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About Wikipedia

This is the front page of the Simple English Wikipedia. Wikipedias are places where people work together to write encyclopedias in different languages. We use Simple English words and grammar here. The Simple English Wikipedia is for everyone, such as children and adults who are learning English. There are 259,713 articles on the Simple English Wikipedia. All of the pages are free to use. They have all been published under both the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License 4.0 International License and the GNU Free Documentation License. You can help here! You may change these pages and make new pages. Read the help pages and other good pages to learn how to write pages here. If you need help, you may ask questions at Simple talk.

When writing articles here:

Use Basic English words and shorter sentences. This allows people to understand complex terms or phrases.
Write good pages. The best encyclopedia pages have useful, well-written information.
Use the pages to learn and teach. These pages can help people learn English. You can also use them to make a new Wikipedia to help other people.
Simple does not mean short. Writing in Simple English means that simple words are used. It does not mean readers want basic information. Articles do not have to be short to be simple; expand articles, add details, but use basic vocabulary.
Be bold! Your article does not have to be perfect, because other editors will fix it and make it better. And most importantly, do not be afraid to start and make articles better yourself.

Selected article

Evolution is a scientific theory used by biologists. It explains how animals and plants changed over a long time, and how they have come to be the way they are.

Earth is very old, about 4.5 billion years. By studying the layers of rock that make up Earth's crust, scientists can find out about its past. This kind of research is called historical geology.

We know that living things have changed over time, because we can see their remains in the rocks. These remains are called 'fossils'. So we know that the animals and plants of today are different from those of long ago. And the further we go back, the more different the fossils are.

How has this come about? Evolution has taken place. That evolution has taken place is a fact, because it is overwhelmingly supported by many lines of evidence. At the same time, evolutionary questions are still being actively researched by biologists.

The theory of evolution is the basis of modern biology. Nothing in biology makes sense without it.

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Other very good articles – Proposals – Requirements

Did you know...

From a collection of Wikipedia's articles:

... that over 1,700 people have committed suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge (pictured)?

... that in 2022, actor Emma Corrin became Vogue magazine's first non-binary cover star?

... that The Road to Serfdom, an influential book by economist Friedrich August von Hayek, was also published as a picture book?

... that when Clint Eastwood was mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California in the 1980s, he made eating ice cream on the city streets legal?

... that archaeologists have found pots of honey in ancient Egyptian tombs that are over 3,000 years old and still edible, meaning honey never spoils?

... that former National Assembly member Fernando Villavicencio was a journalist who helped uncover Ecuador's surveillance program towards journalists and politicians?

Archives – Start a new article – Nominate an article

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Religions and beliefs Atheism • Bahá'í • Buddhism • Christianity • Esotericism • Hinduism • Islam • Jainism • Judaism • Mythology • Paganism • Sect • Sikhism • Taoism • Theology

Sister projects

Wikipedia is hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other projects:

In Simple English:
	Wiktionary Dictionary and thesaurus	Commons Free media repository	Wikifunctions Free collection of functions
In Regular English:
	Wikispecies Directory of species	Wikipedia English Wikipedia	Wikidata Free knowledge base
	Wikinews Free-content news	Wiktionary Dictionary and thesaurus	Wikiquote Collection of quotations
	Wikibooks Free textbooks and manuals	Wikisource Free-content library	Wikiversity Free learning resources
	Meta-Wiki Wikimedia project coordination	Wikivoyage Free travel guide	MediaWiki Wiki software development