Afan wiki is awiki[a] that is created byfans, primarily to document an object ofpopular culture. Fan wikis cover television shows, film franchises, video games, comic books, sports, and other topics.[1] They are a part offandoms, which aresubcultures dedicated to a common popular culture interest. The digital humanities scholarJason Mittell stated in 2013 that fan wikis were "[o]ne of the most popular and widespread uses of wikis".[2]
Fan wikis usually operate according to internal policies. Editors reach decisions through discussion andconsensus decision-making. Some wikis are more hierarchical, while others operate more collectively. They usually appoint a small group of editors to serve assystem operators (sysops) or administrators, who have additional powers to enforce rules.[3] Many fan wikis have rules that require editors to provide citations to reliable sources to verify their claims.Fan wikis were first published in the early 2000s. Many fan wikis formed out of Wikipedia over disputes among editors about the level of detail that should be provided in articles.[4] These included fans of the television showBattlestar Galactica[5] and theStar Wars franchise, who foundedWookieepedia after facing complaints about the "overabundance of minutiae related toStar Wars appearing on Wikipedia".[4]
In 2004, the Wikipedia co-founderJimmy Wales and the former Wikipedia board chair Angela Beesley foundedFandom under the name WikiCities, a for-profitwiki hosting service that hosted regional wikis for cities. In 2006, the company attracted venture capital funding and changed its name to Wikia.[6] Wikia then began to assimilate independent fan wikis, such asMemory Alpha (aStar Trek fan wiki) andWowpedia (aWorld of Warcraft fan wiki).[7] In the late 2010s—after Fandom andGamepedia were acquired and consolidated by theprivate equity firmTPG Inc.—several wikis began to leave the service, including theRuneScape,Zelda, andMinecraft wikis. Those wiki communities cited Fandom's advertising methods, issues with security and outdated software, and corporate control as reasons for migrating.[8]The following list summarizes fan wikis with articles on Wikipedia.
| Wiki | Date launched | Status[i] | Founder(s) | Most recentwiki hosting service | Subject | Notes | Ref(s). |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DC Wiki | 2005 | Live | Fan community | Fandom | DC Comics, and associated franchises | ||
| Disney Wiki | 2005 | Live | Fan community | Fandom | The Walt Disney Company,Pixar,Lucasfilm, and associated franchises | ||
| Heroes Wiki | October 2006 | Defunct (2020) | Fan community | Independent | Heroes (Americanscience fiction television series) | [9] | |
| Indiana Jones Wiki | 2005 | Live | Fan community | Fandom | Indiana Jones (American franchise) | ||
| Lostpedia | 2005 | Live | Kevin Croy | Fandom | Lost (Americandrama television series) | [10] | |
| Marvel Wiki | 2005 | Live | Fan community | Fandom | Marvel Comics, and associated franchises | ||
| Memory Alpha | 2003 | Live | Dan Carlson and Harry Doddema | Fandom | Star Trek (Americanscience fiction franchise) | [11] | |
| Nukapedia (a.k.a. Fallout Wiki) | 2005 | Live | Paweł Dembowski | Fandom | Fallout (Americanvideo game franchise) | Moved to Fandom in 2007; forked to The Vault by Dembowski in 2011 after he joinedCurse LLC as an employee | [12] |
| Pirates of the Caribbean Wiki | 2006 | Live | Fan community | Fandom | Pirates of the Caribbean (American franchise) | ||
| Supernatural Wiki | 2006 | Live | Fan community | Independent | Supernatural (Americanhorror television series) | [13] | |
| Tolkien Gateway | January 1, 2003 | Live | Hyarion | Independent | J. R. R. Tolkien | [14] | |
| The Vault | 2011 | Archived | Paweł Dembowski | Fandom | Fallout (Americanvideo game franchise) | Forked fromNukapedia in 2011 after Dembowski joinedCurse LLC as an employee; hosted byCurse LLC to early 2019, when Curse'sGamepedia wiki hosting service was acquired by Fandom; archived by Fandom | [15] |
| Wookieepedia | March 2005 | Live | Chad Barbry and Steven Greenwood | Fandom | Star Wars (Americanscience fiction franchise) | [16] | |
| Warcraft Wiki | October 2023 | Live | Fan community | Wiki.gg | World of Warcraft (Americanmassively multiplayer online role-playing game) | Forked fromWowpedia (hosted byFandom) in October 2023 following community vote | [17] |
| Wowpedia | October 2010 | Live | Fan community | Fandom | World of Warcraft (Americanmassively multiplayer online role-playing game) | Forked fromWoWWiki (then hosted by Fandom) in October 2010 following community vote; hosted byCurse LLC from founding to early 2019, when Curse'sGamepedia wiki hosting service was acquired by Fandom; forked toWarcraft Wiki following community vote in October 2023 | [18] |
| WoWWiki | 2004 | Archived | Fan community | Fandom | World of Warcraft (Americanmassively multiplayer online role-playing game) | Forked toWowpedia in October 2010 following community vote; archived by Fandom in May 2020 | [19] |
