EDTF Uncertain/Approximate Qualifier Decoder

Split an Extended Date/Time Format value into its base value and trailing uncertainty qualifier (? uncertain, ~ approximate, % both).

Description

Decode a trailing EDTF uncertainty or approximation qualifier into its base value and plain-language meaning.

Split an Extended Date/Time Format value into its base value and trailing uncertainty qualifier (? uncertain, ~ approximate, % both).

When to use EDTF Uncertain/Approximate Qualifier Decoder

  • Decode a trailing EDTF uncertainty or approximation qualifier into its base value and plain-language meaning.
  • Apply the same explicit rule consistently during ingest, quality control, reporting, or preservation planning.
  • Expose records that need human review without silently rewriting the source data.

How the calculation works

The percent sign is a combined EDTF qualifier here, not a numeric percentage.1

? = uncertain; ~ = approximate; % = uncertain and approximate

Interpreting the result

The percent sign is a combined EDTF qualifier here, not a numeric percentage.

Limitations and assumptions

  • This decoder removes only one trailing qualifier and does not validate the remaining date, masked digits, sets, seasons, or qualifiers inside interval endpoints.
  • Preserve the original value and record the rule version when using this result in an archival workflow.

References

  1. Digital preservation — Wikipedia contributors

Similar or alternative tools

  • ISO 8601 Date Interval Format Validator

    Validate a practical ISO 8601 interval subset of the form start/end. It checks Gregorian calendar dates (including leap years), clock and UTC-offset ranges, reduced-precision dates, and non-mixed calendar or week durations; it does not compare endpoint chronology.

  • Checksum Fixity Verification Pass-Fail Comparator

    Verify fixity by comparing expected and actual checksum strings after trimming surrounding whitespace and case-folding both values.

  • Country Code ISO 3166 Alpha-2 Validator

    Validate whether a normalized two-letter value is a currently assigned ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code. Reserved and user-assigned letter pairs are not accepted.

Don't forget to set a bookmark for tool.io!
Privacy | Imprint | Cookies