ISO 2014-1976 PDF

Full title and description

St ISO 2014-1976 — Writing of calendar dates in all‑numeric form. An International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard that introduced a consistent, most‑significant‑first numeric date ordering (year, month, day) for use in documents and data interchange.

Abstract

ISO 2014:1976 specifies an all‑numeric method for writing calendar dates to avoid ambiguity between national date conventions. It established the big‑endian ordering (year‑month‑day) and the use of fixed digit fields for year, month and day for machine‑readable and human‑readable interchange. The short technical standard was later withdrawn and its content incorporated into the broader ISO 8601 series.

General information

• Status: Withdrawn (revised and superseded).
• Publication date: April 1976 (Edition 1).
• Publisher: International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
• ICS / categories: 01.140.30 — Documents in administration, commerce and industry.
• Edition / version: Edition 1 (1976).
• Number of pages: 1.

Scope

Defines a concise, unambiguous all‑numeric representation of calendar dates intended for use in international documentation and information interchange. The scope covers the ordering and basic formatting of year, month and day components so that numeric dates sort naturally and are not misinterpreted across different national conventions.

Key topics and requirements

• Adoption of big‑endian ordering: year, then month, then day (most significant to least significant).
• Use of fixed digit fields (e.g., four‑digit year, two‑digit month, two‑digit day) to reduce ambiguity.
• Provision for compact (digits‑only) and readable forms to support both machine processing and human interpretation.
• Focus on unambiguous international interchange of calendar dates to avoid misinterpretation between national formats.
• Designed for direct incorporation into later, more comprehensive date/time standards (notably ISO 8601).

Typical use and users

Used historically by standards authors, documentation specialists, data‑processing and information systems developers, archivists and international organizations seeking an unambiguous numeric date format. Today its legacy persists in software, databases, file‑naming conventions and APIs that use ISO date ordering.

Related standards

Superseded and consolidated into ISO 8601 (first published 1988). Other related ISO publications addressing complementary aspects of date/time notation include ISO 2015 (week numbers), ISO 2711 (ordinal dates) and earlier ISO recommendations such as R 2014 (1971). The development and maintenance activities were handled under ISO/TC 154.

Keywords

ISO 2014, numeric date, calendar date, YYYY‑MM‑DD, YYYYMMDD, big‑endian date order, date interchange, ISO, withdrawn standard.

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: ISO 2014:1976 is an ISO International Standard titled "Writing of calendar dates in all‑numeric form" that defines an unambiguous numeric date ordering (year‑month‑day).

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers the principal convention for representing calendar dates as numeric fields (year, month, day) in a most‑significant‑first order to ensure clarity and correct sorting in international interchange.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Historically, standards bodies, documentation professionals, system designers and organizations exchanging date information internationally. Its format is now commonly used by software developers, database administrators and anyone needing unambiguous date strings.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: ISO 2014:1976 has been withdrawn and its content was revised and superseded by ISO 8601 (first issued 1988). The ISO 8601 family now provides the current, comprehensive rules for date and time representations.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: Yes — it formed part of a set of ISO documents on dates and times (together with standards addressing week numbering and ordinal dates) that were unified into ISO 8601.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Numeric date, calendar date, YYYY‑MM‑DD, YYYYMMDD, big‑endian, date interchange, ISO 2014, ISO 8601.