Talk:Coal measures

Requested move

 * The following discussion is an archived discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section. 

The result of the move request was: page moved for common noun casing. -- JHunterJ (talk) 11:27, 18 April 2012 (UTC)

Coal Measures → Coal measures – Standard capitalization for common nouns. relisting Andrewa (talk) 13:27, 11 April 2012 (UTC) Mild Bill Hiccup (talk) 00:12, 3 April 2012 (UTC)

No, not a "common name". The article is about the formally named stratigraphic formation and, as a formal name, rates the full capitalization – as in Dakota Sandstone or Mesaverde Formation. See Coal Measures Group, Britannica usage and Geological Society of London article example. The last two paragraphs discuss informal uses of the term in the US and New Zealand and are correctly not capitalized. Seems there needs to be a dab header for those "other (informal) uses". Vsmith (talk) 02:25, 3 April 2012 (UTC)


 * Comment Is this a UK only term? The article seems to treat it that way, with usage outside of the UK as being weird in some way. 70.24.244.198 (talk) 02:41, 3 April 2012 (UTC)


 * Oppose but relisting as I don't think we've got to the issue here. The lead of this page doesn't say clearly what it's about. If it's primarily about the UK coal seams, then the capitalisation may be appropriate. Andrewa (talk) 13:27, 11 April 2012 (UTC)
 * Probably should be merged with Coal Measures Group. The formal use is the coal bearing formations of the British Isles. The term was also used especially during the 1800s in the US as a general or informal term discussing coal bearing strata. Google search shows similar general usage in Japan, the Philipiines as well as Australia and New Zealand. The more general usage exists and should be included in the article, as it currently is. Vsmith (talk) 15:47, 11 April 2012 (UTC)


 * Support. Current OED has an entry "coal-measure, n.", with the present meaning included:
 * "b. pl. (Geol.) The whole of the series of rocks formed by the seams of coal and the intervening strata of clay, sandstone, etc., in a coal-field, constituting the upper division of the carboniferous formation. Also attrib. [Referring evidently to the long-established practice of naming the different seams of a coal-field by their measure or thickness: compare quot. 1665[1].]"
 * That entry is old, and not recently revised.
 * There are occurrences of "coal measure" in the full text in 73 OED articles. A quick survey shows upper-case "M" in only about 25 articles. The term is normally using in a generic sense, and not as a proper name for some specific geological formation.
 * At "measure, n." we find this:
 * "13. [Perhaps concr. of sense 7.] A stratum or bed of mineral. Now only in pl."
 * (With cross-reference to the article "coal-measure, n.") There are 7 citations; only 1 has a capital "M".
 * N oetica Tea? 03:09, 12 April 2012 (UTC)


 * Support per nominator. Tony   (talk)  10:23, 13 April 2012 (UTC)
 * Support per nom. Beagel (talk) 10:45, 13 April 2012 (UTC)
 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.