Wikipedia is an Encyclopedia - Meta

Wikipedia is an encyclopedia

Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, a Reference work that aims to encycle all of human knowledge in a compendium of the didactic genre, for the purpose of w:paideia or learning. w:Be bold to contribute what you know and can verify, and help us fulfill the Encyclopedic mission.

• Wikipedia has features of w:almanacs, and w:gazetteers, although it's scope is broader than either.
• w:Wikiversity allows and encourages WP:Original Research, but this is strictly forbidden on Wikipedia, which aims to be a w:WP:Tertiary source based mainly on reliable secondary and tertiary sources, with occasional and judicious use of primary sources: we cannot be a primary source for your own private experiment.
• Textbooks can be cited to verify claims or suggest an organization of a topic, but try b:WikiBooks if you're interested in detailed textbooks and how-to-manuals. Those in the public domain may be copied, modified for encyclopedic format, and repurposed into articles here, and vice versa.
• Unlike a scroll which is sequential accessed, or a book which implies this, Encyclopedias (including Wikipedia) are intended for random access, allowing both ad-hoc casual study through searching, as well as sequential reading through a Portal:Portals, as well as systemic interdisciplinary research according to any method of one's choice.

• Wikipedia is not finished, therefore we invite contributors to w:WP:be bold in carrying out the encyclopedic mission.
• An article can report objectively about propaganda for commercial, political, scientific, religious, national, sports-related, or other special interests, as long as an attempt is made to describe the topic from a w:WP:Neutral point of view and give w:WP:DUE weight to all related points of view.
• We host articles about the soapboxing of others, along with analysis and critical commentary, but don't do advocacy apart from what is reported.
• We host articles about many consumer products along with independent reviews, consumer reports, and links to articles about the technology and engineering, but Wikipedia is not an advertising platform: don't spam it. Its not a commercial product catalogue either, but it does seem to catalogue commercial products.
• Your user page may have a resumé or blog about your contributions, drafts, sources, reading lists, and other notes related to collaboration on Wikipedia, it is not a social network regarding your personal life or other work, except insofar as you are contributing to articles about your areas of interest and expertise.
• Editors should declare conflicts of interests, it is not a vanity press.
• We have many Stand-alone lists and timelines, Wikipedia:Set index articles, and Wikipedia:Disambiguation pages, but Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information. Evolve your collection into an index, a list, or a Broad concept article.
• See the w:WP:LISTCRITERIA and Provide context for the reader: wikipedia not a directory.
• Many articles have non-English names, and give a translations, and many have sections describing the "Etymology" of the name, but dictionary, See wikt:Wiktionary for a list of definitions.
• All Wikipedia articles should contain up-to-date information, and stand-alone articles on significant current events, but unlike WikiNews, we do not do original reporting, routine coverage, or overemphasize the recent, because Wikipedia is not a newspaper.
• For the full text of primary sources, see Wikisource, Wikipedia often has a corresponding article. For example see the encyclopedic article on the w:Prior Analytics of Aristotle. about the source document (in english translation) s:Prior Analytics.
• We make editorial decisions through WP:Consensus after WP:discussion, Consensus can change over time, but editing is not an experiment in anarchy or democracy, (nor is it an experiment in authoritarianism, communism, fascism, nor in monarchy, so don't bite the newcomers).
• We have bureaucrats and administrators to deal with w:WP:Conduct disorders and WP:INCIVILITY and they sometimes issue bans or blocks, but governance or authority are not ends of themselves, these are means to the end of collaboratively writing an Encyclopedia, and improving the underlying content. Wikipedia is not a bureaucracy, and if the bureaucracy impedes the encyclopedic mission, editors are permitted resist. There are no firm rules. If you're at an impasse, write an Essay.
• Wikipedia is not a bad idea. If someone reverts your encyclopedic contribution, without giving any justification other than bad idea, or "I don't like it", then you may undo the reversion: you may WP:Obvert, and remind him that w:WP:Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, which is not a bad idea. And not only that, a free, online, ENCYCLOPEDIC compendium of knowledge that anyone can edit, is a pretty good idea. And that is our mission, and our first pillar.

Wikipedia has policies and guidelines, but they are not carved in stone; their content and interpretation can evolve over time. The principles and spirit matter more than literal wording, and sometimes improving Wikipedia requires making exceptions. Be bold, but not reckless, in updating articles. And do not agonize over making mistakes: they can be corrected easily because (almost) every past version of each article is saved.

ויקיפדיה הוקמה כhe:אנציקלופדיה מקוונת המשלבת מאפיינים רבים המזוהים עם אנציקלופדיות מודפסות מסורתיות, אלמנכים וhe:גאזטירים.

אֶנְצִיקְלוֹפֶּדְיָה היא מאגר כתוב של הhe:ידע האנושי הקיים, בתחום מסוים או בכל תחומי הידע, שנאסף כדי להנחיל אותו לאחרים ולדורות הבאים.

כהלחם של המילים εγκύκλιος (אֶנְקִיקלִיוֹס) – עגול, מקיף, ו-παιδεία (פַּאידֶיאָה) – חינוך, הדרכה. מכאן ש-εγκύκλιος παιδεία פירושו "חינוך מקיף".