve performance).
• Do not use redirects of this template, because otherwise its presence in an article may not be recognized by date formatting templates and bots. (There are a number of "legacy redirects" which are still supported at least by CS1/CS2 citation templates, but they should be changed to direct invocations of this template, also for performance reasons.)

TemplateData

This is the TemplateData for this template used by TemplateWizard, VisualEditor and other tools.

TemplateData for Use dmy dates

This template should be placed near the top of articles that use the d mmmm yyyy date format.

Template parameters

This template prefers inline formatting of parameters.

Parameter		Description	Type	Status
Month and year	date	The month and year that the template was placed or the article was last checked or cleaned (in full). "{{subst:CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}" inserts the current month and year automatically. Example April 2022 Auto value {{subst:CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}	String	suggested
Cs1-dates	cs1-dates	How dates should be formatted in CS1 citations	Unknown	optional

Tracking categories

• Category:Pages using Use dmy dates template with unknown parameters (0)
• Category:Use dmy dates and its dated subcategories

See also

• {{Use mdy dates}}, for the mmmm d, yyyy format
• {{Date}}, which can alter the format of an inputted date