> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://malrewrite.gitbook.io/important-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://malrewrite.gitbook.io/important-docs/reference/date-and-time/date.md).

# Date

## Format

Dates should follow the American format: month–day–year. The month should be written using letters, while the day and year should be written numerically. 

### Examples

* Correct: April 14, 2000
* Incorrect: 14 April 2000, 04/14/2000

## Punctuation

Use a comma between the day and the year. If the date is in the middle of a sentence, use a comma after the year.

### Examples

* Correct: Their concert is on August 23, 2022, at Madison Square Garden.
* Incorrect: Their concert is on August 23 2022 at Madison Square Garden.

Do not use a comma for only a month and a year.

### Examples

* Correct: Their concert is scheduled for August 2022.
* Incorrect: Their concert is scheduled for August, 2022.

## Ordinals

Do not use ordinals (numbers which end in *st*, *nd*, *rd*, or *th* and define a thing's position in an ordering) in dates.

### Examples

* Correct: The spaceship landed on June 2, 2058.
* Incorrect: The spaceship landed on June 2nd, 2058.

## Months

Capitalize the names of months and do not abbreviate them.

### Examples

* Correct: February, April
* Incorrect: Feb, Apr, Feb., Apr.

{% hint style="danger" %}
Do not use periods in dates.
{% endhint %}

## Years

Do not spell out years in words even if they begin a sentence.

### Examples

* Correct: 1956 is the year I was born.
* Incorrect: Nineteen fifty-six is the year I was born.

## Decades

Do not spell out decades in words. Decades from the 20th century may be abbreviated to their last two digits.

### Examples

* Correct: During the '50s and '60s, many people preferred jazz.
  * During the 1950s and 1960s, many people preferred jazz.
* Incorrect: During the fifties and sixties, many people preferred jazz.

### Apostrophe

When writing decades, do not use an apostrophe between the number and *s*.

### Examples

* Correct: 1980s
* Incorrect: 1980's

When you choose to abbreviate a 20th-century decade, use an apostrophe before the first digit.

### Examples

* Correct: '80s
* Incorrect: 80s

{% hint style="warning" %}
While you are free to choose between the full and abbreviated version for 20th-century decades, you should maintain consistency within each sentence.
{% endhint %}

### Examples

* Correct: In the '50s, she rose to fame, but in the '60s, her sister overtook her.
* Incorrect: In the 1950s, she rose to fame, but in the '60s, her sister overtook her.

## Centuries

Do not capitalize the names of centuries. Names of centuries should be written as an ordinal followed by the word *century*. For the first through ninth centuries, the ordinal should be spelt out in letters; for the 10th century onward, it should be written using digits.

### Examples

* Correct: eighth century, 20th century
* Incorrect: 8th century, twentieth century

When used as nouns, both decades and centuries should be preceded by the definite article, *the*. This is generally not the case when they are used as adjectives.

### Examples

* Correct: The 1980s are my favorite decade of the 20th century.
  * Out of all 20th-century music, '70s rock is my favorite.
* Incorrect: 1980s are my favorite decade of 20th century.
  * Out of all 20th century music, the '70s rock is my favorite.

## See also

{% content-ref url="/pages/HJcyaRUe2O2K2uDgOzRU" %}
[Comma](/important-docs/reference/punctuation/comma.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

{% content-ref url="/pages/JoA5mtH2YZSCwCHgh9Te" %}
[Hyphen](/important-docs/reference/punctuation/hyphen.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

{% content-ref url="/pages/ssYtWnqTAke7fIo3Iphq" %}
[Numbers](/important-docs/reference/numbers.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}