In most cases, {{Selfref}} is used to create a disambiguation link to a page in the "Wikipedia:" namespace from article-space.


When using {{Selfref}} in this way, use the following format:

{{Selfref|The self-referential notice to display, including [[MOS:LINK|links]].}}

which produces:

italicized (Wikipedia house style for self-referential notes), and both preceded and followed by a linebreak.

For inline use (in body text, mid-sentence, and not in hatnotes), without the indentation and line breaking, use {{Selfref inline}}:

{{Selfref inline|the self-referential text to display, including [[MOS:LINKS|links]]}}

which produces: the self-referential text to display, including links (illustrated here on the same line as other content).

Template {{Selfref}} also has the parameter |inline:

{{Selfref|the self-referential text to display, including [[MOS:LINKS|links]]|inline}}

However, as of early 2019, it does not always function properly, and may cause a line break under some circumstances.

Unprintworthy content

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Rarely, there is other, non-self-referential content which shouldn't appear in mirrors, print editions, or other off-Wikipedia reuses of Wikipedia content, and which shouldn't be italicized as a self-reference.

It is preferable to mark such unprintworthy content with the {{Unprintworthy inline}} template (which includes the noprint CSS class, but not the plainlinks class, since links in such content will not be internal self-references). Although not all mirror sites do so, the content in question can be removed by reusers of WP content, without any reformatting, by ignoring or removing content marked up by this template, or more accurately by the selfreference CSS class that it (and some other templates) use.

Note: The following syntax has been obsolete since 2008, and if you see it, replace it as described below.

There was a deprecated, pre-2008 legacy usage of {{Selfref}} that was used for such unprintworthy cases, and pre-dates the {{Unprintworthy inline}} template. This is to simply end the template with a pipe character – |:

{{Selfref|the unprintworthy text to display without self-ref styling|}}

This method cannot be depended upon. For one thing, many editors would interpret the ending pipe as an error and remove it, turning the template into an indented self-ref hatnote! It also has not been used since 2008. Any remaining uses of it should be replaced with {{Selfref inline}} (if real a self-references) or {{Unprintworthy inline}} (if simply unprintworthy).

Example

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Code Page on Wikipedia Page on [some] mirrors
{{Selfref|For the Wikipedia Sandbox, see [[WP:SAND]]}}

The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. {{Selfref|(You can edit it by clicking "edit" on the page.)|inline}} It has been edited many times.

The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. (You can edit it by clicking "edit" on the page.) It has been edited many times.

The Wikipedia Sandbox is a page on Wikipedia. It has been edited many times.
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  • Wikipedia:Self-references to avoid
  • {{srlink}}, for the opposite case when you want a link to the Wikipedia: namespace that does show in mirrors without breaking (for instance when writing an article about Wikipedia or something connected to it).
  • {{Printworthy selfref}} – for cases of self-references that are printworthy and may or may not be desired by reusers of WP content, depending upon whether they are mirroring or just using single articles
  • {{Unprintworthy inline}} – for unprintworthy inline material that isn't technically a self-reference
  • Wikipedia:Hatnote