Address formats - which do you prefer?

Arts & Sciences Culture & History
1

Ok, so in Taiwan, an address would be written thusly: 10568 台灣台北市大安區忠孝東路7段110巷89弄13-4號6樓-2
You might also see :台北市大安區忠孝東路7段110巷89弄13-4號6樓-2, Taiwan

If one were interested in an easy-to-use address format in pinyin/English, what would be the most intuitive approach?
Start small and go big? That works in most North American addresses, but our city layouts are not usually too complex. A typical Canadian address might look like this:
42-872 Winchester DR E (Unit 42, No.872 Winchester Drive East)
Springfield, ON N3G 4B8 (Springfield Ontario, Postal Code)
Canada
But a Taiwanese address following the same format might look like this:
Example:
6F-2, No. 13-4, Alley 89, Lane 110, Section 4, Zhongxiao East Road, Da’an District,
Taipei, 10568
Taiwan
I dislike this format because one’s eye would have to start in the middle and go left, which is counter-intuitive to the way we read (left to write). If you’re in a taxi trying to find an address on your smartphone, it’s not going to be that easy.

I propose the following standard (for websites, online directories, name cards, etc.):
Zhongxiao East Road Section 4, Lane 110, Alley 89, No. 13-4, 6F-2, Da’an District, Taipei, Taiwan 10568
EXCEPT where there is no lane or alley and then the address would look like this:
13-4 Zhongxiao East Road Section 4, 6F-2, Taipei, Taiwan 10568

What do you think? What makes the most visual sense to you? What format would you easiest understand if you were looking up an address in the back of a taxi, late at night, after a bottle of wine?

Thanks for your help! :notworthy:

2

The Western standard is smallest to largest. For me at least, it’s easiest to read, and it’s logical. (The CHinese way is logical too; it’s just the reverse order.)

For Taiwanese addresses, I recommend the following (which was the standard here for decades before CSB came along and screwed things up):

6F-2, No. 13-4, Alley 89, Lane 110, Zhongxiao E. Rd. Sec. 4, Da’an District, Taipei 10568, Taiwan

Note that the section comes after the road name, which is as it should be. Also note, there should be a space after the period in No. and Sec.

3

But you know who knows the official rules.
[forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.ph … 93#p916893](Hanyu pinyin to be official in 2009

4

Ok, but I’m not really that interested in the official rules, or postal formats.

I’m more interested in formats that are intuitive and user-friendly, especially in print or on the Internet. If that means writing things a little differently than what the gov’t of the month suggests, I’m ok with that.

5

I wouldn’t mess around with formats very much. While some of us could switch them back to Chinese format with relative ease, not every foreign resident could-- and, just as importantly, not every local could either. It’s kind of like when governments tried to choose English names for places that had no relation to the Chinese. It only adds to confusion and serves no useful purpose. You have to assume that a foreigner may write down and try to use an address (and, no, they won’t always print the Chinese), either for mailing or locating a business. Locals may have to help this person get to this address or deliver their packages and, if address information is presented in a format that differs greatly from the local standard, it’s more likely to create problems. For practical reasons, addresses in pinyin/English should follow the local format on websites and business cards. :2cents:

6

Um, yes, but my proposal is to make the English/pinyin format closer to the Chinese format, not more removed. And following local practices on business cards and websites is folly. Not even the government has any kind of consistency.

7

Apologies if I misread your post.

However, I would make it even closer to Chinese than you propose. 台北市大安區忠孝東路7段110巷89弄13-4號6樓-2, Taiwan

Taipei City, Da’an District, Zhongxiao East Road, Section 7, Alley 110, Lane 89, Number 13-4, 6f-2, Taiwan ROC.

But, then, I much favour function over form in these matters. I often resort to making bilingual address stickers for people who have to send me things. However, I have one package coming for me, where pinyin/English only was used. I gave the address in the above format, but I’m still worried if it’ll get to me.

8

Really? So if you’re looking for an online listing of a Taipei club, looking up an address in the back of a taxi, late at night, after a bottle of wine, the first words you’d prefer to see would be Taipei City, followed by Da’an District?

Remember, this is not a new postal standard I’m proposing - just for online listings, a la Taiwan Fun, Forumosa, smartphones, etc.

9

Excuse me, Maoman, but Zhongxiao East Road section 7 isn’t in Da’an district, it’s in Nangang.

Oh, and I guess I’m with Toasty here. Either stay English style, smallest to biggest, or go biggest to smallest a la Asian style, but please don’t start with the street, then give the numbers, then the city: that’s too mixed up.

Having Taipei city up front is useful so you don’t go driving around looking for Zhongshan Road in Yonghe or Banciao or Danshui.

10

Only if you adhere strictly to the Chinese way of doing things (biggest to smallest). But nobody wants to do that!

Since we want to compile addresses in English, we should stick to the way it’s done in the English language: smallest to largest.

Club El Tiki Grande (Taipei branch):
5F, No. 35, Lane 27, Wang Chung Road Sec. 2, Kung Fu Dist., Taipei, Taiwan

11

[quote=“Maoman”]Really? So if you’re looking for an online listing of a Taipei club, looking up an address in the back of a taxi, late at night, after a bottle of wine, the first words you’d prefer to see would be Taipei City, followed by Da’an District?

Remember, this is not a new postal standard I’m proposing - just for online listings, a la Taiwan Fun, Forumosa, smartphones, etc.[/quote]

If I were looking up an address, I’d stick with characters when looking it up or use google maps on a smart phone. Or look up the place I was going by name. Perhaps it would help to see what format works best for google maps?

Also, in speaking, of course I won’t say Taipei first if I were in Taipei. On the other hand, coming to Taipei from where I am, you bet I’d say Taipei first.

12

[quote=“Chris”]
Club El Tiki Grande (Taipei branch):
5F, No. 35, Lane 27, Wang Chung Road Sec. 2, Kung Fu Dist., Taipei, Taiwan[/quote]

shouldn’t that be Wing Chun road?

13

[quote=“urodacus”][quote=“Chris”]
Club El Tiki Grande (Taipei branch):
5F, No. 35, Lane 27, Wang Chung Road Sec. 2, Kung Fu Dist., Taipei, Taiwan[/quote]

shouldn’t that be Wing Chun road?[/quote]

Everybody have fun tonight…

14

Addresses? I’ve always had a hankering for “Your Most August Eminence Gris, the Redoubtable and Fantasmagorical sandman, Knight of the Cockring of Ineffable Girth.”
Only about 30 people actually use that address with any form of consistency, though. Maybe it needs a rethink.

15

And how many times have the shipments of unsavoury items actually arrived at your abode and not Funk 500’s?

16

[quote=“Maoman”]Really? So if you’re looking for an online listing of a Taipei club, looking up an address in the back of a taxi, late at night, after a bottle of wine, the first words you’d prefer to see would be Taipei City, followed by Da’an District?

Remember, this is not a new postal standard I’m proposing - just for online listings, a la Taiwan Fun, Forumosa, smartphones, etc.[/quote]So different address systems for different usages? Has this been tried successfully before?

17

Does anybody know if full Pinyin adresses actually arrive?

e.g. Taibei Shi, Zhongzheng Qu, Luosifu Lu 2 Duan …

18

I’d go for this:

6F-2, No. 13-4, Alley 89, Lane 110, Zhongxiao E. Rd. Sec. 4, Da’an District, Taipei 10568, Taiwan

(although I think Da’an would probably be 106** postcode)

I notice also that some clever clogs has decided that 巷 is now “lane” and 弄 is “alley”, which is of course wrong.

I’d stick with the old names for convenience, remembering that people who read Chinese won’t bother with this malarky, and also that when writing in roman script to other foreigners who understand characters most people use Hanyu Pinyin for accuracy anyway.

The question is “does my audience read characters?” If they do then they probably understand Hanyu Pinyin, as they learn their Chinese at least partly abroad (otherwise they’d know the streets anyway).

I use Roosevelt, Chung Hsiao, Fu Hsing, and Hsin Tien all the time out of habit.

For Hanyu Pinyin, I’d write it as spoken because if the customer can read HYPY he can probably speak Chinese:

Taipei City, Da’an District, Zhongxiao Dong Lu Section 4, 89 Xiang, 110 Nong, No. 13-4, 6F-2

BTW, letters addressed in Full-Commie Hanyu Pinyin arrive perfectly well. I think they have a foreigner prisoner chained to a chair somewhere in the GPO who sorts all this out.