International standard
ISO 2145 defines a typographic convention for the "numbering of divisions and subdivisions in written documents". It applies to any kind of document, including manuscripts, books, journal articles, and standards.
Description
The ISO 2145 numbering scheme is defined by the following rules:
* Only
Arabic numerals
Arabic numerals are the ten numerical digits: , , , , , , , , and . They are the most commonly used symbols to write decimal numbers. They are also used for writing numbers in other systems such as octal, and for writing identifiers such a ...
(1, 2, 3, …) are used.
* The main divisions are numbered continuously starting from 1.
* Each main division (first level) can be divided further into subdivisions (second level), which are equally continuously numbered. This can be continued for further levels of subdivision.
* A
full stop
The full stop (Commonwealth English), period (North American English), or full point , is a punctuation mark. It is used for several purposes, most often to mark the end of a declarative sentence (as distinguished from a question or exclamatio ...
is placed between numbers that designate subdivisions of different levels. No full stop is placed after the number that designates the final subdivision.
* A number 0 (zero) can be assigned to the first division of each level if it forms an
introduction
Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to:
General use
* Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music
* Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and ...
,
preface
__NOTOC__
A preface () or proem () is an introduction to a book or other literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a '' foreword'' and precedes an author's preface. The preface often close ...
,
foreword
A foreword is a (usually short) piece of writing, sometimes placed at the beginning of a book or other piece of literature. Typically written by someone other than the primary author of the work, it often tells of some interaction between the ...
, or the like.
Example
A table of contents might look like:
Citations
Division and subdivision numbers are cited in written text as in:
* … in chapter 4 …
* … as lemma 3.4.27 shows …
* … the 3rd paragraph in 2.4.1.7 …
In spoken language, the full stops are omitted:
* "… in chapter four …"
* "… as lemma three four twenty-seven shows …"
* "… the third paragraph in two four one seven …"
Support in word processing software
* All standard
LaTeX
Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well.
In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosperms ...
document classes generate
chapter,
section
Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea
* Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents
** Section sig ...
, subsection, figure, table, etc. numbers as defined by ISO 2145.
* As of 2003, all
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word is a word processor, word processing software developed by Microsoft. It was first released on October 25, 1983, under the name ''Multi-Tool Word'' for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other pla ...
versions were by default set up to add a full stop after the final section number. This does not conform to ISO 2145. However, users can change style settings to match the ISO standard. In
Word 16, for example, in the “Styles pane”, right-clicking on the relevant heading style to select “Modify Style”, then following Format/Numbering.../Outline Numbered leads to a graphical choice of numbering styles that includes one closely matching ISO 2145, which can then be customized to remove any trailing dot.
See also
*
Decimal section numbering
*
Decimal separator
A decimal separator is a symbol used to separate the integer part from the fractional part of a number written in decimal form (e.g., "." in 12.45). Different countries officially designate different symbols for use as the separator. The choi ...
*
Dot-decimal notation
Dot-decimal notation is a presentation format for numerical data. It consists of a string of decimal numbers, using the full stop (''dot'') as a separation character.
A common use of dot-decimal notation is in information technology where it is ...
References
International Standard ISO 2145:1978, Documentation — Numbering of divisions and subdivisions in written documents International Organization for Standardization
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ) is an international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Membership requirements are given in A ...
, Geneva. (paywalled)
*
* British Standard BS 5848:1980, Specification for numbering of divisions and subdivisions in written documents (point-numbering).
{{ISO standards
#02145
Typography