3000 B.C. or three thousand B.C.

I've seen the more PC version as 3,000 B.C.E.

At the end of a sentence it would be 3000 BCE.

What's the E for?

Before Common Era. Then "CE" means "common era."

"Era."

BCE = Before the Common Era.

CE = Common Era (i.e., "A.D.")

These designations are preferred in many scholarly circles.

The Canadian Style suggests a number. Don't know what the Canadian Press Handbook says.

Use a number for dates unless there's a specific over-riding stylistic reason, for instance in dialog "In the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and thirty, . . ."

CE and BCE represent exactly the same time span as AD and BC; BCE or Before the Common Era is usually used by academics because it's not tied to Christianity (the Jewish calendar, the Hindu, and the Islamic calendar all have different start dates from the conventional or Christian calendar) and because Christ was not born in the year 1.

See: http://www.religioustolerance.org/ce.htm

Whether to use letters or letters and periods (or BC and BCE vs AD and BC) will depend on the house style of the publisher; just pick one and be consistent.

msd said:

Actually, that was going to be my next question.

B.C.
BC
B.C.E.
BCE

Thanks

Click to expand...

Whichever you prefer. They are abbreviations, but the periods are often dropped, as has become the fashion with many abbreviations.

I've never seen a professional write "three thousand B.C." (or BCE). I think once you get into four digits, you have to use figures.