Wikipedia:List_of_hoaxes_on_Wikipedia

Wikipedia:List of hoaxes on Wikipedia

This is a list of known historical hoaxes created on the English Wikipedia. It is not for known hoaxes which are notable in their own right, such as the Piltdown Man. Its purpose is to document hoaxes on Wikipedia, in order to improve our understanding of them and our ability to detect them. For the purpose of this list, a hoax is defined as a clear and deliberate attempt to deceptively present false information as fact. Libel, vandalism, and honest factual errors are not considered hoaxes. A hoax is considered notable enough for inclusion in this list if it evaded detection for more than one month or was discussed by reliable sources in the media. This list is incomplete, as many hoaxes remain undiscovered.

Shortcuts

Hoaxes can be added to this page if they meet the requirements above. Do not list Wikipedia April Fools' Day pranks or factual articles about encyclopedically notable hoaxes. Start/Deletion date and Length are the dates and approximate time the article was generally visible.

For many of the below hoaxes, you can see an archived version of the deleted article by clicking on its title (see also list of archived hoaxes). Some also remain available from mirror sites. Any administrator can create an archived version of a hoax upon request by following the instructions below.

More information Suggestions to administrators on archiving hoaxes ...

Academic research has investigated the impact and characteristics of Wikipedia hoaxes, and has proposed automated methods for detecting them. Researchers found that the automatic classification system was better at identifying hoaxes on Wikipedia than humans (86% vs. 63% accuracy) and used their algorithm to identify previously undiscovered hoaxes like "Steve Moertel" which went undetected for almost 7 years.^[2] One way to identify hoax articles included examining the article structure and content, its mentions in other articles on Wikipedia (i.e., embeddedness), and features of the editor who created the page. Specifically, hoax articles are likely to be longer than a legitimate article, less likely to have links to other Wikipedia articles, references, images, or other "wiki-like" markup, less likely to be mentioned in other Wikipedia articles before its creation, and more likely to be created by a new account with few to no other edits.^[2]

While most hoaxes on Wikipedia are short-lived (89% of discovered hoaxes are flagged within one hour of creation and only 1% of hoaxes persist for more than a year), those that make it past this initial screening have an increased probability of continuing to "survive" and remain a part of Wikipedia for much longer (if a hoax survives past its first day, it has an 18% probability of lasting for a year or more). Compared to unsuccessful hoaxes, successful hoaxes that survive for long periods of time are more likely to include some "wiki-like" mark-up and more likely to include links to other articles on Wikipedia.^[2]

Compared to legitimate articles, successful hoaxes generally receive less daily traffic, have a longer median article length (134 versus 71 words), and include fewer links to other Wikipedia articles when considering their article length.^[2]

False statements in articles

Besides entire articles, there have also been false statements that were added to otherwise authentic pages. Please note that some of the entries here are possibly not hoaxes. Hoaxes require proof of an intentional attempt to mislead. Many false statements can be a result of a mistake or might represent cases where the person who added them believed in claims made.

Classification of hoaxes:

Type 1 (Admission of hoax)
Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness)
Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it)
Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt)
Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith)

Extant for 10+ years

More information Claim, Length ...

Claim	Length	Insertion date	Removal date	Links	Error type
Claim of a 1725 French scientific expedition to Clipperton Island	19 years, 3 months	December 21, 2003	April 5, 2023	Added, Cite added, Removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Claim added in December 2003 during an expansion of the article. A citation needed tag was added in January 2018. In July 2020 an (unfortunately unreliable) source was added. Since 2003, the claim has been widely repeated online and in print. A review in April 2023 found no sources predating 2003 for a 1725 French expedition; instead, there are numerous reliable sources for the first recorded landing on the island occurring in 1825.
Claims about the etymology of Mont Ventoux	18 years, 8 months	April 10, 2005	December 7, 2023	Added, Removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Claim added in April 2005 in the early days of the article. A dubious tag was added in November 2020, along with detailed discussion on the talk page. The French version of the article describes the claims as implausible. Likely came from an unreliable source or a misinterpretation of a source.
Claim about a point in the Saya de Malha Bank called "Poydenot Rock"	18 years, 4 months	November 13, 2005	March 5, 2024	Added, Removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Claim added in November 2005 with a mystical source of "Indian Ocean Pilot" listed in the edit summary. Since then, a few academic and governmental publications have mentioned the point (see Vortsepneva 2008, Ramah et al. 2021, and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency 2020). Ramah et al. cite New et al. 2013, which makes no mention of it. Vortsepneva 2008 clearly just copy-pasted from Wikipedia. Otherwise no discernible evidence this place is real, or if it is, that this is its name.
Claim that Jefferson-Pilot Communications founded WJPR-TV in Lynchburg, Virginia, in WFXR	16 years, 11 months	March 30, 2006	February 22, 2023	Added, Removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Claim added in March 2006 in the early days of the article. It was not debunked until an overhaul in February 2023. The original permit owner for WJPR was a James Price, though he sold the station during launch. The article as it stood when the hoax was added was riddled with incorrect dates and facts for related station WFXR; every date in that revision is wrong.
Claim that the middle name of Polish poet Cyprian Norwid was Konstanty	16 years, 10 months	November 13, 2006	September 12, 2023	Added, Removed	Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness). Claim added by an IP, not confirmed by any source. Hard to imagine it was a mistake.
Claim that Harrison Ford moved to Los Angeles in 1964 to pursue radio work	16 years, 2 months	November 3, 2007	January 22, 2024	Added, Removed	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt) or Type 1 (Admission of hoax) if the Tumblr post does not refer to some other hoax. Claim added by an IP, not confirmed by any source per Talk:Harrison Ford/Archive 3#Radio voice-over career attempt. Hard to imagine it was a mistake, especially given a Tumblr post by someone who claims to be her student.^[6]
Claim that the screaming piha is known as the "Pwe-pwe Yoh" by the Cofán people of Ecuador	15 years, 8 months	August 18, 2007	April 30, 2023	Added, Removed	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt). Added by an IP with only 3 edits, all on the same day, and all about screaming pihas. Later, on March 10, 2012, another unreferenced and dubious name from a different indigenous language (Secoya) was added. This was also removed on April 30, 2023.
Claim that the publishers of Richard Feynman's Lectures on Physics thought that putting Chladni patterns on the cover would send dangerous "rock and roll and drug" messages	15 years, 5 months	February 21, 2007	July 23, 2022	Added, Edited, Removed	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt). Added by an IP that traces back to a K-12 school system, so kids goofing off looks likely. Toned down, but not removed, in June 2012. Slipped through GA review and promotion to FA.
Claim that the United States used $3 million in gold as a down payment when Financing the Louisiana Purchase	14 years, 9 months	November 16, 2007	August 18, 2022	Added, Cited, Copy edit, Removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). The claim was added, unsourced, by an IP editor in November 2007. At the time of the insertion, only the use of bonds to finance the purchase was mentioned. (A wave of vandalism in March 2007 had blanked a prior, less detailed financing section (Added; Blanked), which wasn't recreated until August 2007.) At the time, most of the article was sourced to a single general history book. It's possible the IP editor knew bonds were issued for only a portion of the sale price and made an assumption about the remainder. In 2010, an editor reworked the bonds portion of the paragraph, adding a source, but left the statement about gold in place. In 2014, a copy edit extended the mention of shipping gold based on the same source. As part of a reworking of the section in 2022, an attempt to verify the down payment in gold claim discovered it to be false and the claim was replaced with proper information about financing the deal through a mix of debt assumption and bonds.
Claim that World War II legally ended in 1990/1991 with the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany	14 years, 6 months	April 7, 2008	October 18, 2022	Added, Removed	Discussion on Wikiproject Military History
Claim that The Swiss Family Robinson was translated into Arabic in a film titled "Al-Ṭurfa al-Šahiyya fī aḫbār al-ʿAʾila al-Swīsiyya (c. 1900)"	14 years, 2 months	April 3, 2008	May 26, 2022	Added, as Film, Removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). The claim was added, unsourced, by an IP editor in early April 2008 under the "Other Adaptations" category, which was at the time not format-specific. In 2010, the categories were redone, and it ended up under "Film Versions" — while purportedly predating both talkies and subtitles (rendering its "Arabic translation" label farcical) as well as the existence of Arabic cinema. It survived untouched — unsourced and untagged as such — until late May 2022, when an editor noticed its purported date was implausibly early for an Arabic film, went searching for a source, and failed to find one for either the film or a similarly titled text translation.
Claim that there had been a proposal to put a spire atop the Louvre Pyramid "to simplify window washing".	14 years	June 11, 2007	May 31, 2021	Added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). The claim was added by a sockpuppet of a banned user in 2007 with a suspicious edit summary and built-in {{cn}} tag. The claim remained in the article, always tagged as unsourced, for over a decade, being removed just shy of the 14-year mark in 2021. The only references on the Web to a spire on the Louvre Pyramid are passing references on blogs, all postdating the claim's addition to the article.
Claim that Chola Navy is an independent fighting force of the Cholas with elaborate description such as technology, organization, administration, type of vessels and weapons.	13 years, 6 months	December 25, 2008	June 29, 2022	added, removed	Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness). Imported from draft space with many unreferenced parts. The article grew more elaborate over the years with many references added after its creation. A part was identified as a hoax by a Reddit user after a made up ship known as the "Thirisadai" was added into Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. They identified several problems such as using fake sources and misattributed sources, lacking additional references for comparison, and using a fraudulent image as its support. After gradual rechecking and verification of the sources, many parts of the article have been identified as fraud and consequently deleted.
Claim that a 10 metre fibreglass Zulu boat was discovered in a hotel beer cellar in the Scottish Highland village of Tomintoul.	13 years, 4 months	August 8, 2006	December 9, 2019	added, removed	Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness). Unreferenced section added by an IP to an article when at the time said article had no references. The hoax was finally removed when it was mistakenly identified as plagiarising the Travel Scotland tourist site, who had in fact taken their colourful piece of local history from Wikipedia (see Wikipedia:CITOGENESIS). No reliable sources for this claim have been found so far.
Claim that the United States Naval Academy's first mascot before Bill the Goat was a gorilla called the Navy Monkey.	12 years, 10 months	May 27, 2009	April 5, 2022	added, removed	Type 1 (Admission of hoax). The statement was added by a new account on 27 May 2009. The account made no other edits to Wikipedia aside from this. On 5 April 2022 a user on Twitter claimed to be the person who added the hoax, saying they did it so that they could wear a gorilla costume while presenting their school project on the Naval Academy.
Claim that the 1924 Democratic National Convention was also known as the "Klanbake".	12 years, 7 months	August 23, 2005	March 15, 2018	added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). This alternative name was added to the article in 2005; at that time the article had no references. The name was reused in another hoax or error that begun circulated on social media in 2015 (see the section discussing the "Klanbake" meme in the 1924 Democratic National Convention article) until it was removed from Wikipedia in 2018 after repeatedly failing verification.
Claim that the Singaporean town of Ang Mo Kio was named after the fictitious "Lady Jennifer Windsor", whose ghost haunted the bridge where her three children drowned.	11 years, 8 months	November 21, 2008	July 29, 2020	Added, removed.	Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness). The claim was added by Paulchen68 in 2008; at that time the article had no references. The short lived account made several other edits to Wikipedia which appear to have been in good faith. The ghost story was removed in 2020 when it failed verification. See discussion; with the only source pre-dating the Wikipedia entry being an Internet forum post from earlier that day. Before being removed from Wikipedia, the hoax made its way into at least one book and a TV show.
A claim that former UK Prime Minister John Major's interest in politics was partly sparked by "a chance meeting with Clement Attlee on the King's Road."	11 years, 5 months	November 9, 2008	April 15, 2020	added, removed	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt). The claim was added by a SPA account without a reference to an unreferenced paragraph. It was eventually removed over a decade later as failing verification.
The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny A claim that the song was distributed under the nonexistent record label "Bandung Records"	11 years, 2 months	January 23, 2010	March 24, 2021	added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Claim added by an anon to an infobox and removed for being unreferenced over a decade earlier. See also Talk:The_Ultimate_Showdown_of_Ultimate_Destiny.
The existence of Moose Boulder Island, an alleged fourth-order island located within Ryan Island on Isle Royale	10 years, 10 months	May 5, 2009	March 10, 2020	added, removed	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt). In 2020 an article in Atlas Obscura discussed the results of an investigation of local explorers into the existence of this purported island, noting they failed to locate it. The article traced the story of it to Wikipedia, further writing that "The identity of that first Wikipedia user to write about it—with those completely unrelated sources—remains a mystery, but all available evidence suggests that it was a person having a laugh, nothing more." The article further noted the claim has been removed and reinstated on Wikipedia, however with a note that "the second Wikipedia editor—who perpetuated the earlier misinformation on Moose Boulder—had been “genuinely duped” rather than [being] a conspirator." The journalist investigation, however, did not reveal any information about the editor who added the error, and there is no evidence their addition of Moose Boulder to Wikipedia was intended to mislead anyone. The article contains a disclaimer that the authors "can’t be 100 percent sure that it doesn’t exist, without exploring every square foot of the island, which is very densely forested." While the claim was removed from Wikipedia's entry for Isle Royale shortly after the publication of the Atlas Obscura story, as of 2021, the hoax is discussed at Siskiwit Lake (Isle Royale) (to which it was copied upon the page creation in 2014), where the Moose Boulder redirect (created in 2020) points. See also Talk:Siskiwit_Lake_(Isle_Royale)#Moose_Flats_and_Moose_Boulder.
Torvald Hightower A fictitious 18th-century "philanthropic pioneer," who was claimed to exist on the page for the name Torvald	10 years, 7 months	September 10, 2008	May 5, 2019	added, removed, added again, removed a second time	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt). Unreferenced short entry added to a list of otherwise unreferenced entries by an IP (note: disambiguation pages are usually unreferenced per Wikipedia's Manual of Style). The name "Torvald Hightower" does not appear in any sources. It was originally added by an IP in December 2007, then removed in April 2008, before being added again by a different IP in September 2008. The last addition was not undone until May 2019.

Extant for 8-10 years

More information Claim, Length ...

Claim	Length	Insertion date	Removal date	Links	Error type
Franklin Avenue station (BMT Lexington Avenue Line) Claim that the station was originally named Electric Avenue because electricity was discovered here.	9 years, 10 months	May 30, 2011	March 14, 2021	added, removed	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it). Claim was added by an account whose other edits were obvious vandalisms: , , . Unlike others, this one seemed somewhat plausible and evaded scrutiny for almost 10 years.
Adam Gilchrist Fictitious claims that Australian cricketer Adam Gilchrist read the works of Karl Marx when on tour.	9 years, 2 months	February 22, 2009	May 2, 2018	Added here and here, removed. Gilchrist's denial on twitter (dead link)	Type 3 (Possible hoax but with room for doubt). Claim added by a single-purpose IP. The hoax claim was cited to a fictitious statement in a real book by Australian Captain Ricky Ponting. Claim failed verification (removed with edit summary: "The claim doesn't appear on the cited pages of the book - or anywhere in it.") and was disputed by the subject who tweeted that "someone [was] taking the piss" after it spread to several newspapers, including The Times of India. However, other information added by the IP has been correctly referenced and was so far retained as correct. Whether the IP intended to mislead or made an error is unclear.
Lord Byron Claims that he kept a crocodile and a honey badger as pets	8 years, 8½ months	November 20, 2006	August 7, 2015	crocodile added, honey badger added, both removed Crocodile mentioned in The Sunday Times	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Both claims were added by an IP (one in November 2006 and the other in January 2014). At those times the list of animals Lord Byron kept was entirely unreferenced anyway, and the claims seem plausible. A request for citation for this list of animals was added in May 2014. In August 2015 reference was added by the same editor who removed entries for crocodile and honey badger, who also said "Add a citation for the animals (except the parrot, which I can't find a source for, but it was added in the same edit as the others and wasn't a deliberate hoax" and removed the entry for the parrot as well. The list of animals was added in June 2003 without a reference by an editor in good standing. Whether the entries for the parrot, crocodile and honey badger were all intentional jokes, honest errors, or based on a rare and as yet uncited source cannot be determined at this point.
	1 year, 6 months	January 29, 2014	August 7, 2015
Muhammad Ali "A youth club in Ali's home town, a species of rose (Rosa Ali) and a small child have all been named after him."	8 years, 4½ months	November 9, 2006	March 28, 2015	added, removed.	Type 1 (Admission of hoax). The statement was added by an IP on November 9, 2006. On 28 March 2015 Michael Deacon stated that he was the one who added it: "Once, when I was working at a men’s magazine, a colleague was compiling a quiz about Muhammad Ali. As a test, I inserted a banal lie into Ali’s Wikipedia biography (I said a species of rose, rosa ali, is named after him). Innocently my colleague incorporated the lie into his quiz. Ten years later, on Ali’s frequently updated Wikipedia page, that lie is still there." The hoax was subsequently removed from Wikipedia within 24 hours.
Ailuropoda melanoleuca hastroni, a purported extinct subspecies of giant panda	8 years, 20 days (5½ years at Giant panda)	July 2, 2009	July 21, 2017	Addition Questioned Removal	Type 2 (Obvious hoax). Added by an IP editor in 2009 and spread to other language wikis, both at Ailuropoda and giant panda. A 2017 edit added a {{citation needed}} tag with the comment "cant find ref to A. m. hastorni which isn't based off this Wikipedia entry". It was removed entirely shortly there after, but remained in other projects and at giant panda until 2023.
Matt Siegel "...Massachusetts Governor Paul Celluci (sic) proclaimed that January 12, 2001 shall be honored as “Matty in the Morning” Day with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts."	8 years, 5 days	March 20, 2013	March 25, 2021	added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). This claim was put in the article when it was created and was not taken down until 8 years later. Searching up both the governor's name with and without the misspelling brought up nothing about "Matty in the Morning Day". No other content present in the article at the time of its creation have been identified as false.

Extant for 4-8 years

More information Claim, Length ...

Claim	Length	Insertion date	Removal date	Links	Error type
Claim that women in Uganda refer to the Protopterus as a "sister fish" and for this reason abstain from eating them.	7 years, 11 months	March 11, 2009	February 7, 2017	added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Unreferenced content added by an IP on March 12, 2009. Citation requested on February 6, 2017, and then the text removed a day later, after diligent research by an estabilished editor found no sources (see Talk:Protopterus#Unsourced information removed). Note that the claim had by then spread to several other outlets.
A Japan Academy Prize awarded for "Outstanding Achievement in Winning an Outstanding Achievement"	7 years, 7 months	May 12, 2007	December 13, 2014	added, removed	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it) or Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness), with elaborateness meaning a pretty obvious joke. Unreferenced claim added by an IP who a few days earlier also "invented" another award, this time Academy Award for Longest Monologue. Apparently it took 7 years for someone to notice this joke (the monologue one lasted just about 3 months).
In Bill Mauldin: Mauldin's friend Irving Richtel supposedly served as the model for Willie, a cartoon character of an American soldier.	7 years, 7 months	March 9, 2008	October 16, 2015	added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Content was added into an otherwise referenced paragraph by an IP account that made no other edits before or since. 7 years later, content was removed by a regular editor with an edit summary "Both the personas and the appearance predate Richtel". The incident was never discussed on article's talk. While Mauldin served with a jeep driver named Irving Richtel (Mauldin, Bill (1944). News of the 45th, pp. 97–98, 115, 142.; Mauldin, Bill (1971). The Brass Ring, p. 164.), no source was found that said that Willie was modeled after Richtel. After the 2008 appearance in Wikipedia, the hoax migrated to Julian M. Olejniczak's 2015 book To Be A Soldier: A Selective American Military History, p. 143, and it made it into several websites such as the Armed Air Forces History Museum and the West Point Association.
In Microsoft Windows: "The history of Windows dates back to September 1981, when Chase Bishop, a computer scientist, designed the first model of an electronic device and project Interface Manager was started."	7 years, 3 months	September 26, 2010	January 25, 2018	added, removed,	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it). Content was added into an otherwise referenced paragraph by Dinnerface (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · nuke contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log), a short-lived account who vandalized the article on MySQL minutes earlier. Vandalism at MySQL was removed within one day, but the edit to Microsoft Windows was less obvious and survived for 7 years, as at that time nobody bothered to check other edits by that account and revert all of them.
Canada Dry Claims of several nonexistent flavors of soft drink, incorporating subtle jokes, some of them offensive.	7 years, 2 months	November 20, 2015	January 28, 2023	diffs of addition, diffs of removal	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it). The individual claims are more like type 4, but together show a pattern of intent to add inflammatory subtle vandalism. Note in particular obvious joke of a "Canada Dry 'Wet'" in addition to "Canada Dry 'Dry'" and the dated and offensive nationalistic stereotype regarding the Iraq War.
Fictional minor planet "14345 Mousen", named after nonexistent Pakistani astronomer and planetarium director "Mousen Saeed"	7 years, 1 month	April 19, 2012	May 29, 2019	added on March 30, 2012, removed on March 30, 2012, added back mistakenly on April 19, 2012, removed after 7 years on May 29, 2019	Actual name is 14345 Gritsevich
Claim that David Kendrick joined Bastille in 2016.	6 years, 9 months	July 3, 2016	April 14, 2023	added, initial removal, restored, removed	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it). Added by a sockpuppet of banned LTA vandal Angela Criss, who claimed that Kendrick would join Bastille for their second album Wild World, replacing their drummer Chris "Woody" Wood (although Criss initially also claimed that Kendrick would be replacing Kyle Simmons in the band). As it became evident that Wood was still a member of Bastille, the vandal instead began claiming that Kendrick had joined the band as a touring member for whenever Wood was unavailable. They also claimed that Kendrick performed with the band on various dates and played on several songs he did not (ironically most of the songs listed did not feature drums). Three days before its removal, the hoax made its way into a blog post on Kendrick's current band Xiu Xiu. The vandal had also falsely claimed that Merle Allin () and Bob Mothersbaugh (, , and ), the latter of whom was Kendrick's bandmate in Devo, would join Bastille, although these additions were more quickly spotted and removed.
Robert Serber Fictitious assassination attempt, fictitious assassin added later	6 years, 9½ months	May 6, 2009	February 12, 2016	Diff
Janusism: a fictitious form of word play	6 years, 8 months	February 5, 2015	October 14, 2021	added, removed	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it). The IP's next edit, five minutes later, makes it very clear.
Claim that the "Battery" visualization was removed in later editions of Windows Media Player 12.	6 years, 8 months	July 28, 2016	March 28, 2023	added, removed	Type 2b (Obvious hoax due to pattern of vandalism by the account which added it). Unsourced claim added by an anonymous sockpuppet of banned LTA vandal Angela Criss.
A claim that pyruvate decarboxylation is known as the "Swanson conversion." In actuality, the term was coined by a high school chemistry teacher of the same name, who decided not to remove the reference from Wikipedia in order to encourage his students to be more careful when researching.	6 years, 6½ months	December 15, 2010	June 24, 2017	added, removed Article about the edit
Claim that the fictitious vulgar name "hairy bush fruit" was an existing synonym for kiwifruit. Hoax only came to light after hoaxer admitted to it.	6 years, 5 months	November 6, 2007	March 2, 2014	Addition Blanking Removal
The article on Henry David Thoreau included a made-up quote by Louisa May Alcott about the writer's "neck-beard".	6 years, 3 months	December 21, 2007	March 18, 2014	Added, removed	Talk page comment detailing the hoax Medium article about the hoax
The article on Voice of Fire included a made-up quote indicating the painting had been hung upside down.	6 years, 2 months	February 23, 2015	May 2, 2021	Talk page comment detailing the hoax
The article on the NCAA Native American mascot decision included a statement that the San Diego State mascot practiced human sacrifice, quoting an obvious satirical article	6 years, 1 month	October 24, 2016	November 19, 2022	Added, removed	Type 4 (False or unreferenced and dubious statement that may or may not be a hoax as it could arguably have been added as a mistake or in good faith). Account has done work on Native American articles and added entire section.
Supposed existence of a “Silk Imperial Crown of Russia”, illustrated by pictures of some crown-shaped box. Probably added to advertise a fraudulent gift shop site.	6 years, 1½ month	November 15, 2015	January 3, 2022	Users involved: Diirector (talk · contribs), 1896coronation (talk · contribs) Balthatzar (talk · contribs). Articles: Imperial Crown of Russia: added, removed. Coronation of the Russian monarch: added, removed. Nicholas II of Russia: added, removed. Imperial crown: added, removed. Gift: added, removed. Draft:Silk Imperial Crown of Russia (see User talk:Balthatzar) Images: File:Silk-imperial-crown.jpg (deletion request) File:SILK IMPERIAL CROWN OFFICIAL IMPERIAL CORONATION GIFT.jpg (deletion request)
Allegation that Brierfield, Lancashire, with its smoking mills, was Tolkien's inspiration for the evil land of Mordor.	6 years, ½ month	March 8, 2006	March 21, 2012	added, removed	Was spotted by a blogger in August 2006 but didn't follow up; believed by sources including The Guardian
Claim that the coati was also known as "Brazilian aardvark".	5 years, 10 months	July 12, 2008	May 20, 2014	added, removed	Added by a then 17-year-old student as a private joke, the false information lasted for six years and was propagated by hundreds of websites, several newspapers, and even books by a few university presses.^[7]^[8] The spread was such that the joke indeed became a common name for the animal and was cited in several sources. After the initial removal, the name was reinserted multiple times by users who believed it had become legitimate.
Claim that "Bryan Tyler" and "Mark Sims" were former members of the Eli Young Band.	5 years, 8 months	February 7, 2008	October 9, 2013	added, removed
A wholly fictitious origin story for Amelia Bedelia, the main character of the eponymous popular children's book series: "'Amelia Bedelia' was based on a French colonial maid in Cameroon, where the author spent some time during her formative years. Her vast collection of hats, notorious for their extensive plumage, inspired her to write an assortment of tales based on her experiences in North Africa."	5 years, 6 months	January 31, 2009	July 29, 2014	Addition Removal Admission	After being repeated tens of times, sometimes by journalists and academics, the hoax was identified by EJ Dickson, one of its authors, turned journalist, who had written it as a joke with a friend while "stoned".
Ailuropoda melanoleuca hastroni, a purported extinct subspecies of Giant panda	5 years, 6 months (8 years at Ailuropoda)	January 20, 2018	July 22, 2023	Addition Removal	Type 2 (Obvious hoax). See talk page discussion. Subspecies was added through a good-faith edit as part of bringing over material from the Spanish-language version of the article where it existed from 2011 until 2023. There was an article on es-wiki for A.m. hastroni that was deleted as vandalism in 2013 and then recreated and deleted twice again in 2020. Of the 135 or so projects with a giant panda article, about a dozen mentioned A.m. hastroni without any citation or evidence of the species existing (these were also removed as hoaxes in July 2023). A search of Google Scholar and other sources in 2023 support finding that no reference not tracking back to Wikipedia supports the existence of this subspecies.
Claim that the "too slow" variant of a high five incited a war in the rebooted Planet of the Apes film series	5 years, 3 months	August 8, 2014	November 5, 2019	Addition, Initial removal, Final removal	The first attempt to remove this was reverted by the original editor because the information came from a seemingly reliable source, but the source was making a joke.
Fictitious claim about Oscar Wilde added to List of Latin phrases	5 years, 2 months	September 19, 2005	November 26, 2010	added, removed, Story and explanation
Claim that the Morrissey song "Everyday Is Like Sunday" was inspired by Borth in Mid Wales.	5 years, 1 month	July 4, 2010	August 9, 2015	added, removed.	Morrissey has said that his thoughts were of a "seaside town that they forgot to bomb". It was claimed that he had said in an interview that he was specifically referring to Borth, sourced only to a dated issue of a magazine. An anonymous editor overheard someone claiming they'd added it as a joke, and tracked down the issue in question to establish that no such interview had been published. The claim has since been repeated in the national press, including The Guardian and The Times, but no references before 2010 have been found.
Claim that the 1996 republication of There's a Wocket in My Pocket removed the "vug under the rug", and the nonexistent characters "red under the bed" and "burnus in the furnace", for being too scary.	5 years, ½ month	January 21, 2009	February 12, 2014	original statement added; "burnus in the furnace" removed; "red under the bed" added; statement removed
Nonexistent show named "Porn Stars: the New Age" in List of programs broadcast by History (TV channel)	4 years, 11 months	November 13, 2014	October 27, 2019	added, removed
Lucy Gordon Fake filmography credit added the day after actress's suicide alleging she started her career in the sitcom 2.4 Children.	4 years, 11 months	May 21, 2009	April 10, 2014
Julius Freed Fictitious claim that the founder of Orange Julius invented auto-cleaning spectacles, an inflatable shrimp trap, and a portable pigeon-bathing unit. Dairy Queen, which now owns Orange Julius, was fooled; the company based an entire ad campaign around the hoax and produced this video about Julius Freed's supposed inventions.	4 years, 9 months	June 22, 2005	March 11, 2010	Reported by Ken Jennings on his blog.^[9]
Fictitious mayor "Nick Mshar" in the infobox of the article for the community of Mandale, North Carolina.	4 years, 8 months	December 9, 2017	August 22, 2022	Added, removed.	Unincorporated communities are not governed like cities or towns, making the claim of a mayor likely to be false.
Claim in List of adjectival and demonymic forms for countries and nations that a valid demonym for Guam is "Guambat" (possibly a pun on wombat).	4 years, 6½ months	October 24, 2013	May 13, 2018	added, removed
Reference to "glucojasinogen" in diabetic neuropathy	4 years, 4½ months	October 7, 2007	February 29, 2012	added, removed	Original edit appears word for word in S.V. Tembhurne & D.M. Sakarkar (June 2010). "Influence of Murraya koenigii on experimental model of diabetes and progression of neuropathic pain". Res Pharm Sci. 5 (1): 41–47. PMC 3093092. PMID 21589767. and Talha Jawaid; Ashok K Shakya; Mehnaz Kamal & Sarfaraz Hussain (June 2008). "Amitriptyline and Sertraline in Diabetic Neuropathy: A Comparative View". International Journal of Health Research. 1 (2): 73–78..
Mention of "Ysolo", a fictional eggplant harvest festival in Albania, in List of harvest festivals	4 years, 4½ months	July 11, 2012	November 25, 2016	added, removed	talk page discussion, redirect discussion. For a time, a mountain on Ceres bore the name of this "festival"; upon discovery of this hoax it was renamed "Yamor Mons".
Claim that Adrienne Monnier was best known for a book about an American boy named Bill Monnier	4 years, 4 months	November 28, 2010	March 31, 2015	added, removed
Section on the fictional non-league football career of minor British soap opera actor Will Mellor	4 years, 4 months	January 12, 2007	May 9, 2011	added, removed	Claim was repeated on the website for the artists agency represents Mellor.
Krzywióra Dahlschödstein (Thallschoodbem) Fictitious philosopher claimed to have influenced Adam Mickiewicz.	4 years, 2½ months	February 1, 2019	April 20, 2023	Added by IP, modified by IP few minutes later, Removed by Piotrus years later, Talk page discussion	Type 2a (Obvious hoax due to elaborateness). The name of this fictitious philosopher (in both variants) does not appear to exist outside Wikipedia.
In List of mythological objects: Ichaival	4 years, 1 month	December 16, 2013	January 21, 2018	Special:Diff/586361279 Special:Diff/821577014	Romanization of Japanese translation of Ýdalir, used in Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War and spread to other media such as Smite.^[10]^[11]

Extant for less than 1 year

This section lists hoaxes covered for less than 1 year. See Wikipedia:List of hoaxes on Wikipedia/less than one year for the full list. This section should list only hoaxes covered in independent third-party sources. Short-lived hoaxes are innumerable and so we do not normally track them — they can be found by searching deletion logs for "hoax".

More information Claim, Length ...

Claim	Length	Insertion date	Removal date	Links
Top of the Klass with Mylene Klass (AfD) Included an account of a fictitious scandal involving a real person; references were added to several other articles	4½ months	April 28, 2010	September 18, 2010	Talk page, Article from UKGameshows.com, Discussion at Bother's Bar
Ronnie Hazlehurst Erroneous information (alleging that he had co-written a pop hit for band S Club 7) inserted into this article led to several news outlets repeating it in his obituary following his death, which in turn led to verifiable citations. The incident was widely reported in the UK meta-media, in particular by Private Eye and Have I Got News for You (the latter featuring the editor of the former as a regular panellist.)	11 days	September 20, 2007	October 1, 2007	The incorrect information talk page discussing the issue
John F. Street Vandalism from IP editor inserting false information about how the Philadelphia mayor had formerly worked as Bozo the Clown.	5 days	January 14, 2007	January 19, 2007	The incorrect information. Other IPs restore the vandalism but it is quickly reverted. Talk page discussing the issue. Article about the hoax in the Philadelphia Inquirer^{[dead link]}. A couple of months later, an IP editor added information about the hoax to the biography. Over the next few years this material was variously kept as reliably sourced, or deleted as trivial.
Falsified quotes by Maurice Jarre Went viral in mainstream media after his death	24 hours	March 30, 2009	March 31, 2009	added Discussion at Irish Times
Roger Vinson Addition that the individual was an amateur taxidermist who mounted bear heads above the door of his courtroom. The hoax information became known when Rush Limbaugh misused it on his radio program.	1 day	September 13, 2010	September 14, 2010	Huffington Post New York Times Wall Street Journal Pensacola News Journal
Scott Steiner In a wrestling storyline, Samoa Joe "attacked" Steiner with a machete at the Destination X pay-per view event. In a shocking lack of recognition of kayfabe, and thinking that even TNA at its most bewildering would show a legitimate attempted murder, an editor added a death section to the article, which was definitively removed about an hour later.	1 hour, 25 minutes	March 15, 2009	March 15, 2009	The addition to Wikipedia is mentioned in an appendix of the expanded version of The Death of WCW, where the storyline was described as "preposterous".
Wrightbus A hoax edit alleged that the company was being sold to FirstGroup for £207 million; the quickly-deleted hoax nonetheless caused alarm at its headquarters in Northern Ireland, prompting a report from the Belfast Telegraph.	47 minutes	November 26, 2015	November 26, 2015	First part added, second part added, removed
Chris Benoit	47 minutes	June 25, 2007	June 25, 2007	A vandal added the information that this wrestler's wife was dead 14 hours before police discovered the bodies of Benoit and his family after the double-murder of his wife and son and subsequent suicide he committed. Police found no involvement of the vandal in the case, making it a bizarre coincidence. (See section "Wikipedia controversy"). Added, removed
MESSENGER (NASA probe) Destination of interplanetary probe changed from Mercury (planet) to Canada.	5 minutes	January 17, 2008	January 17, 2008	Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Plunges into Canada, ISBN 9781607101000 page 272, inexplicably devotes two-thirds of a printed page to this short-lived bit of vandalism, explaining in detail how MESSENGER was the first mission to visit Canada in over 30 years, studying its environment and characteristics from orbit.

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[Bicholim_original-1] [1]
Archived copy of article at time of deletion

[cyb-2] [2]
Kumar, Srijan; West, Robert; Leskovec, Jure (April 2016). "Disinformation on the Web: Impact, Characteristics, and Detection of Wikipedia Hoaxes" (PDF). Proceedings of the 25th International World Wide Web Conference: 591–602. doi:10.1145/2872427.2883085. S2CID 30068. Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2018.

[Chron-3] [3]
Howard, Jennifer (December 18, 2008). "Teaching by Lying: Professor Unveils 'Last Pirate' Hoax". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Archived from the original on May 20, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2015.

[USAT-20081204-4] [4]
Matheson, Whitney (December 4, 2008). "Pop Candy blog". USAToday.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved March 19, 2015.

[bavatuesdays-5] [5]
"The Last American Pirate". December 4, 2008. Archived from the original on October 19, 2017. Retrieved March 19, 2015.

[6] [6]
Full cite in footnote, in case of link rot: @maspers (January 23, 2024). "One of my college professors: "Don't ever use Wikipedia..."". Archived from the original on January 29, 2024. Retrieved January 29, 2024 – via Tumblr. One of my college professors: "Don't ever use Wikipedia for school assignments and professional works. [...] "Many years ago a friend and I put a lie about Harrison Ford on Wikipedia and it's still there. People think it's true, to the point that it's been put into official print biographies about him. [...] "No, I'm not taking it down" [...] the factoid is no longer there, presumably removed by one of my classmates [bold original].

[NewYorker_May19_2014-7] [7]
Randall, Eric (May 19, 2014). "How a raccoon became an aardvark". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on December 29, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2016.

[RegisterKolbe-8] [8]
Kolbe, Andreas (January 16, 2017). "Happy birthday: Jimbo Wales' sweet 16 Wikipedia fails. From aardvark to Bicholim, the encylopedia [sic] of things that never were". The Register. Archived from the original on July 8, 2017. Retrieved June 4, 2017.

[Jennings-9] [9]
Jennings, Ken (May 28, 2010). "Anatomy of a Wiki-hoax". Ken Jennings Blog. Archived from the original on April 8, 2015. Retrieved August 22, 2014.

[10] [10]
Zawodniak, Matthew (August 29, 2019). "That Time Fire Emblem Accidentally Created A Fake Norse Myth". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2021.

[11] [11]
"Yewfelle". Fire Emblem Wiki. March 20, 2021. Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2021.

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Hoax	Length	Creation date	Deletion date	Size in bytes (last edit)	Links
Rainbow fish (mythology) Fictitious Hindu myth	17.49 years	December 13, 2005	June 9, 2023	1,667	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Method of focal objects Fictitious problem solving strategy	17.42 years	April 21, 2005	September 23, 2022	2,528	Expired PROD Archived version of the hoax
The Heat Is On (TV series) Fictitious BBC TV series	17.04 years	July 10, 2005	July 24, 2022	1,342	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
CTB Flying Squad Fictitious unit of mobile security and maintenance personnel set up by the Ceylon Transport Board - actually the end result of taking a metaphor used in a source too literally (Anil Moonesinghe, the 'one man flying squad').	16.39 years	November 28, 2005	April 19, 2022		Expired PROD Archived version of the hoax (PROD discussion isn't archived) earliest archive of the article earliest diff linking this article
Dream Craft Fictitious tabletop role-playing game	16.27 years	June 4, 2006	September 12, 2022	7,367	Expired PROD
Pan-African pellet compass Fictitious sociopolitical and militaristic concept coined by Kwame Nkrumah	16.27 years	December 30, 2007	April 6, 2024	2,342	Deleted as G3: blatant hoax Archived version of the hoax
Domon group Fictitious research group	16.13 years	March 4, 2007	April 21, 2023		Expired PROD Archived version of the hoax
Eduardo Corrochio Fictitious 1890s New York tap dancer; tap dance as a style did not originate until 1928.	16.13 years	July 10, 2005	August 27, 2021	2,839	Deletion discussion
Indigo Muldoon Main character in a fictitious series of novels.	16.1 years	February 23, 2006	March 31, 2022	20,538	Deletion discussion
Jack "Russer" Russell Fictitious 18th century traveler, a "Western Icon" in Japan where his journals are 'pop culture'.	16.02 years	September 11, 2005	September 19, 2021	1,020	Deletion discussion
Thomas Forbes Fictitious English poet	16 years	February 6, 2008	February 6, 2024	4,825	Speedy deleted as G3: Blatant hoax
Gilled Antelope Fictitious cryptid.	15.84 years	July 22, 2006	May 23, 2022	1,640	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Gilled Antelope Archived version of the hoax
William Henry Farrow Fictitious 19th-century English physician.	14.95 years	December 29, 2006	December 9, 2021	1,640	Deletion discussion and hoax admission by creator
Abu-Ali Urbuti Fictitious sheikh, the name is a pun (Sheikh Urbuti = "shake your booty"; cf. Frank Zappa's album title "Sheik Yerbouti").	14.85 years	April 7, 2006	February 10, 2021	2,649	Archived version of the hoax
Rough Crossing (TV series) Fictitious soap opera.	14.8 years	August 10, 2007	May 28, 2022	2,155	While the show does have an IMDb page, it seems to be equally fabricated. According to this forum post, the show claims to have the same characters as Days of Our Lives, albeit played by different actors.
Mustelodon Fictitious extinct carnivore genus.	14.76 years	November 9, 2005	August 12, 2020	1,285	Deletion discussion and discussion on WikiProject Palaeontology
HSTR LAN Fictitious computer network technology. The name is a pun; HSTR LAN is short for "hastır lan", which is short for "hassiktir lan", which means "fuck off" in Turkish. The numbers in the article are also a joke: 1.923 gigahertz is a nod to the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey while the rest represents Atatürk's landing day at Samsun on May 19, 1919.	14.71 years	November 25, 2008	August 13, 2023	612	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Arekh Fictitious anti-religion scholar in medieval Persia.	14.57 years	August 8, 2006	March 3, 2021		Deletion discussion
The Gates of Saturn Fictitious ITV slapstick television program starring Jim Dale.	14.49 years	February 8, 2006	August 7, 2020	1,373	Speedy deleted as "G3: Blatant hoax"
Morris-Putnam point Fictitious economic concept; hilarious lines missed by 13 later contributors	14.32 years	April 8, 2009	September 2, 2023	3,120	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Defauly Creek Fictitious creek in British Columbia, Canada.	14.04 years	December 12, 2006	December 25, 2020		Archived version of the hoax
Teddy Temish Fictitious U.S. Army corporal accused of Soviet espionage involving Fort Wainwright, Alaska, in 1990. According to the article, the spying evidence was revealed to be a fantasy created by "Temish" himself. A link to this article was added to the Walter Mitty article on April Fool's Day, 2009, soon after it was created.	14 years	March 18, 2009	March 20, 2023	9,710	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Nuremberg Plate Fictitious torture instrument used during interrogations. Was previously deleted on the German Wikipedia in 2007 for being a hoax.	13.89 years	July 23, 2007	June 13, 2021		Deletion discussion
Stone Ridge, Maryland Fictitious municipality in Maryland.	13.88 years	June 22, 2007	May 7, 2021		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Anthony Lorinthia Geriasarch Fictitious Prussian general.	13.74 years	July 25, 2010	April 21, 2024	1,433	Admitted by author on Reddit
Huoheian Fictitious system of aesthetics.	13.7 years	October 9, 2008	June 21, 2022	2,931	Deleted via WP:PROD. Archived version of the hoax
Sequenceome Fictitious biology concept, "the totality of polymer sequences on Earth".	13.66 years	December 19, 2007	August 17, 2021	281	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Bibb County School District vs. Wickman Fictitious Alabama supreme court case	13.6 years	January 31, 2010	September 9, 2023		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Joseph G. Williams Fictitious country singer-songwriter.	13.59 years	August 4, 2007	March 6, 2021	–	Speedy deleted as "G3: Blatant hoax" Archived version of the hoax
Karsgaard Fictitious Scottish surname.	13.45 years	February 21, 2008	August 2, 2021		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Tim Verfaillie Fictitious biography about a Belgian painter, first created on the Dutch-language Wikipedia in 2005 and on English-language Wikipedia in 2006.	13.34 years	June 2, 2006	October 6, 2019	1,010	Speedy deleted as "G3: Blatant hoax"
Whimbling iron Fictitious tool.	13.34 years	March 25, 2008	July 29, 2021		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Eric van Viele Fictitious biography about an actor of the 1922 horror film Nosferatu who supposedly sent death threats to the director. Although the subject might have been a real person, this and other extraordinary claims about him, such as that he was executed, had no sources.	13.24 years	April 4, 2006	June 30, 2019	–	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Harivansa Fictitious Portuguese Indian chapel.	13.2 years	October 28, 2007	January 10, 2021	–	Archived version of the hoax
Eachy Fictitious monster from the Lake District.	13.09 years	July 12, 2006	August 13, 2019		Deletion discussion
Madrigal Shipping Lines Fictitious Australian shipping company.	12.82 years	March 20, 2008	January 12, 2021	4,680	Deletion discussion
Donald Sawyer Fictitious filmmaker.	12.8 years	April 8, 2011	January 24, 2024		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Donald Sawyer Archived version of the hoax
Transformatix Fictitious American new wave band.	12.78 years	June 24, 2008	April 3, 2021		Archived version of the hoax Deletion discussion
JBOB Fictitious acronym for "Just a Bunch Of Bytes", said to be a term used to describe unstructured data that does not have a fixed format.	12.77 years	September 29, 2008	July 8, 2021		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Vivarem Fictitious Sanskrit word supposedly meaning "information."	12.76 years	April 3, 2006	January 5, 2019	542	Deletion reason and identification as a hoax
Nelson Larios Supposedly successful but fictitious Honduran football player.	12.75 years	December 28, 2008	September 27, 2021	2,977	Deletion discussion
Bont Fictitious ball game, supposedly from France.	12.69 years	August 17, 2006	April 27, 2019	425	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bont
Messenger Premier League Fictitious professional table tennis competition in Australia.	12.68 years	September 24, 2008	May 30, 2021	7,540	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Paul D. Lynn Fictitious Egyptologist	12.48 years	December 29, 2009	June 24, 2022	2,171	Expired PROD Archived version of the hoax
Synchronized Football Fictitious variant of association football. The article spuriously claimed it was a popular sport among youth in Norway and also contained a hoax diagram of one of its possible playing fields.	12.46 years	January 7, 2007	June 24, 2019	6,506	Deletion log Archived version of the hoax
Kunlun Mountain Fist Fictitious form of martial arts.	12.41 years	November 5, 2009	April 23, 2022		Deleted via WP:PROD.
Groove Radio Fictitious British radio station, admitted to have been created by the editor for GCSE coursework in a 2008 forum post. The article existed as "Grooveradio" until a page move was made in 2019.	12.34 years	April 13, 2008	August 14, 2020	1,037	Internet Archive
Bine (mythology) Fictitious ancient Akkadian demon claimed to equip demons with wings in preparation for the Second Coming; also claimed to have actually been a mortal carpenter who died and rose again. Despite having no sources, the hoax was included in Theresa Bane's Encyclopedia of Demons in World Religions and Cultures, published by McFarland & Company in 2012.	12.34 years	April 22, 2005	August 23, 2017	1,112	User talk:Doug Weller/Archive 46#Bine (mythology) hoax article
Chu Chi Zui Fictitious Chinese bishop.	12.3 years	April 1, 2006	July 21, 2018	940	Deletion discussion
The Deadweights Fictitious American punk rock band; was part of a semi-walled garden of hoax articles about the band's alleged discography.	12.28 years	September 16, 2007	December 28, 2019	14,957	Deletion discussion Teahouse report
Spanish tickler Claimed medieval torture device also allegedly known as a "cat's paw."	12.21 years	December 15, 2005	March 2, 2018	1,398	Rationale for deletion
Lollie Alexi Devereaux Fictitious French actor and opera singer.	12.16 years	September 26, 2008	November 22, 2020	2,667	Archived version of the hoax
Milk Studios Fictitious speciality products retailer in Sweden.	11.73 years	December 7, 2004	August 31, 2016	1,123	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Milk Studios A number of other organizations appear to exist which share this name but are actual studios or music studios.
Global Open University Indian degree mill posing on Wikipedia as a real university.	11.7 years	November 3, 2008	July 16, 2020		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Global Open University Archived version of the hoax
Teddy Dressing Fictitious children's book about dressing.	11.66 years	December 29, 2008	August 28, 2020	1,070	Deletion discussion
Mauser C6 Fictitious firearm produced by Mauser.	11.56 years	November 1, 2009	May 24, 2021		Deletion discussion
George K. Broomhall Fictitious brevet general during the American Civil War who was also credited with the invention of cream soda.	11.46 years	July 21, 2006	January 5, 2018	2,622	Identification of hoax
Codex coemeterium Fictitious 16th-century manuscript.	11.36 years	October 9, 2012	February 17, 2024	1,509	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Ordo Secreta Sapientiae Fictitious 19th-century secret order.	11.36 years	October 9, 2012	February 17, 2024	2,262	Archived version of the hoax
Mount Kiligantian Fictitious mountain in the Philippines.	11.25 years	June 1, 2011	August 30, 2022	5,175	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Mount Kiligantian Archived version of the hoax
Lipid therapy Fictitious medical treatment.	11.14 years	September 23, 2008	November 13, 2019		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Lipid therapy Archived version of the hoax
Lake Zamkaft Fictitious religious tradition of a sea that Mohammed crossed while on the Isra and Miraj journey	11.04 years	May 16, 2012	May 31, 2023	1,077	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
List of Jimmy Lightning episodes List of episodes for a nonexistent animated show on Nickelodeon.	11.03 years	April 11, 2011	April 22, 2022	12,751	Jimmy Lightning is a character in the video game series Peggle. A page for the supposed series itself was never made.
Sheer Perfection Purported HBO miniseries, either fictitious or abandoned extremely early in development.	10.88 years	August 31, 2005	July 19, 2016	419	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sheer Perfection
Courts (village) Fictitious village in Graubünden, Switzerland.	10.83 years	March 11, 2009	January 8, 2020	450	Speedy deleted as "G3: Blatant hoax: per PROD, obvious hoax by indef-blocked sockmaster"
Christopher Hamilton Fictitious Anglo-Irish politician and commander.	10.78 years	February 10, 2010	November 20, 2020		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
48 Belgrave Square Real London house falsely alleged to have been owned by fictitious Anglo-Irish politician and commander Christopher Hamilton (see above).	10.77 years	February 10, 2010	November 19, 2020		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Fuzz (musician) Fictitious British musician and film star.	10.66 years	February 9, 2011	October 6, 2021		Speedy deleted as "G3: Blatant hoax" Archived version of the hoax
Katherine Y. Qiu Alleged anti-Maoist writer	10.47 years	August 1, 2013	January 21, 2024	2,241	Deletion discussion Discussion at WikiProject China preceding the AfD
Tastet Catalan word for 'a small taste of food', apparently created as a marketing ploy for a restaurant in Palamos.	10.41 years	September 17, 2011	February 12, 2022		Expired PROD Archived version of the hoax
Théophile Figeys Alleged major-general in the Belgian army.	10.3 years	February 19, 2010	June 8, 2020	1,245	Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Mount Malaueg Fictitious mountain in the Philippines.	10.18 years	June 29, 2012	September 4, 2022		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Mount Malaueg Archived version of the hoax
Jack Robichaux Fictitious 19th-century serial rapist in New Orleans. Note: John Robichaux was a different, real, nineteenth-century New Orleans personality.	10.09 years	July 31, 2005	September 3, 2015	1,164	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jack Robichaux Archived version of hoax: article on i100

Hoax	Length	Creation date	Deletion date	Size in bytes (last edit)	Links
Maddi Fairthorne Fictitious president of the World Bank from 1985 to 1988. In reality, Alden W. Clausen and Barber Conable held the office during that time.	9.98 years	September 1, 2006	August 25, 2016		Maddi Fairthorne deletion log Archived version of the hoax
Guillermo Garcia (businessman) Imaginary "highly influential" oil and forestry magnate in 18th-century South America	9.84 years	November 17, 2005	September 19, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Guillermo Garcia (businessman)
Ageneros Fictitious Aristotlean concept, supposedly meaning "never existed"	9.83 years	September 16, 2012	July 15, 2022		Deletion log
Lawrence Douglas Versett Fictitious Albertan homesteader	9.8 years	September 1, 2006	August 25, 2016		Deletion log Archived version of the hoax
Jar'Edo Wens Fictional Australian Aboriginal deity, presumably named after "Jared Owens".	9.76 years	May 29, 2005	March 3, 2015	539	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jar'Edo Wens. Archives: English article, English article's revision history. Note also: French translation, Revision history of French article, Wikidata entry, Revision history of Wikidata entry Encyclopedia article about the hoax
Pikes on Cliffs Fictional Spanish coastal house, claimed as the 16th-century home of a nonexistent Irish sailor who survived a death sentence from Sir Francis Drake.	9.72 years	March 17, 2005	December 5, 2014	936	Pikes on Cliffs deletion log Archived hoax:
Salvadorian Magpie Fictional bird allegedly found in Jamaica	9.72 years	March 7, 2011	November 24, 2020	1,020	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Salvadorian Magpie
World Laparoscopy Hospital Fictitious Indian hospital, actually an apparent scam	9.59 years	November 27, 2010	June 28, 2020		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/World Laparoscopy Hospital Archived version of the hoax
Gregory Namoff An "internationally known" but nonexistent investment banker, minor Watergate figure, and U.S. Senate candidate.	9.57 years	June 17, 2005	January 13, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Gregory Namoff Archive
Izana Fictional Incan creation myth	9.54 years	October 25, 2010	May 11, 2020		AFD nomination, archived article
Alan MacMasters Supposed 19th century Scottish inventor of the electric toaster, the name was originally added to the toaster article in February 2012, before being picked up by newspapers later that year, prior to the creation of the article.	9.42 years	February 17, 2013	July 22, 2022		AFD nomination, archived article, news coverage
Double Hour Supposed German and American television show, covering historic events over a two-hour span.	9.53 years	September 23, 2005	April 4, 2015		Double Hour (TV series) deletion log Archived version of hoax:
Sean Mann "Allan K. Wood Distinguished Professor of Bioethics and Korean language" at the University of California, Berkeley, with a remarkable but totally fake career as a bioethicist, theologian, and anarchist.	9.5 years	October 6, 2005	April 5, 2015	6,819	Sean Mann deletion log
Snappy & friends Supposed animated show	9.46 years	March 6, 2005	August 22, 2014	958
Conchobar Mac Con Raoí Fictitious inhabitant of Galway, Ireland who lived (or claimed to live) 280 years from 1300 to 1580. References mentioned an Irish historian as source, but this author's work does not mention the subject.	9.39 years	December 14, 2009	May 5, 2019	1,427	deletion discussion
Blood Eagle (band) Supposed British band	9.31 years	December 30, 2005	April 21, 2015		deletion log, addition at Blood eagle
Nicholas Burkhart Fictitious 17th-century legislator in the House of Keys on the Isle of Man.	9.19 years	July 19, 2006	September 26, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Nicholas Burkhart
Henry Vaughan Fictitious 18th-century landowner, supposedly killed by a mob and buried at the Radnorshire Arms in Presteigne.	9.12 years	October 28, 2005	December 11, 2014		Henry Vaughan deletion log Related hoax material removed in stages from Radnorshire Arms during November & December 2014. Original creation with multiple hoaxes at Radnorshire Arms Main hoax removal Removal of additional hoax information about hotel
Rich Bradford Supposed New Mexico Lobos football player, falsely listed as an Outland Trophy nominee and credited with a key play in the California Raisin Bowl.	8.96 years	May 1, 2007	April 16, 2016	1,277	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Rich Bradford. The author Mosaicbull (talk · contribs) and his sock LoboSportsBureau (talk · contribs) created Fumble Rumble and Las Vegas All-Star Classic to support the story and created links in a number of existing articles. Las Vegas All-Star Classic lasted two months and was deleted as a content fork rather than as an hoax. Although it linked to Fumble Rumble no suspicions were aroused. Fumble Rumble was re-created twice and survived for more than a year and was deleted for lack of notability with just a suspicion that it might be an hoax. And although it linked to Rich Bradford suspicions were again not aroused.
Hey Everybody Fictional album	8.95 years	January 5, 2008	December 16, 2016	2,060	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Hey Everybody
Emilia Dering Long-lived article about a non-existent 19th-century German poet started with the basic "Emilia Dering is a famous poet who was born in Berlin, Germany on April 16, 1885" and immediately given an image of Mark E. Smith by a single purpose account	8.83 years	December 6, 2006	October 6, 2015	643	Emilia Dering deletion log; deleted via A7. On the same day of the article's creation, a person claiming to be the granddaughter of Emilia Dering made a blog post with an attributed poem supposedly by her.
Haji Saeed Samadodot Bambaras Fictitious Djiboutian Issa clan leader, and the claimed "right hand side of Haile Sailasse and Djiboutian rebel against the Italians"	8.82 years	December 24, 2012	October 20, 2021		Deletion discussion and archive of the article
To the Hills with Thee, Angharrad Nonexistent one-man play set in Wales, the United States, and Vietnam, falsely ascribed to Boyd Clack; cited a fake review by Kenneth Tynan.	8.69 years	December 2, 2006	August 10, 2015		Deletion log
Doni Kochev Imaginary 19th-century Bulgarian revolutionary against the Ottoman Empire.	8.61 years	January 19, 2007	August 31, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Doni Kochev
Bodhi stones Supposed mythical stones carved from Mount Meru and distributed among eight elders in eight villages because of their sacred powers; falsely sourced to the Mahabharata before G3 deletion.	8.58 years	August 15, 2006	March 16, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bodhi stones Archived version of hoax:
Ali Murad Khan Kalhoro Fictitious leader of the Kalhora tribe from 1880 to 1925. Earlier versions of the article propose that he instead ruled from 1810 to 1875.	8.59 years	July 8, 2013	February 10, 2022		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ali Murad Khan Kalhoro
Jeffrey Boehm Fictitious British naval officer with supposed feats in battle at Grenada, the Saintes, and Trafalgar.	8.55 years	January 23, 2007	August 11, 2015	3,344	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jeffrey Boehm
Catherine Higgins Nonexistent TV actress, supposedly noted for roles on the imaginary ABC shows Death Reward and Ocatavius Merredrew; G3 deletion.	8.49 years	January 19, 2007	July 18, 2015		Catherine Higgins deletion log Archived version of hoax:
Library of Amartya Fictional library.	8.47 years	January 13, 2007	July 4, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Library of Amartya.
Near Dark (unfinished film) Nonexistent remake, based on claims of a remake that was cancelled in the pre-production stage.	8.6 years	August 9, 2007	March 15, 2016	676	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Near Dark (unfinished film).
Medio Oriente Fictitious borough of San Juan, Puerto Rico	8.41 years	September 21, 2010	February 16, 2019		Deletion discussion
Hugh Bruce Cunningham Supposed Scottish minister noted for a fictitious coat of arms and the rejection of a knighthood from King George III.	8.36 years	March 28, 2007	August 6, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Hugh Bruce Cunningham Archived at ejje.weblio.jp
Collins Slip Nonexistent instruction sheet included with prescription drugs, based on a spurious 1983 accident in Akron, Ohio.	8.29 years	November 22, 2006	March 8, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Collins Slip
Eric Heineman Supposed Czech-American mathematician and electrical engineer with reputed academic career at Charles University and Yale in 19th & early 20th century.	8.28 years	August 18, 2006	November 29, 2014		Eric Heineman deletion log Archived version of hoax:
Don Meme A fictitious "mythical, wise guru" in Puebla, Mexico, supposedly the subject of a nonexistent short story collection; also claimed to be a mentor for real-life bands and "an entity that appears as soon as a bohemian party is summoned." Later deleted via G3.	8.27 years	December 14, 2006	March 21, 2015		Don Meme deletion log
Bessa Vugo Nonexistent molecular biologist and collaborator with Jacques Monrod who "famously" had children eat brussel sprouts, and disproved Fouriers Law for Heat Transfer.	8.25 years	October 11, 2006	January 9, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bessa_Vugo Archived version of hoax:
Victor Escobar Nonexistent Colombian student at School of the Americas, whose unexplained disappearance supposedly prompted a bill in the United States House of Representatives.	8.25 years	October 11, 2006	January 9, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Victor Escobar Archived version of hoax:
Chaozhouxieye Fabricated Chinese leisurewear company "best known for their plastic open toe slippers or flip-flops" and apparently worn by Jodie Marsh, Ken Dodd, and C+C Music Factory (whose song "Things That Make You Go Hmmm" also allegedly inspired by the company)	8.17 years	August 20, 2007	October 22, 2015	1,138
Horng fong "Legendary" Vietnamese reptile not mentioned in any sources (including the real sources mentioned in the article).	8.16 years	November 2, 2008	December 29, 2016	2,099	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Horng fong
Jairo Valos Rodriguez Invented American yo-yo champion born on August 26, 1989.	8.14 years	April 24, 2009	June 15, 2017	2,416
Ted and the Treble Tones Fake rock band from Fresno, credited with an imaginary 1959 hit that appears nowhere on the Billboard charts.	8.13 years	November 13, 2006	January 1, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ted and The Treble Tones
Daniel de Búrca Nonexistent 18th-century Irish philosopher, credited with fake controversial essays that supposedly influenced David Hume.	8.12 years	October 16, 2006	November 30, 2014		Daniel de Búrca deletion log Speedily deleted (A11) in 2006; article subsequently restarted and survived more than eight years before G3 deletion.
Gaius Flavius Antoninus Supposed assassin of Julius Caesar, claimed to have later been assassinated himself by a male prostitute hired by Mark Antony	8.09 years	June 9, 2004	July 13, 2012	835	Discussion at WikiProject Classical Greece and Rome
Alyse Squillace Fictitious American children's book author	8.03 years	February 6, 2007	February 17, 2015	1,039	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Alyse Squillace
Glamoč Airport Fictitious airport in Bosnia and Herzegovina	8.01 years	February 10, 2013	February 15, 2021		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Glamoč Airport Archived version of the hoax

Hoax	Length	Creation date	Deletion date	Size in bytes (last edit)	Links
The Falsetto Basses Fictitious pop band of the late 1980s, supposedly based in Asheville, North Carolina and credited with two nonexistent hit songs.	7.99 years	April 8, 2007	April 3, 2015		The Falsetto Basses deletion log
Jan Latalski (Indian historical figure) Fictitious 12th-century Indian person who built Hindu temples; not to be confused with the 15th-century Polish bishop Jan Latalski.	7.98 years	December 5, 2013	November 28, 2021		G3
Deogen Supposed urban legend about a ghost said to haunt the Sonian Forest in Belgium.	7.92 years	December 30, 2009	December 2, 2017		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Scarlett Montanaro Fictitious British singer/actress	7 years, 11 months	June 27, 2012	May 29, 2020		Scarlett Montanaro deletion log Archived version of the hoax
St Angeline Fake wind-powered "submersible research centre" in the Atlantic Ocean west of England, supposedly designed for the study of life support and land reclamation systems.	7 years, 10½ months	October 4, 2007	August 31, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/St Angeline
Morgan Dee Voon Alleged amateur female scientist and possible mistress of the founder of modern genetics Gregor Mendel	7 years, 10½ months	April 7, 2007	February 23, 2015	3,091	Morgan Dee Voon deletion log Justification at the creator's talk page
Guy de la Bretaigne Imaginary "critic, dandy, and man of letters" in 19th-century France, supposedly noted for his "studied indifference" and correspondence with Charles Baudelaire.	7 years, 9½ months	June 20, 2007	April 18, 2015	3,091	Guy de la Bretaigne deletion log
Wolsebuse Games Fictitious 1990s video game company	7 years, 9½ months	February 10, 2007	December 5, 2014	4,138	Wolsebuse Games deletion log
The Brothers Wing Invented Florida-based reggae band with a fictitious album	7 years, 9 months	March 10, 2007	December 19, 2014	2,130	The Brothers Wing deletion log
PH Games Nonexistent tabletop game manufacturer in India, credited with numerous imaginary titles across multiple platforms. Deleted via prod for being an advertisement, then deleted due to Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/PH Games.	7 years, 8½ months	November 6, 2007	July 25, 2015	1,188	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/PH Games
Vic coin Fictitious and/or never-launched blockchain/cryptocurrency. The article very heavily resembled the Bitcoin whitepaper, but closely paraphrased in an ungrammatical and nonsensical way (upon further investigation, this may have been the actual white paper of a different, real project). Prodded and endorsed, then speedied under G12 as a copyvio.	7 years, 8½ months	September 27, 2016	June 12, 2022		Vic coin deletion log Vic Coin deletion log (not the same but similar) Archived version of the hoax Possible article source? Possible former official website?
The Vans Brothers Fictitious mid-2000s New Zealand blues band, with a nonexistent album and record label.	7 years, 7 months	January 21, 2008	August 31, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Vans Brothers
Reede-drum Imaginary frame drum from Kyrgyzstan	7 years, 7 months	December 10, 2007	July 18, 2015	2,130	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Reede-drum
TNT television Nonexistent 2001–2002 Australian children's show on Network Ten	7 years, 6½ months	January 16, 2008	August 2, 2015		Last version prior to being tagged as hoax; Article history; redirected to TNT (TV channel) after being nominated for G3 deletion.
James Snipplet Nonexistent 19th-century member of Parliament, poet, and songwriter, supposedly noted for his advocacy of Irish tenant farmers' rights; hoax Twitter account created for support.	7 years, 6 months	February 25, 2008	September 8, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/James Snipplet
Evarts Friedman Imaginary 1910s and 1920s vaudeville promoter, whose supposed career ended in debt, disaster, and conflict with "bailiffs, Mafioso and the Chicago State police."	7 years, 5½ months	June 11, 2007	December 1, 2014		Evarts Friedman deletion log
Mendaxi Fictitious Greek cosmetics company, supposedly backed by Aristotle Onassis and purchased by L'Oreal in 1976.	7 years, 5½ months	February 17, 2008	August 7, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Mendaxi
Hector Does Nonexistent 1987 animated Conservative Party short films on political topics (e.g., Hector Refuses to Join a Trade Union), apparently derived from Charley Says; supposedly ordered destroyed by Margaret Thatcher.	7 years, 4½ months	March 21, 2008	August 8, 2015		Hector Does deletion log
Nihil Pop Organization Supposed counter-cultural organization with branches in the United States, France and Italy; allegedly dedicated to "nihilism through pop culture" by means of art exhibitions, fanzines, and terrorism.	7 years, 3 months	June 24, 2008	September 23, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Nihil Pop Organization
Clyde McKnight American rapper; appears to be a real person, however article falsely claimed collaborations with Paris Hilton, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, and more.	7 years, 2 months	November 25, 2012	January 30, 2020		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Clyde McKnight Archived version of the hoax
Chen Fang A Wikipedian noticed in November 2012 that The Harvard Guide to Using Sources said that "an Expos student who was writing a paper about the limitations of Wikipedia posted a fictional entry for himself, stating that he was the mayor of a small town in China. Four years later, if you type in his name, or if you do a subject search on Wikipedia for mayors of towns in China, you will still find this fictional entry." No longer.	6 days	February 11, 2005	February 17, 2005		2005 VfD, Discussion on the Admin noticeboard
	7 years, 2 months	September 25, 2005	November 19, 2012		2005 VfD, Discussion on the Admin noticeboard
Cadamekela and Durkeamynarda Fictitious works attributed to Indian mathematician Brahmagupta.	7 years, 1 month	June 25, 2007	July 29, 2014		Talk page discussion added, removed; removed from French and Hungarian Wikipedia in September 2015.
Siete Viejo (gang) Fictitious street gang allegedly founded by Vietnam War veterans.	7 years, 1 month	August 5, 2011	September 5, 2018		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Siete Viejo (gang)
Mr Bennett Goes to Town Nonexistent Nazi propaganda film set in Manchester, supposedly produced in 1937 but never released because of production complaints by Joseph Goebbels.	7 years, 1 month	March 15, 2008	April 14, 2015		Mr Bennett Goes to Town deletion log
Elaine de Francias Supposed illegitimate daughter of Henry II of France; hoax was suspected for years on talk page and taken apart piecemeal before final PROD deletion.	7 years, ½ month	February 28, 2008	March 20, 2015		Elaine de Francias deletion log
J.J. Johnson Fictional NFL player with a fabricated career with UCLA, the Kansas City Chiefs, and numerous teams in other leagues	7 years, ½ month	October 25, 2007	November 15, 2014		J.J. Johnson deletion log Not to be confused with an actual J.J. Johnson who was active in the NFL at the same time
Manfred Jung Fictitious French poet, noted for his equally spurious "philosophical or theological" poetry collection Instructions.	7 years	September 16, 2008	September 26, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Manfred Jung
Chloroorganic carrier Fictitious term for a group of molecules. Was previously G3 deleted in 2010.	7 years	December 21, 2014	December 29, 2021		archive of the hoax
Gatsby Major Alleged to be Director of Bureau of Fisheries in 1897.	6 years, 11 3/4 months	October 23, 2008	October 19, 2015	1,545	Gatsby Major deletion log
Tony's Home Spectacular but false record (#2 on the Billboard charts in 2006, 376,000 sales in first week) for an obscure rap album	6 years, 11½ months	September 25, 2008	September 19, 2015	2,396	Tony's Home deletion log
Olimar The Wondercat Fictional children's television programme. Author later admitted he made it for his cat.	6 years, 11 months	August 5, 2006	July 9, 2013	2,849	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Olimar The Wondercat Admission by author (in German)
European Football Coach of the Season, European Football Coach of the Year Fictitious football awards	6 years, 10 3/4 months	May 30, 2017 / May 26, 2017	April 19, 2024	17,928 / 14,605	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/European Football Coach of the Season, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/European Football Coach of the Year
Steve Moertel Fictitious inventor of a new type of popcorn.	6 years, 10½ months	March 12, 2009	February 3, 2016		Hoax discovered by researchers from the University of Maryland and Stanford University as part of an academic paper.
George Colby and Colby Pirates A supposed British privateer and profiteer ("Colonial Colonel Cheese Colby"), and his group of pirates, of the French and Indian War (1754–1763)	6 years, 10 months	August 5, 2006	June 7, 2013	1,406 1,211	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/George Colby, Believed by at least one book and many people online
Napalm Brain Nonexistent English psychedelic rock band credited with two fictitious albums.	6 years, 9½ months	February 19, 2008	December 10, 2014		Napalm Brain deletion log
Daniel Pontillas Supposedly a "gentleman thief, master of disguise, and an amateur detective" in a 1905 short-story collection; partial name-change plagiarism of Arsène Lupin.	6 years, 9 months	July 5, 2008	April 9, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Daniel Pontillas
Murder of Andre Marshall Imaginary murder in Bridgeport, Connecticut.	6 years, 9 months	November 30, 2006	August 26, 2013	4,653	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Murder of Andre Marshall
Athanasius of Dendrinata Fictional "negotiator and scholar" in Athens during the 2nd century BC	6 years, 8 months	August 2, 2009	April 15, 2016	709	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Athanasius of Dendrinata via SwisterTwister
Howard's Law Fictitious formula for diagnosis of atrial fibrillation, supposedly identified in 1955 by the equally spurious doctor "Howard Luci-Liu."	6 years, 7 months	October 2007	May 29, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Howard's Law Cited on a MLB.com message board in a totally unrelated discussion about Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard
Milton Bradley Playmate Supposed 600-cubic-foot computer prototype designed in late 1960s to play various board games using a giant robotic claw arm.	6 years, 7 months	January 2008	August 10, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Milton Bradley Playmate
Kings of All Times Nonexistent Yemeni novel, credited to two different dubious authors, about the political and personal challenges of an Estonian and his delusional friend in Yemen.	6 years, 6½ months	April 30, 2008	November 23, 2014		Kings of All Times deletion log
Tillery Band that supposedly perished in an airplane crash on December 12, 1956 en route to a "Lester Concert Hall", which also does not exist.	6 years, 6 months	November 20, 2005	May 14, 2012	380	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Tillery
O-Ha! Nonexistent sitcom on ABC (now TV5) in the Philippines, with only four episodes from 2006-2007.	6 years, 5½ months	October 13, 2008	April 9, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/O-Ha!
Bonehill international Supposed KGB "department for exportation of revolution," blamed for a nonexistent financial scandal in Latvia.	6 years, 4½ months	July 14, 2008	December 3, 2014		Bonehill international deletion log Speedily deleted soon after creation (A1), but article was immediately rebuilt and survived more than 6 years.
Crocodile shears Supposed Medieval torture device	6 years, 4½ months	March 20, 2006	July 30, 2012	1,172	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Crocodile shears Named by Listverse as the most gruesome medieval torture device
Rough Creek Ranch Supposed ranch in Oklahoma which claimed to be "the first parcel to be purchased in a long-term plan to re-establish the equivalent of conditions in Oklahoma which existed prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 16th through 18th centuries."	6 years, 3½ months	September 5, 2006	December 15, 2012	546	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Rough Creek Ranch
Assorted made-up political parties in Kosovo Democrat Republic Party Christian Party of Kosovo Union of Kosovo Party Serbian Union of Kosovo & Metohija Peoples Party of Kosovo	6 years, 3 months	October 11, 2008	January 17, 2015	416	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Democrat Republic Party
The Travails and Tribulations of Geoffrey Peacock Fictional novel alleged to have been written by Huxley, the book was listed on Huxley's article in 2008 and an article on the novel was written in May 2014, prompting its detection.	6 years, 3 months (inclusion on Huxley's page)	February 25, 2008	May 14, 2014	7,203	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Travails and Tribulations of Geoffrey Peacock
1978–79 Boston College basketball point-shaving scandal Player Joe Streater was alleged to have been involved, even though he wasn't even a member of the team that year. Only identified after spreading to numerous sources, including the Associated Press.	6 years, 2 months	August 12, 2008	October 8, 2014		Signpost article
Hasan Masurica Claimed inventor/engineer who built an airplane out of wood in 1899.	6 years, 2 months	March 6, 2012	May 1, 2018		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Hasan Masurica
Rhys Hopkin Supposed Newcastle Falcons rugby player and politician, with fabricated career as mayor of Durham and a brother claimed to be Labour MP for Wells; deleted via G3.	6 years, 1 month	June 27, 2009	August 6, 2015		Rhys Hopkin deletion log
Indian Institute of Ecology and Environment Indian degree mill presented as a legitimate academic institution	6 years, ½ month	June 18, 2014	June 30, 2020		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Indian Institute of Ecology and Environment
Victoria Jade Meyers Non-existent Australian actress	6 years	February 13, 2013	February 18, 2019	1,891	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Victoria Jade Meyers. Article creator previously also created an article on another likely fabricated Australian actress, Cheyenne Carthy, which was quickly caught and deleted.
Kunhar River Spot-Boi Fictitious river in Pakistan	5 years, 11½ months	November 18, 2014	October 31, 2020		Archived version of the hoax
Sura of Parthia Fictitious Iranian warrior princess, non-existent daughter of the real Ardavān V, last king of the Parthian empire. Hoax only discovered after both fooling a senior academic and also inspiring another woman to change her name in honour of this imaginary princess.	5 years, 11 months	June 3, 2012	May 3, 2018		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sura of Parthia Archived version of hoax:
WWVS-LP Fictitious American TV station	5 years, 11 months	October 4, 2014	September 2, 2020		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/WWVS-LP Archived version of hoax
Saint Ofelia Alleged Danish Catholic saint and disciple of Saint Ansgar	5 years, 10 months	June 8, 2008	April 14, 2014	521	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Saint Ofelia
Mark L. Smith (musician) Fictitious American pianist	5 years, 10 months	March 15, 2015	January 19, 2021		Archived version of the hoax
Operation Pax Romana Fictitious Nazi program to expand the Holocaust in Romania, directed by a fake "Colonel Johannes Jodl" before his supposed escape to Brazil; hoax was revealed in a 2010 edit but self-reverted and survived five more years.	5 years, 10 months	May 26, 2009	March 29, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Operation Pax Romana
Gold Tea Supposed brand of tea from the Confederate States of America. Originally an unsourced stub, it was later expanded to claim that gold flakes were put into the tea for smuggling to the north.	5 years, 9 months	May 17, 2005	February 16, 2011	1,163	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Gold Tea
Unit 773 Imaginary Japanese biological weapons unit in the imaginary Chinese city of "Songo", created by a banned user	5 years, 9 months	October 7, 2006	July 3, 2012	805	Unit 731 is a similar actual article The imaginary Unit 773 fooled at least one website and one book.
Nevsky (Russian mafia) Alleged organized crime family in Russia and the United States; supposedly reduced drastically through "constant wars with rival criminal families."	5 years, 8½ months	July 6, 2009	March 31, 2015	3,024	Nevsky (Russian mafia) deletion log
Victor Cannella Alleged Italian piano and xylophone player; claimed to have played the instrument in the short Baseball Bugs. Hoax spread to IMDb and some Warner Bros. fan communities, but extensive research through the course of the AFD declared him to be a hoax.	5 years, 8½ months	July 14, 2016	March 28, 2022	327	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Victor Cannella
Gideon Planke Fictitious 17th-century witch-finder active in Shropshire, supposedly the subject of a 19th-century poem used to "enforce good behaviour on unruly children before bedtime."	5 years, 7 months	September 8, 2009	April 20, 2015		Gideon Planke deletion log Believed by a book before G3 deletion.
La Croix du Sanguine Rouge A supposed novel by a non-existent French writer that was released in French and English.	5 years, 7 months	March 6, 2010	October 3, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/La Croix du Sanguine Rouge
Japan Television Service Nonexistent TV network broadcasting in both Japan and the United Kingdom.	5 years, 6½ months	February 7, 2010	September 3, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Japan Television Service
Katiba Ketubah Fictitious reality TV series	5 years, 6 months	December 6, 2014	June 10, 2020		Archived version of the hoax
George P. Burdell Various fictitious additions in articles on a race car driver, a record producer, a West African Colonial figure. Part of a group of seven long lasting vandalisms.	5 years, 6 months	June 28, 2009	December 23, 2014		Addition, Removal Addition, Removal Addition, Removal
Digital Lady Nonexistent San Francisco rock band that supposedly included the brother of the White House press secretary and used acoustic guitars and kitchen utensils to simulate the Moog synthesizer. Survived more than five years before G3 deletion.	5 years, 6 months	December 2008	July 12, 2014		Digital Lady deletion log
Bicholim conflict Fictitious conflict between the Portuguese rulers of Goa and the Maratha Empire which supposedly took place from mid-1640 to early 1641. It was assessed as a good article in September 2007, but failed a featured article nomination the next month as page numbers were not provided for references. ShelfSkewed (talk · contribs) investigated these references in 2012 and found that the main works cited do not actually exist. One of the longest and most elaborate hoax articles on Wikipedia. Probably the only one to have been assessed as a good article.	5 years, 5½ months	July 4, 2007	December 29, 2012	33,577	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bicholim conflict Reference at Daily Dot and Yahoo! News
Joswig syndrome Fake hereditary disease, supposedly identified by "H. Joswig M.D." in 1882; cited made-up reference from United States National Library of Medicine.	5 years, 5½ months	June 24, 2009	December 18, 2014		Joswig syndrome deletion log. Archived by Abebooks.com
Majeed Pejajj Fictitious Muslim cleric	5 years, 5½ months	April 8, 2007	September 21, 2012	1,110	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Majeed Pejajj
Lloyd 2: Growing Up Nonexistent 2003 film, supposedly a sequel to 2001's Lloyd.	5 years, 4 months	May 6, 2010	September 10, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Lloyd 2: Growing Up
Midnight in Oklahoma Supposed alternative rock-country band with seven fictitious albums	5 years, 4 months	April 26, 2009	August 27, 2014		Midnight in Oklahoma deletion log
Corey Petryschuk Supposed football player and famous musician	5 years, 3½ months	October 9, 2010	January 30, 2015	6,445	Petryschuk Corey Petryschuk deletion log
K890 (G3) Fictitious submachine gun.	5 years, 3½ months	November 22, 2006	March 1, 2012	1,614	Included in book by Source Wikipedia
Antón de Palategui Fictitious 16th century conquistador and poet.	5 years, 3½ months	December 4, 2008	March 17, 2014	6,194	deleted by PROD
Ashira, Bari Fictitious village in Somalia	5 years, 3 months	January 27, 2019	April 18, 2024	2,003
Bobohetti Made-up Indian dish "consisting mainly of bay leaves and bamboo shoots," supposedly popular at fast food restaurants in Europe.	5 years, 2½ months	May 13, 2010	July 28, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bobohetti
Limping duck Nonexistent and highly unconventional form of wushu	5 years, 2½ months	August 3, 2009	October 15, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Limping duck
Chad Berryman Imaginary baseball catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies during World War II	5 years, 2 months	August 4, 2010	October 13, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Chad Berryman
Ganguly–Durjoy Trophy Fictitious cricket trophy	5 years, 2 months	March 31, 2017	May 30, 2022	3,719
Reich Corps of the Trombone (G3) Fictitious Nazi organization of trombonists created by Joseph Goebbels for propaganda purposes	5 years, 2 months	January 29, 2006	March 31, 2011	3,389	Confession on Slashdot Axis History Forum image at ookaboo
Elijah Joel Smith A fictitious British athlete, educator, and hero of both World Wars supposedly executed in Denmark by the SS for helping Jews escape the Holocaust.	5 years, 2 months	September 24, 2009	November 24, 2014		Elijah Joel Smith deletion log
Ernest Luxembourg Wright Fictitious Massachusetts poet and writer of the early 20th century; deleted via G3	5 years, 1½ months	June 1, 2010	July 18, 2015		Ernest Luxembourg Wright deletion log
Ooranayakanvalasu Nonexistent village in Indian state of Tamil Nadu	5 years, 1 month	November 9, 2009	December 9, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ooranayakanvalasu
A Condor's Fire: a novel Nonexistent, anagram-based novel ascribed to "Richie F'lin" and set in Colorado. Hoax cited made-up reviews from the New York Times Book Review and a fake biography from Oxford University Press.	5 years, ½ month	July 26, 2009	August 18, 2014		G3 deletion: A Condor's Fire deletion log
Childhood Retournade Nonexistent 1980s experimental French film, attributed to the invented filmmaker "Je Suis."	5 years, ½ month	November 20, 2009	December 12, 2014		Childhood Retournade deletion log
The Restless Nevers Fictitious Washington band with false claims of touring with Kajagoogoo in the 1990s. Article was deleted (A7) in August 2009, but resurfaced the same day and survived five years.	5 years, ½ month	August 1, 2009	August 22, 2014		The Restless Nevers deletion log
The Derby Series of The Table A series of horse races in Kentucky and Tennessee	4 years, 10 months	May 12, 2011	March 16, 2016	3,230	Spotted by SwisterTwister
Hinckley Band of Thieves	4 years, 9½ months	August 31, 2005	June 16, 2010	664	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Hinckley Band of Thieves
Joseph Warshaw "one of the least Known Highwayman": speedily deleted, then {{hoax}} tagged and prodded when recreated the day it was started, but it took more than four years until it was deleted once more	4 years, 9½ months	February 17, 2006	December 3, 2010	1,057	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Joseph Warshaw
Disney's Wide World of Sports Challenge A hoax page for a non-existent Disney sports challenge.	4 years, 9½ months	April 1, 2010	January 25, 2015	2,509
Warren Chaney Series of articles written about Warren Chaney, filled with small deceptions and embellishments, and in the case of at least one article (Magic Mansion), outright fabrications.	4 years, 9 months	March 11, 2011	December 13, 2015	52,209	A technical overview of the process (including links to the AfDs) can be found here and a narrative overview here. This was also listed at Gawker as one of "The 10 Best Articles Wikipedia Deleted This Week"
Bandicoda seed Seed of a fictitious tree species (Bandicoda genrea), supposedly found in Zimbabwe and the English town of Barnsley.	4 years, 9 months	April 29, 2010	February 1, 2015		Bandicoda seed deletion log
E'tedalion Party Fictional Iranian political party	4 years, 8½ months	February 12, 2010	October 25, 2014	1,247
Never Be Alone (series) Fictional Philippine TV series	4 years, 8 months	September 19, 2016	June 1, 2021		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Never Be Alone
Sam Sackey Fictional 1980s soccer star for Ghana	4 years, 8 months	March 20, 2010	November 24, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sam Sackey
Gottfried Eschenbach Non-existent German "composer, conductor and virtuoso violist"	4 years, 8 months	January 10, 2010	September 10, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Gottfried Eschenbach
Blue Blue Sky Nonexistent 1998 film, winner of the imaginary "Andrew Smith award for Best Musical Comedy" and nominee for two "Dutch Acknowledgement movie awards."	4 years, 7½ months	August 31, 2010	April 18, 2015		Blue Blue Sky deletion log
Argusto Emfazie Fictitious American occultist	4 years, 7½ months	February 25, 2002	October 5, 2006	5,080	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Argusto Emfazie
V-Jay's Verghjesles Fictitious "micro-processor controlled surround sound amplifier"; listed nonexistent parts and specifications from Texas Instruments and other actual companies.	4 years, 7 months	January 24, 2011	September 1, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/V-Jay's Verghjesles
Hilfiger High School	4 years, 6½ months	July 14, 2008	February 4, 2013	1,371	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Hilfiger High School
Cranmore chase Nonexistent race involving Victorian-era runners hired by local landowners to deliver titles to land in India.	4 years, 5½ months	July 15, 2010	December 29, 2014		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Cranmore chase Cited as the inspiration for an actual modern 10-kilometer run in Somerset.
EuroNation 1 London Fabricated European singing competition	4 years, 5 months	May 16, 2011	October 22, 2015	1,630
Ebenezer Crummett 18th-century American soldier, falsely credited with saving the Marquis de Lafayette and challenging Alexander Hamilton to a duel.	4 years, 4½ months	August 24, 2010	January 22, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ebenezer Crummett
The Rock Gang Made-up 1980s Swedish rock band with several fictitious albums, noted for using a vacuum cleaner as a saxophone; deleted via G3.	4 years, 3 months	June 2011	September 5, 2015		The Rock Gang deletion log
Fredrick Joseph Logan Fictitious 19th-century graphic designer, credited with the equally fake "Logan's Law" regulating maximum widths of business logos in advertising.	4 years, 2½ months	June 8, 2011	August 30, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Fredrick Joseph Logan
Manão Fictitious mountain village in Portugal	4 years, 2½ months	April 30, 2007	July 14, 2011	845	PROD deleted
Martin Coleman (American football) The story of a non-existent American football player who played for Clemson, Pitt, and the Oakland Raiders. It was recreated several days after deletion and lasted for nearly another month before being deleted again.	4 years, 2½ months	November 5, 2006	January 23, 2011	2,520	See also Martin I. Coleman
De Beaumont-Spain baronets	4 years, 1½ months	July 15, 2017	September 3, 2021		Admitted by the author
Jesse Aaron Richardson Reputed author of the spurious Rotten Apple graphic novel series about a New York bounty hunter's journey into "organized crime, drug dealing, corruption, private investigation, cults, serials [sic] killers, unlicensed boxing, treasure hunting, hired assassinations, and more."	4 years, 1½ months	October 7, 2010	November 26, 2014		Jesse Aaron Richardson deletion log
The Vanderdark Morgue Fictitious morgue and family created to promote a local Kentucky Halloween attraction	4 years, 1 month	July 26, 2011	August 25, 2015	17,133	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Vanderdark Morgue
Bryan J. Baldelli Non-existent American baseball player	4 years	February 26, 2008	February 28, 2012	1,977	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bryan J. Baldelli. Listed at Bryan (given name) in good faith. Also listed on German Wikipedia under Baldelli until deletion in August 2014.

Hoax	Length	Creation date	Deletion date	Size in bytes (last edit)	Links
Wollen-Blohm Prize Made-up $10,000 annual award for achievements in philanthropy and economics, attributed to an "unidentified Singaporean patron of the arts."	3 years, 11½ months	October 14, 2011	September 30, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Wollen-Blohm Prize
Imhyre Kértez Fictitious Hungarian actor at the National Theatre in Warsaw, supposedly a victim of the Nazi invasion in World War II.	3 years, 10½ months	November 7, 2011	September 25, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Imhyre Kértez English article created in good faith during 2011 as a partial translation of a Spanish Wikipedia article, the original hoax, which began in May 2004.
Colin Kennedy Fictitious American Old West criminal who supposedly murdered John Sutter's brother in San Francisco on April 9, 1853	3 years, 10 months	April 8, 2009	February 7, 2013	4,563	Prod deleted; see
Altamont Lamina Fictitious British spy in both world wars, supposedly called "The Silent Blade" for his "above-average skills in sneaking, spying, and assassinating."	3 years, 10 months	February 18, 2011	December 17, 2014		Altamont Lamina deletion log
Zechariah Seal Fictitious emblem	3 years, 9½ months	October 24, 2015	August 17, 2018		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Zechariah Seal Was created at Ben Hayim Seal on October 24, 2015, then cut-and-paste moved to this name a day later. Author also created a myriad of images pertinent to the hoax.
Sshiaga-llat Made-up mythological force of chaos, supposedly adored by "ancient different people from the Sumerians to the Asturians"	3 years, 9½ months	January 28, 2011	November 19, 2014		Sshiaga-llat deletion log
Monte Carlo polarization Fictitious business theory algorithm	3 years, 9½ months	March 13, 2017	December 28, 2020
Phoedelia "The ecclesiastical name for one of the stoppers which accompany the cruets used in [Christian] liturgical rites" that no one but the article creator had ever heard of.	3 years, 9½ months	October 31, 2009	August 12, 2013	506	Discovery and discussion. Added to cruet the next day, added to bung in 2011. It was widely believed by people on the Internet, including multiple auctioners. Note that Phoedelia is a real girl's name.
Jean Moufot Fictitious French philosopher and mathematician. Article first appeared on nl.wikipedia, then translated versions subsequently appeared in French, German and English Wikipedias. Hoax was first discovered by the German Wiki and deleted across the wikis within a week.	3 years, 9½ months	September 24, 2004	July 16, 2008	2,298	discussion on nl.wikipedia, discussion on de.wikipedia, mirror with links to discussion
Bunaka (G3) Non-existent Indonesian island	3 years, 9 months	March 18, 2007	December 20, 2010	5,440	discussion
Charles E. Whitmeyer Fictitious North Carolina politician, undertaker, and inventor of the child leash	3 years, 9 months	March 13, 2007	December 16, 2010	4,270
Bucharest Film Festival A hoax created to support an article on Yuri Gadyukin.	3 years, 9 months	June 16, 2009	March 12, 2013	3,394	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bucharest Film Festival
3G Boyz Completely fabricated contents created by manager to support new band.	3 years, 9 months	December 27, 2009	October 16, 2013	3,540	Prod
Housecoat 3 Nonexistent 1987 American romantic comedy; cited a fabricated review by Leonard Maltin.	3 years, 9 months	December 2, 2011	September 10, 2015	2,352	Spotted and tagged for speedy
Cancun Broadcasting Company Hoax Mexican broadcaster, with "drama, children, news, sports, game shows, entertainment, high definition and more."	3 years, 9 months	October 29, 2011	July 31, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Cancun Broadcasting Company
Eric the sheep Nonexistent graphic novel about the adventures of a super-intelligent Welsh sheep	3 years, 8½ months	February 19, 2011	November 7, 2014		Speedy deletion Deletion log
High Fenton Fictitious English village in County Durham, reputedly noted for an unusual engagement custom involving cheese; deleted via G3.	3 years, 8½ months	September 22, 2012	June 5, 2016		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/High Fenton
Jûtien-Gustave DuRoi and Sallah Ukhmed Fictitious husband-and-wife writers, with a list of works that was expanded over time	3 years, 8 months (DuRoi)	June 9, 2006	February 7, 2010 (DuRoi)	1,970 and 1,161	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jûtien-Gustave DuRoi Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sallah Ukhmed
Eurygaster confidens Nonexistent bug species; deleted via G3.	3 years, 8 months	September 29, 2013	May 26, 2017		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Eurygaster confidens
Loretta Scott Crew Fictitious inventor of S'mores, where it was also reported. Has been incorrectly included in printed books and numerous websites.	3 years, 7½ months	July 1, 2009	February 13, 2013		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Loretta Scott Crew
Another Demonstration of the Cliff-Guibert Fire Hose Reel, Showing a Young Girl Coming from an Office, Detaching Hose, Running with It 60 Feet, and Playing a Stream, All Inside of 30 Seconds Made-up short silent film from 1900 from IMDb.	3 years, 7½ months	May 19, 2013	January 10, 2017	946	This one is IMDb's fault; this hoax was made on their site in ~2003 or so, and it was probably mirrored onto Wikipedia in good faith. After some pestering, IMDb eventually agreed to delete their entry as well.
Grâce à feu et aux flammes Nonexistent composition by Claude Debussy, supposedly discovered under floorboards in his house; deleted via G3.	3 years, 7 months	September 5, 2011	April 10, 2015		Grâce à feu et aux flammes deletion log
Yuri Gadyukin Fictitious Soviet filmmaker defected to the UK and murdered there in 1960 at the age of 28. Apparently, was created to support a low-budget movie.	3 years, 7 months	August 3, 2009	March 6, 2013	8,304	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Yuri Gadyukin; explanation of history and purpose
Shantal Méndez 4-time Grammy Winner, or so the article said of this hypothetical singer	3 years, 7 months	September 27, 2007	May 3, 2011	5,332	Discussion at Wikipedia talk:Unreferenced_BLP_Rescue
Saint Elizabeth College Fictitious liberal arts college in Youngstown, Ohio, supposedly with 3,500 students, 30 programs, 116 years of history, yet zero record of its existence.	3 years, 6 months	August 3, 2011	February 9, 2015		G3 deletion (Deletion log)
Okeke Okonjo Fictitious politician in Lesotho, article cites various sources that do not mention this person.	3 years, 6 months, 29 days	April 18, 2013	November 16, 2016	2,899
Brahmanical See	3 years, 5½ months	August 4, 2004	January 21, 2008	2,230	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Brahmanical See, Mirror and discussion at WR
Upton H. Pennyworth (Prod) (G3 speedy deletion) Fictitious British explorer	3 years, 5½ months	September 7, 2007	February 18, 2011	938	discussion
Pierre Dupont Fictitious 19th-century French painter; several spurious references, including at least one PDF file in a self-published "journal," created to support hoax.	3 years, 5 months	December 3, 2012	May 14, 2016		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Pierre Dupont (painter)
Ceasar McKenzie Fictitious point guard for the NBA's New Orleans Hornets, claimed to be the 2005 Rookie of the Year instead of Emeka Okafor	3 years, 5 months	June 22, 2011	November 26, 2014		Ceasar McKenzie deletion log
Sarah River List of rivers of New Zealand was vandalized changing "Saxon" to "Sarah", and was later turned into an article by bot	3 years, 4 months	May 18, 2006	September 13, 2009		original vandalism, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sarah River, article now at Saxon River
Pilot Season, a non-existent film directed by Kevin Smith	3 years, 3½ months	April 14, 2011	August 28, 2014	938	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Pilot Season (film)
Trundu An ancient tribe belonging to the Trund civilisation	3 years, 3½ months	May 22, 2006	September 7, 2009	1,042	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Trundu
Por muerte del fantasma de Montero Families Hoax online novela	3 years, 3½ months	May 6, 2012	August 26, 2015		Deletion log
Philodoppides Fake ancient Greek poet	3 years, 3½ months	May 11, 2020	August 28, 2023		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Philodoppides
Sei Wee Lim Supposedly an Olympic swimmer from Brunei	3 years, 3 months	September 15, 2006	December 16, 2009		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sei Wee Lim
Morton Schwartz Supposedly a B-movie actor	3 years, 3 months	May 4, 2007	July 27, 2010	1,270	Discussion at Unreferenced BLP Rescue
Flerte Fatal (band) Imaginary Brazilian band, with elaborate set of accompanying articles on albums	3 years, 2 months	March 19, 2015	May 20, 2018		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Flerte Fatal (band)
Clem and Lachlan's Adventures Imaginary Australian ABC teen drama from 2006 to 2012	3 years, 2 months	May 27, 2012	August 1, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Clem and Lachlan's Adventures
Fredric Croix and Quickslide Rick Two supposed 1920s Michigan Blues Musicians	3 years, 2 months	February 9, 2008	April 15, 2011	2,314	WP:Articles for deletion/Fredric Croix and Quickslide Rick
Tors Peerson Fictitious Australian food manufacturer	3 years, 2 months	July 16, 2017	September 13, 2020		Deletion discussion Archived version of the hoax
Kevin Musker Name-change plagiarism of "Charles Ferguson Smith", suspected for 3 years but retained	3 years, 1½ months	February 24, 2006	April 13, 2009	4,333	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Kevin Musker, Revision of Charles Ferguson Smith article was based on
James Geiss Fictitious English whaler	3 years	June 29, 2006	June 30, 2009	2,015	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/James Geiss
Jack Stacey Supposed character ("Chief Resident") during eighth season of ER.	2 years, 11 months	October 3, 2012	September 3, 2015		Jack Stacey deletion log
Soyombo Revival Society Fictitious Mongolian secret society	2 years, 11 months	February 22, 2017	January 24, 2020		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Soyombo Revival Society Archived version of the hoax
Slow Blind Driveway Fictitious blues musician	2 years, 9½ months	November 16, 2006	August 26, 2009	5,705	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Slow Blind Driveway Was later claimed to be a pseudonym used by John Gorka and redirected there, but this was later deleted too due to a lack of verifiability.
Mittapalli Nonexistent Indian village, based on old revision of Bandarlapalle	2 years, 9 months	July 23, 2010	April 27, 2013	1,034	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Mittapalli
Ocular citrosis A fictional type of eye infection resulting from periodic exposure to acidic substances. Created on 1st April and referred to in other disease articles a few weeks later.	2 years, 9 months	April 1, 2010	January 7, 2013	2,757	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ocular citrosis
Vitus Sebastian Barbaro fictitious member of a real Venetian family repeatedly added to real articles by numerous sockpuppets: Wikipedia:Requests for checkuser/Case/Societyfinalclubs, Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Mctrain/Archive	2 years, 9 months	May 29, 2007	February 25, 2010	1,636	User:Barneca/watch/societyfinalclubs
Richard Hopkins (chess player) and Ruy Lopez, Hopkins Gambit Fictitious chess player and the opening chess moves allegedly named after him.	2 years, 8½ months	December 28, 2010	September 22, 2013	10,882 and 4,219	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Richard Hopkins (chess player) Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ruy Lopez, Hopkins Gambit
Lewis William Walt Fictitious marriage and child added to bio.	2 years, 8½ months	April 8, 2013	January 16, 2016	Added, removed
Ruy Lopez, Marshall Attack, Rombaua Trap Fictitious chess trap	2 years, 8 months	January 7, 2011	September 9, 2013	3,964	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ruy Lopez, Marshall Attack, Rombaua Trap
Jason Donoghue Actor that allegedly had roles in Hollyoaks and Outlander.	2 years, 8 months	December 29, 2013	September 14, 2016	6,036	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jason Donoghue (2nd nomination)
The Tarsus Club and Murray Chance Articles on a fictitious club and individual created as guerrilla marketing for the film The Conspiracy	2 years, 7½ months	December 17, 2010	August 10, 2013		Wikipedia:Administrators' noticeboard/IncidentArchive807#Elaborate hoax articles
Operation Gray Cloud A suppposed operation conducted by US forces during the Vietnam War, which was actually a description of the plot to the film Operation Dumbo Drop	2 years, 7 months	January 1, 2012	August 13, 2014		Added to the article, Role of the United States in the Vietnam War Removed
Olle Halvorssen Suppposedly a 9th century Danish king that should have been the first king of a (completely unknown) petty kingdom centered around Århus and "Sønnestrom" (also a hoax). His son Haakon Ollenson should allegedly have conquered the major part of Denmark in the beginning of the 10th century with the exception of the island of Funen.	2 years, 7 months	February 6, 2017	September 12, 2019	3,465	Deletion log
Rudolph's Greatest Adventures Fictitious Rankin/Bass Productions special	2 years, 7 months	December 7, 2012	July 12, 2015	3,727	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Rudolph's Greatest Adventures
Paul Berowne and McIver-Berowne baronets	2 years, 7 months	December 3, 2012	July 7, 2015		Discussion at Reference Desk/Humanities
Charles Krum & Krum Corporate Alleged businessman and his London-based company	2 years, 6½ months	February 28, 2013	September 16, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Krum Corporate (nomination for both articles and tagged for speedy deletion G3)
The "Cohen-Cruse Ruse" an elaborate set of hoax articles and edits over many articles including the fictitious people Baron Cruse-Cohen, Jean Alexandre Cohen, Jonathan Cohen, Sir David Cohen, and Stephen B. Jacobsohn, and several fictitious synagogues including Beth Sadeh Synagogue and Sephardic Temple Adat David. A small project was formed to hunt down all the various edits involved.	2 years, 5½ months	May 1, 2009	October 15, 2011		User:Vivisel/cohen cruse ruse, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Baron Cruse-Cohen, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Stephen B. Jacobsohn, additions to Salisbury, North Carolina, etc.
Wichita Glade, Florida Fictitious community in the U.S. state of Florida	2 years, 5 months	June 7, 2014	December 1, 2016	587	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Wichita Glade, Florida
Balboa Creole French Fictitious highly endangered French-based creole language, supposedly spoken exclusively by about 20 people on Balboa Island in Newport Beach, an extremely wealthy suburban town in Orange County, California.	2 years, 5 months	April 3, 2010	September 10, 2012	2,875	Blogpost referencing Balboa Creole French as one of "Seven Languages That Are About To Die"
Trembulo Fictitious musical instrument	2 years, 5 months	July 26, 2010 June 12, 2016	December 27, 2012 June 16, 2016	4,656	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Trembulo, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Trembulo (2nd nomination)
Rothmanhaus Fictitious hotel in Naumburg, Germany. Allegedly the place of death for "wildly popular" ice hockey player Leopold Nosske, who was also fictional.	2 years, 5 months	April 29, 2015	October 2, 2017	1,265	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Rothmanhaus
Långrocken Fictitious Swedish serial rapist in 1893, allegedly searched by undercover policemen in women's clothes	2 years, 4½ months	July 24, 2005	December 8, 2007	1,576	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Långrocken
Peace breaker's muzzle Fictitious torture device	2 years, 4½ months	August 2, 2004	December 10, 2006	934	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Peace breaker's muzzle, added to Torture article, removed
Functional temporalism Postmodern anthropological theory	2 years, 4 months	August 8, 2007	December 7, 2009	1,563	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Functional temporalism
Sean MacLeod Fictional comedian	2 years, 4 months	September 9, 2006	January 8, 2009	4,077	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Sean MacLeod
Be A Star (UK TV series) Fictitious UK talent show	2 years, 4 months	January 21, 2017	May 17, 2019	11,974	Detection, Deletion discussion
Wander Donkey Fictitious adventure game for the Nintendo DS	2 years, 3½ months	May 15, 2007	September 5, 2009	4,283	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Wander Donkey, archived forum confession from September 3, 2009
Thomas Stokes Fictitious English player in the Football League with clubs including Yeovil Town, Grays Athletic, and Southend United.	2 years, 3 months	January 14, 2014	April 21, 2016		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Thomas Stokes (2nd nomination)
Genck Azonho Fictitious Argentinean writer and social reformer of the 1970s, noted for his "extreme moralistic and ascetic views."	2 years, 3 months	April 12, 2013	July 18, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Genck Azonho
Parfact A secret language of Worcestershire teenagers	2 years, 3 months	November 8, 2006	February 1, 2009	7,124	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Parfact
Monvilla Non-existent Shropshire village.	2 years, 2½ months	January 3, 2006	March 21, 2008	577	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Monvilla
Nueces de la Perez Fictitious 18th-century Spanish mission near the site of present-day Corpus Christi, Texas	2 years, 2 months	November 7, 2012	January 14, 2015		Nueces de la Perez deletion log
Matthew Lyons Texas frontiersman and CSA cavalry soldier	2 years, 2 months	February 18, 2008	April 19, 2010	4,156	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Matthew Lyons
Fadl Attraction Fictitious Canadian male porn star	2 years, 2 months	November 4, 2007	January 10, 2010	1,199	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Fadl Attraction
Cindy and the Halo Boy Nonexistent direct-to-DVD movie, supposedly starring Haylie Duff and Frankie Muniz and added to Duff's page.	2 years, 1½ months	March 15, 2007	May 8, 2009		Added, removed; admitted in a 2015 Gawker.com post.
Curtis James Real high-school runner with spectacular fictitious professional career	2 years, 1½ months	October 4, 2008	November 18, 2010	40,549	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Curtis James
The Siccness Network Fictional animated television show that ran on BET	2 years, 1 month	September 4, 2013	October 13, 2015	9,891	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Siccness Network
Shai Bernstein Fictitious Jewish-Russian thinker - Bernstein was actually a student in Houston	2 years, ½ month	September 1, 2007	September 16, 2009	5,352	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Shai Bernstein, had a Hebrew translation
Morris Guggenheim Fictitious son of Solomon R. Guggenheim, who supposedly married a member of the British royal family and became mayor of Charleston, South Carolina.	2 years	August 18, 2013	August 21, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Morris Guggenheim
Moroccans with Disabilities Act of 1992 "Copied from a past revision of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 article".	2 years	September 10, 2009	September 13, 2011	22,359	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Moroccans with Disabilities Act of 1992
Murexia xenochromus Fictitious marsupial from New Guinea	1 year, 11 months	February 6, 2021	January 29, 2023		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Murexia xenochromus
Taylor Mowry Fictitious actor; based closely on an old revision of Tristan Wilds	1 year, 11 months	December 15, 2009	November 15, 2011	4,118
The Lying Student Fictitious Czech satirical poem stated to have been written in 1914	1 year, 11 months	January 23, 2015	December 28, 2016	4,291	Failed verification as noted by anon editor at Talk:The Lying Student. This article was nevertheless featured on the main page under DYK
Canyon View Junior High School Fictitious school in Edmonton, Alberta	1 year, 11 months	December 15, 2009	November 15, 2011	5,222
Jeanette Magel Fictitious British High Court judge	1 year, 10 months	February 3, 2019	December 14, 2020		Archived version of the hoax
Five Star Generals Fictitious rock band from Buffalo, New York	1 year, 10 months	June 1, 2013	April 12, 2015		Five Star Generals deletion log
Haď Čarém Nonexistent 10th-century Hungarian Muslim merchant and economist, supposedly cited as an "incipient anti-colonialist and anti-slavery advocate" in later Communist theory.	1 year, 10 months	March 27, 2013	January 29, 2015	14,303	Haď Čarém deletion log Justification at the creator's talk page
Brazilian copperfish Nonexistent fish of the family Characidae, supposedly native to the waters near Rio de Janeiro and forming a "vital part of Brazilian culture and cuisine."	1 year, 9½ months	March 3, 2007	December 18, 2008		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Brazilian copperfish
Noah Chazzman Name-change plagiarism of Steven Pinker	1 year, 9 months	January 17, 2011	October 23, 2012
Juan Gadiel Rosado Colón Name-change plagiarism of Don Francisco	1 year, 9 months	April 22, 2013	January 27, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Juan Gadiel Rosado Colón
Marathonius Granthius (G3) Fake Roman soldier	1 year, 8½ months	August 21, 2006	May 2, 2008	5,337	Discovered when blanked by an IP who warned that it was a hoax
European Tennis Club of Culture (PROD)	1 year, 8 months	November 15, 2005	July 15, 2007	889	Noticed in April 2007 on talk page
Baldock Beer Disaster Was listed on Did You Know?	1 year, 8 months	November 15, 2005	July 15, 2007	2,636	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Baldock Beer Disaster Did You Know entry Discussion Was temporarily made into an article about the hoax before being deleted regardless. Cited as the inspiration for an actual India Pale Ale produced by an Illinois brewery.
Æblerød (CSD) Fictional Danish municipality	1 year, 8 months	January 12, 2004	September 8, 2005	358	Removal from municipalities list, discussion, featured in Danish newspaper Politiken (December 5th, 2006)
Battle of Stuart's Pond	1 year, 7½ months	May 29, 2008	January 18, 2010	2,131	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Battle of Stuart's Pond
Maria Portaro (G3) Fictitious marine biologist with "500 published papers"	1 year, 7 months	March 3, 2008	October 3, 2009	1,618
Dhanunjaya Rao Web developer who poached the career of Ravi Teja	1 year, 7 months	October 7, 2015	May 20, 2017		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Dhanunjaya Rao
Oyster Injustice Fictitious financial disaster affecting Chesapeake Bay fishermen	1 year, 7 months	July 6, 2007	February 4, 2009	2,139	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Oyster Injustice
Earl of Aldbury (G3) Non-existent 17th-century peer.	1 year, 6½ months	May 13, 2009	December 3, 2010	471
Herzthiolate heptahydrolysic acid Hoax genetic molecule with an invalid chemical formula (NaO ₂H⁹⁰⁻ ₈Mg ₄S ₂Ci ₂ Al ₂Si ₂He ₄Fe ₂CaN ₂C), supposedly found in the imaginary "Stenaphyllzone (Plasma life-form)" and sebum.	1 year, 6½ months	February 27, 2014	September 14, 2015		Deletion log
Quaff distillery Made-up name for the still genuinely constructed by mutineers from HMS Bounty on Pitcairn Island in the 1790s. Drink was supposedly also called "quaff" and supposedly gave its name to a enduring worldwide drinking club.	1 year, 6 months	December 30, 2013	June 15, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Quaff distillery. Found its way into Pitcairn Education Work Pack produced to accompany the 2014 play Pitcairn
Ciarán Dunphy Fabricated 19th century Irish author, a "member of Sinn Féin during the Irish War of Independence" and a "significant public political figure, as well as one of the chief chroniclers of Irish nationalism in literature".	1 year, 6 months	January 26, 2014	October 22, 2015	9,888
Talinsfadasporia (G3) Fictitious Indian town, mostly cut and pasted from Dibrugarh	1 year, 5½ months	May 31, 2009	November 20, 2010	6,703
Mrs Brown: The Musicals Fake musical comedy series based on Mrs. Brown's Boys, supposedly featuring Broadway songs and broadcast on RTÉ One and BBC One; deleted via A11.	1 year, 4½ months	November 23, 2013	April 18, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Mrs Brown: The Musicals
Anaxiphales Fictitious presocratic philosopher	1 year, 4½ months	February 12, 2005	June 28, 2006	4,384	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Anaxiphales
Count Wladmir Shchwekochov Imaginary 19th-century Russian nobleman, supposedly owner of an estate with "over 300 acres of forest, 5 lakes, a waterfall, 2 farms, a mine, and a 40 bedroom palace with a malachite and gold-plated ballroom."	1 year, 4½ months	March 10, 2015	July 24, 2016		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Count Wladmir Shchwekochov
Elizabethan Lizard Fictitious punk rock band from Minnesota; G3 deletion	1 year, 4 months	November 8, 2013	March 13, 2015		Elizabethan Lizard deletion log
Ingrid Vakaslavik Fictitious tap dancer from Russia	1 year, 3½ months	February 15, 2009	May 31, 2010	993	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ingrid Vakaslavik
Crowborough Caves With "Dr. SP Leo Logist"	1 year, 3 months	April 8, 2007	July 27, 2008	516	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Crowborough Caves. Pun on speleologist. Their hoax website now links back to this page. First detected by an anon who called it "a well known 'fun' story / hoax".
Emerson LaSalle Fictitious author	1 year, 3 months	November 27, 2007	February 27, 2009	3,298	After the deletion discussion had started, the original author rewrote the article to describe the subject as fictional (as well as to criticize the deletion), but it was still deleted.
Freedom Channing Fictitious "conductor" of the Underground Railroad	1 year, 3 months	July 11, 2005	October 8, 2006	1,056	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Freedom Channing
Nippon Super Rugby League Fictitious rugby competition, created along with the equally spurious 2016 Rugby League Asian Series; included made-up teams such as "Saitama Hippopotamus" and "Yohokama S.Yamaga."	1 year, 2½ months	March 6, 2015	May 30, 2016		Nippon Super Rugby League deletion log
Amorica (legend) Given its own article for 8 months rather than deletion	1 year, 10½ months	November 9, 2004 See original article May 24, 2005	January 22, 2006	1,031	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Amorica (legend)
Plathubis the grey fox Made-up hunting myth from Latvia about an amphibious, rain-bringing fox, designed "to warn impetuous young men not to kill animals for fun"; deleted via G3.	1 year, 2 months	February 8, 2014	April 20, 2015		Plathubis the grey fox deletion log
Vengeance On Elm Street Nonexistent "upcoming" sequel to the Nightmare on Elm Street series; deleted via G3.	1 year, 2 months	January 21, 2014	March 28, 2015		Vengeance On Elm Street deletion log
Francis Bunbury (PROD) Non-existent architect; names in article taken from The Importance of Being Earnest.	1 year, 2 months	October 24, 2009	December 26, 2010	2,320	First noted by an anon October 2010
Unbeatables Nonexistent children's show set in Russia, broadcast on the equally fictitious network Bamboo TV.	1 year, 2 months	February 14, 2015	April 13, 2016		Unbeatables deletion log
Jason Waterfalls Imaginary British football player whose name happened to match a frequently misheard lyric in the song Waterfalls by TLC. Created by a single-purpose account overwriting an existing redirect.	1 year, 2 months	November 7, 2015	January 4, 2017		Speedy deletion per WP:G3: blatant hoax. Log
Joshua G. Cantor-Stone (G4) Fictitious Jewish WWII naval aviator and hero	1 year, 1½ months	February 22, 2009	April 11, 2010	6,564	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Joshua G. Cantor-Stone
Eric Radloff Fictitious singer-songwriter	1 year, 1½ months	July 5, 2004	August 23, 2005	2,015	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Eric Radloff
Little Adventures of Bruno Supposed animated television series by Mitchell Hurwitz that would be a followup of sorts to Sit Down, Shut Up	1 years 1 months	October 17, 2013	November 22, 2014	5,976	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Little Adventures of Bruno
Magnesium lasering Article about a fictional scientific practice.	1 year, 1 month	May 14, 2009	June 13, 2010	890	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Magnesium lasering
Earl of Iford Partial name-change plagiarism of Earl of Shaftesbury	1 year, 1 month	April 13, 2008	May 11, 2009	2,276	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Earl of Iford
Federlandese (coin) "Had this "coin" been real, it would have pre-dated the oldest known Scandinavian coins by perhaps ~800 years, so we would have heard of it elsewhere. Also, people in Scandinavia didn't have a monetary economy 2100 years ago."	1 year, ½ month	December 2, 2009	December 22, 2010	693	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Federlandese (coin)
Ladedaism Invented social/artistic movement	1 year, ½ month	July 7, 2005	July 19, 2006		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ladedaism
Nam Nguyễn Thành Fictitious international soccer player for Vietnam, supposedly recommended by Barry Hayles	1 year	February 19, 2014	February 25, 2015		Nam Nguyễn Thành deletion log
Vanda Varvara Fictitious painter. One of the longest and most elaborate hoax articles on Wikipedia.	1 year	January 26, 2012	January 29, 2013	28,171	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Vanda Varvara
Odin's Globe Fictitious Norse mythological artifact of diverse powers ("protection, luck, minor telepathy, slow or speed up time, willpower, support, empathy, understanding, wits, health"); falsely sourced to a nonexistent poem, "Loki's Lunar Lover."	1 year	April 6, 2014	April 12, 2015		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Odin's Globe
The Bierrum Effect Fictitious biological effect occurring in isolated environments	1 year	September 3, 2008	September 7, 2009	3,299	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Bierrum Effect
St Forbadil Fake 7th-century Bishop of Mercia and Celtic saint, depicted with the head of a dog and credited with the miraculous invention of beer; possibly created to supply a backstory for a brewery. Deleted via G3.	1 year	August 20, 2015	August 24, 2016		Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/St Forbadil
James and the Pontoons Fake rock band	1 year	July 20, 2007	July 21, 2008	5,947	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/James and the Pontoons
Hevstäf Fictitious Czech village	1 year	October 12, 2006	October 15, 2007	4,822	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Hevstäf
Deportation of Chinese in the Soviet Union Direct translation of the corresponding article from the Chinese Wikipedia, which was once a featured article there. It was later discovered in June 2022 that the original Chinese Wikipedia article contained misinformation, with the print media citations in the article being used fraudulently, and was part of a widespread sitewide collection of hoaxes created by a single user which spanned at least 206 articles on the Chinese Wikipedia and took place over a timespan of 10 years. During the AfD process on the English Wikipedia, a fact-check of the article content was undertaken; dubious content was removed, while information that could be verified via alternative sourcing was salvaged.	Extant (not deleted)	December 7, 2019	June 27, 2022 (date salvaged)	42,389	WP:ANI thread: "An urgent report about a user:折毛's hoaxes" Wikipedia:Fabricated articles and hoaxes of Russia in 2022 Zhemao hoaxes

Hoax	Length	Creation date	Deletion date	Size in bytes (last edit)	Links
Siege of Borovsk Direct translation of the corresponding article from Chinese Wikipedia, which was later discovered to be a hoax in June 2022, and subsequently speedy deleted. See "Deportation of Chinese in the Soviet Union" above for more information.	7 months	November 5, 2021	June 16, 2022		Speedy deletion per WP:G3: blatant hoax. Wayback Archive from June 12, 2022 WP:ANI thread: "An urgent report about a user:折毛's hoaxes" Wikipedia:Fabricated articles and hoaxes of Russia in 2022
John Seigenthaler Sr. Real journalist who had a hoax article in 2005 claiming he was a suspect in the assassination of John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy.	4½ months	May 26, 2005	October 7, 2005		The subject of the Wikipedia Seigenthaler biography incident. Widely reported in the press and led to the introduction of the Wikipedia:Biographies of living persons policy.
Edward Owens hoax Article concerning late 1800's Chesapeake Bay oyster fisherman who turned to piracy created as a part of an internet hoax performed by students enrolled in a George Mason University class entitled "Lying about History".	30 days	November 18, 2008	December 18, 2008		After several mainstream news sources reported on the internet meme, students came forward to admit the deception.^[3]^[4]^[5] Survived speedy deletion, proposed deletion and two AFDs (1, 2) as a well documented hoax, before being incorporated as a part of an article on George Mason University hoaxes.
Alan Mcilwraith A "Walter Mitty" character who faked a bio of his supposed military record on Wikipedia. It initially lasted three weeks before being deleted at AfD. It was recreated three times but deleted within a day each time, but then the story hit the headlines in April 2006 and the article was recreated to be about him as a hoaxer	21 days	October 5, 2005	October 26, 2005		The hoax version
Upper Peninsula War Account of a fictional conflict in 1843 between the State of Michigan and Canada over a disputed territorial line in the Upper Peninsula and subsequent secession attempt by the governor of Michigan.	13 days	May 2, 2007	May 15, 2007	24,553	Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Upper Peninsula War
Helen Anne Petrie, Strutt Family Trust South African painter whose falsified biography was seeded on the internet in an apparent attempt to increase the value of artwork. Related names included Sebastian L.S Schwagele, Fan Moniz and PR by a Marlene Duval, User:Marlene Duval	37 minutes	June 19, 2007	June 19, 2007	17,873	Afd discussion, Afd discussion, SSI report, Commons Village Pump London Times article(registration required) South African Art Times article
	8 days	May 1, 2009	May 9, 2009	3,455
	2 days	October 29, 2009	October 31, 2009

Wikipedia:List_of_hoaxes_on_Wikipedia

Wikipedia:List of hoaxes on Wikipedia

Hoax articles

Extant for 10+ years

Extant for 8-10 years

Extant for 4-8 years

Extant for 1-4 years

Extant for less than 1 year

False statements in articles

Extant for 10+ years

Extant for 8-10 years

Extant for 4-8 years

Extant for 1-4 years

Extant for less than 1 year

See also

References

Further reading

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Claim	Length	Insertion date	Removal date	Links
Claim that, due to her fame in Japan, female wrestler Kaoru Matsumoto was known as the "Niall Quinn of Joshi"	3.61 years	October 13, 2008	May 24, 2012	added, removed
Chuck LaFille Fictional comedian and host of game show Beat the Clock: Claims of being a guest The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson added to List of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson episodes (1971), List of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson episodes (1972), List of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson episodes (1974) Claims that he vandalized Elvis Presley's dressing room at Westgate Las Vegas added to the latter's article Claims that he had an altercation with Don Rickles on The Tonight Show added to Rickles' article Claims that he was originally to have appeared in the Disneyland attraction Superstar Limo added to that article Claim of amusement park named after him in Buenos Aires added to List of amusement parks in the Americas	3 years, 9 months (Tonight Show episodes) 1 year, 7½ months (Westgate Las Vegas, Don Rickles) 3 months (Superstar Limo, List of amusement parks in the Americas)	June 16, 2020 (Tonight Show episodes) July 28, 2022 (Westgate Las Vegas, Don Rickles) December 22, 2023 (Superstar Limo, List of amusement parks in the Americas)	March 16, 2024	Additions to 1971 episodes, 1972 episodes, 1974 episodes Addition to Westgate Las Vegas Addition to Don Rickles Addition to Superstar Limo Addition to List of amusement parks in the Americas Very likely connected to this website and this Twitter account alleging to be LaFille, both laden with obvious jokes and suggesting an attempt at either an alternate reality game or shitposting
Jack Mills and Joey Deacon's Farmhouse Brie Fictitious cheesemaking house that survived on the Hury page for over three years.	3.53 years	September 21, 2012	April 4, 2016	Reverted
Fictitious spouse of Dana International Claimed to be named "Khalid Al Saqly" and married from 2010-2017	3.51 years	May 11, 2020	November 13, 2023	First added under incorrect parameter; made visible by correcting parameter; removed.
Former American Gladiator Jonathan Byrne Series of edits regarding an eccentric and non-existent American Gladiator	3.47 years	June 19, 2006	December 6, 2009	Thirty pages unraveled over a two day period by Jeandré du Toit. First edit Others: Other edits had been previously removed on an individual basis. Believed by people online, including some people^{[dead link]} who claimed to remember him.
Addition of non-existent poet Tejas Saini to the List of British playwrights	3.4 years	October 13, 2008	May 24, 2012	added, removed
Monarch (butterfly) as Canada's national insect	3.29 years	December 9, 2004	March 26, 2008	added, removed
Toyota Canarado Fictitious name for a car model	3.27 years	January 13, 2013	April 22, 2016	Talk:Toyota Previa#Toyota Canarado
Fabricated musician credits on Mr. Misunderstood	3.23 years	January 18, 2019	April 12, 2022	Added in this edit; removed in this edit. The album liner notes do not contain specific musician credits.
19th-century invention of the hair iron attributed to fictitious persons, "Erica Feldman" (changed from Madam C. J. Walker) and another name (apparently a classmate) on English and Simple English Wikipedia. Both names are now widely credited on the Internet (as well as in one book) with the invention of the hair straightener	3.09 years	August 14, 2006	September 15, 2009	Erica Feldman, I. G., , , discussion at Wikipedia Review
Rosie the Riveter Original Rosie was Shirley Karp: hoax Original Rosie was Shirley Karp Dick: vandalism	3.02 years	January 16, 2009	January 24, 2012	Historian Max Hastings published in the first edition of his November 2011 book Inferno: The World at War, 1939–1945 (called All Hell Let Loose in the UK): "Another much-publicised 'Rosie' was Shirley Karp Dick, who was paid $6 to model for photos, of which the most famous showed her treading on Hitler's Mein Kampf." A second edition was published October 2012 after the hoax was revealed.
Claim that Khofifah Indar Parawansa's middle name is Tegistha	2.91 years	June 12, 2017	May 11, 2020	added, removed, cited in Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India 2018 Fostering Growth through Digitalisation: Fostering Growth through Digitalisation
Mirsk Famous Residents section alleging this as city where Nicholas Copernicus contracted genital warts from a Mirsk prostitute, as allegedly proved by DNA evidence. Vandalism was removed by Jimmy Wales.	2.66 years	January 15, 2012	September 14, 2014	User talk:Meishern#Do you have any evidence for this.3F, Added: , Removed:
Screen of death The inclusion of an error from a fictional operating system named "PowerMax."	2.63 years	May 26, 2019	January 9, 2022	added, removed
Eric Clapton's various girlfriends	2.61 years	May 9, 2011	December 19, 2013	A paragraph was inserted listing 15 women that Clapton supposedly dated. One was Alicia Witt who eventually saw the list and complained on Facebook that it was not true about her. The whole paragraph was supported by a hoax reference initially listing the Boston Beacon which was soon changed to the Boston Globe, even though no such article exists.
Claim that physicist Hans Geiger was supposedly nicknamed "Gengar"	2.49 years	May 22, 2015	November 18, 2017	discussion added, removed
Wikipedia:List of hoaxes on Wikipedia A false entry was inserted, claiming that a false claim had been made that Palladium is used in the manufacture of Thiotimoline. Hoax was initially removed on October 8, 2020, but was added back twenty minutes later.	0.11 years	August 30, 2020	October 8, 2020	Self-referential humor first time: added, removed; second time: added, removed, entry was in the Hoax Statements in Articles section, in the Extant for 1-3 Years table.
	2.33 years	October 8, 2020	February 7, 2023
Claim that Martin Morning was followed by a show called Nappy imals	2.4 years	September 6, 2019	January 28, 2022	The unsourced claim was inserted into the infobox along with a paragraph stating the same team should make the show. Although Nappyimals was linked, it was only to Diaper (nappy in British English) and Animal. While the paragraph was removed in a few months, the claim in the info box stayed up. The only other instance of "Nappyimals" online outside of mirrors was the same exact paragraph inserted on the website Paul Marciano Wiki a few months after the original edit. (Paul Marciano has never worked in animation.) added, removed, talk page discussion
Fictitious "yachting" section on Bridgestone	2.39 years	September 4, 2015	January 24, 2018	Added to article 4 September 2015, extended July 2017, removed 24 January 2018
Fictitious "further reading" on bullshit	2.37 years	November 23, 2007	April 8, 2010	added, deleted
Claim that the Cuban township of Guanabacoa's nickname was "Villa de Pepe Armenio", when it was really "Villa de Pepe Antonio". May have been a mistake rather than intentionally misleading information.	2.34 years	January 11, 2016	May 15, 2018	Differences between hoax and correction on the Guanabacoa article
Claims that Adams Packer Film Productions produced an animated series named Angel Marble Elijah or Angel Marble Eddy in the 1970's and that the series was subsequently dubbed in Finnish by Golden Voice	2.32 years	July 8, 2015	November 1, 2017	added, removed
Fictitious Illyrian gods	2.31 years	October 27, 2005	February 18, 2008	Old revision of Paleo-Balkanic mythology showing fictitious gods, discussion
Characterisation of Shane (name) signifying a violent individual	2.31 years	December 21, 2007	April 12, 2010	added, deleted, believed by and
Just When I Needed You Most Cover version by "Daniel Selby"	2.03 years	January 22, 2011	January 31, 2013	added, removed Reference to Selby also added on songwriter Randy VanWarmer's page (removed)
PC Card Claimed to be invented by "Jacob D. Holm" in 1986. In reality, the PCMCIA organization was formed in 1989-09, based on the initiative of Poqet Computer Corporation's Ian Cullimore with support from Fujitsu and Intel since 1989-07.	2.03 years	August 18, 2011	August 30, 2013	added, removed
Oggy and the Cockroaches' English voice cast Fictitious Canadian-American voice cast for an animated series without dialogue, featuring actor Don Michael Paul and voice actors Greg Eagles, Tara Strong, Peter Kelamis, Tony Sampson, Sam Vincent and Matt Hill	1.97 years	September 17, 2011	September 4, 2013	Added, removed, cast list on Netflix The show is often a target to these voice cast (type 2a) hoaxes, with the Canadian-American one being the most common. The inclusion of Japanese actors also affected Mitsuaki Madono and Nobuo Tobita's dubbing sections for a while.
Stephen Gostkowski Claim that "Benjamin Skiest" was a high school football opponent of Stephen Gostkowski and became a running back for the Atlanta Falcons.	1.91 years	November 1, 2018	September 27, 2020	added, removed
Let Me Be There and If You Love Me (Let Me Know) For nearly two years, both articles credited a "Navin Harris" as the backing vocalist instead of Mike Sammes.	1.79 years	June 17, 2010	April 2, 2012 (both articles)	Appears in this article and this publication of Olivia Newton-John related Wikipedia articles Content was repeatedly re-added by an IP-hopper after first removal in April 2012, even after the addition of a source verifying the real vocalist's name, leading to extended semi-protection of both articles; see also Wikipedia:Administrators' noticeboard/IncidentArchive747#Repeated vandalism for a likely source of the name.
United States Secretary of Education hoax Three fake secretaries were added to the list and remained unnoticed for nearly two years.	1.79 years	March 20, 2019	January 1, 2021 (first one removed); January 7, 2021 (other two removed)	added, one removed, other two removed
Lustfaust hoax The real band Lustfaust, which the article is now about, used this fake band as a marketing tactic	1.74 years	October 15, 2005	July 14, 2007	Old revision of article about fake band, NYT article describing fake article
Involvement of Brian Reddyb in the band Rednex	1.71 years	October 17, 2005	July 3, 2007	added, removed; User:Brian Reddyb vocally defended his hoax edits until he was banned, and Rednex personally denounced his story. Brian made a similar hoax edit to Saddam Hussein.
Spurious stadium capacity of Queens Park AFC, Invercargill, New Zealand 100,000,000 — nearly 20 times the population of the entire country	1.71 years	June 23, 2020	March 10, 2022	added, removed
Fictitious murder case in Chah-e Allahdad, Iran, involving a "Wanye al-Ballshar" who emigrated to New Jersey. Included an image of the purported suspect that was generated by the website This Person Does Not Exist; the article was deleted by AfD shortly afterward for unrelated reasons.	1.65 years	December 2, 2020	July 26, 2022	added, removed
Traffic cones called "kafele boothe cones"	1.64 years	October 4, 2010	May 24, 2012	Returned from July 28, 2012 to December 18, 2012, again on March 25, 2013, June 7, 2013 to June 14, 2013, and June 21, 2013 to July 12, 2013
Order of the Solar Temple Addition by an IP editor that the co-founder of the cult The Order of the Solar Temple was "Lucas Peric", not Jo di Mambro. Di Mambro was later re-added to the infobox, but the nonexistant Lucas Peric remained for over a year.	1.51 years	February 22, 2022	August 15, 2023	added, removed The IP also inserted the wrong province of Canada, but this was quickly caught.
"Conrad Dean" as backing vocalist on Whatcha Gonna Do with a Cowboy	1.49 years	March 29, 2012	September 25, 2013
Dexter, New York and Dexter, Maine On two distinct occasions, it was falsely claimed the town was named after "Dexter Borup". The IP that made the first edit also added the name uncapitalized to Dexter, Maine.	0.9 years	February 23, 2007	January 17, 2008	first time: added, removed; second time: added, removed. Was picked up by other resources on the town.^{[dead link]} Maine: ,
	1.49 years	February 1, 2009	July 30, 2010
	0.99 years	February 27, 2007	February 23, 2008
Fake material in Tristan Sir Tristan as an "overweight knight"	1.47 years	September 2, 2004	February 20, 2006	added, removed
"Max Facemire the 3rd", a fictitious individual who made "most English furniture"	1.13 years	February 7, 2023	March 25, 2024	added, removed
Arthur Foot being Michael Foot′s brother.	1.43 years	November 14, 2013	April 21, 2015	added, removed/names of actual brothers and a nephew added
Addition of three trees to Man-eating tree, one of which (Duñak) is completely fabricated Inspired several pieces of artwork and literature, including a novel.^{[dead link]}	1.27 years	October 26, 2008	February 2, 2010	added, removed. Believed by The Epoch Times (May 5, 2009)
Fictitious genealogy of Buenaventura Báez Part of a series of hoax additions regarding supposed family members of a non-notable teenager named Freddy de Marchena (Lord Mäerzenfeld), which also included fake relatives of Marisol (actress); a fake middle name for Georg Altner; several hoax articles such as "De Marchena (Surname)" and "Freddy Brün"; and a series of AI-generated images for artworks supposedly created by Lord Mäerzenfeld.	1.17 years	April 21, 2022	June 21, 2023	added, removed at Báez; added, removed at Marisol; added, removed at Altner; Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/De Marchena (Surname); deletion discussion at Commons
Fictitious sons of Aaron Nada and Abidjan	1.11 years	March 16, 2008	April 26, 2009	added, removed
Gérard Louis-Dreyfus Fictitious children named "Rover and Bethlehem". (revision)	1.04 years	March 9, 2009	March 24, 2010	added, removed