Wikipedia origin (Timeline)

• A week before the Christmas break, Jeremy Rosenfeld tells Wales about wikis (per Wales, emails and statements by him).
• Tuesday 26th December 2000. Kira Wales born, and is immediately put into intensive care, suffering from serious lung condition. Wales has to remain at the hospital, ‘for some time’. Supported by multiple accounts, including Wales himself. It is not clear when Kira’s condition is resolved.
• Tuesday 2nd January 2001 – Sanger meets Kovitz, Sanger seeks authority from Wales to start a wiki. Supported by multiple accounts
• 3rd or 4th of January, first wiki is downloaded and installed, either by Wales or by sysop Jason Richie.
• Wed, 10 Jan 2001 12:50:32 -0800 = Wed UTC 20:50:32 Sanger posts to the Nupedia mailing list, proposing to ‘add a little feature to Nupedia’. Note, this is a proposal to incorporate a wiki structure into Nupedia, not to create Wikipedia. "We would not integrate the Nupedia wiki into the rest of Nupedia (though wiki pages could link to regular Nupedia pages, there wouldn't be links back)." "On the front page of the Nupedia wiki we'd make it ABSOLUTELY clear that this is experimental". "As to Nupedia's use of a wiki, this is the ULTIMATE "open" and simple format for developing content. We have occasionally bandied about ideas for simpler, more open projects to either replace or supplement Nupedia." "'Jimmy Wales thinks that many people might find the idea objectionable, but I think not".
• Wed, 10 Jan 2001 22:29:58 +0000 = Wed UTC 22:29:58 Ruth Ifcher (handle: Rosa Parks), member of the Nupedia Advisory Board, supports the idea.
• Wed, 10 Jan 2001 17:20:10 -0800 = Wed UTC 25:20:10 Larry announces the URL for the Nupedia wiki on http://www.nupedia.com/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?NupediaWikiHomePage. "Told you we could make it fast. It hasn't yet been linked from the website, so if you're very concerned that we're going to make utter jackasses of ourselves and you want to stop us from doing this, speak up!"
• From lsanger@nupedia.com Wed Jan 10 17:25:00 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com ed, 10 Jan 2001 20:25:00 -0500 (EST = Wed 25:25:00) Larry "Here's the URL for Nupedia's wiki: http://www.nupedia.com/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?NupediaWikiHomePage Told you we could make it fast. It hasn't yet been linked from the website, so if you're very concerned that we're going to make utter jackasses of ourselves and you want to stop us from doing this, speak up! :-)
• From mkulikow@email.smith.edu Wed Jan 10 19:31:59 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com Wed, 10 Jan 2001 22:31:59 -0500 (EST = Wed 27:31:59) Kulikowski "I think we're going to make utter jackasses of ourselves, as you eloquently put it. Gimmicks are no good substitute for the academic seriousness with which this whole project began. MK"
• Thu, 11 Jan 2001 13:48:39 -0600 = UTC 19:48:39 Cindy Lynn Seeley. "Larry, I think the idea of a Wiki is great...I just might end up wearing out my browser's "Back" button trying to keep from losing myself though. :-)) Cindy Lynn"
• From jwales@aristotle.bomis.com Thu Jan 11 16:11:22 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com Thu, 11 Jan 2001 19:11:22 -0500 (EST = Thu 24:11:22 UTC) Jimmy "Maybe we could install the wiki under a totally different brand name"
• Thu, 11 Jan 2001 16:22:39 -0800 = Thu UTC 24:22:39 Quoting a message on Advisory-l - "Maybe we could install the wiki under a totally different brand name, and just let people who sign up for Nupedia aware that lots of Nupedians tend to hang out there.", Larry says " That'd be fine with me; I'm not sure how exactly it would be connected to Nupedia, though. We wouldn't call it "the Nupedia wiki" though that's what it would be. We might have a question on the "about" page: "Q. Do you have a place where I can simply write down ideas, post articles, etc., for public consumption? A. Yes. Use the _wikipedia_!" On the "wikipedia" we would say that this is a supplementary project to Nupedia which operates entirely independently. Larry" This seems to be the first recorded use of the term 'Wikipedia'.
• From lsanger@nupedia.com Thu Jan 11 16:26:32 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com Thu, 11 Jan 2001 19:26:32 -0500 (EST = UTC 24:26:32) Larry Sanger "That'd be fine with me; I'm not sure how exactly it would be connected to Nupedia, though. We wouldn't call it "the Nupedia wiki" though that's what it would be."
• From ander100@msu.edu Fri Jan 12 05:28:14 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com Fri, 12 Jan 2001 05:30:07 -0800 (=Fri 13:30:07 UTC) Carl Anderson: "The question seems to me not whether we are stodgy--it is whether we want to invest our time in silliness."
• From jwales@aristotle.bomis.com Fri Jan 12 12:13:19 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com 15:13:19 -0500 (EST = Fri 20:13:19 UTC) "in this case, I tend to side with the conservatives".
• From mkulikow@email.smith.edu Fri Jan 12 12:13:19 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com Fri, 12 Jan 2001 12:20:46 -0800 (=Fri 20:20:46 UTC) "Jimmy's suggestion ["Maybe we could install the wiki under a totally different brand name"] is very reasonable and I think we should adopt it."
• From lsanger@nupedia.com Fri Jan 12 16:28:37 2001 / cobrand.bomis.com Fri, 12 Jan 2001 19:28:37 -0500 (EST = Fri 24:28:37 UTC) ‘Yes, we're going to register "wikipedia.com"’.
• Creation Date: 2001-01-12T16:12:14-0800 (= 24:12:14 UTC) http://whois.domaintools.com/wikipedia.com
• January 15 2001 They [Larry plus who?] relaunch the wiki under its own domain name. Larry came up with the name "Wikipedia," and the newly independent project was launched at Wikipedia.com on January 15, 2001. It was a ".com" at first because, at the time, we were contemplating selling ads to pay for me, programmers, and servers. (Sanger - A memoir)
• The earliest surviving edit was to the HomePage on 15 January 2001, reading "This is the new WikiPedia!"
• The oldest article still preserved is the article UuU, created on 16 January 2001, at 21:08 UTC. See also eiffel.demon.co.uk (talk) at 20:12, 16 January 2001 on Transport, consisting of four words "AirTransport RailTransport RoadTransport SeaTransport".
• Wed, 17 Jan 2001 15:16:25 -0800 Larry http://www.wikipedia.com/ Humor me. Go there and add a little article. It will take all of five or ten minutes. --Larry
• Sat, 20 Jan 2001 10:56:42 -0600 Jimmy Wales "Perhaps we could have a wikipedia mailing list over on wikipedia, so that people who are messing around over there can talk to each other like this?"
  • Sat, 20 Jan 2001 12:35:11 -0600 "I think that would be an excellent idea Jimmy! I'm afraid Nupedians who do "not" wish to participate in Wikipedia may end up withdrawing their participation from Nupedia as well, if Wikipedia continues to be addressed in Nupedia mailing lists. Best regards, Cindy Lynn :-)) "
• Mon Jan 22 00:02:42 UTC 2001 Sanger sets up separate Wikipedia mailing list.

See also

• Origin of the wiki
• Nupedia
• Nupedia-l