Wikipedia:WikiProject Trains/Rail transport in Germany task force/Conventions

Rail transport in Germany conventions

In order to bring coherence and consistency to articles within this project, it is intended to capture a few conventions here. These are intended to extend and further clarify, not replace, existing Wikipedia conventions. Translation is not an exact science: there is often more than one option and sometimes it is difficult to know whether to translate words, especially names, at all. Nevertheless it is felt useful to have a common set of guidelines. These are not set in stone, but bear in mind that the more articles are created, the bigger the task of changing a convention! The overall aim is to achieve clarity (usually by using clear English) and accuracy (e.g. by placing German names or key words in italics in brackets).

However, please note that many articles were created before these conventions were drawn up; they can be edited as time permits.

Translation

So, as a general rule, German words should not be used unless they are already widely used in English. Whilst those who are familiar with German rail transport may understand them, they are likely to be incomprehensible to the average reader. The German term can be included in italics (and in brackets) after the English translation, particularly if a) the precise meaning is unclear or b) it is a proper name.

Similarly, whilst the German letter ß may be changed to 'ss' for intelligibility. Umlauted words should also be left as they are still readable, although English speakers generally ignore the effect of the umlaut.

Exceptionally if the precise meaning of a German word is unknown, the most likely English translation should be used, but the original German word placed in italics in brackets afterwards for an expert to translate later. If the word is totally unknown either leave it in italics or hide the text, again for a translator to deal with later.

It is also common practice to decompose German compound nouns and translate the common nouns, leaving the proper noun as in the original. Examples: Black Forest line (Schwarzwaldbahn); St Michael's Church (Michaelskirche), Saale valley (Saaletal) and Lech Falls (Lechfall); Weser Uplands (Weserbergland).

Finally the aim of translation is to get at the nearest English equivalent. This is found by considering standard English usage in the field together with the context, not by translating words literally. For example, a Bergstadt is may be a mining town or a mountain town; only context will decide.

Railway lines

Bahnstrecke Xxxx–Yyyy should be translated as 'Xxxx–Yyyy railway' (using en dash). E.g. Bahnstrecke Mellrichstadt–Fladungen becomes Mellrichstadt–Fladungen railway. Where the railway has a proper name in German the words Bahn or Eisenbahn should be translated as "Railway" not "railway". Schmalspurbahn may be translated as "Railway" or "Narrow Gauge Railway" as desired. Likewise Lokalbahn and its similes (Vizinalbahn, Sekundärbahn, Nebenbahn, etc) may be translated as "Railway" or "Branch Line", noting that the type of railway (branch line, narrow gauge line) can be specified in the text. Where the railway is named after the common compound name ...talbahn can be translated as '... Valley Railway' with a redirect from the German word; see Schnaittach Valley Railway aka Schnaittachtalbahn. This is consistent with the usual translation of XXXtal as "XXX Valley"; viz. Rhine Valley.

Where a railway line is also the name of a company (as is often the case in the early days of the railway) the title should be fully in title case e.g. Ludwig Western Railway. Note that we drop the linking "s" i.e. it is Ludwig not Ludwig's. This follows the English convention e.g. Victoria Station and Victoria Line not "Victoria's Station" nor "Victoria's Line".

'Line' or 'route' should not used in the title, as it is not clear that railways are being referred to, and 'railway line' is superfluous. However all can be used within the text to provide variety. 'Rail line' is not common English usage and 'railroad' mainly applies to US railways.

An en dash should be preferred in the title to separate town names and avoid confusion where there are hyphenated names which would use the standard short hyphen, e.g. the Bremen-Vegesack–Bremen railway. This follows the German Wikipedia convention and reduces the likelihood of broken links when translating articles.

Railway stations

In titles Bahnhof and Haltestelle are translated 'station' ('railway station' is acceptable, but superfluous because station implies railway station unless qualified e.g. 'bus station'. See UIC terminology, any respectable English dictionary or official railway definitions). Haltepunkt is translated as 'railway halt' in a title or simply 'halt' in the text. The term Hauptbahnhof is usually translated as 'central station' because this is the nearest English equivalent; but 'main station' is also used, although less common.

Deutsche Bahn officially uses the city name as a prefix when referring to many S-Bahn stations located within cities (e.g. Munich-Harras station). However, this full, prefixed name is not often the most commonly used or recognised name, and article titles should typically omit the city prefix. When a certain station name exists in two or more cities, then the name of the city should be used in parentheses to disambiguate.

Exceptions would be: Central railway stations, as well as major stations which cater to a large number of long-distance train services (e.g. Munich-Pasing station or Hamburg-Altona station) because they serve long-distance trains. Therefore, their scope would be throughout Germany instead of just within the city, hence necessarily requiring a city prefix.

Company names

There are no hard and fast rules, but the names of major national railway companies are generally translated for clarity, e.g. Royal Saxon State Railways, whilst the names of individual firms, e.g. the locomotive manufacturer Maschinenfabrik Esslingen, are usually not. In both cases the translation should be included in brackets in the main article. And note that Deutsche Reichsbahn, Deutsche Bahn, etc, are not translated, presumably because they are thought to be reasonably widely known.

Abbreviations

Wikipedia's Manual of Style is clear that we should not invent abbreviations or acronyms. For example, whilst it is okay to use German Steam Locomotive Museum as a translation of Deutsches Dampflokomotiv-Museum, the official abbreviation of DDM (having first written it out long hand) should be preferred to GSLM. .

People

Wikipedia tends to follow normal practice by using the English versions of names for German nobility, e.g. Frederick I of Prussia, but the original German names for ordinary German people.

Valve Gear

German steam locomotives may have a Heusinger valve gear; this is German for the Walschaerts valve gear; both are usually given shown with Heusinger in following brackets.