HymnWiki:Editing Conventions

Most of these editing conventions are not absolute (the section on copyrights is absolute). Please follow them unless you have a good reason not to do so.

Copyrights

• Make every attempt possible to verify the copyright information before posting. Make sure to list the copyright of anything you submit, and never submit anything you do not have the rights to submit. Generally speaking, a work is in the public domain if it was published in or before the year 1923.

Hymnists

• Poets, composers, adapters, arrangers, and such (of all songs, hymns, etc.) go under the category Hymnists. If you do make separate "poets" and "composers" categories, don't forget to add the Hymnists category.
• In hymnist articles, make sure to list both poetic works and musical compositions, as well as arrangements and adaptations.
• If multiple hymnists of the same name exist, or if desired for further identification, put the birth and death years in parenthesis after a hymnist's name (for the article title): i.e. Robert Robinson (1735 - 1790) instead of Robert Robinson, as there may be several hymnists named Robert Robinson. If the years are unknown, try some other identifier in parentheses.

Acceptable Songs

• Hymns
• Primary songs
• Some compilations for youth groups contain folk tunes; these are generally acceptable here, so long as the information on the religious compilation is included. These, however, should not go under the hymns category; they should go under the folk tunes category. Similarly, primary songs should go under the category called Children's Songs; some of these may be considered hymns, as well, and go under that category, too - though the poet/composer should still go under the hymnists category.
• Songs with the same purpose as hymns (edification), even if they don't sound like typical church hymns (according to the definition of hymns, these would also be hymns)
• Anthems
• Songs that teach gospel principles, self-improvement, and such - like Let Us oft Speak Kind Words, and Have I Done Any Good (for our purposes, if these are included in a hymnal, file them as hymns)
• Songs included in hymnals

Acceptable Poetry

What poetry is acceptable here? The list follows:

• Poetry with the same purpose as a hymn. (It need not follow a typical poetic meter for hymns.)
• Poetry that is actually a hymn text.
• File both poetry-writers and hymn lyric writers (writers of all lyrics submitted here) under both poets and hymnists.

Category Casing

• If there is already a category or some such with a certain casing, don't bother making a new one with different casing: i.e. if Spanish Compilations is a category, don't bother making one called Spanish compilations; there's no need for both, and one will be missing some unless someone is doing a lot of work.

Misc.

• List the poetic meter for hymns (note if they differ from tune to tune, as the lyrics are sometimes repeated, depending on the tune); meters should be listed in the categories for the hymn.
• List tune names if known, and what other songs they are used with (perhaps even in their own article).
• Avoid obscurity when referring to authors of works (i.e. 'composer'/'poet'/'arranger'/'adapter' instead of 'writer'/'author'; however, 'hymnists' is the preferred category for all of these - the articles about the hymnists themselves should say precisely what they are)