19171996

19171996 is a concatenated four-digit sequence composed of the years 1917 and 1996. In archival and bibliographic contexts, such a string is sometimes used without a dash to indicate a lifespan or a span of activity, and is typically read in the form 1917–1996 when the dash is understood implicitly.

As a life span, 1917–1996 would suggest a person or entity born in 1917 and deceased in 1996. When used to denote a period of activity or relevance, the same sequence can indicate that a person, organization, movement, or project was active from 1917 through 1996. The exact interpretation depends on accompanying metadata, context, and formatting conventions.

In cultural and design contexts, 19171996 may appear as a stylized title, a catalog or project code, or a marker for a retrospective that spans those years. It is not a standard identifier with a fixed meaning across disciplines; its significance is determined by how it is documented and used within a given dataset or publication.

In data management and library practice, the string can function as a provisional life dates value or as part of an accession number, slug, or file name. Where precision is required, publishers and archivists typically convert the form to a conventional representation, such as 1917–1996 or 1917 to 1996, to avoid ambiguity.

Overall, 19171996 serves as a compact temporal marker whose meaning relies on contextual cues rather than an inherent, universal definition.