Use ARIA as word instead of abbreviation

[shawna-slh]

Is ARIA sufficiently lexicalized, that is, the acronym is used so often by itself that it's accepted as a word in its own right — e.g., scuba, laser, radar. If so, we can use ARIA standalone without "Accessible Rich Internet Applications".

Proposal: Treat "ARIA" as a word instead of an acronym, yet use all caps.

• Use just "ARIA" for page titles, headings, etc.
• Only use "WAI-ARIA" the first time in main text.
• Only write out the old thing it stood for the first time in main text. e.g., This page introduces WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications suite of web standards.

Note: We originally used WAI-ARIA to avoid trademark issues. We can confirm with W3C legal council that is not necessary.

ping @tamsinewing555 @daniel-montalvo @iadawn @jnurthen @spectranaut @a11ydoer @mcking65 @cookiecrook @pkra (feel free to add others)

[tamsinewing555]

+1
ARIA, like PDF and DVD, has become part of the English language.
Agree that we should still provide the expanded form the first time it's used in the main text on the page.

[yatil]

This is primarily about letting go of the "WAI-" prefix? I think that's ok.

I think I have rarely used the prefix, let alone in casual conversation.

I also think it's better for consistency, considering ARIA attributes start with aria- and not wai-aria- 🙂

[hidde]

Seems right to me to use mostly ‘ARIA’ instead of ‘WAI-ARIA’, it feels like that would be clear enough (or even clearer to some), anecdotally I haven't heard folks use the prefix for a while.

[shawna-slh]

Sorry the main point wasn't clear. While it includes the prefix, the main point is about dropping "Accessible Rich Internet Applications":

Use just "ARIA" for page titles, headings, [site navigation] etc.

e.g.:

• not having the requirement that on first instance is written out "Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA)"
• use "ARIA" even for info intended for newbies

This is formalizing what we've been moving to informally for several years. (and is needed for new editor :)

[stevefaulkner]

It is commonplace to use the term ARIA over WAI-ARIA For example the W3C specification ARIA in HTML.