charles.r.matthews@ntlworld.com wrote:
I have been arguing for a while that the disambiguation by surname is a very special case. Now, a rash of users misapplying the WP:MOSDAB 'rules' (they are merely suggestions) are starting to delete and prod lists by surname.
I need hardly say that this kind of pedantry is completely negative for the navigation of enWP. Please can we urgently have some guidelines that apply so that what is going on at [[Allen (surname)]] and its Talk need not be repeated.
I agree---I use these all the time. In some academic disciplines it's common to refer to well-known or even moderately well-known people by surname only. If I don't happen to be familiar with the person myself, I find out who they are by looking up the surname on Wikipedia, and scanning down the list for someone of the right occupation and right era.
-Mark