Editing Ship class (section)

==Naval ship class naming conventions==
===Overview===
The name of a naval ship class is most commonly the name of the [[lead ship]], the first ship commissioned or built of its design. However, other systems can be used without confusion or conflict. A descriptive name may be used; for example it was decided to group destroyers made to the same design as HMS ''Tomahawk'', all named after weapons, as the {{sclass2|Weapon|destroyer|5}} rather than ''Tomahawk'' class.

===Europe in general===
{{Expand section|with=more information on other European navies|date=April 2024}}
In European navies, a class is named after the first ship commissioned regardless of when it was ordered or laid down. In some cases this has resulted in different class names being used in European and U.S. references; for example, European sources record the {{sclass|Colorado|battleship}}s of the [[United States Navy]] as the "''Maryland'' class", as {{USS|Maryland|BB-46|6}} was commissioned before {{USS|Colorado|BB-45|6}}.{{Citation needed|date=June 2015}}{{contradict-inline|date=July 2018}}

===Germany===
The [[West Germany|West German]] Navy (''Bundesmarine'') used a three-digit type number for every class in service or in advanced project state. Modified versions were identified by a single letter suffix. After the [[reunification of Germany]] the [[German Navy]] (''Deutsche Marine'') kept the system. Informally, classes are also traditionally named after their lead ships.
{{Further|List of ship classes of the Bundesmarine and Deutsche Marine}}

===Indonesia===
The [[Indonesian Navy]] has a traditional naming system for its ships. In addition, the ship's type and missions can be identified by the first number on the ship's three-digit [[hull number]], which is placed on the front bows and the back of the stern. The naming convention is:<ref>{{Cite book |title=ARMADA REPUBLIK INDONESIA: KSATRIA PENGAWAL SAMUDERA DAN PEREKAT NUSANTARA |publisher=DINAS PENERANGAN ANGKATAN LAUT |year=2017 |location=Jakarta |language=id}}</ref>
* Hull number beginning with 1 (reserved for aircraft carriers): ancient empires and kingdoms
* Hull number beginning with 2 (cruisers and destroyers): Indonesia's main islands
* Hull number beginning with 3 (frigates, ocean escorts, corvettes): national heroes
* Hull number beginning with 4 (submarines, submarine tenders): mythical weapons (for submarines), National heroes (for submarine tenders)
* Hull number beginning with 5 (amphibious ships, [[Landing Ship, Tank|LSTs]], [[Amphibious transport dock|LPDs]], [[Landing Craft Utility|LCUs]], command ships): main and strategic bays (for LSTs), big cities (for LPDs), small cities (for LCUs), National figures (for command ships)
* Hull number beginning with 6 (fast attack ships): mythical weapons (previous names for missile boats), traditional weapons (current names for fast missile boats), wild animals (for fast torpedo boats)
* Hull number beginning with 7 (minesweepers, minehunters ships): every island begin with letter "R", letter "F" ([[Mine countermeasures vessel|mine countermeasure vessel]])
* Hull number beginning with 8 (patrol boats): native fishes and sea creatures, native snakes and wild reptiles, wild insects, geographical places (such as towns, lakes or rivers begin with "si-", like ''Sikuda'', ''Sigurot'', ''Sibarau'')
* Hull number beginning with 9 (supporting ships, oilers, tugs, troops transports, oceanographic research ships, sailing ships, etc.): volcanoes, cities, mythical figures, geographical capes and straits

===Russia/Soviet Union===
{{See also|List of ships of Russia by project number}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=January 2023}}
{{Off topic|List of types of naval vessels|date=April 2024}}<!-- The vast majority of this section is dedicated to ship type, not ship class. Could also be moved to list of ship types. -->
Russian (and [[Soviet]]) ship classes are formally named by the numbered project that designed them. That project sometimes, but not always, had a metaphorical name, and almost always had a [[NATO reporting name]]. In addition, the ships of the class would have a number prefixed by a letter indicating the role of that type of vessel. For example, Project 641 had no name, though NATO referred to its members as {{sclass2|Foxtrot|submarine}}s.

The ship classification does not completely correspond common designation, particularly for destroyers, frigates and corvettes. Russia has its own classification system for these ships:
*'''[[Squadron (naval)|Squadron]] [[Torpedo boat|Torpedo Carriers]]''' ({{langx|ru|Эскадренный миноносец}}) are traditionally referred to as [[Destroyer]]s (formerly torpedo boat destroyers). The Russian word for destroyer is used in the air force for [[fighter aircraft]].
*Destroyers can also be classified as '''Big Anti-submarine Ships''' ({{langx|ru|Большой противолодочный корабль}}) or Big ASW Ships (e.g. [[Udaloy-class destroyer]]). They are alternatively classified as cruisers (e.g. [[Kara-class cruiser]]). The Russian Big Anti-submarine Ships type also has its sub-type of Guard (or Patrol) Ships. 
*'''Guard (or Patrol) Ships''' ({{langx|ru|Сторожевой корабль}}) are usually referred to as frigates (e.g. [[Gepard-class frigate]]).
*Another substantial type in Russia are '''Small Anti-submarine Ships''' ({{langx|ru|Малый противолодочный корабль}}) or Small ASW Ships. These are referred to as corvettes (e.g. [[Grisha-class corvette]]). Corvettes are also classified as '''Small Missile Ships''' ({{langx|ru|Малый ракетный корабль}}; e.g. [[Buyan-class corvette]]) or Missile Boats ({{langx|ru|Ракетный катер}}; e.g. [[Tarantul-class corvette]]) in Russia.

===United Kingdom===
{{Expand section|with=more information from before the first world war and after the second world war, as well as other ship types|date=April 2024}}
The British [[Royal Navy|Royal Navy (RN)]] has used several methods of naming classes. In addition to the accepted European convention, some classes have been named after a common theme in the included ships' names, e.g., {{sclass2|Tribal|destroyer|1||1936}}s, and some classes were implemented as an organizational tool, making traditional methods of naming inefficient. For instance, the {{sclass|Amphion|submarine|4}} is also known as the A class. Most destroyer classes were known by the initial letter used in naming the vessels, e.g., {{sclass2|V and W|destroyer|1}}s. Classification by letter also helped to conflate similar smaller classes of ships as in the case of the [[A-class destroyer (1913)|A-class destroyers of 1913]] whose names spread across the alphabet. Since the end of the [[World War II|Second World War]], Royal Navy ship classes have also been known by their type number (e.g. [[Type 45 destroyer]].)

===United States===
{{see also|United States ship naming conventions}}<!-- References from this page are likely to be helpful -->
{{Essay-like|section|date=July 2018}}
For the [[United States Navy]], the first ship in a class to be authorized by [[United States Congress|Congress]] is the designated class leader and gives the name to the class, regardless of the order in which the ships of that class are laid down, launched or commissioned.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.navweaps.com/index_tech/index_ships_list.php |title=USN Ship Designations|website=Navweaps.com |date=18 May 2016 |author=Guy Derdahl and Tony DiGiulian |access-date= 10 June 2016}}</ref> Due to numbering conventions, the lead ship often has the lowest hull number of its class. (During [[World War II]], the award of construction contracts was not always congruent with completion, so several ships had higher hull numbers than later ships.)<ref>Lenton, H. T. ''American Submarines'' and ''American Fleet and Escort Destroyers'' (Doubleday, 1973).</ref>

Before the 1920s, naval vessels were classified according to shared characteristics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/g/general-orders/general-order-no-541-1920-standard-nomemclature-naval-vessels.html |website= www.history.navy.mil |title=Standard Nomemclature for Naval Vessels: General Order No. 541, 17 July 1920 |author=Navy Department, Office of Naval Operations|access-date=11 July 2018}}</ref> {{Citation needed span|text=However, naval historians and scholars retro-apply the current convention to historical naval vessels sharing similarities, such as those of the [[American Civil War]], where the [[Union Navy]] built several vessels in series, which can be termed "classes" as presently understood. Common examples include the {{sclass|Passaic|monitor|0}} [[Monitor (warship)|monitor]] and the {{sclass2|City|ironclad}}, among many others, for the Union side, and [[CSS Columbia|''Columbia'' class]] or [[CSS Richmond|''Richmond'' class]], for those ironclads in service with the [[Confederate States Navy]]. Generally accepted by military historians and widely used in the more recent books, webpages and papers on the subject matter (most notably the releases of [[Osprey Publishing]]), these latter-day classifications are sometimes considered "semi-official" (although they are not). Contemporary records, such as the "[[Official Records of the War of the Rebellion|Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion]]" (Series 2, Volume 1, Part 1), show that the modern nomenclature was not in use at the time.|date=April 2024}}

The unofficial retro-applying of ship classes can occasionally lead to confusion. For example, while American works consistently adhere to the ''City''- and ''Columbia''-class monikers, works of British origin refer to the same classes as [[USS Cairo|''Cairo'' class]] and [[CSS Tennessee (1863)|''Tennessee'' class]] respectively, in compliance with the modern Royal Navy naming conventions.{{cn|date=July 2018}}

By the time the United States entered World War II, the current naming convention was in place, though it remains unclear as to exactly how and when the practice originated.{{cn|date=July 2018}}