Editing Incubator escapee wiki:Merging (section)

== <span class="anchor" id="MERGEINIT"></span>Proposing a merge ==
{{shortcut|WP:MERGEINIT|WP:MERGEPROP}}
{{ombox|text=Need help? List your articles at the bottom of [[Wikipedia:Proposed mergers]], and someone will list the suggested merge for you.}}

{{clear}}{{sh|WP:BOLDMERGE}}
'''If the need for a merge is obvious, editors can [[Wikipedia:Be bold|be bold]] and simply do it.''' See [[Wikipedia:Merging#How to merge|how to merge]] below. 
Bold merges may be reverted, even if it was labor-intensive to complete, but this edit process and [[Wikipedia:CIVIL|civil discussion]] produces better articles. Articles that are young or short, such as [[Wikipedia:STUB|stubs]] differing only in title and wording, should be merged immediately. Articles that have been separate for a long time should usually be discussed first, especially those on controversial topics.

To start a discussion, perform the following steps. If the merge is difficult to perform or seems potentially controversial, you should request assistance and feedback at [[Wikipedia:Proposed mergers]].

'''Do not''' use the discussion procedure described here to propose:
* '''Category merges''': Category merges should be requested at [[Wikipedia:Categories for discussion]], which uses the separate {{tl|cfm}} template.
* '''Template merges''': Template merges should be requested at [[Wikipedia:Templates for discussion]], which uses the separate {{tl|tfm}} template.

===Step 1: Create a discussion===
This is usually done on the proposed destination page's talk page. Exceptions:
* If the destination does not exist, do not create its talk page (it could get speedily deleted).
* If a discussion exists already, do not move it (for example, having a discussion on the source page is acceptable).

For example, if suggesting that [[Foo]] be merged into [[Bar]], create a proposal in a new section at [[Talk:Bar]].
Start a new section at the ''bottom'' of that talk page and include '''the proposal itself, the list of the affected pages, and a merge rationale'''.
A good example is the following section:
<syntaxhighlight lang="wikitext">