User talk:Miqrogroove

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[edit] [K|C]habno

I'm afraid you somewhat misunderstand what constitutes "common English spelling". "Common English spelling" refers to large, well-known places, such as, for example, Kiev in Ukraine or Moscow and Saint Petersburg in Russia. These names would usually be included in general dictionaries. However, just because some little village's name was spelled in a certain way in some random immigration record, it does not mean it automatically becomes "common". As a matter of fact, small places like that do not normally have an accepted English name; their names are romanized depending on situation and needs.—Ëzhiki (Igels Hérissonovich Ïzhakoff-Amursky) • (yo?); 16:33, 11 June 2007 (UTC)

I in turn apologize if I somehow sounded demeaning regarding the source you provided; that was not my intent. My point was that immigration records, while undoubtedly important, are not a good source in this particular case. What they show is that, at some point of time, a certain government agency preferred a certain spelling; it does not prove that their spelling choice was a "common English name" (only a dictionary entry or some other reference material can prove that). Since the place in question still exists, we should be using the conventions which are in use at present time. While, of course, there is no mandated romanization system in English-speaking countries, BGN/PCGN romanization is a de facto standard, and it is available for the Ukrainian language. Wikipedia's WP:UKR is based upon that BGN/PCGN convention, which was chosen precisely because it is the most common.

That said, I don't see a reason why both "Khabno" and "Chabno" should not both be mentioned in the article's lead. The article's title, however, should not be changed as per WP:UKR.

Please let me know if you have any further questions or concerns. Best,—Ëzhiki (Igels Hérissonovich Ïzhakoff-Amursky) • (yo?); 14:12, 12 June 2007 (UTC)