Heading Hierarchy Standards

Aevum Encyclopedia maintains a strict heading hierarchy to ensure semantic structure, accessibility, and consistent navigation across our 2.4 million articles. This document outlines the protocols for content creators and editors.

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System Enforcement: The Aevum CMS automatically validates heading sequences. Articles violating hierarchy rules are flagged for review before publication.

Core Hierarchy Rules

Every article in the Aevum ecosystem must adhere to a linear, nested heading structure. Skipping levels creates fragmentation in our knowledge graph and hinders assistive technologies.

<h1> Article Title

<h2> Primary Section

<h3> Sub-section

<h4> Detail Group

<h3> Sub-section

<h2> Primary Section

<p> Conclusion / References

Level	Usage	Constraints
`H1`	Article Title	Exactly one per article. Auto-generated from page slug.
`H2`	Major Sections	Top-level organization. Min 2, Max 15 per article.
`H3`	Sub-sections	Must be nested under H2. Group related topics.
`H4`	Details / Lists	Nested under H3. Used for specific data groups.

Standard Article Template

Most encyclopedia entries follow a canonical structure. The following example demonstrates the expected heading sequence for a comprehensive article.

html / structure

<h1>Quantum Entanglement</h1>
<p>Introduction paragraph defining the core concept...</p>

<h2>History</h2>
<p>Chronological overview...</p>
<h3>Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen Paradox</h3>
<p>Discussion of the 1935 paper...</p>

<h2>Theoretical Framework</h2>
<h3>Mathematical Description</h3>
<p>Tensor product states...</p>
<h3>Bell's Theorem</h3>
<p>Inequalities and violation...</p>

<h2>Applications</h2>
<h3>Quantum Cryptography</h3>
<h3>Quantum Teleportation</h3>

<h2>References</h2>
<h2>See Also</h2>

Specialized Content Types

Certain page types deviate from the standard article hierarchy to accommodate specific functionality.

Disambiguation Pages

Disambiguation pages use H2 for the topic name, followed immediately by a list of links. No introductory text should use headings.

disambiguation

<h1>Apple (disambiguation)</h1>
<p>Apple may refer to:</p>
<ul>
  <li><h2>Apple (fruit)</h2></li>
  <li><h2>Apple Inc.</h2></li>
  <li><h2>Apple Records</h2></li>
</ul>

Category Portals

Portal pages utilize H2 for thematic groupings, with H3 reserved for featured article highlights.

Accessibility & Validation

Aevum Encyclopedia is committed to WCAG 2.1 AA compliance. Proper heading hierarchy is essential for screen reader navigation.

Linear Flow: Headings must outline the document structure logically.
No Skip Levels: Jumping from H2 to H4 is prohibited.
Descriptive Text: Headings must be concise and descriptive, not just "Click Here" or vague labels.

🔍

Editor Tool: Use the #heading-checker macro in the Aevum Editor to visualize the outline of your draft before saving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use H1 for subtitles?

No. H1 is reserved exclusively for the page title. Subtitles should use H2 or H3 depending on their nesting.

How do I handle appendices?

Appendices are treated as H2 sections titled "Appendix A", "Appendix B", etc., nested at the same level as the References section.