[Wikipedia-l] Racialisme

[Jimmy Wales]

Guillaume Blanchard wrote:
> I said this word is not french, so we have to think about how to
> handle this kind of case.
> And what is the criteria that make a word that don't exist
> officially can be add in an encyclopedie or not ?

The "culture" of English is very different from the "culture" of
French in this regard.  What I mean is, the idea that a word doesn't
exist "officially" is a very odd idea to English speakers.  Words
exist when people use them and know what they mean.

I recommend using a variety of factors in determining whether or not a
word is a "real word" for the purposes of the Encyclopedia.  Whether
or not it is in a dictionary is certainly _one_ factor that's worth
considering.  But common usage is also important, probably more
important, isn't it?

--Jimbo