European Commission
Directorate-General for Translation
English
Style Guide
A handbook for authors and translators in the European Commission
Fifth edition: 2005
Revised: August 2006
First issued 1982
Revised 1983
Second edition 1985
Revised 1988
Third edition 1993
Revised 1998
Fourth edition 2001
This version of the English Style Guide is dated August 2006.
For the latest version, see
http://ec.europa.eu/comm/translation/writing/style_guides/english/style_guide_en.pdf
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction................................................................................ 1
Part I Writing English .................................................................... 3
1. SPELLING.........................................................................................................5
CONVENTIONS ..............................................................................................5
INTERFERENCE EFFECTS............................................................................6
CAPITAL LETTERS........................................................................................7
GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES...........................................................................10
HYPHENS AND COMPOUND WORDS .....................................................13
2. PUNCTUATION .............................................................................................17
FULL STOP....................................................................................................17
COLON...........................................................................................................17
SEMICOLON .................................................................................................18
COMMA .........................................................................................................18
DASHES .........................................................................................................20
BRACKETS....................................................................................................21
QUESTION MARK........................................................................................21
EXCLAMATION MARK ..............................................................................22
QUOTATION MARKS..................................................................................22
APOSTROPHE...............................................................................................23
3. NUMBERS.......................................................................................................25
WRITING OUT NUMBERS..........................................................................25
FRACTIONS...................................................................................................26
RANGES.........................................................................................................27
DATES AND TIME .......................................................................................27
DATES...............................................................................................27
TIME .................................................................................................28
4. ABBREVIATIONS, ACRONYMS AND SYMBOLS..........................................29
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .......................................................29
MATHEMATICAL SYMBOLS ....................................................................30
SCIENTIFIC SYMBOLS AND UNITS OF MEASUREMENT ...................31
5. FOREIGN IMPORTS......................................................................................33
FOREIGN WORDS AND PHRASES IN ENGLISH TEXT .........................33
ROMANISATION SYSTEMS.......................................................................33
6. VERBS.............................................................................................................35
SINGULAR OR PLURAL AGREEMENT....................................................35
PRESENT PERFECT/SIMPLE PAST ...........................................................35
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TENSES IN MINUTES..................................................................................36
VERBS IN LEGISLATION ...........................................................................37
SPLIT INFINITIVE........................................................................................39
7. LISTS AND TABLES .......................................................................................41
LISTS..............................................................................................................41
TABLES..........................................................................................................42
8. SCIENCE GUIDE...........................................................................................43
SCIENTIFIC NAMES ....................................................................................43
9. FOOTNOTES, BIBLIOGRAPHIES AND CITATIONS...................................45
10. CORRESPONDENCE.....................................................................................47
11. PERSONAL NAMES AND TITLES.................................................................49
12. GENDER-NEUTRAL LANGUAGE ................................................................51
Part II About the European Union ...................................................53
13. THE EUROPEAN UNION..............................................................................55
14. PRIMARY LEGISLATION ..............................................................................57
THE TREATIES -- AN OVERVIEW...........................................................57
THE TREATIES IN DETAIL ........................................................................57
TREATY CITATIONS...................................................................................60
15. SECONDARY LEGISLATION ........................................................................63
DECISION-MAKING PROCEDURES .........................................................63
TITLES AND NUMBERING.........................................................................64
STRUCTURE OF ACTS................................................................................66
REFERRING TO SUBDIVISIONS OF ACTS..............................................68
16. THE EU INSTITUTIONS................................................................................69
COMMISSION...............................................................................................69
COUNCIL.......................................................................................................70
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT.........................................................................71
COURT OF JUSTICE ....................................................................................72
COURT OF AUDITORS................................................................................73
EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE ...........................73
COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS................................................................74
FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS.......................................................................74
AGENCIES.....................................................................................................75
17. REFERENCES TO OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS...........................................77
THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL...........................................................................77
BULLETIN AND GENERAL REPORT........................................................77
18. EU FINANCES................................................................................................79
BUDGET ........................................................................................................79
FUNDS FINANCED FROM THE BUDGET ................................................80
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30 January 2007 iii
OTHER FUNDS .............................................................................................81
19. MEMBER STATES..........................................................................................83
NOTES ON INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES.....................................................84
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIONS/REPRESENTATIVES.....................86
NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS .......................................................................86
NATIONAL LEGISLATION.........................................................................87
20. OFFICIAL LANGUAGES AND CURRENCIES .............................................89
OFFICIAL LANGUAGES .............................................................................89
CURRENCIES................................................................................................90
21. EXTERNAL RELATIONS................................................................................91
ANNEXES ...................................................................................93
Annex 1 REGIONS OF THE EU...............................................................................95
Annex 2 NOTES ON BELGIUM .............................................................................107
Annex 3 TRANSLITERATION TABLE FOR GREEK .............................................109
Annex 4 TRANSLITERATION TABLE FOR CYRILLIC.........................................113
Annex 5 ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS IN GERMANY...............................................115
Annex 6 LIST OF JUDICIAL BODIES...................................................................117
Annex 7 NATIONAL LEGAL INSTRUMENTS .......................................................121
Annex 8 CLASSIFICATIONS..................................................................................125
Annex 9 CHEMICAL ELEMENTS..........................................................................127
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Introduction
This Style Guide is intended primarily for English-language authors and translators,
both in-house and freelance, working for the European Commission. But now that so
many texts in and around the EU institutions are drafted in English by native and nonnative
speakers alike, its rules, reminders and handy references aim to serve a wider
readership as well.
In this Guide, "style" is synonymous with a set of accepted linguistic conventions; it
therefore refers to recommended in-house usage, not to literary style. Excellent advice
on how to improve writing style is given in The Plain English Guide by Martin Cutts
(Oxford University press, 1999) and Style: Towards Clarity and Grace by Joseph M.
Williams (University of Chicago Press, 1995), both of which encourage the use of good
plain English. For reasons of stylistic consistency, the variety of English on which this
Guide bases its instructions and advice is that spoken and written in the British Isles.
The Guide is divided into two clearly distinct parts, the first dealing with linguistic
conventions applicable in all contexts and the second with the workings of the European
Union -- and with how those workings are expressed and reflected in English. This
should not be taken to imply that "EU English" is different from "real English"; it is
simply a reflection of the fact that the European Union as a unique body has had to
invent a terminology to describe itself. However, the overriding aim in both parts of the
Guide is to facilitate and encourage the writing of clear and reader-friendly English.
Writing in clear language can be difficult at the Commission, since much of the subject
matter is complex and more and more is written in English by (and for) non-native
speakers, or by native speakers who are beginning to lose touch with their language
after years of working in a multilingual environment. We must nevertheless try to set an
example by using language that is as clear, simple, and accessible as possible, out of
courtesy to our readers and consideration for the image of the Commission.
In legislative texts, accuracy and clarity are of course paramount. But legal or
bureaucratic language that we might regard as pompous elsewhere has its place in both
legislation and preparatory drafting, though the specialist terms must be embedded in
rock-solid, straightforward English syntax. In some cases -- departmental memos or
papers for specialist committees -- we may regard "Eurospeak" as acceptable
professional shorthand; searching here for "plain English" periphrases wastes time and
simply irritates readers.
So "style" is a matter of everyday concern to both authors and translators, for whom we
hope this Guide will be a practical source of information and an aid to consistency. We
have tried to bring together much that is available disparately in publications such as the
EU Publications Office's Interinstitutional Style Guide, the Commission's Legislative
Drafting Manual and the interinstitutionally produced Joint Practical Guide for the
drafting of EU legislation. Needless to say, our Guide does not in any way aim to
replace these publications, which are well worth consulting in their own right.
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The English Style Guide's current Editorial Committee is:
Roger Dean
John Fallas
Francis Flaherty
John Jones
Tim Martin
Brian Moon
Jonathan Stockwell
All work for the European Commission's Directorate-General for Translation.
Many others have contributed their time and expertise over the years, and even though
they remain nameless here, they are not forgotten.
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Part I
Writing English
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1. SPELLING
CONVENTIONS
1.1 British spelling. Follow English usage of the British Isles, but remember that
influences are crossing the Atlantic all the time (the spellings program and disk
have become normal British usage in data processing, for example).
1.2 Words in -ise/-ize. Use -ise. Both spellings are correct in British English, but
the -ise form is now much more common in the media. Using the -ise spelling
does away with the need to list the most common cases where it must be used
anyway. (There are up to 40 exceptions to the -ize convention: the lists vary in
length, few claiming to be exhaustive.)
1.3 The -yse form for such words as paralyse and analyse is the only correct
spelling in British English.
1.4 Digraphs. Keep the digraph in aetiology, caesium, foetus, oenology, oestrogen,
etc. (etiology etc. are US usage), but note that a number of such words (e.g.
medieval) are now normally spelt without the digraph in British English.
1.5 Double consonants. In British usage (unlike US practice), a final -l is doubled
after a short vowel on adding -ing or -ed to verbs (sole exception: parallel,
paralleled) and adding -er to make nouns from verbs:
travel, travelling, travelled, traveller
level, levelling, levelled, leveller
Other consonants double only if the last syllable of the root verb is stressed or
carries a strong secondary stress:
admit, admitting, admitted
refer, referring, referred
format, formatting, formatted
but
benefit, benefiting, benefited
focus, focusing, focused
combat, combating, combated
target, targeting, targeted
Exception: a few verbs in -p (e.g. handicapped, kidnapped, worshipped, unlike
developed).
1.6 Input/output. Avoid the forms inputted and outputted; write input and output:
e.g. 70 000 records were input last month.
1.7 Use -ct- not -x- in connection, reflection, etc. But note complexion and flexion.
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1.8 Write gram, kilogram (not gramme, kilogramme). However, use tonne not ton
(`ton' refers to the non-metric measure).
1.9 Write metre for the unit of length, meter for measuring instruments.
1.10 Judgment. The European Courts use the form without the middle -e-, and this
practice should be followed for EU purposes.
1.11 Plurals of words of foreign origin. Follow the list below.
addendum addenda
apparatus apparatus or apparatuses
appendix appendices (books),
appendixes (anatomy)
bacillus bacilli
bacterium bacteria
bureau bureaux
consortium consortia
corrigendum corrigenda
criterion criteria
curriculum curricula
focus focuses, focal points,
foci (mathematics, science)
formula formulas (politics)
formulae (science)
forum fora or forums
genus genera
index indexes (books),
indices (science, economics)
maximum maximums or maxima
medium media,
mediums (spiritualism)
memorandum memoranda
papyrus papyri or papyruses
phenomenon phenomena
plus pluses
premium premiums
referendum referenda or referendums
spectrum spectra (science),
spectrums (politics)
symposium symposia or symposiums
INTERFERENCE EFFECTS
1.12 Confusion between English words. Look out for errors involving the pairs
below.
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dependent (adj. or noun) dependant (noun only)
license (verb) licence (noun)
practise (verb) practice (noun)
principal (adj. or noun) principle (noun)
stationary (adj.) stationery (noun)
Note also: all together (in a body), altogether (entirely); premisses
(propositions), premises (building); discreet, discrete.
1.13 Confusion between English and French. Beware of interference effects when
switching from one language to the other:
FRENCH ENGLISH
adresse address
carcasse carcass or carcase
compétitivité competitiveness
correspondance correspondence
existant existent
indépendance independence
médecine medicine
messager messenger
négligeable negligible
négociation negotiation
réflexion reflection
représentativité representativeness
responsable responsible
rincer rinse
tarif tariff
CAPITAL LETTERS
1.14 General. Capitalise specific references, but lowercase general references. See
also compass points, Chapter 4 on abbreviations, and Chapter 8 on scientific
usage.
1.15 As a rule, capitalise all nouns and adjectives in names of specific institutions
and their subdivisions (directorates-general, directorates, divisions and other
departments), committees, working parties and the like:
Parliament; Council; Commission; Court of Auditors.
Cereals and Rice Division; Markets in Crop Products Directorate.
Permanent Representatives Committee;
In cases where this rule would produce a long series of capitalised words, use
discretion, especially where the name of a department, committee or
programme reads more like a description of its function than a real title:
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Committee for the adaptation to technical progress of the Directive on the
introduction of recording equipment in road transport (tachograph).
Joint FAO/EC working party on forest and forest product statistics.
The general rule is "the longer the title, the fewer the capitals".
Note. When using an original name in French or another language where only
the first word is capitalised, follow the foreign style and put in italics or add
inverted commas if confusion could arise.
1.16 Use lower case for general references:
The Court of Justice rules on matters referred to it by courts or tribunals in the
Member States.
Two separate Commission units are involved.
It was decided to set up a number of working parties.
1.17 Legislative and other formal instruments. Remember to capitalise specific
references but use lower case for general references:
Regulation (EEC) No 1837/80 ( = the Council Regulation of 27 June 1980 or the
basic Regulation on sheepmeat);
On 29 May 1990, the Council adopted Directive 90/270/EEC on the minimum
safety and health requirements for work with display screen equipment.
(Note also: the Financial Regulation, the Sixth VAT Directive, the Banking
Directive, the New Approach Directives.)
but:
It was felt a directive rather than a regulation was the appropriate instrument.
Apply the same rule to title, chapter, section, article and annex in such
instruments (including the budget and the Combined Nomenclature -- CN).
Note: the words draft and proposal should always be written in lower case
when referring either specifically or generally to draft legislation.
1.18 Official titles. Capitalise the titles of EU (and other) officials and their offices:
Simone Veil was chosen as first President of the directly elected Parliament in
July 1979.
The current President of the Council is Prime Minister of Ireland.
The Judges and Advocates-General of the Court; President of the First Chamber
Director-General for Agriculture; Head of the Road Transport and Inland
Waterways Unit.
1.19 Note also:
The meeting opened at 10:00 with Ms Smith presiding. The Chair asked ...
The usage "Chair" is now the rule in the European Parliament for all its
committees.
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1.20 Political entities. Remember to capitalise specific political entities and to use
lowercase when the reference is general, e.g.:
The French Government
the French authorities, a matter for governments
the State (in political theory and legal texts, otherwise prefer government, as in
the role of government, central government, or simply country)
the Member States, nation states, reasons of state, state aid, state-owned, the
Arab states (since ill-defined).
1.21 International agreements. Follow the same specific/general rule for treaties,
conventions, arrangements, understandings, protocols, etc.
The Treaty of Nice, the International Tin Agreement, the United Nations
Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants
by treaty, under an agreement, the parties agreed to a memorandum of
understanding
1.22 Permanent and ad hoc bodies. Permanent bodies (e.g. the Commission
Delegation in the United States) require capitals, while ad hoc groups (e.g. the
Polish delegation to a meeting) do not.
1.23 Seasons, etc. No capitals for spring, summer, autumn, winter; capitals for
weekdays, months and feast-days (Ascension Day, pre-Christmas business).
1.24 Events. Initial capitals throughout for events such as British Week, Love
Parade, the International Year of the Child, the Second UN Development
Decade. No capitals, however, for the 2003/04 marketing year, the 2004
budget year and so on.
1.25 Celestial bodies and objects. Since they are proper nouns, the names of planets,
moons, stars and artificial satellites are capitalised (Venus, Rigel, Palapa B).
However, the earth, the moon and the sun do not normally take an initial
capital unless they are specifically referred to as celestial bodies.
The Starship Enterprise returned to Earth.
but
The daydreamer returned to earth.
1.26 Proprietary names. Proprietary names (or trade names) are normally
capitalised, unless they have become generic terms, such as aspirin,
gramophone, linoleum, nylon, celluloid. Thus, capitalise registered trade names
such as Airbus, Boeing, Land Rover, Disprin, Polaroid.
1.27 Derivations from proper nouns. When proper nouns are used adjectivally they
keep the initial capital (e.g. Bunsen burner, Faraday cage). In the case of
words derived from proper nouns (such as pasteurise, quixotic, Rabelaisian),
consult a reliable dictionary, as practice varies.
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1.28 Quotations. Start with a capital in running text only if the quotation is a
complete sentence in itself:
Walther Rathenau once said "We stand or fall on our economic performance."
The American Government favours "a two-way street in arms procurement".
GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES
1.29 General. Many place names have an anglicised form, but as people become
more familiar with these names in the language of the country concerned, so
foreign spellings will gain wider currency in written English. As a rule of
thumb, therefore, use the native form for geographical names except where an
anglicised form is overwhelmingly common. If in doubt as to whether an
anglicised form is in widespread use, use only those given in the following
sections and in Annex 1.
1.30 Orthography. Recommended spellings of countries (full names and short
forms), country adjectives, capital cities, currencies and abbreviations are
given in Annex A5 of the Interinstitutional Style Guide. Geographical names
frequently contain pitfalls for the unwary, particularly in texts dealing with
current events. Check carefully that you have used the appropriate English
form. Examples: Belén/Bethlehem; Hong-Kong/Hong Kong; Irak/Iraq;
Mogadiscio/Mogadishu; Karlsbad/Karlovy Vary; Naplouse/Nablus;
Sada/Sidon.
1.31 Countries/cities. Watch out for the definite article when translating place
names from French, as in the following table.
Country/territory City/town
(au) Gaza -- the Gaza Strip () Gaza -- Gaza
(au) Guatemala -- Guatemala () Guatemala -- Guatemala City
(au) Mexique -- Mexico () Mexico -- Mexico City
and NB in Spanish:
México -- Mexico México D.F. -- Mexico City
1.32 Scandinavian/Nordic. When referring to the countries of the Nordic Council,
i.e. Denmark (including the Faeroes and Greenland), Finland (including
land), Iceland, Norway and Sweden, use `Nordic' rather than `Scandinavian'
in terms such as `Nordic countries' or `Nordic cooperation'.
However, you may use `Scandinavia(n)' if you do not need to be specific,
though bear in mind the following points. In its narrow geographical
interpretation, `Scandinavia' refers to the two countries of the Scandinavian
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peninsula, i.e. Norway and Sweden. In practice, however, it includes Denmark
and is often stretched to cover Finland. As a cultural term, `Scandinavian' also
embraces Iceland and the Faeroes. Note that `Scandinavian languages' refers to
the northern Germanic languages, i.e. Danish, Faeroese, Icelandic, Norwegian,
and Swedish, but not of course Finnish.
1.33 Names of regions. Regional names fall into three types.
 Administrative units. Anglicise only those names given in the list in Annex
1. Names of units below the top region/province tier should be left in the
native spelling, without inverted commas.
 Traditional geographical names. Anglicise if the English has wide
currency, e.g. the Black Forest, the Ruhr. Otherwise retain original spelling
and accents. Regional products are a frequent example:
a Rheinhessen wine, the eastern Périgord area, the Ardche region (NB: it is
useful to add "region" or "area" in such cases), Lüneburger Heide
 Officially designated development areas. Designated development areas are
mostly derived from names of administrative units or from traditional
geographical names, often with a defining adjective. Follow the appropriate
rule above, e.g.:
Lower Bavaria; the Charentes development area
The name of the cross-border region Euregio is written with an initial capital
only.
1.34 Rivers. Moselle always for wine, and for the river in connection with France
and Luxembourg; Mosel may be used if the context is Germany. Use Meuse in
French/Belgian contexts, Maas for the Netherlands; Rhine and Rhineland for
Rhein, Rhin, Rijn, Rheinland; Tiber for Tevere; Tagus for Tajo/Tejo.
1.35 Seas. Anglicise seas (e.g. the Adriatic, the North Sea, the Baltic); Greenland
waters implies official sea limits; use "waters off Greenland" if something else
is meant.
1.36 Lakes. Anglicise Lake Constance, Lake Geneva, Lake Maggiore. But note
Königssee.
1.37 Strait/straits. The singular is the form commonly used in official names, for
example: Strait of Dover or Strait of Gibraltar.
1.38 Other bodies of water. Write Ijsselmeer (without capital J), Wattenmeer,
Kattegat (Danish), Kattegatt (Swedish), Great/Little Belt.
1.39 Islands. Islands are often administrative units in their own right, so leave in
original spelling, except Corsica, Sicily, Sardinia, the Canary Islands, the
Azores and Greek islands with accepted English spellings, such as Crete,
Corfu, Lesbos.
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Use Fyn rather than Fünen in English texts and use West Friesian Islands for
Waddeneilanden.
1.40 Mountains. Anglicise the Alps, Apennines (one p), Dolomites, Pindus
Mountains, and Pyrenees (no accents).
Do not anglicise Massif Central (except for capital C), Alpes Maritimes
(capital M) or Schwäbische Alb.
Alpenvorland should be translated as the foothills of the Alps.
1.41 Valleys. Words for valley should be translated unless referring to an official
region or local produce: the Po valley, the Valle d'Aosta, Remstal wine.
1.42 Cities.
Austria Use Vienna for Wien.
Belgium Use the forms Antwerp, Bruges, Brussels, Ghent, Ostend.
Flemish v. French forms. Use Flemish names of places in
Dutch-speaking provinces and French for French-speaking
areas.
For details, see Annex 2.
Denmark Note Copenhagen, Aarhus, Aalborg.
Finland Finland is a bilingual country, and many cities and localities
have official names in both Finnish and Swedish. When
translating from either language, remember that the form to
be used depends on the local language situation, not on the
text you are translating. A full list of the Finnish/Swedish
names which take precedence is kept by the Research
Institute for the Languages of Finland. Note in particular
that for all major cities the Finnish name must be used:
write Helsinki, Oulu, Tampere, Turku, not Helsingfors,
Uleborg, Tammerfors, bo.
France Write Lyon, Marseille, Strasbourg.
Germany Use the forms Cologne and Munich.
Greece Use traditional English spellings for well-known cities,
regions, prefectures, etc. -- the officially recommended
transcription system has not found acceptance even within
the European Union and is unknown elsewhere. However,
use transliteration for unfamiliar localities, and note that
preference should always be given to the demotic forms of
place names (where known).
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Ireland Leave Irish spellings if given, except Baile Atha Cliath (the
Irish for Dublin).
Italy Use the English spellings Florence, Genoa, Milan, Naples,
Rome, Turin, Venice. Take care not to use the French
spelling of other towns, which may differ only slightly from
the Italian.
Luxembourg Use the French spelling for Luxembourg (country and city).
Netherlands Always write The Hague with a capital T except when used
attributively (e.g. the Hague Convention).
Portugal Use Lisbon.
Spain Write Seville. Otherwise use Spanish spelling, e.g.
Córdoba, La Corua.
Sweden Note Gothenburg for Göteborg. However, the Swedish
form should be used in some EU-specific contexts, e.g. the
Göteborg summit/process.
1.43 Non-literal geographical names. Geographical names used in lexicalised
compounds tend to be lowercased, as they are no longer considered proper
adjectives: roman numerals, gum arabic, prussic acid. Consult an up-to-date
reliable dictionary in cases of doubt.
1.44 Compass points. No capitals for north, north-west, north-western, etc. unless
part of an administrative or political unit or a distinct regional entity. Hence
South Africa, Northern Ireland but southern Africa, northern France. Note,
however, Central and Eastern European countries (capitalised because the
connotations are more political than geographic). Compass bearings are
abbreviated without a point (54°E).
1.45 Compound compass points. Compound compass points are hyphenated and, in
official designations, each part is capitalised (South-West Germany, the NorthWest
Frontier); always abbreviate as capitals without stops (NW France).
HYPHENS AND COMPOUND WORDS
1.46 General. Compounds may be written as two or more separate words, or with
hyphen(s), or as a single word, and many compounds have followed precisely
those steps: data base, data-base, database. One indication of whether words
should be joined or separated is stress: underpass is a single word, but under
way should be written as two words.
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Use hyphens sparingly but to good purpose: the phrase crude oil production
statistics needs a hyphen to tell the reader whether `crude' applies to the oil or
to the statistics.
Sometimes hyphens are absolutely necessary to clarify the sense:
re-cover -- recover; re-creation -- recreation; re-form -- reform;
re-count -- recount
1.47 There are few hard and fast rules, but note the following examples:
well-known problem; hot-rolled strip; broad-based programme (but a broadly
based programme);
oil-bearing rock; user-friendly software;
two-day meeting; four-month stay (but four months' holiday)
balance-of-payments policy; cost-of-living index;
low-interest loans; flood-control measures.
1.48 In adverb-adjective modifiers, there is no hyphen when the adverb ends in -ly:
occupationally exposed worker, a beautifully phrased sentence
1.49 Many phrases are treated as compounds, and thus need a hyphen, only when
used as modifiers:
long-term effects but policy for the long term,
large-scale redundancies but production on a large scale
1.50 Chemical terms. Note that open compounds designating chemical substances
do not take a hyphen in attributive position: boric acid solution, sodium
chloride powder.
1.51 Prefixes are usually hyphenated in recent or ad hoc coinages:
anti-smoking campaign, co-responsibility levies, co-sponsor, ex-army, nonresident,
non-flammable, pre-school, quasi-autonomous
If they are of Latin or Greek origin, however, they tend to drop the hyphen as
they become established:
antibody, codetermination, codecision, cofinancing, cooperation, subcommittee,
subparagraph
Others are more resistant to losing the hyphen:
end-user, end-phase, end-product, all-embracing, all-metal, off-market
operations, off-duty
but note
endgame, nonsense, overalls
1.52 Nouns from phrasal verbs. These are often hyphenated, but the situation is
fluid. Thus handout, takeover, comeback but follow-up, run-up, spin-off.
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1.53 Present participles of phrasal verbs. When used as attributes they are generally
hyphenated:
cooling-off period;
1.54 Avoiding double consonants and vowels. Hyphens are often used to avoid
juxtaposing two consonants or two vowels:
aero-elastic, anti-intellectual, part-time, re-election, re-entry, re-examine
However, the hyphen is often omitted in frequently used words:
bookkeeping, coeducation, cooperation, coordinate, macroeconomic,
microeconomic, radioactive.
1.55 Numbers and fractions. Numbers take hyphens when they are spelled out.
Fractions take hyphens when used attributively, but not when used as nouns:
twenty-eight, two-thirds completed
BUT
an increase of two thirds.
1.56 Prefixes before proper names. Prefixes before proper names are hyphenated:
pro-American, intra-Community, mid-Atlantic, pan-European, trans-European
(NB: Trans-European Networks). Note, however, that transatlantic is written
solid.
1.57 Coordination of compounds. Hyphenated compounds may be coordinated as
follows:
gamma- and beta-emitters, acid- and heat-resistant, hot- and cold-rolled products
Where compounds are not hyphenated (closed compounds), or should you
choose to write them so, they should not be coordinated but written out in full:
macrostructural and microstructural changes, minicomputers and
microcomputers, prenatal and postnatal effects, agricultural inputs and outputs
NOT
macro- and microstructural changes, mini- and microcomputers, pre- and
postnatal effects, agricultural in- and outputs
(BUT of course
macro- and micro-structural changes, pre- and post-natal effects)
1.58 Closed compounds in technical texts. Some expressions that are written as
separate words in everyday language become closed compounds in more
specialist contexts, e.g. pigmeat, longwall. This reflects the fact that in a
particular field such expressions have the status of precise terms.
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2. PUNCTUATION
2.1 The punctuation in an English text must follow the rules and conventions for
English, which often differ from those applying to other languages. Note in
particular that:
 punctuation marks in English are always -- apart from dashes (see 2.18)
and ellipsis points (see 2.3) -- closed up to the preceding word;
 stops (. ? ! : ;) are always followed by only a single (not a double) space;
 quotation marks may be either straight ("...") or preferably smart ("..."),
but not both in the same text, and never chevrons (<<...>>) or as in German
(,,...").
FULL STOP
2.2 No further full stop is required if a sentence ends with an abbreviation that
takes a point (e.g. `etc.') or with a quotation complete in itself that ends in a
full stop, question mark or exclamation mark before the final quotes:
René Descartes said "I think therefore I am."
2.3 Full stops as omission marks (aka ellipsis points). Always use three points,
preceded by a hard space. In Word, use Alt + Ctrl + (full stop) to insert ellipsis
points. In French texts the points are commonly enclosed in brackets. This is
never done in English:
"The objectives of the Union shall be achieved ... while respecting the principle
of subsidiarity."
If a sentence ends with an omission, no fourth full stop should be added. If any
other punctuation mark follows, there is no space before it.
NB: where French uses omission marks to mean `etc.', put etc. instead.
2.4 Run-in side heads (you are looking at one). These are followed by a stop in
English typographical practice (while colons are used in French).
COLON
2.5 Colons are most often used to indicate that an expansion, qualification or
explanation is about to follow (e.g. a list of items in running text). The part
before the colon must be a full sentence in its own right, but the second need
not be.
See also Chapter 7 for lists.
2.6 Do not use colons at the end of headings.
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2.7 Colons do not require the next word to start with a capital: contrast usage in
German etc. (However, see Chapter 7 for an exception.)
2.8 As stated in 2.1, colons should be closed up to the preceding word, unlike in
French usage.
SEMICOLON
2.9 Use a semicolon rather than a comma to combine two sentences into one
without a linking conjunction:
The committee dealing with the question of commas agreed on a final text;
however, the issue of semicolons was not considered.
You may also use semicolons instead of commas to separate items in a series,
especially phrases that themselves contain commas (see also Chapter 7 for the
use of semicolons in lists).
2.10 As stated in 2.1, semi-colons should be closed up to the preceding word, unlike
in French usage.
COMMA
2.11 Items in a series. Here, the comma may be considered to stand for a missing
`and' or `or'.
John mowed the lawn, Mary did the cooking and Frank lazed around.
He came, saw and conquered.
The committee considered sugar, beef and milk products.
Insert an additional comma before the final `and' (or `or') if needed for
clarification:
sugar, beef and veal, and milk products.
A comma also comes before `etc.' in a series:
sugar, beef, milk products, etc.
but not if no series is involved:
They discussed milk products etc., then moved on to sugar.
Commas also divide adjectives in series:
moderate, stable prices.
but not if the adjectives do not form a series:
stable agricultural prices.
In the second example, `stable' modifies `agricultural prices', i.e. the phrase
cannot be read as `stable and agricultural prices'.
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2.12 Linked sentences. Use a comma to separate two sentences linked by a
conjunction such as `but', `yet', `while' or `so' to form a single sentence:
The committee dealing with the question of commas agreed on a final text, but
the issue of semicolons was not considered.
Where there is no conjunction, use a semicolon (see 2.9).
2.13 Parenthetic and introductory phrases. If a phrase is intended to complement or
introduce the information in a sentence and has a separate emphasis of its own,
it is set off by a comma, or by a pair of commas if inside the sentence:
Mindful of the need to fudge the issue, the committee on commas never came to
a conclusion.
The committee on commas is composed of old fogeys, as you know.
The committee on commas, however, was of a different opinion.
Note that the sentence must remain a complete sentence even if the parenthetic
or introductory phrase is omitted.
Parenthetic phrases may also be created by setting off part of the sentence with
a comma (or commas) while retaining the normal word order. Both the
following are possible:
The President was a great man despite his flaws.
The President was a great man, despite his flaws.
Without the comma, the phrase `despite his flaws' forms part of the statement.
With the comma, the phrase complements it, i.e. the sentence retains its sense
if the phrase is omitted. The comma is therefore correctly left out in the
following sentence:
Phrases must not be set off by commas if this changes the intended meaning of
the sentence.
However, a comma is required if the phrase has a separate emphasis simply by
virtue of being moved out of position, for example to the beginning of the
sentence:
If this changes the intended meaning of the sentence, phrases must not be set off
by commas.
Note, though, that short introductory phrases need not have any separate
emphasis of their own, i.e. they may be run into the rest of the sentence. Both
the following are possible:
In 2003, the committee took three decisions.
In 2003 the committee took three decisions.
Parenthetic phrases (but not introductory phrases) may sometimes be marked
by dashes (see 2.18) or brackets (see 2.20).
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2.14 Non-defining relative clauses. Non-defining relative clauses are special cases
of parenthetic phrases. Note the difference compared with relative clauses that
define the preceding noun phrase (i.e. `the translations' or `the translation in
the tray' in the examples below):
The translations, which have been revised, can now be sent out.
(added detail -- they have all been revised)
The translations which (or better: that) have been revised can now be sent out.
(defining the subset that is to be sent out -- only those that have been revised are
to be sent out)
Note also that the use of `which' in defining relative clauses is often considered
to be stilted and overly formal. `That' reads more naturally. It also helps make
the meaning clearer, reinforcing the lack of commas, since it is used as a
relative pronoun only in defining clauses. Unlike `which', however, `that'
needs to be close to the noun to which it refers.
2.15 Combined uses of commas. The uses of commas described above can of course
be combined. Worth noting is that an initial comma is not needed before
introductory phrases in linked sentences:
The committee dealing with the question of commas agreed on a final text, but
despite the importance of the matter, the relationship with semicolons was not
considered.
2.16 Avoiding commas. Avoid liberally sprinkling sentences with commas, but do
so by constructing sentences so as to minimise the number of commas required
rather than by breaching the comma rules described above. For example,
inserted phrases can often be moved to the beginning of the sentence.
Parenthetic phrases can also be rendered with brackets or dashes. Moreover, a
parenthetic phrase may not in fact be appropriate (see the examples in 2.13 and
the discussion of relative clauses in 2.14). Finally, a complex sentence can be
divided by a semicolon (compare 2.9 and 2.12) or even split into two or more
sentences.
DASHES
2.17 Dashes v hyphens. Most users of word processors do not distinguish between
dashes and hyphens, using hyphens to represent both short dashes (`en' dashes
= ­) and long dashes (`em' dashes = --) commonly used in typeset documents.
However, please note that both en and em dashes are available in modern word
processors.
2.18 Em dashes may be used to punctuate a sentence instead of commas (see 2.13)
or round brackets (see 2.20). They increase the contrast or emphasis of the text
thus set off. However, use no more than one in a sentence, or -- if used with
inserted phrases -- one set of paired dashes. To avoid errors if your dashes
subsequently turn into hyphens as a result of document conversion, do not
follow the typesetting practice of omitting the spaces around the em dashes. In
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Microsoft Word, the keyboard shortcut for the em dash is Alt + Ctrl + - (on the
numeric keypad).
2.19 En dashes are used to join coordinate or contrasting pairs (the Brussels­Paris
route, a current­voltage graph, the height­depth ratio). These are not subject
to hyphen rules. In Microsoft Word, the keyboard shortcut for the en dash is
Ctrl + - (on the numeric keypad)
BRACKETS
2.20 Round brackets. Also known as parentheses, round brackets are used much like
commas in 2.13 above, except that the text they contain has a lower emphasis.
They are often used to expand on or explain the preceding item in the text:
ARZOD (an employment service) is based in Ruritania.
2.21 Round brackets in citations. Use a pair of round brackets when citing
numbered paragraphs from legal instruments, and close up to the article
number:
Article 3(1), Article 3(1)(a), Article 3a(1), etc.
2.22 Bracketed sentences. A whole sentence in brackets should have the final stop
inside the closing bracket. Do not forget the stop at the end of the preceding
sentence as well.
2.23 Square brackets. Square brackets are used to make insertions in quoted
material. They are also used by convention in administrative drafting to
indicate optional passages or those still open to discussion, so do not replace
with round brackets.
When translating, also use square brackets to insert translations or explanations
after names or titles left in the original language.
QUESTION MARK
2.24 Courtesy questions. No question mark is needed after a request or instruction
put as a question for courtesy:
Would you please sign and return the attached form.
2.25 Do not use a question mark in indirect speech:
The chairman asked when the deadline would be fixed.
2.26 As stated in 2.1 above, question marks should be closed up to the preceding
word, unlike in French usage.
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EXCLAMATION MARK
2.27 In English, exclamation marks are used solely to mark exclamations, such as
`How we laughed!' or `What a fiasco!', or to add exclamatory force to a
statement, e.g. `Two million cows had to die!', or a command, e.g. `Please read
this paragraph!'. Exclamatory expressions are appropriate in texts that directly
address the reader or audience, such as speeches or informal instructions, but
are usually out of place in formal texts. Note that exclamation marks are not
used to mark the imperative as such in English.
2.28 Factorials. As a mathematical symbol, the exclamation mark identifies a
factorial:
6! = 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1
2.29 As stated in 2.1 above, exclamation marks should be closed up to the preceding
word, unlike in French usage.
QUOTATION MARKS
2.30 Double v single quotation marks. Use double quotation marks to signal direct
speech and verbatim quotes, and single quotation marks for quotations within
these. Note that some publishers (including EUR-OP) adopt the reverse
convention. Use single quotation marks to identify words and phrases that are
not themselves quotes but to which you wish to draw attention as lexical items.
2.31 Short quotations. Short quotes of up to four lines or thereabouts are normally
run into the surrounding text. They are set off by opening and closing quotation
marks only.
2.32 Block quotations. Extended (block) quotations should be indented and
separated from the surrounding text by paragraph spacing before and after. No
quotation marks are required with this distinctive layout.
2.33 English text in source documents. An English text quoted in a foreign language
text keeps the quotation marks in the English target text. But if a single English
word or phrase is put in quotation marks simply to show that it is a foreign
element, the quotation marks should be removed.
2.34 Back-translating of quotes. Avoid if possible. However, if you cannot find the
original English version, turn the passage into indirect speech without
quotation marks. The same applies where the author has applied quotation
marks to a non-verbatim reference.
2.35 So-called. Quotation marks are preferable to so-called, which has pejorative
connotations, to render soi-disant, sogenannt, etc.
2.36 Other uses. Generally, use quotation marks as sparingly as possible for
purposes other than actual quotation.
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French and German authors tend to make frequent use of inverted commas for
nouns in apposition (often programme or committee names etc.), as in le
Conseil "Agriculture" or Komitee "Menschliche Faktoren". It is usually
preferable to omit the quotation marks in English and reverse the order:
the Agriculture Council, the Human Factors Committee, etc.
APOSTROPHE
2.37 Possessive of nouns. The possessive form of nouns is marked by an apostrophe
followed by an -s. After the plural ending `s', however, the possessive -s is
omitted:
the owner's car
women's rights
footballers' earnings
Note that the apostrophe is never used in possessive adjectives:
its (as distinct from it's, i.e. `it is'), ours, theirs, yours
2.38 Nouns ending in -s, including proper names and abbreviations, form their
singular possessive with -'s, just like nouns ending in other letters.
an actress's pay; Mr Jones's paper;
Helios's future is uncertain; AWACS's success
The -s after terminal s' used to be omitted in written English, but this is now
done only in classical and biblical names, e.g. Socrates' philosophy, Xerxes'
fleet.
Note that some place names also omit the apostrophe (Earls Court, Kings
Cross). Possessives of proper names in titles (e.g. Chambers Dictionary)
sometimes omit the apostrophe as well. There is no apostrophe in Achilles
tendon.
2.39 Contractions. Apostrophes are also used to indicate contractions, i.e. where
one or more letters have been omitted in a word or where two words have been
joined together. Contractions are common in informal texts, but not in formal
texts. Examples:
don't = do not
it's = it is (as distinct from the possessive `its')
who's = who is (as distinct from whose)
you're = you are (as distinct from your)
2.40 Plurals of abbreviations. Plurals of abbreviations (MEPs, OCTs, SMEs, UFOs,
VDUs) do not take an apostrophe.
2.41 Plurals of figures. Plurals of figures do not take an apostrophe:
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Pilots of 747s undergo special training.
2.42 Plurals of single letters. The plurals of single lower-case letters may, however,
take an apostrophe to avoid misunderstanding:
Dot your i's.
Mind your p's and q's.
2.43 In tables, write '000 tonnes (or of course thousand tonnes or thousands of
tonnes), not in 1 000 tonnes.
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3. NUMBERS
3.1 General. In deciding whether to write numbers in words or figures, the first
consideration should be consistency within a passage. As a general rule write
low numbers (up to nine inclusive) in words and larger numbers (10 and
above) in figures. If the passage contains both kinds, however, use either
figures or words for all the numbers.
Note that you should always use figures for statistics (3 new officials were
appointed in 2002, 6 in 2003 and ...), for votes (12 delegations were in favour,
7 against, and 6 abstained), for ranges denoted by a dash (see Ranges, 3.14­
3.15), and for serial numbers (Chapter 5, Article 9, Item 4) unless you are
quoting a source that does otherwise (Part One of the EEC Treaty).
On the other hand, try not to start a sentence with a figure or a symbol followed
by a figure. Either write out in full or, if this does not work, make use of
devices such as inversion: Altogether 92 cases were found ..., Of the total, 55
million was spent on ...
3.2 Always use figures with units of measurement that are denoted by symbols or
abbreviations:
EUR 50 or fifty euros
250 kW or two hundred and fifty kilowatts
205 g or two hundred and five micrograms
5C or five degrees Celsius
The converse does not hold. If the units of measurement are spelled out, the
numbers do not also have to be spelled out but may be written with figures:
250 kilowatts, 500 metres.
3.3 With hundred and thousand there is a choice of using figures or words:
300 or three hundred but not 3 hundred
EUR 3 000 or three thousand euros but not EUR 3 thousand
Million and billion, however, may be combined with figures:
2.5 million, 3 million, 31 billion
WRITING OUT NUMBERS
3.4 As a rule, avoid combining single-digit figures and words using hyphens (a 2hour
journey) but write out instead:
a three-year period; a five-door car
But note set phrases such as:
40-hour week, 24-hour clock, 4-wheel drive
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3.5 When two numbers are adjacent, spell out one of them:
90 fifty-gram weights, seventy 25-cent stamps
3.6 Compound numbers that are to be written out (e.g. in treaty texts) take a
hyphen:
the thirty-first day of December, nineteen hundred and eighty-one
3.7 Grouping of thousands. Do not use either commas or points but insert
protected spaces (4 000 000). Note that serial numbers are not grouped in
thousands (p. 1452).
In tables write
EUR '000 or EUR thousand, but not in EUR 1 000.
'000 tonnes or thousand tonnes or thousands of tonnes, but not in 1 000 tonnes
3.8 Billion. The use of billion to designate thousand million (rather than million
million) is now officially recognised by the Commission and is standard usage
in official EU publications. Leading British newspapers and journals (such as
the Financial Times and The Economist) have also adopted the convention.
3.9 Abbreviating "million" and "billion". Do not use mio. The letters m and bn
can be used for sums of money to avoid frequent repetitions of million, billion;
this applies particularly in tables where space is limited. The abbreviation
should be closed up to the figure (examples: 230m, 370m, $230bn).
FRACTIONS
3.10 Written out. Insert hyphens in fractions used as adverbs or adjectives but not if
they are nouns:
a two-thirds increase, but an increase of two thirds.
3.11 Avoid combining figures and words:
two-thirds completed, not 2/3 completed
3.12 Decimal points. When translating, do not replace commas with points in
legislation (including the budget). This was agreed in the 1970s by the UK and
Irish Permanent Representatives. The same goes for all other work that is to
appear in the Official Journal of the European Union. Elsewhere, replace
decimal commas with points. See also Chapter 7 on tables.
3.13 Note when quoting statistics that 3.5 (as in 3.5%) is not the same as 3.50 or
3; each decimal place, even if zero, adds to the precision. The non-decimal
fraction is more approximate.
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RANGES
3.14 Written out. When a range is written out, repeat symbols and multiples (i.e.
thousand, million, etc.):
from EUR 20 million to EUR 30 million
between 10C and 70°C
3.15 Abbreviated form. When a range is indicated by a dash (N.B. use an en-dash),
do not repeat the symbol or multiple if they do not change and close up the
dash between the figures:
20­30 million, 10­70C
If the symbol or multiple changes, however, leave a blank space on either side
of the dash:
100 kW ­ 40 MW
DATES AND TIME
DATES
3.16 Write out the month, preceded by a simple figure for the day, e. g. 23 July
1997. Use all four digits when referring to specific years (i.e. 1997 not '97).
However, in footnotes and where space is at a premium, the month can be
written as a number.
Note that in American usage, 23 July 1997 is 7.23.97 and in the international
dating system it is 1997-07-23.
3.17 Avoiding redundancy. If the year in question is absolutely clear from the
context, the year number may be left out: on 23 July 2001, the Committee
adopted ... but subsequently on 2 August, it decided ...
3.18 Decades. When referring to decades write the 1990s (no apostrophe).
3.19 Systems of chronology. The letters AD come before the year number (AD
2000), whereas BC follows it (347 BC).
CE (Common Era), BCE (Before Common Era) and BP (Before Present) also
follow the year number.
3.20 Time spans. Use a closed-up dash. For the second figure, you should not repeat
the century if it is the same, but you should always include the decade:
1870­1901, 1905­10, 1914­18, 1939­45, 1980­86, 1996­2006
3.21 Note the following patterns:
from 1990 to 1995 (not: from 1990­95)
between 1990 and 1995 (not: between 1990­95)
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1990 to 1995 inclusive (not: 1990­95 inclusive)
3.22 Note that 1990­91 is two years. Single marketing years, financial years, etc.
that do not coincide with calendar years are denoted by a forward slash: e.g.
1990/91, which is twelve months or less.
TIME
3.23 Use the 24-hour system in preference to the 12-hour system.
Write times with a colon between hours and minutes, without adding hrs or
o'clock: 11:30.
For midnight either write the word midnight or use 24:00 (for periods ending
then) or 00:00 (for periods starting then).
Note that section 10.6 of the Interinstitutional Style Guide requires a point
rather than a colon between the hours and minutes. However, it is hoped that
this can be amended in the near future.
3.24 For duration use h:
the time allowed for the test is 2 h.
3.25 Distinguish summertime (the season) from summer time, e.g. British Summer
Time (BST).
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4. ABBREVIATIONS, ACRONYMS AND SYMBOLS
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS
4.1 General. As a general principle, abbreviations, acronyms and symbols should
be used as much for the convenience of the reader as of the writer. Overuse
will baffle and irritate most readers.
Acronyms are normally uppercased. However, if an acronym has come to be
regarded as a proper name, it retains only an initial capital. This requires it to
conform to the rules for English spelling, to be pronounced as a normal word
and to carry no risk of confusion with an existing word. As a rule, the longer
the acronym, the more likely it is to lose its capitals. To ensure consistency and
remove the need for subjective decisions, follow the `five-letter' rule in 4.2
below. Bear in mind, though, that this rule is necessarily arbitrary. Finally,
ignore the convention in many online databases of uppercasing all acronyms
and abbreviations.
Note also that some acronyms may become common nouns, losing even the
initial capital, e.g. radar and laser.
4.2 Longer acronyms. Lowercase those with more than five letters, with initial
capital, provided they can be pronounced. Thus:
Benelux, Esprit, Helios, Interreg, Resider, Unesco, Unctad
but: EFILWC, EMCDDA, etc.
Computer terms are also exceptions:
FORTRAN, WYSIWYG
4.3 Short acronyms. Five letters or fewer: uppercase throughout without points:
ACP, BSE, EAGGF, EEA, EIB, ERDF, FADN, ISDN, OECD, R&D (no
spaces!), UNHCR
and, though pronounceable: AIDS, COST, ECHO, EFTA, NASA, NATO,
SHAPE, TRIPS
But note: the EU programmes Tacis and Phare are no longer considered to be
acronyms.
4.4 Indefinite article. Apply the rule "a before consonant, an before vowel" as if a
following abbreviation is being spoken:
a UN resolution/an Unctad meeting, an EDF project
a NATO decision, an MP
4.5 Plurals of abbreviations. Plurals of abbreviations do not take an apostrophe:
SMEs, UFOs, VDUs, OCTs
4.6 Lowercase or mixed-case abbreviations. There is a small but high-frequency
class of abbreviations that traditionally are written in lowercase (including at
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the beginning of a sentence in footnotes) and require points after each letter,
such as e.g., i.e. No comma is required after them but one should be used
before if they are part of a list. Do not use e.g. and etc. in the same list.
Most other lowercase and mixed-case abbreviations are written without stops:
aka, fob, cif, BAe (British Aerospace), etc., including most scientific
abbreviations and symbols: pH, etc.
4.7 Single truncated words. Single truncated words take a point unless the last
letter is included:
Jan., Sun., Co., fig., etc., cf., chap., cp., dict., ibid.
Mr, Mrs, Dr, Fr (Father), Ltd, Pty, St Petersburg
4.8 Abbreviate `number' as No (plural Nos), which has no final stop as it is derived
from Latin numero.
4.9 Single letters. Single letters (uppercase or lowercase) conventionally take a
point. Exceptions: scientific symbols (chemical elements, basic and derived
units, etc.) and the v in the names of court cases and sporting contests.
4.10 First names should be abbreviated with a single initial only (Philippe: P.,
Theodor: T.). For compound first names, use both initials (Jean-Marie: J-M).
4.11 Note also: p. = page (plural: pp.); l. = line, (plural: ll.)
4.12 Foreign-language abbreviations. Untranslated foreign-language abbreviations
should retain the capitalisation and punctuation conventions of the original
(e.g. GmbH).
4.13 Abbreviate Nota Bene as NB not N.B.
MATHEMATICAL SYMBOLS
4.14 Percent. Note that percent is one word. Use the word where the number is also
spelled out in words: rounded down to the nearest tenth of one percent. Note
also several percent higher, a few percent, and similar expressions. With
figures, use the percent sign (%). In English, the sign is always closed up to the
figure. Note that section 6.4 of the Interinstitutional Style Guide requires a
space before the sign in texts for official publication. However, this
requirement need not be observed by authors or translators as the space will be
inserted automatically at the publication stage.
Observe the distinction between percent (or %) and percentage point(s): an
increase from 5% to 7% is an increase of two percentage points (or an increase
of 40%), not an increase of 2%.
4.15 Percentages. Express percentage relationships in running text economically,
especially when translating: un taux de 65% par rapport  la totalité des
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exportations en dehors de l'Union européenne translates simply as 65% of EU
exports.
4.16 Technical tolerances. Do not use  (ASCII 241) to mean "about" or
"approximately". Use it only for technical tolerances.
4.17 Foreign-language conventions. Remember that languages may have different
conventions as regards their use of mathematical signs.
4.18 Open dashes. Use a closed-up dash, not a hyphen or open dash to signify a
range (e.g. 10­12%). See also 2.17 to 2.19.
4.19 Multiplication sign. Change points used as a multiplication sign to "x" or "*",
e.g. 2.6 . 1018
becomes 2.6 x 1018
or 2.6 * 1018
.
SCIENTIFIC SYMBOLS AND UNITS OF MEASUREMENT
4.20 General. Most scientific symbols in current use are interlingual forms and do
not require any adaptation when writing in English. In the specific case of
weights and measures, the International System of Units (SI -- Systme
International) has now been adopted almost universally for science and
technology, as well as generally for trade and industry in the EU.
4.21 Names of units of measurement. Names of basic and derived units of
measurement are always lowercased even if they are derived from a personal
name, e.g. ampere, kelvin, hertz, newton, pascal, watt, siemens, becquerel.
They have normal plurals in -s: 250 volts, 50 watts, etc.
Note that proper names used adjectivally retain their initial capital: Richter
scale, Mach number, degree Celsius.
4.22 Degree sign. The degree sign in temperatures and compass bearings, e.g. 25°C
or 65°NE, is closed up on both sides. Note that section 6.4 of the
Interinstitutional Style Guide requires a space before the sign in texts for
official publication. However, this requirement need not be observed by
authors or translators as the space will be inserted automatically at the
publication stage.
4.23 Symbols for units of measurement. These are normally abridged forms of the
names of these units. They are written without stops, are not closed up to
figures and do not have plurals (4 ha, 9 m, 60 km, 50 km/h, 200 g, 5 kg, 40 t, 20
bar, 55 dB (A), 2 000 kc/s).
4.24 Ohm. The ohm symbol is capital omega (). All other SI symbols for units of
measurement are formed from unaccented Latin characters.
4.25 Internal capitals. Symbols for units of measurement that start with a capital
letter keep the capital internally when used with a prefix: kHz, MHz, eV, etc.
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When combining prefixes with units, link either symbols only or full-forms
only: thus kilohertz or kHz but not kiloHz or khertz.
4.26 Capitalisation/lowercasing of symbols. The initial letter of symbols for SI units
derived from personal names is always capitalised: Hz (hertz), Bq (becquerel),
N (newton), K (kelvin), etc. Symbols derived from generic nouns are always
lowercased and are the same for both singular and plural: g (gram), kg
(kilogram), lm (lumen), lx (lux), mol (mole), cd (candela), etc.
4.27 Non-SI units of measurement. Some non-metric units of measurement are still
permitted for certain purposes, e.g. the pint in Ireland and the UK and miles
and yards in the UK. Greece uses the stremma (1 000 square metres) for land
measurement. Aircraft altitudes are often expressed in feet (ft). Do not convert
quantities, although an explanatory footnote may be inserted if appropriate.
4.28 Computing. Where computers are concerned, K (kilo), M (mega) and G (giga)
often stand for binary thousands (1 024=2^10), millions (1 048 576=2^20) and
billions (1 073 741 824=2^30), respectively. Note the capital K in this usage.
4.29 Electric power. Kilowatt (kW) and megawatt (MW) are used for generating
capacity, kWh and MWh for output over a given period.
4.30 Chemical elements. The names of the chemical elements start with a lowercase
letter, including elements whose designations are derived from proper names:
californium, einsteinium, nobelium, etc. Their symbols (which are interlingual)
consist either of a single capital or a capital and small letter (N, Sn, U, Pb, Mg,
Z) without a point.
4.31 In shipping, grt stands for gross register tonnage (not registered) and gt for
gross tonnage.
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5. FOREIGN IMPORTS
FOREIGN WORDS AND PHRASES IN ENGLISH TEXT
5.1 Foreign words and phrases used in an English text should be italicised (no
inverted commas) and should have the appropriate accents, e.g. inter alia,
raison d'tre.
Exceptions: words and phrases now in common use and/or considered part of
the English language, e.g. role, ad hoc, per capita, per se, etc.
5.2 Personal names should retain their original accents, e.g. Grybauskait,
Potočnik, Wallström.
5.3 Quotations. Place verbatim quotations in foreign languages in quotation marks
without italicising the text.
5.4 Latin. Avoid obscure Latin phrases if writing for a broad readership. When
faced with such phrases as a translator, check whether they have the same
currency and meaning when used in English.
5.5 The expression "per diem" ("daily allowance") and many others have English
equivalents, which should be preferred e.g. "a year" or "/year" rather than "per
annum".
ROMANISATION SYSTEMS
5.6 Greek. Use the ELOT phonetic standard for transliteration, except where a
classical rendering is more familiar or appropriate in English. Both the ELOT
standard and the classical transliteration conventions, along with further
recommendations and notes, are reproduced in the Transliteration Table for
Greek annexed to this Guide.
5.7 Cyrillic. When transliterating for EU documents, use the scheme set out in the
Transliteration Table for Cyrillic annexed to this Guide. (Note that the "soft
sign" and "hard sign" should be omitted.) Remember that the EU languages
have different transliteration systems (DE: Boshurischte, Tschernobyl; FR:
Bojurishte, Tchernobyl; EN: Bozhurishte, Chernobyl). An internet search will
normally reveal whether there is a more commonly used English transliteration
which is acceptable for particular proper names. For other languages, see e.g.
the Wikipedia entry on Cyrillic.
5.8 Arabic. There are many different transliteration systems, but an internet search
will normally reveal the most commonly used English spelling convention.
When translating, do not always rely on the form used in the source text. For
example, French, German or Dutch writers may use j where y is needed in
English or French (e.g. DE: Scheich Jamani = EN: Sheikh Yamani). Note
spellings of Maghreb and Mashreq.
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The article Al and variants should be capitalised at the beginning of names but
not internally: Dhu al Faqar, Abd ar Rahman. Do not use hyphens to connect
parts of a name
5.9 Chinese. The pinyin romanisation system introduced by the People's Republic
in the 1950s has now become the internationally accepted standard. Important
new spellings to note are:
Beijing (Peking)
Guangzhou (Canton)
Nanjing (Nanking)
Xinjiang (Sinkiang)
The spelling of Shanghai remains the same.
Add the old form in parentheses if you think it necessary.
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6. VERBS
SINGULAR OR PLURAL AGREEMENT
6.1 Collective nouns. Use the singular when the emphasis is on the whole entity:
The Government is considering the matter.
The Commission was not informed.
Use the plural when the emphasis is on the individual members:
The police have failed to trace the goods.
A majority of the Committee were in favour.
6.2 Countries and organisations with a plural name take the singular:
The Netherlands is reconsidering its position.
The United Nations was unable to reach agreement.
6.3 Use a singular verb when a multiple subject clearly forms a whole:
Checking and stamping the forms is the job of the customs authorities.
6.4 Words in -ics. These are singular when used to denote a scientific discipline or
body of knowledge (mathematics, statistics, economics) but plural in all other
contexts.
Economics is commonly regarded as a soft science.
The economics of the new process were studied in depth.
6.5 A statistic. The singular statistic is a back-formation from the plural and means
an individual item of data from a set of statistics.
6.6 `Data' is properly a plural noun and therefore goes with a plural verb.
6.7 The word none takes either a singular or plural verb, depending on sense.
PRESENT PERFECT/SIMPLE PAST
6.8 When writing from the standpoint of the present moment in time, the present
perfect is used to refer to events or situations in the period leading up to that
time:
The Commission is meeting to consider the proposal. It has (already) discussed
this several times in the past.
Where the starting point of this period is indicated, the present perfect is often
used in its continuous form to emphasise the ongoing nature of the process:
The Commission is meeting to consider the proposal. It has been discussing this
since 2001.
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If the reference is not to a period up to the present but to a time that ended
before the present, the simple past is used:
The Commission is meeting to consider the proposal. It discussed this last week.
TENSES IN MINUTES
6.9 Minutes and summary records are written in the past tense in English, unlike in
French and some other languages, where they are written using the present
tense.
6.10 This means converting actual or implied statements from the present to the
past.
A simple example of English reported speech conventions:
Dutch spokesman: "We are concerned at the number of exceptions which have
been included."
Chairman: "The legal experts will be looking into this question."
In reported speech, this becomes:
The Dutch delegation was concerned at the number of exceptions that had been
included. The Chairman said the legal experts would be looking into the
question.
6.11 Sequence of tenses. Simple past is normally replaced by past perfect
(pluperfect):
Dr Nolde said the tests had been a failure.
However, to avoid a clumsy string of past perfects in minutes where a speaker
is reporting on another meeting or event, start with At that meeting or On that
occasion and continue with the simple past. Note that in order to maintain a
logical sequence of tenses, indications of time may have to be converted as
well as verbs:
Chair: "Last year, if you remember, we referred this problem to the
subcommittee because we felt that legislation was inappropriate. It looks now,
however, as if tougher measures may be needed, and I propose that we discuss
these at tomorrow's session."
This could become, for example:
The Chair reminded delegates that in 2003 the problem had been referred to the
subcommittee, since legislation was then felt to be inappropriate. Now, however,
she thought tougher measures might be needed and proposed that the committee
discuss them at the following day's session."
6.12 Streamlining. Lengthy passages of reported speech can be made more readerfriendly
by avoiding unnecessary repetition of "he said/explained/pointed out",
provided the argument is followed through and it is clear from the context that
the same speaker is continuing.
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6.13 Auxiliaries. The auxiliaries would, should, could, must, might are often
unchanged, but sometimes various transpositions are possible or required (e.g.
must => had to; could => would be able to; should => was to).
VERBS IN LEGISLATION
6.14 The use of verbs, in particular the modal verb shall, in legislation often gives
rise to problems, since such uses are rarely encountered in everyday speech.
Consequently, writers may lack a feel for the right construction. The following
section is intended to provide guidance.
6.15 Use of verbs in enacting terms. The enacting terms of binding EU legislation,
i.e. the articles of EU treaties (see Chapter 14) and of EU regulations,
directives and decisions (see Chapter 15), can be divided broadly into two
linguistic categories: imperative terms and declarative terms. Imperative terms
can in turn be subdivided into positive and negative commands and positive
and negative permissions. Declarative terms are terms that are implemented
directly by virtue of being declared, for example definitions or amendments.
Note that the explanations here apply only to the main clauses of sentences in
enacting terms. For subordinate clauses, see Use of verbs in non-enacting
terms below.
6.16 For a positive command, use shall:
This form shall be used for all consignments.
Note that this provision expresses an obligation. However, this is not always
the case:
This Regulation shall enter into force on ...
In the first but not the second case, must could be used instead of shall.
However, this is not the convention in EU legislation.
6.17 Where a negative command expresses a prohibition, use may not:
This additive may not be used in foods.
Linguistically speaking, shall not or must not could also be used to express a
prohibition, but this is not the convention in EU legislation. Note, however,
that shall not is used where no prohibition is meant, for example:
The contract shall not be valid in any of the cases below:
This agreement shall not enter into force until/if ...
6.18 For a positive permission, use may:
This additive may be used ...:
6.19 For a negative permission, use need not:
This test need not be performed in the following cases:
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6.20 For declarative terms, use the simple present (together with an optional
`hereby' where the declaration constitutes an action, as in the first three
examples):
Regulation ... is (hereby) repealed.
A committee ... is (hereby) established.
Article 3 of Regulation ...is (hereby) amended as follows:
This Regulation applies to aid granted to enterprises in the agriculture or
fisheries sectors.
For the purpose of this Regulation, "abnormal loads" means ...
Note that shall be could be used in the first four examples (without hereby), but
the meaning would be different: instead of declaring something to be so, this
would be ordaining that something is to be so at some point or in some event
(Two years after the entry into force of this Regulation/Should the Member
States so decide, ...). In the last example as well, shall mean would in effect be
instructing people how to use the term "abnormal loads" from now on, rather
than simply declaring what it means in the regulation. Consequently, where no
futurity or contingency is intended, the correct form here is a declarative term
using the simple present.
6.21 Use of verbs in non-enacting terms. Do not use shall in non-enacting terms, for
example recitals or points in annexes. This is because these are not normally
imperative terms (but see 6.22 below) and shall is not used with the third
person in English except in commands (and to express resolution as in it shall
be done). Use other verbs such as will or must as appropriate. Note that this
also applies to subordinate phrases in enacting terms, since these refer or
explain and do not in themselves constitute commands (e.g. where applicants
must/have to/are to [not shall] submit documentation under paragraph 1, ...).
Avoid also the archaic use of shall in subordinate clauses to express
contingency: use instead the present tense (e.g. if an application is [not shall
be] submitted after the deadline, ...) or the inverted construction with should
(e.g. should an application be submitted after the deadline, ...).
Do not use may not in non-enacting terms to express a prohibition since it will
often be interpreted as expressing possibility: use, for example, must not
instead.
6.22 Instructions in annexes to legislation. While instructions will contain
imperative terms, they often contain descriptions and statements of fact as well.
For the sake of clarity, therefore, you should use the second person imperative
rather than shall for commands:
Place a sample in a round-bottomed flask ...
Use must to express objective necessity:
The sample must be chemically pure (i.e. if it isn't, the procedure won't work
properly)
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SPLIT INFINITIVE
6.23 This refers to the practice of inserting adverbs or other words before an
infinitive but after the `to' that usually introduces it, as in `to boldly go where
no-one has gone before'. Although there is nothing wrong with this practice
from the standpoint of English grammar, there are still many who think
otherwise. One way of encouraging such readers to concentrate on the content
of your text rather than on the way you express it is to avoid separating the `to'
from its following infinitive.
Note, however, that this does not justify qualifying the wrong verb, as in `we
called on her legally to condemn the practice'. In these and similar cases, either
split the infinitive with a clear conscience or move the qualifying adverb to the
end of the phrase.
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7. LISTS AND TABLES
LISTS
7.1 Use your word processor's automatic numbering facilities wherever possible,
since it is much easier to amend a list if the numbers are automatically
adjusted.
For the list items themselves, take care that each is a grammatically correct
continuation of the introduction to the list. Do not change syntactical horses in
midstream, for example by switching from noun to verb. Avoid running the
sentence on after the list of points, either by incorporating the final phrase in
the introductory sentence or by starting a new sentence.
When translating lists, always use the same type of numbering as in the
original, e.g. Arabic numerals, small letters, Roman numerals, etc. If the
original has bullets or dashes, use these. However, you need not use the same
punctuation (points, brackets, etc.) for list numbers, and indeed should not do
so if they would otherwise look the same as numbered headings elsewhere in
the text.
The four basic types of list are illustrated below. In multi-level lists, follow the
same rules for each level.
7.2 Lists of short items (without main verbs) should be introduced by a full
sentence and have the following features:
 introductory colon
 no initial capitals
 no punctuation (very short items) or comma after each item
 a full stop at the end.
7.3 Where each item completes the introductory sentence, you should:
- begin with the introductory colon;
- label each item with the appropriate bullet, number or letter;
- end each item with a semicolon;
- close with a full stop.
7.4 If all items are complete statements without a grammatical link to the
introductory sentence, proceed as follows:
a. introduce the list with a colon;
b. label each item with the appropriate bullet, number or letter;
c. start each item with a lowercase letter;
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d. end each one with a semicolon;
e. put a full stop at the end.
7.5 If any one item consists of several complete sentences, announce the list with a
complete sentence and continue as indicated below:
1) Introduce the list with a colon.
2) Label each item with the appropriate bullet, number or letter.
3) Begin each item with a capital letter.
4) End each statement with a full stop. This allows several sentences to be
included under a single item without throwing punctuation into confusion.
TABLES
7.6 Table headings. Place table headings above the table without a main verb.
Diagrams, figures and graphs should be labelled at the bottom, also without a
main verb. It is not necessary to repeat the word table in the heading.
7.7 Figures and symbols in tables. Change decimal commas into decimal points,
unless requested not to (see 3.12). Otherwise, however, figures and
internationally recognised symbols in tables are language-independent
elements and should not normally have to be retyped if a source text is
available in electronic format.
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8. SCIENCE GUIDE
SCIENTIFIC NAMES
8.1 Biological sciences. As the binomial system for classifying living organisms is
used in all languages, it is normally sufficient to reproduce the original terms.
Note that the initial letter of the scientific name is capitalised, while species
epithets are always lowercased, even if derived from proper names (e.g. Martes
americana, Pusa sibirica):
ORDER: Rosales Carnivora
FAMILY: Rosaceae Felidae
GENUS: Rosa Felis
SPECIES: Rosa moschata Felis catus
8.2 Italicisation. The names of genera, species and subspecies (varieties, cultivars)
are always italicised.
8.3 Most text references are to genus or species (i.e. the name of the genus
followed by an epithet). The genus name should be spelled out in full on first
occurrence and subsequently abbreviated: Escherichia coli, abbreviated E. coli.
8.4 Non-technical usage. Some scientific plant names are identical with the
vernacular name and of course should not be capitalised or italicised when
used non-technically (e.g. "rhododendron growers" but Rhododendron
canadense).
8.5 Geology. Use initial capitals for formations (Old Red Sandstone; Eldon
formation) and geological time units (Cenozoic; Tertiary period; Holocene)
but not for the words era, period, etc.
8.6 Chemical compounds. Like chemical elements, the symbols for chemical
compounds (i.e. chemical formulae) are interlingual: NaCl, H2O, C18H25NO,
etc.
8.7 Sulphur/sulfur. Note that the spelling sulfur is preferred by IUPAC (the
International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry), but the Harmonised
System and Combined Nomenclature (customs tariff nomenclatures) retain the
sulph- forms. The correct spelling will therefore depend on the context.
8.8 Avoiding hyphenation. Current practice is to avoid hyphenation altogether,
except between letters and numbers (see below). This applies both to prefixes
(such as di, iso, tetra, tri: diisopropyl fluorophosphate,
ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) and other compound forms (benzeneethanol),
where normal hyphenation rules would require a hyphen between the double
vowels.
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8.9 Closed and open compounds. When in doubt as to whether to close up
constituents or not (ethyl alcohol, but ethylbenzene), follow the conventions
used in Einecs (European inventory of existing commercial chemical
substances).
8.10 Using Einecs. Einecs is a multi-volume work published by the Office for
Official Publications. It is available on CD-ROM. Volumes IV and V of Einecs
contain the alphabetically ordered Name Index. If you cannot locate the
substance where you would expect to find it (i.e. under the first letter of its
name), look under the head noun, i.e. the most rightward constituent of the
string, which is followed by the attributive parts of the compound. Thus,
iodobenzene is entered as Benzene, iodo-. Note that the end-hyphen in the
Einecs entry means that the compound is closed, i.e. that there is no hyphen
when it is written out in running text. The absence of an end-hyphen means
that the compound is written open. Thus, lactate dehydrogenase is entered as
Dehydrogenase, lactate.
8.11 Names containing numbers. Use hyphens to link numbers to letters in the
names of chemical compounds (on both sides if the number is an infix). If there
are several numbers in sequence, they are separated by commas. Examples: 2pentanone;
1,2-dichloroethane; 2,2,3 3-tetrabromobutane.
8.12 Sentences beginning with numbers. If the first word in a sentence is a chemical
compound that starts with a number, the first letter is capitalised:
2-Pentanone is a compound obtainable from proprionic acid.
8.13 Common names. Most chemical compounds in widespread use have one or
more common names besides their scientific name. Such common names or
abbreviations of the scientific names are often used for brevity's sake in
scientific texts. For example, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid is more
customarily known as edetic acid or abbreviated to EDTA. If translating,
follow source document usage.
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9. FOOTNOTES, BIBLIOGRAPHIES AND CITATIONS
9.1 Footnote and endnote references. Use your word processor's automatic
footnote function so that if you alter the order of footnotes, they will be
renumbered automatically. Footnote/endnote references in text are usually
given as superscript numerals without brackets following punctuation.
However, to achieve uniformity across language versions, the Publications
Office places footnote references in brackets before punctuation (see Section
8.1 of the Interinstitutional Style Guide). Follow this practice when producing
or translating texts destined for the Publications Office.
9.2 Positioning of footnote/endnote numbers referring to legislation. Put the
footnote number immediately after the title of the instrument.
9.3 Punctuation in footnotes. In footnotes themselves, begin the text with a capital
letter (exceptions being e.g., i.e. and p.) and end it with a full stop (whether the
footnote is a single word, a phrase or one or more complete sentences).
9.4 Bibliographical citations. If authoring for an EU institution, see Section 5.3.4
of the Interinstitutional Style Guide. If translating, follow the source document
conventions. See also citations of European Court Reports.
9.5 Citations. Put titles of periodicals, books and newspapers in italics but cite
titles of articles within such publications in single quotation marks. Use the
English titles of publications where an official English version exists but do not
translate titles of works that have appeared only in a foreign language.
9.6 Citing EU documents. Italicise the titles of white and green papers. Separate
the main title and the subtitle, if any, with a colon. Use initial capitals on the
first and all significant words in the main title and on the first word in the
subtitle. Launch straight into the italicised title: do not introduce it with "on",
"concerning", "entitled", etc.
In the White Paper Growth, Competitiveness, Employment: The challenges and
ways forward into the twenty-first century, the Commission set out a strategy . . .
The White Paper Growth, Competitiveness, Employment was the first . . .
In Growth, Competitiveness, Employment, on the other hand, the Commission
set in motion . . . [this form might work where the White Paper had already been
mentioned, for example, or in an enumeration]
The Green Paper Towards Fair and Efficient Pricing in Transport: Policy
options for internalising the external costs of transport in the European Union
The Green Paper on Innovation ["Green Paper on" is part of its title]
Do the same with the titles of other policy statements and the like that are
published in their own right:
the communication An Industrial Competitiveness Policy for the European
Union [published as Bull. Suppl. 3/94]
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the communication Agenda 2000: For a stronger and wider Union [when the
reference is to the title of the document, which was published in Bull.
Suppl. 5/97; but of course we would probably say "an Agenda 2000 priority"
for example]
If a policy statement has a title, but has not as far as you know been published,
put the title in inverted commas:
the communication "A European Strategy for Encouraging Local Development
and Employment Initiatives" [this appeared in OJ C 265 of 12 October 1995,
and its title is cast like the title of a book, but it does not seem to have been
published in its own right]
"Communications" that are not policy statements, such as the announcements
which regularly appear in the Official Journal (OJ), get no italics, inverted
commas, or special capitalisation:
the Commission communication in the framework of the implementation of
Council Directive 89/686/EEC of 21 December 1989 in relation to personal
protective equipment, as amended by Council Directives 93/68/EEC, 93/95/EEC
and 96/58/EC [OJ C 180 of 14 June 1997]
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10. CORRESPONDENCE
10.1 Translating incoming letters. Use a simple layout such as follows:
Letter from:
(name and, where necessary, address on one line)
Date:
(place and date of letter)
To:
Subject:
Ref.:
Text of the letter (no opening or closing formula)
10.2 Drafting and translating outgoing letters. Remember the basic pairs for
opening and closing letters:
Dear Sir/Madam ... Yours faithfully
Dear Mr/Ms/Dr Bloggs ... Yours sincerely
The tendency is towards greater use of the second, less formal, pair when the
correspondent's name is known. It should certainly be used in letters of reply
to individuals.
Note that commas should be placed either after both opening and closing
formula, or after neither.
10.3 Letters to ambassadors and permanent representatives. For the UK, start "Sir"
or "Madam". For all other countries, start "Your Excellency". For all countries,
close as follows.
I have the honour to be, Sir/Madam,
Yours faithfully
(or just Yours faithfully)
10.4 Letters to ministers. For the UK, start "Sir/Madam/My Lord" and close:
I remain (or I am), Sir /Madam/My Lord,
Yours faithfully
(or just Yours faithfully)
For all other countries, start "Sir/Madam" and close:
I have the honour to be, Sir/Madam,
Yours faithfully
(or just Yours faithfully)
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10.5 Letters to presidents of EU institutions. Start "Sir/Madam," and close:
I have the honour to be, Sir/Madam,
Yours faithfully
10.6 Agreements in the form of an exchange of letters
Letter 1
Start:
Sir/Your Excellency,
I have the honour ...
Close:
I should be obliged if you would inform me whether/confirm that your
Government is in agreement with the above.
Please accept, Sir/Your Excellency, the assurance of my highest consideration.
Letter 2
Start:
Sir/Your Excellency,
I have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your letter of today's date, which
reads as follows:
(Insert text of letter 1)
Close:
I am able to inform you/confirm that my Government is in agreement with the
contents of your letter/I have the honour to confirm that the above is acceptable
to my Government and that your letter and this letter constitute an agreement in
accordance with your proposal.
Please accept, Sir/Your Excellency, the assurance of my highest consideration.
10.7 Exchanges of Notes (Notes Verbales).
Start:
(Mission No 1) presents its compliments to (Mission No 2) and has the honour to
refer to ...
Close:
(Mission No 1) avails itself of this opportunity to renew to (Mission No 2) the
assurance of its highest consideration.
10.8 For further information on forms of address, see Debrett's.
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11. PERSONAL NAMES AND TITLES
11.1 Personal names. Surnames are not normally uppercased in running text in
English (thus Mr Barroso not Mr BARROSO). However, common sense must
apply if the same text is to appear in several languages or if it is impractical to
reinstate accents.
Similarly, avoid the non-English practice of using the initial for the first name
in running text. Wherever possible spell out the first name the first time round
and contract thereafter. Thus:
Gro Harlem Brundtland (first mention), Ms Brundtland (thereafter)
Tony Blair (first mention), Mr Blair (thereafter)
If it is impossible to track down the first name, then drop the initial.
11.2 Ms -- Mme -- Frau. As a matter of courtesy use Ms in English unless you
know that the person concerned prefers otherwise. Note that the French Mme
and German Frau are likewise courtesy titles: a Mme or Frau is not necessarily
a Mrs (i.e. married).
11.3 Foreign-language titles. Avoid titles not customary in English, but note that if
you use Mr or Ms, you must obviously be sure of the gender of the person in
question.
For: write:
Prof. Dr. H. Schmidt Prof. H. Schmidt
Dipl.-Ing. W. Braun Mr W. Braun
Drs. A. Baerdemaeker Ms A. Baerdemaeker
Ir. B. De Bruyn Ms B. De Bruyn
Me Reuter Mr Reuter
11.4 Doctor. The title Dr should be given when it appears in the original (except in
combined titles, as above), regardless of whether the holder is a doctor of
medicine or not.
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12. GENDER-NEUTRAL LANGUAGE
12.1 Using gender-neutral formulations is more than a matter of political
correctness. The Commission wholeheartedly endorses equal opportunities,
and its language should reflect this. Using the generic "he" is incongruous,
since Commission documents are just as likely to be addressed to women.
12.2 He/she. Avoid the clumsy he/she etc., except perhaps in non-running text such
as application forms. The best solution is often to use the plural, which in any
case is more commonly used in English for the generic form as it does not
require the definite article. For example, in draft legislation or calls for tenders,
translate l'exportateur/le soumissionaire ... il by exporters/tenderers ... they. It
is also acceptable to use forms such as everyone has their own views on this
(see usage note for they in the Concise Oxford Dictionary).
12.3 In some texts, for example in manuals or sets of instructions, it is more natural
in English to address the reader directly using the second-person form or even
the imperative:
You should first turn on your computer
or
First turn on your computer
instead of
The user should first turn on his/her computer.
12.4 Noun forms. Use your judgment in choosing noun forms to emphasise or deemphasise
gender. The policewoman has arrived, the dustwoman has not, and
we will no doubt go on using fisherman until the culture of fishing
communities changes. Pilot and the like no longer have variants with woman
tacked on the front. In some cases a substitute is available, e.g. firefighters
instead of firemen. For Chairman, Chairwoman and Chair use your discretion,
but note that Parliament now uses Chair for its own committees.
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Part II
About the European Union
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13. THE EUROPEAN UNION
13.1 The European Union -- EU. In geographical terms, the European Union
comprises the combined territories of its Member States. Structurally speaking,
it comprises three `pillars': (1) the supranational organisation known as the
European Communities (see below), plus two areas of intergovernmental
cooperation in the form of (2) a common foreign and security policy (including
a defence component); and (3) cooperation on justice and home affairs (now
only police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters). It has powers of its
own under pillars 2 and 3 but no legal personality as yet, though the new
Constitution for Europe (see 14.17) would, if ratified, explicitly confer that.
The Council being responsible for all three pillars, its formal title is the
Council of the European Union. (See Chapter 16 for further guidance on all the
EU institutions.) Likewise, the Official Journal is now named the Official
Journal of the European Union since it covers publications under all three
pillars.
13.2 The European Communities. The term `the European Communities' has always
been the correct legal form to refer collectively to the European Coal and Steel
Community (now defunct), the European Community (formerly European
Economic Community) and the European Atomic Energy Community, which
together constitute the first pillar of the European Union. Use their full names
rather than the abbreviations ECSC, EC (formerly EEC) and Euratom in
legislation. The short form `the Communities' may be used in informal texts.
Since the Commission administers this first pillar (but not the other two), its
formal title is the Commission of the European Communities (see also 16.1).
13.3 The European Community -- EC. This is now the name of what used to be the
`European Economic Community' (renamed by the EU Treaty). The
abbreviated form is `EC', as in the EC Treaty, but use it only where the context
is quite clear to avoid potential confusion with European Commission.
13.4 European Community in general references. Before the European Union was
established, the term `the European Community' (or simply `the Community')
was often used informally for all three Communities and for the European
political entity in general. For references of this kind, use either `the European
Communities' or `the European Union', whichever is correct.
13.5 Community was also frequently used as an attributive adjective in general
references such as `Community policy/institutions/legislation'. However,
unless the context is specifically the European Communities rather than the
European Union in general, you should now use EU instead.
13.6 Common, meaning Community, is still used in set phrases such as common
fisheries policy, common agricultural (not agriculture) policy, etc. Do not use
the term in this sense outside these set phrases.
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13.7 Common market. This term is normally used in EU documents only in phrases
such as "the common market in goods and services".
13.8 Single market. This term is generally preferable to internal market (which has
other connotations in the UK), except in standard phrases such as "completing
the internal market", which was originally the title of the key White Paper.
13.9 The Twenty-five (Fifteen, Twelve, Ten, Nine, Six). These expressions are
sometimes used to refer to different memberships of the European
Union/Communities at different periods. In this context the only correct
abbreviation is EU-25, 15, 12, 10, 9 or 6 (not EUR-25 etc.) to avoid confusion
with the euro.
13.10 Acquis communautaire. As explained in the glossary on the European Union's
website, the acquis communautaire (or acquis for short) is the body of EU law
in the broad sense, comprising:
 the Treaties and other instruments of similar status (primary legislation);
 the legislation adopted under the Treaties (secondary legislation);
 the case law of the Court of Justice;
 the declarations and resolutions adopted by the Union;
 measures relating to the common foreign and security policy (second pillar
of the Union);
 measures relating to justice and home affairs (third pillar of the Union);
 international agreements concluded by the Union and those concluded by
the Member States among themselves in connection with the Union's
activities.
Note that the term covers `soft' law as well, e.g. EU guidelines, policies and
recommendations.
Candidate countries have to accept the entire acquis and translate it into their
national language before they can join the Union.
When you are producing documents intended for the general public, use the
term acquis only with an accompanying explanation, or paraphrase it with a
more readily understood expression, such as "the body of EU law".
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14. PRIMARY LEGISLATION
14.1 The way in which the European Union operates is regulated by a series of
Treaties and various other agreements having similar status. Together they
constitute what is known as primary legislation.
THE TREATIES -- AN OVERVIEW
14.2 The treaties founding the original European Communities were:
 the ECSC Treaty (Paris, 1951), which established the European Coal and
Steel Community (expired in 2002)
 the EEC Treaty (Rome, 1957), which established the European Economic
Community (now EC Treaty)
 the Euratom Treaty (Rome, 1957), which established the European Atomic
Energy Community.
Then in 1992 the European Union was established by:
 the EU Treaty (Maastricht, 1992).
Over the years these founding Treaties have been amended by:
- the Merger Treaty (1965)
- the Budget Treaty (1975)
- the Greenland Treaty (1984)
- the Single European Act (1986)
- the Treaty of Amsterdam (1997)
- the Treaty of Nice (2001)
- five Accession Treaties (1972; 1979; 1985; 1994; 2003).
The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (if ratification is ever
completed) raises the prospect of further change.
THE TREATIES IN DETAIL
14.3 Order of listing. When listed together the Treaties should be put in historical
order: ECSC Treaty, EEC Treaty, Euratom Treaty, EU Treaty. (In the titles of
legal instruments common to more than one of the Communities, the order no
longer rotates; see 3.4.4 of the Interinstitutional Style Guide.)
14.4 ECSC Treaty -- Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community.
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Signed in Paris on 18 April 1951, it came into force on 23 July 1952 and
expired on 23 July 2002. It is sometimes also called the Treaty of Paris.
14.5 EC Treaty -- Treaty establishing the European Community.
This is the new name given by the EU Treaty to the EEC Treaty (Treaty
establishing the European Economic Community), which was signed in Rome
on 25 March 1957 and came into force on 1 January 1958. The name Treaty of
Rome for the EEC Treaty can be used in historical contexts, but do not use it
for references to the EC Treaty. Do not use the abbreviation ECT; use either
the short form or a bare abbreviation for citations (see 14.18).
14.6 Euratom Treaty -- Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy
Community.
Also signed in Rome on 25 March 1957, it came into force on 1 January 1958.
The standard form is now Euratom Treaty rather than EAEC Treaty.
14.7 Treaties of Rome can be used to refer to the EEC and Euratom Treaties
together.
14.8 Merger Treaty -- Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single
Commission of the European Communities.
Signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965, it came into force on 1 July 1967.
14.9 Budget Treaty -- Treaty amending certain Financial Provisions of the Treaties
establishing the European Communities and of the Treaty establishing a Single
Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities.
Signed in Brussels on 22 July 1975, it came into force on 1 June 1977.
14.10 Greenland Treaty -- Treaty amending, with regard to Greenland, the Treaties
establishing the European Communities.
Signed on 13 March 1984, it came into force on 1 January 1985. This made
arrangements for Greenland's withdrawal from the European Communities and
granted the island `Overseas Countries and Territories' status.
14.11 Single European Act.
Signed in Luxembourg and The Hague on 17 and 28 February 1986, it came
into force on 1 July 1987. This was the first major substantive amendment to
the EEC Treaty. It committed the signatories to a single European market by
the end of 1992 and generally expanded the scope of Community policymaking.
It also made minor amendments to the ECSC and Euratom Treaties.
14.12 EU Treaty -- Treaty on European Union.
Signed in Maastricht on 7 February 1992, it came into force on 1 November
1993. Often known as the Maastricht Treaty, it established a European Union
based on (1) the existing Communities plus (2) a common foreign and security
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policy (CFSP) and (3) cooperation on justice and home affairs (JHA). These
are the three `pillars' of the European Union (see 13.1). Among other things it
gave the European Parliament an equal say with the Council on legislation in
some areas and extended the scope of qualified majority voting in the Council.
It also laid down a timetable and arrangements for the adoption of a single
currency and changed the name of the European Economic Community to the
European Community.
For the short form, write `the EU Treaty'. Do not abbreviate to TEU.
Alternatively, use a bare abbreviation for citations (see 14.18).
14.13 Treaty of Amsterdam -- Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty on
European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and
certain related acts.
Signed in Amsterdam on 2 October 1997, it came into force on 1 May 1999.
After enlargement to 15 members in 1995 and with further expansion in
prospect, it sought to streamline the system, taking the innovations of
Maastricht a step further. Among other things, it broadened the scope of
qualified majority voting and brought the Schengen arrangements and much of
justice and home affairs (asylum and immigration policy and judicial
cooperation in civil matters) into the Community system (the first pillar). It
also incorporated the Social Protocol into the EC Treaty. Under the second
pillar (CFSP), the arrangements on defence aspects were strengthened. Finally
it completely renumbered the articles of the EU and EC Treaties.
14.14 Treaty of Nice -- Treaty of Nice amending the Treaty on European Union, the
Treaties establishing the European Communities and certain related acts.
Signed in Nice on 26 February 2001, it came into force on 1 February 2003. It
amended the founding Treaties yet again to pave the way for enlargement to 25
Member States, extending still further the areas covered by the Community
system and making certain changes in institutional and decision-making
arrangements (qualified majority voting, codecision). It changed the name of
the Official Journal of the European Communities to "Official Journal of the
European Union".
14.15 Accession treaties. The original Treaties have been supplemented by five
treaties of accession. These are:
 the 1972 Treaty of Accession (Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom),
 the 1979 Treaty of Accession (Greece),
 the 1985 Treaty of Accession (Portugal and Spain),
 the 1994 Treaty of Accession (Austria, Finland and Sweden),
 the 2003 Treaty of Accession (Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary,
Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia).
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Do not confuse the dates of these Treaties with the actual dates of accession
(1973, 1981, 1986, 1995 and 2004).
14.16 Treaties versus Acts of Accession. Take care to distinguish between Treaty of
Accession and Act of Accession. Treaties of accession set out principles and
regulate ratification, while acts of accession contain the technical details of
transitional arrangements and secondary legislation (droit dérivé) requiring
amendment.
14.17 Constitution -- Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe. The draft
constitution was formally submitted to the European Council in Rome on 18
July 2003. On 29 October 2004, the Heads of State and Government of the 25
Member States and the (then) 3 candidate countries signed the Treaty.
However, it first needs to be ratified by the Member States, in some cases
following referendums, before it can enter into force. As it was rejected during
referendums in France and the Netherlands, this prospect seems remote at
present. Nonetheless, the aim of the Constitution is to:
 divide responsibilities better between the Union and its Member States;
 merge the Treaties and give the Union legal personality;
 simplify the Union's instruments of action;
 enhance the democracy, transparency and efficiency of the Union by
involving national Parliaments more closely, simplifying decision-making,
and making the functioning of the European Institutions more transparent
and comprehensible;
 improve the structure and enhance the role of the Union's three main
institutions.
TREATY CITATIONS
14.18 Citation forms. Always use a treaty's full title in legislation:
... the procedure laid down in Article 269 of the Treaty establishing the
European Community ... (Article 2(2) of Council Decision 2000/597/EC,
Euratom)
However, the Treaty of Amsterdam and the Treaty of Nice may be cited as
such:
... five years after the entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam ... (Article 63
EU).
On the other hand, it is common usage in legal writing (e.g. commentaries,
grounds of judgments) to cite the Treaties by a bare abbreviation:
Under the terms of Article 99(3) EEC the Commission can ...
The wording of Article 17 Euratom reflects ...
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The arrangements for a rapid decision under Article 18 EU allow ...
This form can be used practically anywhere (except, of course, in legislation),
especially if the full title is given when it first occurs.
14.19 Citing subdivisions of articles. Paragraphs and subparagraphs that are officially
designated by numbers or letters should be cited in the following form:
Article 87(3)(d) of the Treaty establishing the European Community ...
Subdivisions of an article that are not identified by a number or letter should be
cited in the form nth (sub)paragraph of Article XX or, less formally, Article
XX, nth (sub)paragraph.
The first subparagraph of Article 90 of the EC Treaty ...
Article 174(2) EC, second subparagraph ...
Note that a reference such as Article 198a of the EC Treaty is not to a
subdivision but to an article subsequently inserted after Article 198. Here, the
letter is always in lower case and closed up to the number.
14.20 Amended or new articles. Many writers refer to a new/amended article as
`Article xx of the Treaty of Nice' (or Amsterdam or Maastricht). This is wrong.
It should be:
Article 133 of the EC Treaty as amended by the Treaty of Nice.
[Not "Article 133 of the Treaty of Nice" -- The Treaty of Nice has only 13
articles]
Also remember that the articles of the EU and EC Treaties were renumbered by
the Treaty of Amsterdam. Take care that references are to the correct
renumbered article (errors still occasionally occur).
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15. SECONDARY LEGISLATION
15.1 The various legal acts adopted under the Treaties form the European Union's
"secondary legislation". As specified in Article 249 of the Treaty establishing
the European Community (the first pillar of the European Union), they
comprise chiefly:
Regulations
Directives
Decisions
Regulations and decisions are directly applicable and binding in all EU
Member States. Directives on the other hand are binding but not directly
applicable: they set out the objectives to be achieved and require the Member
States to incorporate them into their national legislation. This incorporation is
termed transposition. Consequently, only directives are transposed into
national legislation, but all three types of legal act are implemented or applied,
i.e. given practical effect.
To consult individual legal acts, see the EU's law website EUR-LEX.
15.2 For matters coming under the second and third pillars, the Treaty on European
Union also introduced:
Framework Decisions
Joint actions
Common positions
See 15.13 for further details.
DECISION-MAKING PROCEDURES
15.3 Consultation procedure. Under this procedure the Council must consult the
European Parliament and take its views into account before adopting any
binding legislation. However, it is not bound by Parliament's opinion. The
Council may also consult Parliament before adopting non-binding acts such as
recommendations and opinions, but it is not obliged to do so.
15.4 Codecision procedure (Article 251 EC). This procedure, introduced by the
Treaty on European Union, gives Parliament the power to adopt instruments
jointly with the Council. Its scope was considerably broadened by the Treaty of
Amsterdam and it now encompasses very many areas of the Community's
legislative activity.
15.5 Assent procedure. The assent procedure, whereby the Council must obtain
Parliament's assent (absolute majority of its members) before certain important
decisions can be taken, was introduced by the Single European Act. Parliament
may accept or reject a proposal but cannot amend it. The procedure mainly
applies to applications for membership of the Union, association and other
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international agreements, and the appointment of the Commission President,
although its scope has been extended to other areas by the Amsterdam and
Nice Treaties.
TITLES AND NUMBERING
15.6 Draft legislation. In relation to Community legislation, the word draft denotes
that the act in question has not yet been formally approved by the Commission.
In the simplest case, it is used to qualify Commission acts (e.g. a draft
Commission Regulation) before they are adopted by the Commission. For acts
that are proposed by the Commission for adoption by other EU institutions,
there is an additional stage in the procedure: Commission departments prepare
a draft proposal (e.g. draft proposal for a Council Regulation), which the
Commission approves, whereupon the designation draft is dropped and the
proposal is sent to the Council and the European Parliament for discussion and
possible adoption.
Draft Commission legislation is accompanied by a Memorandum to the
Commission (FR: Communication  la Commission) while draft proposals for
non-Commission acts also include an Explanatory Memorandum (Exposé des
motifs), which is sent with the proposal to the legislator.
All unadopted acts have attached to them a financial statement (FR: fiche
financire) detailing the budget implications and an impact assessment (FR:
fiche d'impact) setting out more general implications.
15.7 Numbering of acts. Legal acts are numbered by year and serial number. The
serial numbering restarts at the beginning of every year and is separate for each
type of act. Since 1999, the year has been written with four digits rather than
two. However, this is not retroactive: numbers before 1999 keep the two-digit
year.
The number of an act normally constitutes part of its title, but the form this
takes differs depending on the type of act. For acts where the serial number
comes before the year, the contraction No precedes the number. See the
following sections for more details.
15.8 Regulations. The number of a regulation is an integral part of its title and
follows the pattern [Institution] Regulation (EC) No ##/year. The citation form
is therefore as follows:
Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 on the control of concentrations between
undertakings
Until 1967, EEC and Euratom regulations were numbered separately, in
cumulative series from 1958 to 1962, and then annually. Since 1 January 1968
they have formed a single series, numbered annually:
(before 1963) EEC Council Regulation No 17
(before 1968) Council Regulation No 1009/67/EEC
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(since 1968) Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1234/84
15.9 Directives. Directives are issued mainly by the Council and less frequently by
the Commission. Since 1 January 1992 the number of a directive has formed an
integral part of its title, in the pattern [Institution] Directive
year/number/Community. The citation form is therefore as follows:
Commission Directive 2004/29/EC on determining the characteristics and
minimum conditions for inspecting vine varieties
15.10 Decisions (See also 15.11 below). Decisions comprise acts adopted under
Article 249 EC (formerly 189 EEC) or Article 161 Euratom and other sui
generis decisions (i.e. decisions not addressed to anyone, generally used to
regulate the internal workings of the EU). Except for joint decisions (see 15.11
below), they bear no formal number forming part of the title, but are assigned a
"publication number" by the Publications Office. The full citation form is
therefore as follows:
Council Decision of 30 July 2003 on the conclusion of the agreement between
the European Community and Canada on trade in wines and spirit drinks
(2004/91/EC)
Although it is not formally part of the title, the publication number is regularly
used in citing such acts: Council Decision 2004/91/EC. Unpublished decisions
are identified by date only.
In most languages the same word is used to designate both Article 249/161
decisions and sui generis decisions, but there are different words for the two
types of decision in Danish (beslutning and afgrelse), Dutch (beschikking and
besluit), German (Entscheidung and Beschluss) and Slovenian (odločba and
sklep).
15.11 Joint acts (Council and Parliament) (See also 15.4). However unwieldy it may
appear, and whatever variants you may see in circulation, the `of the ... and of
the ...' formulation below is the only correct one for the titles of joint acts:
Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of
29 April 2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs
With the extension of the codecision procedure since it was first introduced by
the EU Treaty, the Council and Parliament now regularly adopt joint decisions
in a wide range of areas. These are numbered along the same lines as
regulations, e.g.:
Decision No 649/2005/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13
April 2005 amending Decision No 1419/1999/EC establishing a Community
action for the European Capital of Culture event for the years 2005 to 2019
15.12 ECSC decisions. ECSC general decisions were equivalent to EEC and Euratom
regulations and were given an official serial number that was an integral part of
the title (e.g. Commission Decision No 891/92/ECSC of 30 March 1992
imposing a provisional anti-dumping duty...).
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15.13 Framework decisions, joint actions, common positions. These are legal acts
adopted in the areas of common foreign and security policy and justice and
home affairs (Titles V and VI respectively of the Treaty on European Union).
Their citation forms are as follows:
Council Framework Decision 2001/68/JHA of 22 December 2003 on combating
the sexual exploitation of children and child pornography
Council Joint Action 2004/523/CFSP of 28 June 2004 on the European Union
Rule of Law Mission in Georgia
Council Common Position 2004/698/CFSP of 14 October 2004 concerning the
lifting of restrictive measures against Libya
15.14 Multiple references. When referring to several acts together, follow the pattern
below:
Regulations (EC) Nos 1234/96 and 1235/96
Directives 96/100/EC and 96/350/EC
15.15 Abbreviated references. Use abbreviations only in footnotes or when space is
at a premium:
Reg. 1234/85, Dir. 84/321, Dec. 3289/75, Dec. 74/612
15.16 Amendments. Legal acts are as a rule amended by the same institution as
adopted the original act, in which case the name of the institution is not
repeated in the title of the amended act. The date of the original act is also
omitted, but the rest of its title is quoted in full:
Regulation (EC) No 1934/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 27 October 2004 amending Regulation (EC) No 1726/2000 on development
cooperation with South Africa
STRUCTURE OF ACTS
15.17 Opening text. The preambles to regulations, directives, and decisions start with
a line in capitals identifying the institution and ending with a comma:
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
15.18 Citations. The opening text is followed by the citations (FR: visas), stating the
legal basis for the act and listing the procedural steps; these begin Having
regard to ... and also end in a comma:
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in
particular Article 100a thereof,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No ..., and in particular Article ##
thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
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Having regard to the opinion of the (European Parliament, Economic and Social
Committee, etc.),
Having regard to the assent of the European Parliament,
In cooperation with the European Parliament,
15.19 Recitals. Next come the recitals (FR: considérants), stating the grounds on
which the act is based. The block of recitals begins with a single Whereas
followed by a colon and a new paragraph. The recitals which follow are
numbered sequentially using Arabic numerals within round brackets. Each
recital, including the first, begins with a leading capital and ends with a full
stop, except for the last (or a sole) recital, which ends in a comma. Sentences
within a given recital are separated by full stops.
15.20 References to other acts. Previous acts referred to in citations and recitals must
be given their full title (institution, type of instrument, number, date, title) on
first occurrence and must carry a footnote with OJ reference after the
descriptive title. In less formal contexts it is not necessary to give the date of
the act; this is invariably cited in French but tends to clutter up the sentence to
no good purpose. There are some exceptions to the above rules:
 amendments to the principal acts cited (type and number only):
Whereas Commission Regulation (EEC) No ####/## of (date) on ... as (last)
amended by Regulation (EEC) No xxxx/xx, provides ...
 where the title/content is paraphrased to shorten recitals:
Whereas the Commission has adopted, in connection with the Christmas and
New Year holidays, Regulation (EEC) No 2956/84 dealing with the sale of
butter from public stocks at a reduced price ...
15.21 Enacting formula. Preambles close with a line in capitals continuing the
enacting formula, ending with a colon. The main variants are:
HAS/HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION or DIRECTIVE:
HAS/HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: -- corresponds to FR décide, DE
beschliesst
HAS/HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION: -- FR a arreté la présente décision
DE hat folgende Entscheidung erlassen
15.22 Enacting terms. The French term Article premier is rendered Article 1. Certain
acts have only one article, the Sole Article.
Regulations have a final article stating when they enter into force and, in some
instances, the details of the date or dates from which they apply.
That final article is followed by the sentence:
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all
Member States.
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Directives usually conclude with an article giving details of the arrangements
for transposition followed by one stating when they enter into force and a final
one stating to whom they are addressed.
Likewise, Decisions may conclude with articles giving details of their
application and their addressees.
For the use of verbs in articles, see Verbs in legislation in section 6.
15.23 Place of enactment. Legislation issued by the Commission is always Done at
Brussels, [date], while in draft Council legislation the place name is left blank
(Done at ...) since the ministers may not be meeting in Brussels when the
instrument is finally adopted.
REFERRING TO SUBDIVISIONS OF ACTS
15.24 Recitals. Numbered recitals are referred to as `recital 1, 2, 3', etc. Note that the
numbers are not enclosed in brackets in such references. Any unnumbered
recitals are cited as `the first, second, third recital' and so on.
15.25 Numbered subdivisions. In citing provisions of EU legislation, place numbered
subdivisions of articles in brackets after the article number (note: no spaces):
Article 1(3)(d) of Regulation (EEC) No 1696/71
Note that a reference such as Article 20a of Commission Regulation (EC) No
174/1999 is not to a subdivision of an article but to a new article subsequently
inserted after Article 20. Here, the letter is always in lower case and closed up
to the number.
15.26 Unnumbered subdivisions. Unnumbered items precede the article number and
are written out in words:
The third indent of the second subparagraph of Article 2(2) of Commission
Regulation (EEC) No 1153/75 provides that the colour of V. A. 3 forms is to be
red.
15.27 French terminology. The French word paragraphe always means a numbered
paragraph; alinéa is an unnumbered sub-unit. If an article has no numbered
subdivisions, alinéa is rendered in English as paragraph (first, second, etc.). If
the alinéa is part of a numbered paragraph, it is rendered as subparagraph.
15.28 Avoid abbreviating Article to Art. wherever possible. Also do not use the §
sign (section mark) for EU legislation: for example, l'article 3 §1 should read
Article 3(1) in English.
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16. THE EU INSTITUTIONS
COMMISSION
16.1 Title. The Commission of the European Communities (full title -- see 13.2) is
governed by Articles 211 to 219 of the Treaty establishing the European
Community, as amended by the Protocol on the enlargement of the European
Union. It is normally referred to as the European Commission (the form used in
letterheads) or the Commission. While the abbreviation EC is becoming
increasingly common, use it only where the context is absolutely clear in order
to avoid potential confusion with European Community.
16.2 Titles of Members. The word Commissioner should not be used in legal texts
but is acceptable in other less formal, journalistic-type texts, such as press
releases and especially headlines (where the more formal designations sound
stilted). Mr Z, Commission Member, can also be used in less formal texts. The
established forms are:
Mr X, President of the Commission, ...
Ms Y, Vice-President, ...
Mr Z, Member of the Commission responsible for ...
Ms Z (Member of the Commission)
Usually Mr Z on its own is sufficient in English.
16.3 Cabinets. Each Commissioner has a private office called a `cabinet', whose
Head is often referred to by the French title Chef de cabinet.
16.4 Commission meetings. The Members of the Commission hold a weekly
meeting (réunion), normally on Wednesdays and sometimes divided into
sittings (séances). The Commission adopts its proposals either at its meetings
or by written procedure and presents (or transmits or sends) them to the
Council. For a more detailed account of its decision-making arrangements, see
the Commission's rules of procedure.
16.5 Referring to the Commission. The term "the Commission" may mean just the
members of the Commission collectively (also known as the College of
Commissioners, or College for short, the body ultimately responsible for
Commission decisions) but it may also refer to the Commission as an
institution. If the context does not make the meaning clear, you will need to be
more precise.
16.7 Names of Commission departments. The Commission's main administrative
divisions -- Directorates-General or DGs for short -- have self-explanatory
names, which are frequently abbreviated, e.g. EMPL or EMPL DG. The
abbreviated forms are supposed to be for the Commission's internal use only
but some of them are becoming current elsewhere. Details and organisation
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charts of all Commission departments (including the Statistical Office and the
Office for Official Publications) can be found on the Commission's website.
If the reader cannot be expected to know what `DG' means, write out the name
in full, at least to begin with, e.g. the Directorate-General for Employment and
Social Affairs.
16.7 Services of the Commission. The Commission has at present (2006) a Legal
Service and an Internal Audit Service, which are thus Services of the
Commission. In Commission usage, however, `service' can also mean any
department of the Commission administration, e.g. a DG, office, or unit. These
are services of the Commission or Commission services. Note the
capitalisation.
16.8 Other commissions. Guard against confusion with the UN Economic
Commission for Europe (EN: ECE, FR: CEE) based in Geneva and the
European Commission of Human Rights based in Strasbourg.
COUNCIL
16.9 The work and composition of the Council are defined in Articles 202 to 210 of
the EC Treaty, as amended by the Protocol on the enlargement of the European
Union. The work of the Permanent Representatives is defined in Article 207(1)
See the Council's website for a full description of its activities.
16.10 Title. Generally write the Council; use Council of the European Union only in
formal contexts or to distinguish from other councils (see below) where
required.
16.11 General Secretariat. The Council has a General Secretariat (NB: not a
Secretariat-General) headed by a Secretary-General, and conducts its business
via committees and working parties.
16.12 Referring to Council meetings (FR: sessions):
the Council meeting of 22 May (one day)
the Council meeting of 22 and 23 May (two days)
the Council meeting of 22/23 May (overnight)
the Council meeting of 22 to 24 May (three days)
Meetings lasting more than one day have sittings (FR: séances) referred to by
date: the Council sitting of 22 May.
16.13 Meetings are also identified by the policy area covered and are normally
attended by the national ministers holding the corresponding portfolio, though
other matters may also be discussed. A Council meeting devoted to agriculture
(FR: le Conseil agricole), for example, may be referred to as:
the Council meeting on agriculture
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the Council meeting (agriculture)
the Council meeting of Agriculture Ministers
Note that the word `meeting' is sometimes dropped when referring to formal
acts adopted by the Council:
The Council on transport adopted a Decision on trans-European networks
The Council also holds informal meetings to discuss matters which do not lie
within its responsibilities under the Treaties. For a more detailed account, see
the Council's rules of procedure.
16.14 The chair. The chair at Council meetings is taken by the minister whose
country holds the Presidency at the time. His/her name appears above The
President on any Community legislation adopted at the meeting. Avoid the
President of the Council in reports on the meeting, however, and write either
the minister presiding or his/her name, adding (President). The Presidency
changes every six months on 1 January and 1 July.
16.15 Do not confuse the Council with the following institutions:
the European Council, the summit of Heads of State or Government normally
held three or four times a year
the ACP-EC Council of Ministers under the Cotonou Convention;
the Council of Europe, a non-EU body based in Strasbourg.
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
16.16 The work and composition of the European Parliament are defined in Articles
189 to 201 of the EC Treaty, as amended by the Protocol on the enlargement of
the European Union. See Parliament's website for a full description of its
activities.
16.17 Title. Refer to the European Parliament simply as Parliament (no definite
article) unless confusion with national parliaments is possible. The
abbreviation EP is used by Parliament itself but write out `Parliament' if there
is space.
The first direct elections were in 1979 and resulted in the `first European
Parliament'. Subsequently elections have been held every five years. The
current parliamentary term 2004-09 is the sixth.
See Parliament's rules of procedure for more detailed information on voting
and other procedures.
16.18 Sessions. Parliamentary sessions (FR: sessions) run from one year to the next,
e.g. the 2004/05 session. These are divided into part-sessions, e.g. part-session
from 12 to 15 January 2004 (FR: séances du 12 au 15 janvier).
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16.19 Sitting. Each day's sitting (FR: séance) during a part-session is referred to by
the day on which it commences, whether or not it goes on past midnight.
16.20 The Secretariat. This is headed by the Secretary-General. If necessary, to
avoid confusion with other secretariats it may be called the General
Secretariat.
16.21 The Bureau. This consists of the President and Vice-Presidents of Parliament.
The Cabinet du Président is the President's Office. The quaestors are
responsible for administrative and financial matters concerning Members.
16.22 MEPs. Members are identified in English by the letters MEP after their name.
A full list of MEPs with their national party affiliations is given on
Parliament's website.
16.23 English titles of committees are available on the website. Note that there is a
Committee on Budgets as well as a Committee on Budgetary Control.
16.24 Written questions. Answers should be headed Answer given by (Commission
Member's name) on behalf of the Commission, followed by the date of the
answer. The MEP putting the question is referred to as the Honourable
Member, other MEPs by name.
16.25 Debates. Parliament's debates up to the end of the fourth Parliamentary term
(May 1999) are available in paper form as annexes to the Official Journal.
From April 1996, they are available online.
COURT OF JUSTICE
16.26 The work and composition of the Court of Justice are defined in Articles 220 to
245 of the EC Treaty. Its Statute is contained in a Protocol to the Treaty. See
the Court's website for a full description of its activities.
16.27 Constitution of the Court. The Protocol defines the relationship between the
Court of Justice (ECJ) and the Court of First Instance (CFI). The ECJ's rules of
procedure can be found on its website.
16.28 Court of First Instance. The lower-level Court of First Instance (CFI) was
established in 1988. It deals with certain classes of actions or proceedings
brought by natural or legal persons (e.g. staff disputes, certain types of
competition cases) and its judgments are subject to appeal to the Court of
Justice.
The CFI's rules of procedure can be found on its website.
16.29 Citation of cases. EN usage in the European Court Reports (ECR) is quite
different from FR usage. Always cite cases from before the establishment of
the CFI as below:
Case 13/72 Netherlands v Commission [1973] ECR 27
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Since the CFI was established, ECJ and CFI cases have been cited differently:
ECJ cases: Case C-287/87 Commission v Greece [1990] ECR I-125
CFI cases: Case T-131/89 Cosimex v Commission [1990] ECR II-1
Note that staff cases are reported in a separate series:
Case T-13/95 Kyrpitsis v ESC [1996] ECR-SC I-A-167 and II-503
There is no need in English to cite the date of judgment (unless the case has not
yet been published); footnotes should not repeat the case number or other
details given in the body of the text.
16.30 Page numbering. The page number in the ECR on which a judgment begins
has been the same in the French and English versions since 1969 only. Use the
EUR-Lex database to check that you have the right page number for references
to the English version before that date.
16.31 Make clear the distinctions between the ECJ in Luxembourg, the European
Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg and the International Court of Justice in
The Hague. Avoid formulations such as the Court if confusion of the ECJ with
the CFI or the Court of Auditors is possible.
COURT OF AUDITORS
16.32 The work of the Court of Auditors is defined in Articles 246 to 248 of the EC
Treaty. There is no abbreviated form for its title.
For more information, see the Court of Auditors' website.
16.33 Annual Reports. The Annual Reports are published in the Official Journal.
Special reports are also issued, but these are not always published and can be
difficult to obtain, particularly if they deal with sensitive issues. The
Commission replies formally to annual reports.
EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE
16.34 The Economic and Social Committee is governed by Articles 257 to 262 of the
EC Treaty. On 17 July 2002 it decided to add the word `European' to its title.
Although this does not appear in the Treaty, it is appropriate to use it.
Do not confuse this Committee with the UN Economic and Social Council, of
which the Economic Commission for Europe is a regional subdivision
See the Committee's website for a full account of its activities.
16.35 A Secretary-General heads the Secretariat-General. Preparatory work for the
plenary sessions in Brussels is carried out by sections devoted to individual
policy areas.
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The Committee elects a President and officers for a two-year term, and the
groups and sections now also have presidents.
As well as giving opinions on draft Community legislation, the Committee can
initiate opinions and studies of its own. Its rules of procedure can be found on
its website.
COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS
16.36 The Committee of the Regions is governed by Articles 263 to 265 of the EC
Treaty.
16.37 A full account of its composition and activities can be found on its website, as
can its rules of procedure and a list of the Commissions that prepare its work.
FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
16.38 European Central Bank. The European Central Bank (ECB) is the central bank
for the EU's single currency, the euro, and its main job is to maintain its
purchasing power and thus price stability in the euro area. More specifically,
the basic tasks of the ECB are to manage the volume of money in circulation,
conduct foreign-exchange operations, hold and manage the Member States'
official foreign-exchange reserves, and promote the smooth operation of
payment systems.
The ECB was established on 30 June 1998, in accordance with its Statute. On 1
January 1999, it took over responsibility for implementing European monetary
policy within the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). The ECB's
decision-making bodies are its Governing Council, Executive Board and
General Council.
16.39 European Investment Bank. The European Investment Bank (EIB) was
established by the Treaty of Rome. Its main business is making or guaranteeing
loans for investment projects. Capital is subscribed by Member States, but
principally the EIB borrows on the market by issuing bonds. It provides
financial support for projects that embody EU objectives in the Member States
and in many other countries throughout the world. The Bank has a Board of
Governors, a Board of Directors, a Management Committee and an Audit
Committee.
16.40 European Investment Fund. The European Investment Fund (EIF) is an
institution whose main objective is to support the creation, growth and
development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It provides risk
capital and guarantee instruments, using either its own funds or those available
under mandates from the EIB or the European Union.
The EIF has a tripartite shareholding, which includes the EIB, the European
Union represented by the European Commission, and a number of European
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banks and financial institutions, from both the public and private sector. The
EIF acts in a complementary role to its majority shareholder, the EIB.
AGENCIES
16.41 Over the years the EU has spawned a number of agencies to perform specific
technical, scientific or managerial tasks. Participation in the agencies is not
necessarily restricted to the Member States of the EU.
There are currently twenty-three European Community agencies, set up under
the first pillar; two second-pillar agencies that deal with aspects of the common
foreign and security policy; three third-pillar agencies concerned with police
and judicial cooperation in criminal matters; and three Executive Agencies,
entrusted with certain tasks relating to the management of one or more
Community programmes
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17. REFERENCES TO OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS
THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL
17.1 General. The full name of the Official Journal is Official Journal of the
European Union and its official abbreviation in references is `OJ'. It is
published in three series, `L', `C' and `S', each serving different purposes. The
L series contains EU legislation, the C series EU notices and information and
the S series public procurement notices. Notices of recruitment competitions
and some vacancy notices are published in separate `A' issues of the C series
(numbered, for example, `C227A'). For a fuller account of the three OJ series,
see section 3.1.1. of the Interinstitutional Style Guide.
17.2 OJ references in running text. The abbreviation `No' should be omitted from
references to OJ numbers, whether in the OJ itself or in other work, including
in references that predate the introduction of this convention. They should thus
follow the pattern:
Official Journal (or OJ) L 118 of 4 May 1973
17.3 OJ footnote references -- abbreviated form. Footnote references in the OJ
itself have a shortened form for the date:
OJ L 281, 1.11.1975, p.1.
Use this form for OJ footnote references elsewhere as well and in texts
destined for the OJ, especially legislation, the budget (`Remarks' column),
answers to parliamentary written questions and amendments to the Combined
Nomenclature.
17.4 Page references following an oblique stroke (e.g. OJ L 262/68) are used only in
page headings of the OJ itself, and should be avoided in all other contexts.
BULLETIN AND GENERAL REPORT
17.5 Bulletin. References to the Bulletin take the form:
Bull. 9-1980, point 1.3.4
Supplement 5/79 -- Bull.
17.6 General Report. References to the General Report take the form:
Twenty-third General Report, point 383; 1994 General Report, point 12
Point 104 of this Report
1990 Annexed Memorandum, point 38
The form "Twenty-seventh (or XXVIIth) General Report" was used up to and
including 1993. As from 1994, the title on the cover is "General Report 1994"
and the reference style "1994 General Report". The above forms of reference
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are standard for footnotes in official publications, but in less formal contexts it
is quite acceptable (and clearer) to refer to e.g. "the 1990 General Report".
17.7 Part-numbering conventions. Note that Premire (Deuxime, Troisime) partie
are rendered Part One (Two, Three), not Part I or Part 1.
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18. EU FINANCES
18.1 Own resources. The European Union and its institutions are essentially funded
from own resources, i.e. revenue that the Union receives as of right. These fall
into three categories: traditional own resources (customs duties, agricultural
duties and sugar levies), a VAT-based resource (a proportion of each Member
State's harmonised VAT base), and a resource based on Member States' gross
national income. The GNI-based resource is variable, being designed to `topup'
the revenue obtained from the other sources in order to meet expenditure
for a given year. A special mechanism for correcting the budgetary imbalance
of the United Kingdom (the UK rebate) is also part of the own resources
system.
18.2 Financial perspective. The financial perspective (perspectives financires) is a
mechanism whereby Parliament, the Council and the Commission agree in
advance on the main budgetary priorities for the following period, defining the
revenue and expenditure ceilings within which each annual budget is drawn up.
A financial perspective is drawn up to cover a seven-year period (e.g. 2000 to
2006, 2007 to 2013).
BUDGET
18.3 Title and parts. The General Budget of the European Union, which does not
include the European Development Fund (see 18.11), is often simply called the
budget (note lower case). The word `budget' is usually preferable to
`budgetary' in adjectival usage (budget heading, budget year, budget
expenditure), but note `budgetary authority' (the Council and Parliament acting
in tandem) and Parliament's `Committee on Budgetary Control'.
The principles underlying the budget and the rules governing it are contained
in the Financial Regulation (Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002)
and subsequent implementing regulations. Title III of that Regulation sets out
the procedure for drawing up and approving the budget.
The preliminary draft budget prepared by the Commission becomes the draft
budget after a first reading by the Council. The draft goes to Parliament for a
first reading; Parliament makes amendments (amendements) to noncompulsory
expenditure and proposes modifications (modifications) to
compulsory expenditure. Each institution in turn gives the draft a second
reading. For details of this procedure, see Article 272(3) to (8) EC.
Each EU institution has its own section of the budget, divided into revenue and
expenditure and then into titles, chapters, articles and items. The Commission
budget is by far the largest and is published in a separate volume. The
expenditure section is divided by policy area, with administrative expenditure
allocated to the individual titles.
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18.4 Expenditure and appropriations. All expenditure is either compulsory
(dépenses obligatoires), i.e. derived from the Treaties, or non-compulsory
(dépenses non-obligatoires). Compulsory spending is mainly on agriculture.
Most funds allocated to EU policies are operating appropriations (crédits
opérationnels), usually differentiated (crédits dissociés) where operations span
several years. Headings then contain two amounts: payment appropriations
(crédits de paiement) and commitment appropriations (crédits d'engagement),
with a schedule of projected payments by year. The terms appropriations for
commitments (crédits pour engagements) and appropriations for payments
(crédits pour paiements) are used to designate differentiated plus nondifferentiated
appropriations.
Note that the EU is in the process of switching to activity-based budgeting
(budget sur base d'activités) and accrual accounting (comptabilité d'exercice).
18.5 Unused appropriations. As a rule all unused appropriations lapse (sont
annulés) at the end of the year. Carryovers (reports) require a special decision.
When commitments are cancelled (dégagés) because projects are abandoned,
the appropriations lapse but may be made available again (reconstitués) by
special decision of the budgetary authority. For details see Article 7 of the
Financial Regulation.
FUNDS FINANCED FROM THE BUDGET
18.6 In 2003, agriculture absorbed about 45% of the budget via the European
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF), while structural
operations accounted for about 34% via the Structural Funds and the Cohesion
Fund. These funds are described briefly below.
18.7 European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund. The EAGGF is divided
into two sections, the Guidance Section, designed to improve the rural
environment, and the Guarantee Section, which supports farmers' incomes in a
variety of ways. Note that the EU's agricultural financial year ends on 15
October.
18.8 Structural Funds. Structural assistance is provided through the Structural
Funds (note capitals), which comprise the European Regional Development
Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (ESF), the EAGGF (the Guidance
Section and, in the case of Objective 2, the Guarantee Section) and the
Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance. Legislation on the Structural
Funds and the Cohesion Fund may be found in OJ L 161 of 26 June 1999.
The Structural Funds finance three Objectives: Objective 1, concerned with the
development and structural adjustment of regions whose development is
lagging behind; Objective 2, supporting economic and social conversion in
urban and rural areas and areas dependent on fisheries; and Objective 3, which
promotes education and employment in areas of the EU not covered by either
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of the other two Objectives. Assistance is implemented through Community
support frameworks (CSFs) (cadres communautaires d'appui -- CCA) or
single programming documents (SPDs) (documents uniques de programmation
-- DOCUP), which contain the programmes agreed jointly by the Member
States and the Commission. There is transitional support for areas no longer
eligible for assistance.
Also part of the Structural Funds are the four `Community Initiatives':
Interreg, which promotes cross-border, transnational and interregional
cooperation; Urban, concerned with urban areas in crisis; Leader+ for rural
development; and Equal, which combats discrimination.
18.9 Cohesion Fund. The purpose of the Cohesion Fund is to support projects
designed to improve the environment and develop transport infrastructure in
Member States whose per capita GNP is below 90% of the EU average.
OTHER FUNDS
18.10 European Investment Fund. The European Investment Fund (EIF) secures
financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). See 16.40 for more
details.
18.11 European Development Fund. The European Development Fund (EDF)
finances most of the EU's cooperation with developing countries. The Fund is
fed by the Member States; it does not come under the general EU budget,
though a heading has been reserved for it in the budget since 1993. The EDF is
not a permanent fund; a new one is concluded every five years or so. The ninth
EDF covers the period from 2000 to 2005.
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19. MEMBER STATES
19.1 In English alphabetical order the Member States are:
Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France,
Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg,
Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden,
United Kingdom.
List them in this order in all texts other than legislation.
19.2 For tables appearing in several language versions, however, keep the same
order of Member States in each language version, even if that means that they
are not in English alphabetic order in the English version.
19.3 In legislation, list Member States in protocol order, i.e. absolute alphabetical
order based on the name of the Member State in the country's language.
Member State Abbreviation
National name(s) English name
België/Belgique Belgium BE
Česka Republika Czech Republic CZ
Danmark Denmark DK
Deutschland Germany DE
Eesti Estonia EE
 (Ellada) Greece EL
Espaa Spain ES
France France FR
Ireland Ireland IE
Italia Italy IT
 (Kypros) Cyprus CY
Latvija Latvia LV
Lietuva Lithuania LT
Luxembourg Luxembourg LU
Magyarország Hungary HU
Malta Malta MT
Nederland Netherlands NL
Österreich Austria AT
Polska Poland PL
Portugal Portugal PT
Slovenija Slovenia SI
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Member State Abbreviation
Slovensko Slovakia SK
Suomi/Finland Finland FI
Sverige Sweden SE
United Kingdom United Kingdom UK
For postal-code conventions, see section 7.1.3 of the Interinstitutional Style
Guide.
19.4 In English, the long forms of country names (full names) should not be used in
any but the most formal contexts (unless there is no accepted short form). Even
in international treaties, they should be used sparingly, e.g. in the title.
NOTES ON INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES
19.5 Austria. Full name: Republic of Austria. Call the Austrian Bundesländer
"provinces" in English.
19.6 Belgium. Full name: Kingdom of Belgium. See also Annex 2.
19.7 Czech Republic. This, the long form, is used in all contexts. There is currently
no agreement on the use of a short form.
19.8 Cyprus. Full name: Republic of Cyprus. The long form may be used when
contrasted with northern Cyprus, the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus".
However, since the EU and its Member States do not recognise the latter and
the Republic of Cyprus joined the EU on behalf of the whole island, "Cyprus"
is adequate for most purposes.
19.9 Denmark. Full name: Kingdom of Denmark. Neither Greenland (adj.
Greenland) nor the Faeroes (NB not Faeroe Islands, adj. Faeroese) are part of
the European Union.
19.10 Estonia. Full name: Republic of Estonia.
19.11 Finland. Full name: Republic of Finland. Call the country's main
administrative/regional units (lääni) "provinces" in English.
19.12 France. Full name: French Republic. The départements d'outre-mer (DOM)
are the (French) overseas departments in English. Do not abbreviate. The pays
et térritoires d'outre-mer (PTOM) are the overseas countries and territories
(OCTs in English).
19.13 Germany. Full name: Federal Republic of Germany. The full name is no longer
obligatory in all contexts, as was the case before unification.
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19.14 Greece. Full name: Hellenic Republic.
19.15 Hungary. Full name: Republic of Hungary.
19.16 Ireland. Full name: Ireland. Ireland is the full name laid down in the Irish
Constitution; Eire (the name in Irish) and Republic of Ireland/Irish Republic
are incorrect in English.
19.17 Italy. Full name: Italian Republic.
19.18 Latvia. Full name: Republic of Latvia.
19.19 Lithuania. Full name: Republic of Lithuania.
19.20 Luxembourg. Full name: Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Note the spelling, and
use it for the capital city as well. Note Luxembourg Government, Luxembourg
cuisine, the Luxembourg climate, but when referring to the language use the ish
form: Luxembourgish expressions, Luxembourgish poetry. Where French
texts refer simply to le Grand-Duché, render in English as Luxembourg.
19.21 Malta. Full name: Republic of Malta.
19.22 Netherlands. Full name: Kingdom of the Netherlands. Holland is only part of
the Netherlands (the provinces North and South Holland). The correct
adjective is Dutch: the Dutch Government, the Dutch delegation, Dutch
industry, etc, notwithstanding certain proper names such as the Netherlands
Antilles.
19.23 Poland. Full name: Republic of Poland.
19.24 Portugal. Full name: Portuguese Republic.
19.25 Slovakia. Full name: Slovak Republic.
19.26 Slovenia. Full name: Republic of Slovenia.
19.27 Spain. Full name: Kingdom of Spain. The 17 political/administrative units into
which Spain is divided are called Autonomous Communities in English.
19.28 Sweden. Full name: Kingdom of Sweden. Call the country's main
administrative/regional units (län) "counties" in English.
19.29 United Kingdom. Full name: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland. Avoid the colloquial Britain and British in legal or formal texts. Great
Britain comprises England, the Principality of Wales and Scotland; these three
together with Northern Ireland form the United Kingdom. Never use Ulster for
the province of Northern Ireland: Ulster includes the Counties of Cavan,
Donegal and Monaghan plus Northern Ireland.
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The geographical term British Isles includes Ireland and the Crown
Dependencies (Isle of Man and Channel Islands).
Use GB only for the international vehicle identification. Note that the
abbreviation "RU" is sometimes used in French texts for "UK", but it might
also mean Russia.
19.30 For other countries, see Annex A5 to the Interinstitutional Style Guide.
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIONS/REPRESENTATIVES
19.31 Titles. For la Représentation permanente du Danemark etc. write the Danish
Permanent Representation. Use Permanent Representative only for the person
holding that office. For correspondence, see 10.3.
19.32 The Permanent Representatives Committee is commonly known under its
French acronym Coreper. In documents intended for the general public,
however, spell out what the acronym means when using it for the first time.
Coreper has been split into Coreper 2 (the Permanent Representatives
themselves) and Coreper 1 (deputies) to speed up its work; these designations
are only likely to arise in internal Commission papers and may be used without
explanation in English translations of them.
NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS
19.33 Use the country's own names for its parliamentary institutions only if you are
sure your readers will be familiar with them. Otherwise, write the ...
Parliament, inserting the country adjective. In the case of bicameral systems,
write the lower/upper house of the ... Parliament if it needs to be specified.
However, if a particular parliament is referred to repeatedly, the non-English
name may be used, provided it is explained the first time it is introduced. For
example, write the Bundestag (the lower house of the German Parliament) and
thereafter the Bundestag in a text where the term occurs many times.
19.34 Ireland. Note that the qualifier "Éireann" is not needed when referring to the
Dáil or the Seanad.
19.35 Parliamentarians. Write Member of the ... Parliament, specifying which house
if necessary. MP should be used only if the context supports the meaning.
Avoid national abbreviations of such titles (e.g. MdB in Germany).
19.36 Political parties. Where possible and meaningful, always translate the names
of political parties, as this may be important to the reader, but add the national
abbreviation in brackets and use this in the rest of the document:
The German Social Democratic Party (SPD) had serious reservations on this
issue. The SPD had in the past ...
See, however, Annex 2 for Belgium.
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NATIONAL LEGISLATION
19.37 Act/law For countries that produce their legislation in English and others that
systematically provide official translations into English, you should use the
term they use. Otherwise either act or law is acceptable in translations,
provided you are consistent.
Note that act is a more natural translation for the title of a law, e.g. la loi sur
les sociétés = the Companies Act, while law is better in a description, e.g. la loi
sur les sociétés = the French law governing companies.
For draft legislation, use bill only where this is the term used in an Englishspeaking
country or in official translations. Otherwise use draft act/law.
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20. OFFICIAL LANGUAGES AND CURRENCIES
OFFICIAL LANGUAGES
20.1 In English alphabetical order the official EU languages are:
Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek,
Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Slovak,
Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish.
List them in this order in all texts other than legislation. For special cases, see
section 7.2.2. of the Interinstitutional Style Guide.
20.2 Official/working languages and the case of Irish. The relevant regulations do
not distinguish between official and working languages. The Irish texts of the
Treaties are authentic, but Irish is referred to as a `Treaty language', not as an
official/working language. Irish should not be referred to as `Gaelic'; the terms
are not synonymous because Gaelic can also mean Scots Gaelic.
20.3 Protocol order and abbreviations. In legislative texts and in other contexts
where protocol is to be observed, use the absolute alphabetical order of the
official names of the languages, as shown below. For abbreviations, follow
ISO code 639. Although the ISO code itself uses lower case, it is preferable to
use upper case in EU documents. For the names and ISO codes of other
languages, see the ISO website.
Name in own language English name Abbreviation
ISO code 639
castellano1 Spanish ES
čeština Czech CS
dansk Danish DA
Deutsch German DE
eesti keel Estonian ET
ellinik Greek EL
English English EN
français French FR
italiano Italian IT
latviešu valoda Latvian LV
lietuvi kalba Lithuanian LT
magyar Hungarian HU
Malti Maltese MT
1 Official name of the language, but generally known as `espaol' at the request of the Spanish
authorities.
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Name in own language English name Abbreviation
ISO code 639
Nederlands Dutch NL
polski Polish PL
portugus Portuguese PT
slovenčina (slovenský
jazyk)
Slovak SK
slovenščina (slovenski
jezik)
Slovenian SL
suomi Finnish FI
svenska Swedish SV
CURRENCIES
20.4 Currency abbreviations. The main currency codes are set out in Annex A7 of
the Interinstitutional Style Guide. An exhaustive list of codes can be found in
ISO 4217.
20.5 The currency abbreviation precedes the amount and is followed by a space:
EUR 2 400; USD 2 billion
However, currency symbols are closed up:
120; 78; $100
20.6 Units and subunits. Use a point to separate units from subunits:
7.20; $50.75; EUR 2.4 billion; USD 1.8 billion.
20.7 The euro. Like `pound', `dollar' or any other currency name in English, the
word `euro' is written in lower case with no initial capital.
Guidelines on the use of the euro, issued via the Secretariat-General, state that
the plurals of both `euro' and `cent' are to be written without `s' in English. Do
this when amending or referring to legal texts that themselves observe this
rule. However, in all other texts, especially documents intended for the general
public, use the natural plurals `euros' and `cents'.
In documents and tables where monetary amounts figure largely, make
maximum use of the  symbol (closed up to the figure) or the abbreviation
EUR before the amount.
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21. EXTERNAL RELATIONS
21.1 The terms `external relations' or `external policy' refer to the Commission's
and the Community's traditional dealings with non-member countries in the
fields of trade, aid and various forms of cooperation. Use `foreign policy' only
in the limited context of the common foreign and security policy (CFSP),
which forms the second `pillar' of the Union (see 13.1).
21.2 Information on individual countries. For names, currencies, capital cities, etc.,
see the list in Annex A5 of the Interinstitutional Style Guide.
21.3 The European Economic Area (EEA), established by the 1991 Agreement on
the European Economic Area, extended the Community's "free movement"
principles to the countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), i.e.
Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Austria and Liechtenstein.
Switzerland failed to ratify the Agreement and Austria, Finland and Sweden
subsequently joined the EU.
21.4 Enlargement process. Going by the usage of the Commission's enlargement
website (in April 2006), an `acceding country' is one that has signed an act of
accession, a `candidate country' is one whose application has been officially
accepted, whether or not negotiations have started, and a `potential candidate
country' is one that has been offered the prospect of membership. The term
`applicant country' would describe any country that has applied to join the EU,
so is not an official designation as such. The term `accession country' may be
used either for countries about to join the EU or those that have just joined it,
so should be avoided if there is a danger of misinterpretation. Note that
`candidate countries' may include `acceding countries' where no distinction is
being made between them.
21.5 South-East Europe (Western Balkans). In the context of EU external relations
the two terms are used interchangeably to refer collectively to Albania, Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and
Serbia and Montenegro.
21.6 Third countries. The term third country is used in the Treaties, where it means
a country that is not a member of the Union. This meaning is derived from
`third country' in the sense of one not party to an agreement between two other
countries. Even more generally, the term is used to denote a country other than
two specific countries referred to, e.g. in the context of trade relations. This
ambiguity is also compounded by the fact that the term is often incorrectly
interpreted to mean `third-world country'.
If there is a risk of misunderstanding, therefore, especially in documents
intended for the general public, either spell out what the term means or use e.g.
`non-member/non-EU countries' where this is meant.
21.7 United States of America. Shorten to the United States after first mention;
America and American are quite acceptable, but the States should generally be
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avoided. Abbreviate as USA if the proper noun is meant, as US if the adjective
is intended. USA is used more widely in other languages; in translation work it
is better rendered the United States. Note that a singular verb follows in
English (see also 6.2).
21.8 Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). This is an official entity. It covers
the territory of the former Soviet Union less the Baltic States. It comprises the
Slavic, Transcaucasian and Central Asian republics (respectively Belarus,
Russia and Ukraine; Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia; Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) plus Moldova.
21.9 The Russian Federation. Note that Russia is itself a federal state.
Administratively, the Russian Federation is divided into 21 republics, 6 federal
territories (kray), 2 federal cities, 49 regions (oblast), 1 autonomous region and
10 autonomous areas (okrug).
21.10 Islam. Islam is the faith, Muslim (not Muhammedan, Mohammedan) a member
of that faith. An Islamic country thus has a mainly Muslim population, some of
whom may be Islamists (i.e. "fundamentalists").
21.11 Middle East. The term Middle East now covers the countries around the
eastern shores of the Mediterranean, the Arabian Peninsula, and Iran. The term
Near East has fallen into disuse in English since World War Two. Translate
both French Proche Orient and Moyen Orient, German Naher Osten and
Mittlerer Osten by Middle East -- unless, of course, the source text contrasts
the two regions.
21.12 International organisations. The best source is The Yearbook of International
Organisations.
21.13 United Nations. Use the abbreviation UN, not UNO. See also Everyman's UN.
21.14 GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade). The term the GATT refers to
the Agreement, which is still in force, while GATT without the article refers to
the now defunct organisation, superseded by the World Trade Organisation
(WTO). While GATT had Contracting Parties, the WTO has Members. The
WTO administers not only the GATT but also the GATS -- the General
Agreement on Trade in Services -- as well as a host of other Understandings,
Agreements and Arrangements on specific topics. The WTO is not to be
confused with the WCO, or World Customs Organisation, formerly known as
the Customs Cooperation Council.
21.15 OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development). The
"Conseil des ministres" is called simply "the OECD Council".
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ANNEXES
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Annex 1
REGIONS OF THE EU
The NUTS nomenclature (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics) is a fivelevel
hierarchical classification (three regional levels and two local levels) drawn up by
Eurostat to provide a single uniform breakdown of territorial units for the production of
EU regional statistics, for socio-economic analyses of the regions and for the framing of
EU regional policies. Although it has no official standing, it has been used in EU
legislation since 1988.
NUTS subdivides each Member State into a number of NUTS 1 regions, each of which
is in turn subdivided into a number of NUTS 2 regions and so on. The administrative
structure of the Member States generally comprises two main regional levels (e.g.
Länder and Kreise in Germany, régions and départements in France).
NUTS is defined only for the Member States of the European Union. There is a coding
which resembles NUTS for the other countries of the European Economic Area (EEA)
and for Switzerland.
For the correspondence between NUTS levels and national administrative units, see
http://ec.europa.eu/comm/eurostat/ramon/nuts/introannex_regions_en.html.
Note that NUTS itself, as an autonomous nomenclature, does not admit of translation.
For countries other than the UK and Ireland, therefore, the English translations in the
table below have no official status and reflect only standard English-speaking practice.
The names of the regions in the new Member States will be added to the table overleaf
as and when English translations for them have been agreed.
The following table includes NUTS 1 (bold) and NUTS 2 (italic) regions, with
translations of their names into English where these exist. For the most part, NUTS 3
regions are not anglicised so are not included here. However, some of the new Member
States have only NUTS 3 or NUTS 2 and 3 subdivisons, in which case the NUTS 3
regions have been included to provide a fuller picture.
Luxembourg and Cyprus are single regions with no NUTS 3 subdivisons and so are not
listed in the table.
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BELGIË-BELGIQUE
2
BELGIUM
Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest/
Région Bruxelles capitale
Brussels Region
Vlaams Gewest Flemish Region
Antwerpen Antwerp
Limburg Limburg
Oost-Vlaanderen East Flanders
Vlaams-Brabant Flemish Brabant
West-Vlaanderen West Flanders
Région Wallonne Walloon Region
Brabant Wallon Walloon Brabant
Hainaut Hainaut
Lige Lige
Luxembourg Luxembourg
Namur Namur
ČESKÁ REPUBLIKA (NUTS 2-3) CZECH REPUBLIC
Praha Prague
Hlavní město Praha Prague Capital City
Střední Čechy Central Bohemia
Středočeský kraj Central Bohemia Region
Jihozápad South-West
Jihočeský kraj South Bohemian Region
Plzeňský kraj Plzeň Region
Severozápad North-West
Karlovarský kraj Karlovy Vary Region
Ústecký kraj Ustí nad Labem Region
Severovýchod North-East
Liberecký kraj Liberec Region
Královéhradecký kraj Hradec Králové Region
Pardubický kraj Pardubice Region
Jihovýchod South-East
Jihomoravský kraj Southern Moravia Region
Vysočina Vysočina Region
Střední Morava Central Moravia
Olomoucký kraj Olomouc Region
Zlínský kraj Zlín Region
Moravskoslezsko Moravian Silesia
Moravskoslezský kraj Moravian-Silesian Region
Note: For statistical and Structural Fund purposes the Czech Republic is divided
into 8 areas (oblasti ­ NUTS 2), each consisting of either a single region (kraj ­
2 Regions of Belgium do not coincide with language communities.
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NUTS 3) or a group of regions (seskupení krajů).
Administratively the country is divided into 14 regions (kraje = NUTS 3; higher
territorial self-governing units ­ vyšší územní samosprávné celky). At the lowest
level are obci (sing. obec) and města (sing. město) - municipalities and cities.
(There used to be 73 okresy ("districts") but these were abolished in 2003.)
DANMARK (Nuts 3 only) DENMARK
Kbenhavn og Frederiksberg
kommuner
Copenhagen and Frederiksberg
districts
Kbenhavns amt Copenhagen county
Frederiksborg amt Frederiksborg county
Roskilde amt Roskilde county
Vestsjllands amt West Zealand county
Storstrms amt Storstrm county
Bornholms amt Bornholm county
Fyns amt Fyn county
Snderjyllands amt South Jutland county
Ribe amt Ribe county
Vejle amt Vejle county
Ringkbing amt Ringkbing county
rhus amt rhus county
Viborg amt Viborg county
Nordjyllands amt North Jutland county
Note: Denmark constitutes a single region. Besides the Danish counties
(amtskommuner, amter or sekundrkommuner) as shown above, there are 273
kommuner (or primrkommuner); suggested rendering: district authority, district.
The hovestadsregion (metropolitan region) consists of the districts of
Copenhagen and Frederiksberg and the counties of Frederiksborg and Roskilde.
DEUTSCHLAND GERMANY
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg
Stuttgart Stuttgart
Karlsruhe Karlsruhe
Freiburg Freiburg
Tübingen Tübingen
Bayern Bavaria
Oberbayern Upper Bavaria
Niederbayern Lower Bavaria
Oberpfalz Oberpfalz
Oberfranken Oberfranken
Mittelfranken Mittelfranken
Unterfranken Unterfranken
Schwaben Swabia
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Berlin Berlin
Brandenburg Brandenburg
Bremen Bremen
Hamburg Hamburg
Hessen Hessen
Darmstadt Darmstadt
Giessen Giessen
Kassel Kassel
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
Niedersachsen Lower Saxony
Braunschweig Braunschweig
Hannover Hannover
Lüneburg Lüneburg
Weser-Ems Weser-Ems
Nordrhein-Westfalen North Rhine-Westphalia
Düsseldorf Düsseldorf
Köln Cologne
Münster Münster
Detmold Detmold
Arnsberg Arnsberg
Rheinland-Pfalz Rhineland-Palatinate
Koblenz Koblenz
Trier Trier
Rheinhessen-Pfalz Rheinhessen-Pfalz
Saarland Saarland
Sachsen Saxony
Sachsen-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt
Dessau Dessau
Halle Halle
Magdeburg Magdeburg
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein
Thüringen Thuringia
EESTI (NUTS 3 only) ESTONIA
Phja-Eesti Northern Estonia
Lääne-Eesti Western Estonia
Kesk-Eesti Central Estonia
Kirde-Eesti Northeastern Estonia
Luna-Eesti Southern Estonia
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ELLADA GREECE
Voria Ellada North Greece
Anatoliki Makedonia East Macedonia
Thraki Thrace
Kentriki Makedonia Central Macedonia
Ditiki Makedonia West Macedonia
Thessalia Thessaly
Kendriki Ellada Central Greece
Ipiros Epirus
Ionia Nisia Ionian Islands
Ditiki Ellada Western Greece
Sterea Ellada Continental Greece
Peloponnisos Peloponnese
Attiki Attica
Nisia Eyeou, Kriti Aegean Islands, Crete
Vorio Eyeo North Aegean
Notio Eyeo South Aegean
Kriti Crete
ESPAA SPAIN
Noroeste North-West
Galicia Galicia
Asturias Asturias
Cantabria Cantabria
Noreste North-East
País Vasco Basque Country
Navarra Navarre
Rioja Rioja
Aragón Aragon
Madrid Madrid
Centro Centre
Castilla y León Castile-Leon
Castilla-La Mancha Castile-La Mancha
Extremadura Extremadura
Este East
Catalua Catalonia
Comunidad Valenciana Valencia
Islas Baleares Balearic Islands
Sur South
Andalucía Andalusia
Murcia Murcia
Ceuta y Melilla Ceuta-Melilla
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Canarias Canary Islands
FRANCE FRANCE
Île-de-France Île-de-France
Bassin parisien Paris basin
Champagne-Ardenne Champagne-Ardenne
Picardie Picardy
Haute-Normandie Upper Normandy
Centre Centre
Basse-Normandie Lower Normandy
Bourgogne Burgundy
Nord-Pas-de-Calais Nord/Pas-de-Calais
Est East
Lorraine Lorraine
Alsace Alsace
Franche-Comté Franche-Comté
Ouest West
Pays de la Loire Loire Region
Bretagne Brittany
Poitou-Charentes Poitou-Charentes
Sud-Ouest South-West
Aquitaine Aquitaine
Midi-Pyrénées Midi-Pyrénées
Limousin Limousin
Centre-Est Centre-East
Rhône-Alpes Rhône-Alpes
Auvergne Auvergne
Méditerranée Mediterranean
Languedoc-Roussillon Languedoc-Roussillon
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
(PACA)
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Corse Corsica
Départements d'outre-mer (DOM) Overseas Departments3
Guadeloupe Guadeloupe
Martinique Martinique
Guyane French Guiana
Réunion Réunion
3 NB: avoid OD.
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IRELAND
Border, Midlands and Western
Southern and Eastern
ITALIA ITALY
Nord Ovest North-West
Piemonte Piedmont
Valle d'Aosta Valle d'Aosta
Liguria Liguria
Lombardia Lombardy
Nord Est North-East
Trentino-Alto Adige Trentino-Alto Adige
Veneto Veneto1
Friuli-Venezia Giulia Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Emilia-Romagna Emilia-Romagna
Centro Centre
Toscana Tuscany
Umbria Umbria
Marche Marche
Lazio Lazio
Abruzzo-Molise Abruzzi-Molise
Abruzzo Abruzzi
Molise Molise
Campania Campania
Sud South
Puglia Apulia
Basilicata Basilicata
Calabria Calabria
Sicilia Sicily
Sardegna Sardinia
LATVIJA (NUTS 3 only) LATVIA
Kurzeme Kurzeme
Latgale Latgale
Rga Rga
Pierga Pierga
Vidzeme Vidzeme
Zemgale Zemgale
1 NB: FR = Vénétie!
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LIETUVA (NUTS 3 only) LITHUANIA
Alytaus apskritis Alytus county
Kauno apskritis Kaunas county
Klaipdos apskritis Klaipda county
Marijampols apskritis Marijampol county
Panevžio apskritis Panevžys county
Šiauli apskritis Šiauliai county
Taurags apskritis Taurag county
Telši apskritis Telšiai county
Utenos apskritis Utena county
Vilniaus apskritis Vilnius county
MALTA (NUTS 3 only) MALTA
Malta Malta
Ghawdex u Kemmuna Gozo and Comino
MAGYARORSZÁG HUNGARY
Közép-Magyarország Central Hungary
Közép-Magyarország Central Hungary
Dunántúl Transdanubia
Közép-Dunántúl Central Transdanubia
Nyugat-Dunántúl Western Transdanubia
Dél-Dunántúl Southern Transdanubia
Alföld Es Észak Great Plain and North
Észak-Magyarország Northern Hungary
Észak-Alföld Northern Great Plain
Dél-Alföld Southern Great Plain
NEDERLAND THE NETHERLANDS
Noord-Nederland North Netherlands
Groningen Groningen
Friesland Friesland
Drenthe Drenthe
Oost-Nederland East Netherlands
Overijssel Overijssel
Gelderland Gelderland
Flevoland Flevoland
West-Nederland West Netherlands
Utrecht Utrecht
Noord-Holland North Holland
Zuid-Holland South Holland
Zeeland Zeeland
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Zuid-Nederland South Netherlands
Noord-Brabant North Brabant
Limburg Limburg
ÖSTERREICH AUSTRIA
Ostösterreich East Austria
Burgenland Burgenland
Niederösterreich Lower Austria
Wien Vienna
Südösterreich South Austria
Kärnten Carinthia
Steiermark Styria
Westösterreich West Austria
Oberösterreich Upper Austria
Salzburg Salzburg
Tirol Tyrol5
Vorarlberg Vorarlberg
POLSKA POLAND
Centralny Central
Łódzkie Łódź
Mazowieckie Masovia
Południowy South
Małopolskie Lesser Poland
Śląskie Silesia
Wschodni East
Lubelskie Lublin
Podkarpackie Subcarpathia
Świętokrzyskie Świętokrzyskie
Podlaskie Podlasie
Północno-Zachodni North-West
Wielkopolskie Greater Poland
Zachodniopomorskie West Pomerania
Lubuskie Lubusz
Południowo-Zachodni South-West
Dolnośląskie Lower Silesia
Opolskie Opole
Północny North
Kujawsko-Pomorskie Cuiavia-Pomerania
Warmińsko-Mazurskie Warmia-Masuria
Pomorskie Pomerania
5 NB: the Tyrol.
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The above table shows the statistical regions (NUTS 1) and administrative
divisions (voivodships -- województwa, sing. województwo) (NUTS 2)
Lower levels of administrative division are powiat (county) and gmina
(commune).
PORTUGAL PORTUGAL
Continente Continental Portugal
Norte North
Centro Centre
Lisboa e Vale do Tejo (LVT) Lisboa e Vale do Tejo
Alentejo Alentejo
Algarve Algarve
Açores Azores
Madeira Madeira
SLOVENIJA (NUTS 3 only) SLOVENIA
Gorenjska Gorenjska
Goriška Goriška
Jugovzhodna Slovenija South-East Slovenia
Koroška Koroška
Notranjsko-kraška Notranjsko-kraška
Obalno-kraška Obalno-kraška
Osrednjeslovenska Central Slovenia
Podravska Podravska
Pomurska Pomurska
Savinjska Savinjska
Spodnjeposavska Spodnjeposavska
Zasavska Zasavska
SLOVENSKÁ REPUBLIKA
(NUTS 2-3)
SLOVAK REPUBLIC
Bratislavský kraj Bratislava
Bratislavský kraj Bratislava Region
Západné Slovensko West Slovakia
Trnavský kraj Trnava Region
Trenčianský kraj Trenčin Region
Nitrianský kraj Nitra Region
Stredné Slovensko Central Slovakia
Žilinský kraj Žilina Region
Banskobystrický kraj Banská Bystrica Region
Východné Slovensko East Slovakia
Prešovský kraj Prešov Region
Košický kraj Košice Region
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Note: For statistical and Structural Fund purposes Slovakia is divided into 4
areas (oblasti ­ NUTS 2), each consisting of either a single region (kraj ­ NUTS
3) or a group of regions (seskupení krajů).
Administratively the country is divided into 8 self-governing regions
(samosprávné kraje ­ NUTS 3 higher territorial units ­ vyššie územné celky
(VÚC)). Below that, there are 79 okresy (districts).
SUOMI/FINLAND FINLAND
Manner-Suomi Continental Finland
Uusimaa Uusimaa
Etelä-Suomi South Finland
Itä-Suomi East Finland
Väli-Suomi Central Finland
Pohjois-Suomi North Finland
Ahvenanmaa/land land Islands
SVERIGE SWEDEN
Stockholm Stockholm
Östra Mellansverige East-Central Sweden
Smland med öarna Smland and islands
Sydsverige South Sweden
Västsverige West Sweden
Norra Mellansverige North-Central Sweden
Mellersta Norrland Central Norrland
Övre Norrland Upper Norrland
UNITED KINGDOM
North
Yorkshire and Humberside
East Midlands
East Anglia
South-East
South-West
West Midlands
North-West
Wales
Scotland6
Northern Ireland
6 Note among the region names: Highland without "s".
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Annex 2
NOTES ON BELGIUM
Do not use the French versions of names of towns in the Dutch-speaking part of
Belgium. Use the three anglicised forms Ostend, Ghent and Antwerp (known to Frenchspeakers
as Anvers) and the Dutch forms for other towns: Mechelen not Malines,
Leuven not Louvain (but NB: Louvain-la-Neuve is French-speaking), Kortrijk not
Courtrai, Ieper not Ypres. The one exception is Brugge, which takes the French name
Bruges in English.
Use French names for towns in Wallonia: Mons not Bergen, Lige not Luik.
If in doubt, make sure the map you consult is an official Belgian bilingual one (maps
produced by outsiders -- Britannica, Times Atlas -- are unreliable on this point) or see
the index in the Brussels telephone directory, which refers the reader from the "wrong"
to the "right" version for each town.
Bilingual Bruxelles/Brussel is always Brussels in English. Many of the 19 local
authorities (FR communes, NL gemeenten) (and all streets) in the Brussels region also
have a French and a Dutch name, both equally correct, but most English-speakers use
the French version. The same applies to a few Walloon towns with special bilingual
status, such as Enghien/Edingen, Mouscron/Moeskroen and Comines/Komen.
In the footer of Commission letters, include both forms: Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 200.
Note however that the local authorities immediately outside the Brussels region, though
mostly de facto bilingual, are all in Flanders and hence officially Dutch-speaking, so
use Sint-Genesius-Rode not Rhode-Saint-Gense, and Vilvoorde not Vilvorde, to avoid
offending political sensibilities. For similar reasons the fiercely disputed area Frenchspeakers
call les Fourons and Dutch-speakers Voeren is perhaps best rendered in an
English text as Fourons/Voeren or Voeren/Fourons.
The people who live in Flanders are Flemings, their institutions are Flemish and they
speak Dutch (NOT Flemish). The people who live in Wallonia (except the Germanspeaking
Belgians) are Walloons, their institutions are Walloon and they speak French.
But note that not all French-speakers in Belgium are Walloons. In particular, Brussels is
not in Wallonia. So anything referring to Belgian French-speakers as a whole must be
described in English not as Walloon but as French-speaking (or, in certain contexts, just
French).
Government. Belgium is a federal kingdom of unique complexity. It comprises three
regions:
* the Flemish Region,
* the Walloon Region, and
* Brussels Capital Region
English Style Guide
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and three language communities:
* the Flemish Community,
* the French Community (not French-speaking), and
* the German-speaking Community (not German).
The Flemish Region covers the north of the country down to a line running across the
country just south of Brussels, but not including the Brussels Region (which forms an
enclave), while the Walloon Region covers the whole of the south of the country
(including the German-speaking area). The regions may also be referred to informally
as Flanders, Wallonia and the Brussels Region (to distinguish it from Ville de
Bruxelles/Stad Brussel, which is only one of 19 local authorities in the region).
The Flemish Community covers Flanders, plus Brussels (for Dutch-speaking cultural
matters); the French Community covers Wallonia minus the German-speaking area, plus
Brussels (for French-speaking cultural matters); and the German-speaking Community
covers the small German-speaking part of the country.
The regions exercise powers in a wide range of areas, while the communities are
primarily responsible for education and cultural matters. Under the Constitution each
region and community has an executive accountable to a parliament. However, all the
responsibilities of the Flemish Region have been transferred to the Community, so there
is only one Flemish Government and one Flemish Parliament, both based in Brussels.
The executives of the other two regions are the Walloon Government, based in Namur,
and the Brussels Regional Government. The leaders of all three executives wish to be
described in English (unfortunately) as Minister-President. Meanwhile, the French
Community -- based in Brussels and entirely separate from the Walloon Government in
Namur -- has handed over some of its responsibilities to the Region. The Germanspeaking
Community, with its seat in Eupen, has fewer powers than the other two.
At federal level, the Belgian Government retains such pan-Belgian functions as foreign
affairs, defence, macroeconomic policy and rail transport. In a Belgian context it may
be referred to as the federal government. The monarch's official title is "King of the
Belgians, Prince of Belgium". In addition, the state comprises three regions and three
language communities. These overlap in part.
Political parties, universities. There are no major bilingual political parties in Belgium.
Note too that all the major parties have changed their names in recent years, making
identification less obvious in some cases. It is probably best to give the original name or
use the initials plus an English description, e.g. the Mouvement réformateur or MR (the
French-speaking Liberal Party), the SP.A (the Flemish Socialist Party), the Centre
Démocrate Humaniste or CDH (the French-speaking Christian Democrat Party). For
full details of the parties see the Wikipedia entry.
English Style Guide
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Annex 3
TRANSLITERATION TABLE FOR GREEK
NAME LETTER PHONETIC
(ELOT)
ETYMOLOGICAL
(Classical)
alpha  a a
beta  v b
gamma  g (see Note 5) g
delta  d (see Note 6) d
epsilon  e e
zeta  z z
eta  i e
theta  th th
iota  i i
kappa  k c
lambda  l l
mu  m m
nu  n n
xi  x x
omicron  o o
pi  p p
rho  r r
sigma , s (see Note 7) s
tau  t t
upsilon  i u[y]
phi  f ph
chi  kh (see Note 4) ch
psi  ps ps
omega  o o
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Those using the ELOT standard should note the following additional combinations:
gamma gamma  ng
gamma kappa  g (initially), ng (medially)
gamma xi  nx
gamma chi  nkh
alpha upsilon  av (before voiced consonant or vowel)
af (before voiceless consonant)
epsilon upsilon  ev (before voiced consonant or vowel)
ef (before voiceless consonant)
eta upsilon  iv (before voiced consonant or vowel)
if (before voiceless consonant)
mu pi  b (initially), mb (medially)
nu tau  d (initially), nd (medially)
alpha iota  e
epsilon iota  i
omicron iota  i
upsilon iota  i
omicron upsilon  ou
1) Use the ELOT phonetic standard for transliteration, except where a classical
rendering is more familiar or appropriate in English, e.g. Cyclades for 
rather than the phonetic Kiklades. This may mean using different transliterations in
different circumstances, e.g. the Athenian statesman has to be Pericles, but a modern
Greek with the same name should be transliterated as Periklis.
2) Be consistent within words, e.g. Myconos or Mikonos, but not Mykonos;
Constantinos or Konstandinos, but not Konstantinos.
3) The ELOT standard is not used consistently even in Greece, as can be seen from the
variety of transliterations used for road signs, street names and maps, not to mention
the different ways Greeks choose to transliterate their own names (see Commission
telephone directory).
4) The letter  is usually better transliterated as h, e.g. in surnames beginning with
-/-, although not usually for , which tends to come out as
Christos (cf. Note 1).
5) The combinations , , ,  and  should be transliterated as y(i) and the
combination  as ye, e.g. Yannis for . Do not use the combinations ghi, ghy
or ghe.
6) There is no need to transliterate  as dh, although this is sometimes seen.
English Style Guide
30 January 2007 111/127
7) A single  between vowels is often seen transliterated as `ss', e.g. Vassilis for
, but this practice should not be followed. Conversely foreign names with
double letters usually appear in Greek with a single letter, even if pronounced
double in the original language, e.g.  for Canaletto.
8) It may require a little research to get back to the original orthography of foreign
names appearing in Greek texts. It is obvious that    should be
George Bernard Shaw (rather than `Tzortz Mpernarnt So'!), but Turkish or
Yugoslav names may be trickier. Both the Italian painter, Carracci, and the former
capital of Pakistan, Karachi, come out as .
9) Examples of Greek letters used to represent non-Greek sounds:
 ch (French), sci/sce (Italian), sh, sch, sz
 ce/ci (Italian), ch, tsch, cs
 j (French), zs
 j (English), gi/ge (Italian), c (Turkish), xh (Albanian),
dj
 oe, ö
 u (French), ü, y
() w
10) Examples of transliterated foreign names:
Auschwitz  Maxwell 
Bruges  Nietzsche 
Chekhov  Sarajevo 
Eisenhower  Schoenberg 
Goethe  Vaughan 
Hoxha  Wyoming 
English Style Guide
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English Style Guide
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Annex 4
TRANSLITERATION TABLE FOR CYRILLIC
(Bulgarian and Russian)
Letter BG RU
 a a
 b b
 v v
 g g
 d d
 e ye7/e
 - yo1
/o
 zh zh
 z z
 i i8
 y y
 k k
 l l
 m m
 n n
 o o
 p p
 r r
 s s
 t t
 u u
 f f
 h kh
 ts ts
 ch ch
 sh sh
 sht shch
 a omitted (hard sign)
 - y9
 y omitted (soft sign)
 - e
 yu yu
 ya ya
7 Initially or after vowel.
8 The group of letters `' should be transliterated as `y' or `i'.
9 The group of letters `' should be transliterated as `y'.
English Style Guide
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English Style Guide
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Annex 5
ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS IN GERMANY
AMT, ÄMTER: Translate as authority (authorities). This is a grouping of
Gemeinden at a lower level than a Kreis.
BEZIRK: As part of a town or city, translate as borough; as an
abbreviation of Regierungsbezirk, see below. In references
to former East Germany, do not translate, as the term does
not equate to any unit in West Germany, let alone other
European countries.
BUNDESLAND,
BUNDESLÄNDER:
See Land, Länder below. Note however that
Bundesland/länder are the usual terms in Austria and, for
Austria, are translated as `province(s)'.
GEMEINDE: Translate as municipality.
GEMEINDEVERBAND: Translate as municipal association.
KREIS: Translate as district.
KREISFREIE STADT: As this is exactly the same level as a Stadtkreis, the
translation urban district will generally be satisfactory.
Should it be necessary to distinguish between this term and
a Stadtkreis, use `town constituting a district in its own
right'.
LAND, LÄNDER: Translate as federal state(s), adding `German' if necessary
for clarity, or, alternatively, leave the terms in German.
LANDKREIS: Translate as rural district.
REGIERUNGSBEZIRK/
BEZIRKSREGIERUNG:
If you translate these terms, use `government
region/regional government' not `government
district/district government', so as not to cause confusion
with Kreis.
STADTKREIS: Translate as urban district.
English Style Guide
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English Style Guide
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Annex 6
LIST OF JUDICIAL BODIES
A list of some suggested English translations is given below.
DANISH
Hjesteret Supreme Court
S- og Handelsret Maritime and Commercial Court
stre/Vestre Landsret Eastern/Western Division of the High Court
Byret Municipal Court
Fogedret Enforcement and small claims division of the
district court
Dombog Register/records of the judgments and orders
of the court
Retsbog Court records
Anklagemyndihed Public prosecutor
Arbejdsret10 Labour Court
DUTCH (BELGIUM AND NETHERLANDS)
Arbeidshof Labour Court
Arbeidsrechtbank Labour Tribunal
Arrondissement Judicial District
Arrondissementsparket Office of the Public Prosecutor of a Judicial
District
Arrondissementsrechtbank District Court
Centrale Raad van Beroep Court of last instance in social security
matters
College van Beroep voor het Bedrijfsleven Administrative court of last instance in
matters of trade and industry
Correctionele Rechtbank Criminal Court
Economische Politierechter Magistrate dealing with commercial offences
Gerechtsgebouw Law Courts
Gerechtshof Court of Appeal
Hof van Beroep Court of Appeal
Hof van Cassatie Court of Cassation
10 In fact its jurisdiction is over collective labour agreements, in disputes between trade unions and
employers' organisations.
English Style Guide
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Hoge Raad der Nederlanden Supreme Court of the Netherlands
Kamer van Koophandel en Fabrieken Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Kantongerecht Cantonal Court
Officier van Justitie Public Prosecutor (representative of
Openbaar Ministerie at
Arrondissementsrechtbank and
Kantongerecht)
Openbaar Ministerie Public Prosecutor's Department
Politierechtbank Petty Sessional Court
Procureur Generaal Public Prosecutor (representative of
Openbaar Ministerie at Hoge Raad and
Gerechtshof)
Raad van Arbeid Labour Council (family allowances board)
Raad van Beroep Social Security Court
Raad van State, Afdeling Rechtspraak State Council, Administrative Appeal
Section
Rechtbank van Eerste Aanleg Court of First Instance
Rechtbank van Koophandel Commercial Court
Rijk European territory of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands
Rijks Sociale Verzekeringsraad National Social Security Council
Tariefcommissie Administrative court of last instance in
revenue matters
Vredegerecht Cantonal Court
FRENCH (BELGIUM, FRANCE AND LUXEMBOURG)
(Some of the equivalents given are those suggested by the Council of Europe)
Auditeur du travail Officer representing the public interest in
labour matters
Caisse des dépôts et consignations Deposit and Consignment Office
Chambre des mises en accusation Chamber for Indictments
Commission de premire instance du
contentieux de la sécurité sociale Social Security First Instance
Commission de recours gracieux Appeals Board
Commission des rentes Pensions Commission (Lux.)
Conseil arbitral des assurances sociales Arbitral Council of Social Insurance (Lux.)
Conseil d'état Council of State
Conseil des prud'hommes Conciliation Board (Lux.)
Conseil supérieur des assurances sociales Supreme Council of Social Insurance (Lux.)
Cour d'appel Court of Appeal
English Style Guide
30 January 2007 119/127
Cour d'assises Assizes (most serious criminal cases)
Cour de cassation Court of Cassation
Cour du travail Labour Court
Cour supérieure de justice Supreme Court of Justice (Lux.)
Justice de paix Cantonal Court (First instance civil court for
minor cases) (Magistrates' Court, Lux.)
Tribunal d'arrondissement District Court
Tribunal de commerce Commercial Court
Tribunal correctionnel Criminal (Appeal) Court
Tribunal de grande instance Regional Court (major civil cases and less
serious criminal cases)
Tribunal d'instance District Court (minor civil cases)
Tribunal de police Local Criminal Court (minor offences;
criminal division of Tribunal d'Instance)
Tribunal de premire instance Court of First Instance
Tribunal du travail Labour Tribunal
GERMAN
(The English equivalents for names of courts are those recommended by the Federal
authorities.)
Amtsgericht Local Court
Arbeitsgericht Labour Court
Bundesarbeitsgericht Federal Labour Court
Bundesfinanzhof Federal Finance Court
Bundesgerichtshof Federal Court of Justice
Bundespatentgericht Federal Patents Court
Bundessozialgericht Federal Social Court
Bundesverfassungsgericht Federal Constitutional Court
Bundesverwaltunsgericht Federal Administrative Court
Finanzgericht Finance Court
Landesarbeitsgericht Higher Labour Court
Landessozialgericht Higher Social Court
Landgericht Regional Court
Oberlandesgericht Higher Regional Court
Oberverwaltungsgericht Higher Administrative Court
Sozialgericht Social Court
Verwaltungsgericht Administrative Court
Verwaltungsgerichtshof Higher Administrative Court
English Style Guide
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ITALIAN
Ammin. delle Finanze dello Stato State Finance Administration
Consiglio di Stato Council of State
Corte Costituzionale Constitutional Court
Corte d'Appello Court of Appeal
Corte di Cassazione Court of Cassation
Giudice Conciliatore Conciliator Judge (unpaid -- minor civil
causes)
Pretore Magistrate
Pretura (Civile e Penale) (Civil and Criminal) Magistrates' Court
Pubblico Ministero Public Prosecutor
Servizio del Contenzioso Diplomatico,
Trattati e Affari Legislativi
Department for Contentious Diplomatic
Affairs, Treaties and Legislative Matters
Tribunale (Civile e Penale) (Civil and Criminal) District Court
Tribunale Amministrativo Regionale Regional Administrative Tribunal
English Style Guide
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Annex 7
NATIONAL LEGAL INSTRUMENTS
A list of some suggested English translations is given below. For act vs law, see 19.37.
DANISH:
administrativ afgrelse administrative ruling
(kongelige/ministeriel) anordning (royal/ministerial) decree
bekendtgrelse order
cirkulaere circular
lov act/law
lovbekendtgrelse consolidated act
lovforslag bill/draft law
vejledning guidelines
DUTCH:
algemene maatregel van bestuur general administrative regulation
beschikking decision
besluit decree
Gerechtelijk Wetboek Judicial Code (Bel.)
Grondwet Constitution
koninklijk besluit royal decree
Memorie van Toelichting Explanatory Memorandum (to a bill)
overheidsbeschikking executive decision
Staatsblad Bulletin of Acts and Decrees
Staatscourant Government Gazette
Tractatenblad Collection of treaties and conventions
wet act/law
Wetboek van Burgerlijke Rechtsvordering Code of Civil Procedure (now the Gerechtelijk
Wetboek)
Wetboek van Koophandel Commercial Code
Wetboek van Strafvordering Code of Criminal Procedure
FINNISH:
asetus decree
laki act/law
ministeriön päätös ministerial decision
perustuslaki constitutional law
Suomen säädöskokoelma Statute Book of Finland
valtioneuvoston päätös government decision
valtioneuvoston periaatepäätös government resolution
FRENCH:
arrté royal (AR) royal decree
Code judiciaire Judicial Code
loi act/law
ordonnance order
ordre ministériel ministerial order
rglement grand ducal grand ducal regulation
English Style Guide
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GERMAN:
Bundesgesetz (A) Federal act
Durchführungsverordnung (A) implementing regulation
Bescheid (A) decision
Erlass (A) general circular
Gesetz act/law
Grundgesetz Basic Law/Constitution
(Rechts)bestimmung provision (in a Vorschrift)
(Rechts)verordnung (statutory) order
(Rechts)vorschrift (set of) regulations
Rundschreiben circular
Weisung (A) administrative circular
[(A) = Austria]
GREEK:
Nomos act/law
proedriko diatagma presidential decree
anangastikos nomos emergency act/law
engiklios circular order
Referring to the Greek Government Gazette (GG): Government Gazette 87/I/16.7.1982, Government
Gazette I 30
ITALIAN:
Codice Civile Civil Code
Codice di Procedura Civile Code of Civil Procedure
decreto del presidente della repubblica (DPR) presidential decree
decreto legge decree-law
decreto reale royal decree
legge act/law
LITHUANIAN:
dekretas decree
sakymas order
statymas act/law
kodeksas code
nutarimas resolution
(Seimo) rezoliucija (Parliament) resolution
sprendimas decision
PORTUGUESE:
Constituiço Constitution
decreto regional regional decree
decreto regulamentar implementing decree
decreto regulamentar regional regional implementing decree
decreto-lei decree-law
despacho normativo legislative order
lei act/law
norma constitucional constitutional statute
portaria order in council
postura (municipal) by-law
resoluço do Conselho de Ministros resolution of the Council of Ministers
English Style Guide
30 January 2007 123/127
SPANISH:
Ley act/law
Orden Ministerial ministerial Order
Decreto decree
Decreto-Ley decree-law
Real Decreto royal decree
Reglamento (recopilación legislativa) regulation
SWEDISH:
Lagstiftning legislation
Grundlagor fundamental laws
Balk Code
Författning Constitution
Lag act/law
Kungörelse decree
Förordning regulation
Föreskrift administrative provision
allmänna rd guidelines
The titles of laws, decrees, orders, regulations, etc. can often best be translated into
English by inverting the word order so that they appear in the form customary in
common law countries. Apostrophes and commas do not normally appear in such titles
in English.
Examples:
Loi concernant les chques, Cheques Act
Loi no. 66-537 du 24 juillet 1966 sur les sociétés commerciales, Commercial
Business Associations Act No. 66-537 of 24 July 1966
Loi abrogeant l'article 77 du Code civil, Civil Code (Article 77) Repeal Act
Loi modifiant la loi relative  la protection des animaux, Protection of Animals
(Amendment) Act
It will be seen that words such as concernant or sur become superfluous when
translated and this helps towards brevity. Note that words which would otherwise sit
unhappily in the inverted title are placed in brackets; this is standard practice in the
titles of statutes and statutory instruments in the United Kingdom.
If this procedure becomes unmanageable, or if you feel the reader might be confused,
you can of course cite the law etc. in the original language and put a literal English
translation in brackets:
Example:
Ley 19/1985, de 16 de julio, Cambiaria y del Cheque (Law No 19 of 16 July
1985 governing bills of exchange and cheques)
English Style Guide
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English Style Guide
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Annex 8
CLASSIFICATIONS
Combined Nomenclature (CN). The Combined Nomenclature (Annex I to Council
Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the
Common Customs Tariff, updated annually) is based on the Harmonised System (see
below). The term "common customs tariff" or CCT refers to the common rates of duty
applied by all Member States at the external frontier but is no longer the title of the
published nomenclature, as it was up to 1988.
Harmonised System (HS). The International Convention on the Harmonised Commodity
Description and Coding System (the full title of the HS) was adopted under the aegis of
the then Customs Cooperation Council (CCC -- now known as the World Customs
Organisation or WCO), and came into force on 1 January 1988. It correlates with the
UN's SITC classification (see below) and forms the basis for the Combined
Nomenclature. It comprises approximately 11 000 codes identifying products both for
customs purposes and for freight statistics and insurance. It applies worldwide, and is
used by 88 countries.
Integrated Tariff of the European Communities (Taric). Taric is based on the CN but in
addition to the latter's eight-digit codes it includes extra subdivisions (subheads) coded
with two further digits, used by the national customs authorities to apply tariff
preferences, anti-dumping duties, export refunds and many other trade measures. Taric
is published annually, but as a day-to-day working tool it is continually updated on a
database and Member States receive weekly electronic notification of changes.
Customs Code. The Community Customs Code codifies in a single instrument the
multitude of earlier regulations and directives on customs matters, updating them to
take account of the Single Market. More detailed rules are codified in a copious
implementing regulation. Note the French acronyms CDC (Code des douanes
communautaire) and DAC (dispositions d'application du code); render these as "the
Code" and "the Implementing Provisions", unless frequent repetitions make it desirable
to abbreviate these forms, in which case use "CCC" and "CCIP" respectively. Do not
confuse references to the Community Customs Code with references to the CN codes
(i.e. "heading numbers").
National accounts. The ESA (European System of Accounts) and the SNA (System of
National Accounts, drawn up by the United Nations Bureau of Statistics) are standard
breakdowns for comparing national accounts between countries. Note that with ESA 95,
the version currently in force, the scope has been broadened to include regional (and
environmental) accounts. The full title is now "European system of national and
regional accounts in the Community" (Council Regulation (EC) No 448/98, OJ L 58).
EC classification of economic activity (NACE). The full title is "Statistical classification
of economic activities in the European Community" (Council Regulation (EEC) No
English Style Guide
126/127 30 January 2007
3037/90, OJ L 293), and the version currently in force is NACE Rev. 1.1. The NACE is
modelled on the UN's ISIC classification (see below).
UN classifications of economic activity. The ISIC (International Standard Industrial
Classification of All Economic Activities), the SITC (Standard Industrial Trade
Classification) and the BEC (Classification by Broad Economic Categories) were
prepared by the UN to enable member governments to compare GNP, manufacturing
capacity, trade flows, etc. The ISIC provides a standard terminology, while the SITC
and BEC are for preparing comparable statistics on trade.
Job classifications. ISCO-88 is the latest version of the ILO's International Standard
Classification of Occupations, containing occupational titles grouped in 10 major
groups, 28 sub-major groups, 116 minor groups and 390 unit groups. It is published in
English, French and Spanish. The Sedoc Directory of Occupational Activities and
Occupations for Community Clearing is similar to ISCO, but Community-based. It is
available in all official EU languages except Greek.
For a full list of statistical and other classifications, see Eurostat's classifications server
`Ramon'.
English Style Guide
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Annex 9
CHEMICAL ELEMENTS
actinium
aluminium
americium
antimony
argon
arsenic
astatine
barium
berkelium
beryllium
bismuth
boron
bromine
caesium
calcium
californium
carbon
cadmium
cerium
chlorine
cobalt
columbium
copper
chromium
curium
deuterium
dysprosium
einsteinium
erbium
europium
fermium
fluorine
francium
gadolinium
gallium
germanium
Ac
Al
Am
Sb
Ar
As
At
Ba
Bk
Be
Bi
B
Br
Cs
Ca
Cf
C
Cd
Ce
Cl
Co
Cb
Cu
Cr
Cm
D
Dy
Es
Er
Eu
Fm
F
Fr
Gd
Ga
Ge
gold
hafnium
helium
holmium
hydrogen
indium
iodine
iridium
iron
krypton
lanthanum
lawrencium
lead
lithium
lutetium
magnesium
manganese
mendelevium
mercury
molybdenum
neodymium
neon
neptunium
nickel
niobium
nitrogen
nobelium
osmium
oxygen
palladium
phosphorus
platinum
plutonium
polonium
potassium
praseodymium
Au
Hf
He
Ho
H
In
I
Ir
Fe
Kr
La
Lr
Pb
Li
Lu
Mg
Mn
Md
Hg
Mo
Nd
Ne
Np
Ni
Nb
N
No
Os
O
Pd
P
Pt
Pu
Po
K
Pr
promethium
protactinium
radium
radon
rhenium
rhodium
rubidium
ruthenium
samarium
scandium
selenium
silicon
silver
sodium
strontium
sulphur
tantalum
technetium
tellurium
terbium
thallium
thorium
thulium
tin
titanium
tritium
tungsten
uranium
vanadium
xenon
ytterbium
yttrium
zinc
zirconium
Pm
Pa
Ra
Rn
Re
Rh
Rb
Ru
Sm
Sc
Se
Si
Ag
Na
Sr
S
Ta
Tc
Te
Tb
Tl
Th
Tm
Sn
Ti
T
W
U
V
Xe
Yb
Y
Z
Zr