Date and time notation in Canada

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Date and time notation in Canada [ refresh ]
Full dateEnglish:
  • 20 January 2025
  • January 20, 2025

French:

  • 20 janvier 2025
All-numeric date2025-01-20
Time
  • 07:27
  • 7:27 a.m.

Date and time notation in Canada combines conventions from the United Kingdom, conventions from the United States, and conventions from France, often creating confusion. [1] The Government of Canada specifies the ISO 8601 format for all-numeric dates (YYYY-MM-DD; for example, 2025-01-20). [2] It recommends writing the time using the 24-hour clock (07:27) for maximum clarity in both Canadian English and Canadian French, [3] but also allows the 12-hour clock (7:27 a.m.) in English. [4]

Contents

Date

Canadian passport stamp from Queenston Bridge, showing the date 8 June 2014, with June written in Canada's bilingual two-letter code Queenston Bridge Canada Passport Bridge.JPG
Canadian passport stamp from Queenston Bridge, showing the date 8 June 2014, with June written in Canada's bilingual two-letter code

When writing the full date, English speakers vacillate between the forms inherited from the United Kingdom (day first, 7 January) and United States (month first, January 7), depending on the region and context. French speakers consistently write the date with the day first (le 7 janvier) like the rest of the French-speaking world. The government endorses all these forms when using words, but recommends only the ISO format for all-numeric dates to avoid error.

English

The date can be written either with the day or the month first in Canadian English, optionally with the day of the week. For example, the seventh day of January 2016 can be written as: [5]

Formal letters, academic papers, and reports often prefer the day-month-year sequence. [2] Even in the United States, where the month-day-year sequence is even more prevalent, the Chicago Manual of Style recommends the day-month-year format for material that requires many full dates, since it does not require commas and has wider international recognition. [6] Writing the date in this form is also useful for bilingual comprehension, as it matches the French sequence of writing the date. Documents with an international audience, including the Canadian passport, use the day-month-year format. [7]

The date is sometimes written out in words, especially in formal documents such as contracts and invitations, following spoken forms: [2]

French

French usage consistently places the day first when writing the full date. The standard all-numeric date format is common between English and French: [8]

The first day of the month is written with an ordinal indicator: le 1er juillet 2017. [10]

The article le is required in prose except when including the day of the week in a date. When writing a date for administrative purposes (such as to date a document), one can write the date with or without the article. [10]

All-numeric dates

The Government of Canada recommends that all-numeric dates in both English and French use the YYYY-MM-DD format codified in ISO 8601. [11] The Standards Council of Canada also specifies this as the country's date format. [12] [13]

The YYYY-MM-DD format is the only officially recommended method of writing a numeric date in Canada. [2] The presence of the DD/MM/YY (most of the world) and MM/DD/YY (American) formats often results in misinterpretation. Using these systems, the date 7 January 2016 could be written as either 07/01/16 or 01/07/16, which readers can also interpret as 1 July 2016 (or 1 July 1916); conversely, 2016-01-07 cannot be interpreted as another date.

In spite of its official status and broad usage, there is no binding legislation requiring the use of the YYYY-MM-DD format, and other date formats continue to appear in many contexts. For example, Payments Canada prefers ISO 8601, but allows cheques to be printed using any date format. [14] Even some government forms, such as commercial cargo manifests, offer a blank line with no guidance. [15] To remedy this, Daryl Kramp tabled a private member's bill directing courts on the interpretation of numeric dates by amending the Canada Evidence Act in 2011, [16] which would effectively outlaw all numeric date formats other than YYYY-MM-DD. [1] Todd Doherty revived this bill in 2015, but it did not progress beyond first reading before the end of the 42nd Canadian Parliament. [17] [18]

Federal regulations for shelf life dates on perishable goods mandate a year/month/day format, but allow the month to be written in full, in both official languages, or with a set of standardized two-letter bilingual codes, such as 2016 JA 07 or 16 JA 07. The year is required only if the date is beyond the current year, and can be written with two or four digits. [19] These codes are occasionally found in other contexts, alongside other abbreviations specific to English or French. [20] [21]

Time

Canadian National timetable from 1975 using the 24-hour clock Canadian National timetable 1975-04-27.jpg
Canadian National timetable from 1975 using the 24-hour clock

Canada was an early adopter of the 24-hour clock, which Sandford Fleming promoted as key to accurate communication alongside time zones and a standard prime meridian. [22] The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) began to use it in 1886, prior to its official adoption by European countries. [23] [24] The 24-hour notation is shorter, removes the potential for confusing the first and second halves of the day especially visible at midnight (00:00 or 24:00, 12:00 a.m.) and noon (12:00, 12:00 p.m.), and is language-neutral. [25] English speakers use both the 24- and 12-hour clocks.[ citation needed ] While French speakers generally use the 24-hour clock, they tend to use both the 12-hour and the 24-hour clocks in informal oral communication.[ citation needed ]

English

The Government of Canada recommends using the 24-hour clock to avoid ambiguity, and many industries require it. Fifteen minutes after eight o'clock at night can be written: [3]

The 24-hour clock is widely used in contexts such as transportation, medicine, environmental services, and data transmission, "preferable for greater precision and maximum comprehension the world over". [4] Its use is mandatory in parts of the government as an element of the Federal Identity Program, especially in contexts such as signage where speakers of both English and French read the same text. [26]

Outside the influence of government style, the 24-hour system is rarely used. The government describes the 24-hour system as "desirable" but does not enforce its use, meaning that the 12-hour clock remains common for oral and informal usage in English-speaking contexts. [27] It is not the recommended style in journalism, for example. [28] This situation is similar to the use of the 24-hour clock in the United Kingdom.

French

Government communications in Canadian French list the time using 24-hour notation for all purposes. [29] This is also the recommended style for journalism, [30] but outside government and journalism, the 12-hour notation is also used when the time is written in words. [9] : 41  The hours and minutes can be written with different separators depending on the context: [31]

Related Research Articles

A calendar date is a reference to a particular day represented within a calendar system. The calendar date allows the specific day to be identified. The number of days between two dates may be calculated. For example, "25 January 2025" is ten days after "15 January 2025". The date of a particular event depends on the observed time zone. For example, the air attack on Pearl Harbor that began at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian time on 7 December 1941 took place at 3:18 a.m. Japan Standard Time, 8 December in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ISO 8601</span> International standards for dates and times

ISO 8601 is an international standard covering the worldwide exchange and communication of date and time-related data. It is maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and was first published in 1988, with updates in 1991, 2000, 2004, and 2019, and an amendment in 2022. The standard provides a well-defined, unambiguous method of representing calendar dates and times in worldwide communications, especially to avoid misinterpreting numeric dates and times when such data is transferred between countries with different conventions for writing numeric dates and times.

The modern 24-hour clock is the convention of timekeeping in which the day runs from midnight to midnight and is divided into 24 hours. This is indicated by the hours passed since midnight, from 00(:00) to 23(:59), with 24(:00) as an option to indicate the end of the day. This system, as opposed to the 12-hour clock, is the most commonly used time notation in the world today, and is used by the international standard ISO 8601.

Different conventions exist around the world for date and time representation, both written and spoken.

Date and time notation in the United States differs from that used in nearly all other countries. It is inherited from one historical branch of conventions from the United Kingdom. American styles of notation have also influenced customs of date notation in Canada, creating confusion in international commerce.

France most commonly records the date using the day-month-year order with an oblique stroke or slash (”/”) as the separator with numerical values, for example, 31/12/1992. The 24-hour clock is used to express time, using the lowercase letter "h" as the separator in between hours and minutes, for example, 14 h 05.

In Spain, date notation follows the DD/MM/YYYY format. Time notation depends on the level of formality and varies in written and spoken formats. Official time is given using the 24-hour clock, and the 12-hour clock is often used in informal speech.

Date and time notation in Sweden mostly follows the ISO 8601 standard: dates are generally written in the form YYYY-MM-DD. Although this format may be abbreviated in a number of ways, almost all Swedish date notations state the month between the year and the day. Months are not capitalised when written. The week number may also be used in writing and in speech. Times are generally written using 24-hour clock notation, with full stops as separators, although 12-hour clock notation is more frequently used in speech.

Date and time notation in the United Kingdom records the date using the day–month–year format. The time can be written using either the 24-hour clock (23:59) or the 12-hour clock (11:59 p.m.), either with a colon or a full stop (11.59 p.m.).

The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and (CENELEC) adopted ISO 8601 with EN 28601, now EN ISO 8601. As a European Norm, CEN and CENELEC member states are obligated to adopt the standard as national standard without alterations as well.

In Turkey, the little endian date format is used, and 24-hour clock is more common than 12-hour clock system.

ISO 8601 has been adopted as BIS IS 7900:2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Date and time notation in the Philippines</span>

Date and time notation in the Philippines varies across the country in various, customary formats. Some government agencies in the Philippines have adopted time and date representation standard based on the ISO 8601, notably the Philippines driver's license and the Unified Multi-Purpose ID.

The date and time in Australia are most commonly recorded using the day–month–year format and the 12-hour clock, although 24-hour time is used in some cases. For example, some public transport operators such as V/Line and Transport NSW use 24-hour time, although others use 12-hour time instead.

Date and time notation in Pakistan is based on the Gregorian and Islamic calendars. Pakistan has not officially adopted any time and date representation standard based on the ISO 8601.

Nepal uses both the DMY and YMD format when writing dates, and uses 12-hour format for time.

Date and time notation in Vietnam describes methods of expressing date and time used in Vietnam.

Date and time notation in New Zealand most commonly records the date using the day-month-year format, while the ISO 8601 format (2025-01-18) is increasingly used for all-numeric dates, such as date of birth. The time can be written using either the 12-hour clock or the 24-hour clock (08:59).

References

  1. 1 2 Sanderson, Blair (18 January 2016). "Proposed legislation aims to settle date debate". CBC News. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Collishaw, Barbara (2002). "FAQs on Writing the Date". Terminology Update. Government of Canada. p. 12.
  3. 1 2 Translation Bureau, Public Works and Government Services Canada (1997). "5.13: Representation of time of day". The Canadian style: A guide to writing and editing (Rev. ed.). Toronto: Dundurn Press. ISBN   978-1-55002-276-6.
  4. 1 2 Collishaw, Barbara (2002). "FAQs on Writing the Time of Day". Terminology Update. 35 (3): 11.
  5. ↑ Translation Bureau, Public Works and Government Services Canada (1997). "5.14: Dates". The Canadian style: A guide to writing and editing (Rev. ed.). Toronto: Dundurn Press. p.  97. ISBN   978-1-55002-276-6.
  6. ↑ "6.38: Commas with dates". The Chicago manual of style (17 ed.). Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. 2017. ISBN   978-0-226-28705-8.
  7. ↑ "Transportation company obligations: Guide for transporters". Canada Border Services Agency. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  8. ↑ Bureau de la traduction, Travaux publics et Services gouvernementaux Canada (15 October 2015). "Date : ordre des éléments (Recommandation linguistique du Bureau de la traduction)". TERMIUM Plus: Clefs du français pratique (in French). Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  9. 1 2 3 Ramat, Aurel; Benoit, Anne-Marie (2012). Le Ramat de la typographie (in Canadian French) (10th ed.). Montreal: Anne-Marie Benoit éditrice. ISBN   978-2-9813513-0-2.
  10. 1 2 Bureau de la traduction, Travaux publics et Services gouvernementaux Canada (15 October 2015). "Date (règles d'écriture)". TERMIUM Plus: Clefs du français pratique (in French). Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  11. ↑ "TBITS 36: All-Numeric Representation of Dates and Times – Implementation Criteria". Treasury Board of Canada. 18 December 1997. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  12. ↑ National Standard of Canada, "CAN/CSA-Z234.4-89 (R2007): All-Numeric Dates and Times". Standards Council of Canada. 31 December 1989. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  13. ↑ "Getting on the Same Page When It Comes to Date and Time". Standards Council of Canada. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  14. ↑ "Cheque Specifications" (PDF). Canadian Payments Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 September 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  15. ↑ Blaze Carlson, Kathryn (29 October 2011). "Is 02/04/12 February 4, or April 2? Bill seeks to end date confusion". National Post. Retrieved 25 September 2017.[ permanent dead link ]
  16. ↑ House of Commons of Canada (13 June 2011). "Private Member's Bill C-207 (41-2): An Act to amend the Canada Evidence Act (interpretation of numerical dates)". Parliament of Canada. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  17. ↑ House of Commons of Canada (10 December 2015). "Private Member's Bill C-208 (42-1): An Act to amend the Canada Evidence Act (interpretation of numerical dates)". Parliament of Canada. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  18. ↑ Hannay, Chris (1 January 2016). "Tory MP's bill seeks to clarify how dates are written in legal proceedings". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  19. ↑ Canadian Food Inspection Agency (2023-06-22). "Date markings and storage instructions on food labels". Canadian Food Inspection Agency . Government of Canada. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  20. ↑ Office québécois de la langue française (2002). "Abréviations des noms de mois". Banque de dépannage linguistique (in French). Gouvernement du Québec. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  21. ↑ Bureau de la traduction, Travaux publics et Services gouvernementaux Canada (15 October 2015). "Mois". TERMIUM Plus: Clefs du français pratique (in French). Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  22. ↑ Creet, Mario (1990). "Sandford Fleming and Universal Time". Scientia Canadensis: Canadian Journal of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine. 14 (1–2): 66–89. doi: 10.7202/800302ar .
  23. ↑ Fleming, Sandford (1886). "Time-reckoning for the twentieth century". Annual Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution (1): 345–366. Reprinted, 1889: Time-reckoning for the twentieth century at the Internet Archive .
  24. ↑ The Times notes the CPR timetable in 24-hour notation on a trip from Port Arthur, Ontario. See "A Canadian tour". The Times. No. 31880. London. 2 October 1886. col 1–2, p. 8.
  25. ↑ Kuhn, Markus (19 December 2004). "International standard date and time notation". University of Cambridge Department of Computer Science and Technology. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  26. ↑ Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (August 1990). Federal Identity Program Manual.
  27. ↑ Public Works and Government Services Canada (15 October 2015). "time of day, elapsed time". TERMIUM Plus: Writing Tips. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  28. ↑ The Canadian Press Stylebook (18th ed.). Toronto: Canadian Press. 2017. p. 406. ISBN   978-0-920009-54-3.
  29. ↑ Ministre des approvisionnements et services Canada (1987). "1.1.12 Heure, minute, seconde". Guide du rédacteur de l'administration fédérale (in French). Ottawa. ISBN   978-0-660-91030-7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  30. ↑ Guide de rédaction (in Canadian French) (5th ed.). Montreal: La Presse Canadienne. 2006. p. 140. ISBN   0-920009-36-0.
  31. ↑ Bureau de la traduction, Travaux publics et Services gouvernementaux Canada (15 October 2015). "Heure (écriture de l'heure)". TERMIUM Plus: Clefs du français pratique (in French). Retrieved 19 July 2018.
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