Some Latin abbreviations as 'i.e.' and 'e.g.' are always followed by a comma. For the Latin abbreviation 'viz.', sometimes it is followed by a comma, sometimes it is not. What is the rule for inserting or not inserting a comma just after 'viz.' ?
Learn English – When should ‘viz.’ be followed by a comma
abbreviationscommaslatinpunctuationwriting-style
Best Answer
Whether to add a comma after viz.—or, for that matter, after e.g. or i.e.—is a style question that different style guides answer differently. For example, The Oxford Guide to Style (2002) has this:
Consistent with that advice, The Oxford Dictionary for Writers and Editors (2000) has this entry for viz.:
But The Chicago Manual of Style, fifteenth Edition (2003) endorses the opposite approach in a section titled "THAT IS, NAMELY, FOR EXAMPLE, OR, AND SIMILAR EXPRESSIONS":
Since viz. is the Latin abbreviation equivalent of namely, the "comma customary" guideline presumably applies to it. Elsewhere (at 15.45) Chicago includes viz. on its lengthy list of scholarly abbreviations, about which it says, "Note that Latin abbreviations are normally set in in roman."
So Oxford and Chicago disagree about whether viz. (and i.e. and e.g.) should be followed by a comma. Chicago considers the comma "customary," but Oxford bans it. If you are free to choose your own style, I'd say that the factors to weigh are whether "double punctuation" bothers you (as it does OUP) and whether "customary [U.S.] practice" is something you care about. Another practical question you might ask yourself is whether you would be inclined to put a comma after namely if you decided to use it in place of viz. in the particular instance you're dealing with.