Talk:Post-nominal letters

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Orders, decorations, and medals

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Fake Post-Nominals

...in other words, using post-nominals that you didn't earn, such as saying you are [name][surname] Q.C.. Is it illegal? 101.161.167.89 (talk) 20:12, 12 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

It depends on the laws of the place where the fake post-nominals are used. From what I've seen in the laws in the states of the USA, there's a fair chance it's illegal to use post-nominals related to professions where the public is likely to suffer harm if they are fooled by the post-nomialls (especially if the state has laws that regulate the profession, such as law, medicine, accounting, and engineering). But it's unlikely to be an offense to use relatively harmless post-nominals, such as BA. Jc3s5h (talk) 21:19, 12 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

I imagine that most countries have rules on fraud, which would cover the use of fake post-nominals with the intention to deceive for gain. It is also illegal in some countries to falsely claim to have received a medal or other decoration, which would cover the use of the relevant post-nominals. Some post-nominals may also be protected titles (e.g. UK chartered status) or trademarks, which could lead to a civil action to prevent their use. Even in cases where it is not illegal, it may well be a breach of professional ethics and lead to being struck off or other disciplinary action – any barrister who falsely claimed to be a QC would probably get into trouble fairly quickly. Robminchin (talk) 23:52, 12 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

You are very correct. Whilst in some instances such can be illegal, in others it is not, however where it is not, ethics and professionalism comes to mind. Weirdly though, there are instances where post-nominals of organisations with Royal Charters clash, although this shouldn't technically happen. Reading through the recent changes in the history of the article I discovered that the National Assembly for Wales is now called the Senedd Cymru and that members are no longer Assembly Members (AM) but instead Members of the Senedd (MS). The problem with MS is that it can easily be confused with Master of Surgery and Master of Science. Whilst the latter is usually shown as MSc/MSci, MS is most commonly seen after the names of Surgeons and most would associate such. Even more confusingly before 2020, AM was also used by Members of the London Assembly, who still use such today, although in an unofficial capacity. There are other instances where memberships and qualification of certain societies and organisations conflict also, however most of these are either religious ones, self-styled orders or newer trade-like associations. I have come across people with some frankly absurd combinations, including on Wiki draft articles, some of which they either bought or made up themselves. UaMaol (talk) 03:27, 22 April 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Post-nominals

Of the four descriptions in the opening sentence 'Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals' I am only familiar with last suggestion 'post-nominals'. Each of the first two descriptions, ‘post-nominal letters’ and ‘post-nominal initials’ could be a tautology. I am surprised at ‘post-nominal titles’ and I think the title of the article should be simply ‘post-nominals'. Anthony Staunton (talk) 00:19, 29 September 2023 (UTC)[reply]

A quick internet search shows that 'post nominals' appears most common in Australia, while 'post nominal letters' is generally used in British English. There doesn't appear to be any particularly good reason to change the WP:ENGVAR from British English to Australian English, so MOS:RETAIN seems to apply. Robminchin (talk) 00:32, 29 September 2023 (UTC)[reply]

And more to the point, part of the purpose of the opening sentence is to identify alternative terms so readers are certain they are on the right page. We would not remove source-attested alternatives regardless what the ENGVAR of the article is. — SMcCandlish ☏ ¢ 😼 04:46, 29 September 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you for the quick responses. I graduated 50 years ago and have written extensively on British orders and medals and yesterday was the very first time I came across the expression ‘post-nominal letters.’ A quick Internet check is something I should have done. I agree with the comment about Australia, but I am sceptical ‘post-nominal letters’ is preferred in British English. I think something more authoritative is needed. I have raised the issue and welcome anyone to run with it. Anthony Staunton (talk) 06:36, 30 September 2023 (UTC)[reply]