User:Largoplazo/Why the Czech Republic article isn't named Czechia yet

The purpose of this essay is to address the repeated requests/demands at Talk:Czech Republic that the name of the article Czech Republic be changed to Czechia.

The principal reason the article Czech Republic, as of this writing, has not been renamed Czechia is that articles are named under the guidelines provided at WP:COMMONNAME. "... some topics have multiple names, and some names have multiple topics: this can lead to disagreement about which name should be used for a given article's title. Wikipedia generally prefers the name that is most commonly used (as determined by its prevalence in a significant majority of independent, reliable English-language sources) ...."

Commonly offered arguments, with responses

Argument The Czech government has decreed that the name of the country in English is "Czechia".

Response The Czech government has decreed no such thing. In 2016, the Czech government formally made "Czechia" the short form of the country's name in English, just as the short form of "United States of America" is "United States" and the short form of "People's Democratic Republic of Algeria" is "Algeria".

Argument Even if the Czech government didn't decree the use of "Czechia", it's disrespectful not to follow their preference, to keeping using a name that they've replaced.

Response They haven't expressed a preference, and they didn't change the name of the country. The long form is still "Czech Republic", just as, in Czech, the longer form is still "Česká republika".

Argument Czech Wikipedia has its article under "Czechia", so we English speakers shouldn't act like we know better than they do.

Response Well, actually, Czech Wikipedia actually has its article under Česko, yet nobody has insisted that we should call the article Česko in English. Further, every Wikipedia has its own guidelines. Czech Wikipedia isn't governed by the guidelines developed at English Wikipedia, nor the reverse. Here, as stated above, we follow WP:COMMONNAME, which gives preference to actual usage in appropriate English sources, not what's dictated by authorities. See Wikipedia:Official names for commentary on this topic.

Argument Pilsner Urquell now has "Czechia" on its label, so we English speakers shouldn't act like we know better than they do.

Response We look at the preponderance of usage across actual English-language sources, not at what Pilsner Urquell in particular is doing or what that company thinks we should do.

Argument "Czechia" is being used in one or more of Google Maps, CIA World Factbook, US State Dept, Apple system settings, Common Locale Database, and other sources.

Response It is natural that on the way to becoming the common name for something, a name is adopted by various sources one by one. None of them is an official, definitive source and, among them so far, we haven't found there to be a preponderance of sources using "Czechia". We're still going to wait until a consensus develops here that "Czechia" has come into usage in applicable English sources as the more common name.

Argument You must be hiding behind some personal agenda/must be a Slovak/Moravian/Silesian/Hungarian if you are trying to keep the article from being named "Czechia".

Response Right, I'm just using Wikipedia's guidelines that are routinely applied across the entire project, such that it would be really, really strange if we made an exception to them here, as a front for my personal agendas and a vehicle for my ethnicity-based grievances that I can't bear anyway because I'm not of any of those ethnicities. Largoplazo (talk) 23:43, 1 November 2017 (UTC)

Argument You're just showing your own opposition to "Czechia". Your own preferences shouldn't come into it.

Response I thought way back in 1989 that they should have named it "Czechia". I've now taken to calling it that myself on occasion, though that country isn't a frequent topic of conversation for me. And, exactly, my own preferences shouldn't come into it. Are yours coming into it?

Argument It's Czechia now. Grow up and accept it.

Response, No you grow up.

Argument It's Czechia now. Deal with it.

Response The change here will occur in conformity with the guidelines. You deal with it.

Argument Well, that was last month's discussion. Let's discuss it again.

Response It isn't of the slightest importance that, the very day "Czechia" edges out "Czech Republic" as the clearly more common name, the article be instantly renamed. There is no urgency that would justify talking about it continuously. Yet, in early 2017, the name of the article was being discussed ad nauseam, to the extent that, on 26 March 2017, a 12-month moratorium was imposed on discussing it further. The discussion had become repetitive and unproductive, drowning out the use of the talk page for other topics of discussion, as well as disruptive to people with the article on their watchlists.

Argument But you haven't heard my reasons yet.

Response That seems highly unlikely. You'd better check the archives (see the Further reading section below). In any event, the moratorium is in effect until 26 March 2018. If your argument is truly new, please offer it then.

Further reading

• Abundant discussion of the name of the country can be found archived at Talk:Czech Republic/Archive 5 and Talk:Czech Republic/Archive 6.
• The declaration of the moratorium that will be in effect until 26 March 2018 is at Talk:Czech Republic/Archive 6#Moratorium.