In correspondence or in any circumstance that demands the saving of time or space, we abbreviate the names of states and territories, as follows:
- Alabama, Ala.
- Arizona, Ariz.
- Arkansas, Ark.
- California, Cal.
- Colorado, Colo.
- Connecticut, Conn.
- Delaware, Del.
- District of Columbia, D. C.
- Florida, Fla.
- Georgia, Ga.
- Idaho, Ida.
- Illinois, Ill.
- Indiana, Ind.
- Iowa, Ia.
- Kansas, Kan.
- Kentucky, Ky.
- Louisiana, La.
- Maine, Me.
- Maryland, Md.
- Massachusetts, Mass.
- Michigan, Mich.
- Minnesota, Minn.
- Mississippi, Miss.
- Missouri, Mo.
- Montana, Mont.
- Nebraska, Neb.
- Nevada, Nev.
- New Hampshire, N. H.
- New Jersey, N. J.
- New Mexico, N. M.
- New York, N. Y.
- North Carolina, N. C.
- North Dakota, N. D.
- Ohio, O.
- Oklahoma, Okla.
- Oregon, Ore.
- Pennsylvania, Pa. or Penna.
- Rhode Island, R. I.
- South Carolina, S. C.
- South Dakota, S. D.
- Tennessee, Tenn.
- Texas, Tex.
- Vermont, Vt.
- Virginia, Va.
- Washington, Wash.
- West Virginia, W. Va.
- Wisconsin, Wis.
- Wyoming, Wyo.
488. Use a. m. and p. m. after dates in lists of dates or schedules of trains or for any similar purpose, but in the text of a letter or manuscript it is better to write them out in full. As for example, do not say:
- I will arrive tomorrow a. m., or, You may call about eight p. m.
Say rather:
- I will arrive tomorrow morning. You may call at eight o'clock this evening.
The letters a. m. are the abbreviation for ante meridiem, Latin for before noon; and p. m. for post meridiem, meaning afternoon.
489. Two consecutive years may be written 1914-15, but use 1915 rather than '15. In the heading of letters it is better to write the date out in full, as, May 28, 1915, instead of 5-28-15.
In the back of your dictionary you will find a complete list of accepted abbreviations used in writing and printing. The list that follows contains abbreviations most commonly used, especially in business correspondence: