18861957

1886–1957 is a date range commonly used in historical and biographical writing to denote a span that begins in 1886 and ends in 1957. In biographical entries, when this range follows a person’s name, it identifies that individual’s birth year and death year, helping readers place them in a historical timeline without repeating full dates. The same dash notation is also used to indicate the active or operational period of an organization, publication, or other entity. For example, a company may be described as operating from 1886 to 1957, or a literary journal may have run during those years.

The interval covers a broad historical scope, extending from the late 19th century through mid-20th century. It encompasses periods of rapid industrialization and urbanization, the two World Wars, the interwar era, and the early years of the postwar order. Because it includes diverse regions and trajectories, the exact significance of the range varies by context and geography. In archival work and data indexing, the format helps standardize entries that share the same birth and death years or same active years, facilitating searching and cross-referencing.

As with any date range, it should be interpreted from the surrounding material to determine whether it refers to a person’s life, a period of activity, or another span. See also lifespan notation and periodization.