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It's not circular, it's a line! :-)
And what is a circle other than a circular line? I rest my case, m'lord.
Because the reference letters are uppercase
The name 'em' was in reference to the block size of the uppercase letter M, but that's no reason for it to be uppercase itself. If it was about the shape, like T-shirt or Q-tip, we'd maybe be in agreement.
Well, the lowercase letter m does not have the same block size.
because it's a name
Well, it's a noun, but it's not a proper noun, so it doesn't need a capital for that reason.
Yes, and more specifically, it's a name. It's a name that has recognisable components, but it's still a name. Obviously, the English word 'noun' comes from the Latin word 'nomen'=name, but in English, name and noun are different concepts. Equally obviously, there are different conventions for capitalisation of names; I've always found it interesting that there are lowercase usernames on here, and I observe the convention of not capitalising them, even at the beginning of sentences. Some names have capitals on every component, and some have a mix, e.g. Transport for London.
and to distinguish it from the measurement unit.
It is the measurement unit (the em of pica is a third of an inch or something) so doesn't need distinguishing from itself.
The Em dash is not the measurement unit, the em is. Not sure what you were driving at there.
Feel like I may have lost the room long ago at this point, but have attached some screengrabs from the OED on the usages of 'em' for fellow nerds … en-joy!
I'm well aware of general usage, but both variants are in use. In my opinion, 'Em dash' and 'En dash' are clearer and better. They still contain the idea that the dashes are derived from the measurement unit, but clarify that they are different from the unit.
Don't worry about losing the room, unless you go to Nerd Nite, in which case you don't have to worry about losing the room, either. (NB I've never been, nor have I been to Dorkbot, although I have been to GeekstraVEGANza. I thought I'd clarify this.)
Oliver Schick-
Can’t go into all the reasons the above is incorrect, but no: em is lowercase.
In brief:
The word em is the name of a measurement based on, but no longer dictated by, the letter M.Context and rarity clarify its meaning. It doesn’t need a capital, like it doesn’t need putting in bold or underlining. It is. We don’t need to gild the lily. English dropped capitalisation of all Nouns in Sentences just because they’re Names a couple of Centuries ago.
There’s an argument for preference, sure! Why would I care about personal usage? I wouldn’t dream of arguing the point if you hadn’t ‘corrected’ me with such authority in the first place.
Capitalising ‘em’ makes as much sense as capitalising ‘alpha’ every time you use it (eg: he was no Alpha male). Just because it once referred to a capital, doesn't mean it needs a capital. If it was about the shape, it could be argued for. Take the L.
Again, can’t believe I have such strong opinions on usage of em. Need to go to Nerd Nite, be among my tribe.
croggy
It's not circular, it's a line! :-)
To take your arguments for (It should always be 'En dashes' and 'Em dashes') in turn.
The name 'em' was in reference to the block size of the uppercase letter M, but that's no reason for it to be uppercase itself. If it was about the shape, like T-shirt or Q-tip, we'd maybe be in agreement.
Well, it's a noun, but it's not a proper noun, so it doesn't need a capital for that reason.
It is the measurement unit (the em of pica is a third of an inch or something) so doesn't need distinguishing from itself.
Feel like I may have lost the room long ago at this point, but have attached some screengrabs from the OED on the usages of 'em' for fellow nerds … en-joy!