"Have You Ever Noticed the Date Format Difference between America and Britain: Month and Day Order Reversed?"

Pay Attention to How Dates Are Written＊

When you handcraft paper items like invitations, guest cards, or save-the-dates that include the wedding date in English.

Did you know that there are two patterns for writing dates?

〔1〕American style

〔2〕British style

It's not a matter of which one is better or more stylish, but I thought it would be good knowledge to keep in mind when designing wedding items, so I decided to summarize it this time♩

@chercher_ay

〔1〕How to Write Dates in American Style

First, in the United States, the common order for writing dates is:

【 Month → Day → Year 】

(Example)

For November 22, 2020

✓ November 22, 2020

✓ November 22nd, 2020

✓ Nov 22, 2020

✓ Nov 22nd, 2020

✓ 11 / 22 / 2020 (a more casual writing style)

This is how it is expressed.

(When not using slashes, a comma is placed after the day.)

〔2〕How to Write Dates in British Style

In contrast, the rules in the UK state that dates should be written in the order of:

【 Day → Month → Year 】

(Example)

For November 22, 2020

✓ 22 November 2020

✓ 22nd November 2020

✓ 22 Nov 2020

✓ 22nd Nov 2020

✓ 22 / 11 / 2020 (a more casual writing style)

That's how it goes.

(No commas are used.)

In Other Words＊

In American style, it's Month → Day → Year.

In British style, it's Day → Month → Year.

Since the order of the month and day is reversed, it’s also a well-known tip to remember that "America was the first country to go to the moon, so they write the month first."

〈By the way〉

When including the day of the week, both American and British styles write it first.

(Example) Mon, Nov 22, 2020

(Example) Monday, 22 Nov 2020

If You're Incorporating This into Wedding Designs...?

If you're going to use these English date formats in the design of wedding items,

there’s no right answer or preferred format,

but if you write the month in numbers, "11.22" is more common,

(in Japanese, it's also more familiar to have the month first)

If you write the month in English, both "22 Nov" and "Nov 22" are often seen＊

However, the way of writing is flexible, so it might be good to try out a few options when designing and choose whichever feels right.

Coordinating for a Unified Feel Could Be a Good Idea＊

I explained the often-confused date formats of American and British styles.

Many people might have been placing dates without much thought...

but if you DIY your wedding, it’s possible to unintentionally mix things up, like having invitations in American style and save-the-dates in British style!

It's better to have a unified feel than a mixed one.

So when creating wedding items and paper pieces from now on, please pay attention to how you write the date♩