[PATCH] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[PATCH] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Michael Lyons]

- Use _<placeholder>_ instead of <placeholder> in the description
- Use _underscores_ around sample commits, ranges, and math involving
or associated with <placeholders>
- Use `backticks` for keywords and more complex option
descriptions. The new rendering engine will apply synopsis rules to
these spans.

Signed-off-by: Michael Lyons <git@michael.lyo.nz>
---
 Documentation/blame-options.adoc | 100 +++++++++++++++----------------
 Documentation/git-blame.adoc     |  60 +++++++++----------
 2 files changed, 80 insertions(+), 80 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/blame-options.adoc b/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
index 1fb948fc76..1f5b6ec57d 100644
--- a/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
@@ -1,105 +1,105 @@
--b::
+`-b`::
 	Show blank SHA-1 for boundary commits.  This can also
 	be controlled via the `blame.blankBoundary` config option.
 
---root::
+`--root`::
 	Do not treat root commits as boundaries.  This can also be
 	controlled via the `blame.showRoot` config option.
 
---show-stats::
+`--show-stats`::
 	Include additional statistics at the end of blame output.
 
--L <start>,<end>::
--L :<funcname>::
-	Annotate only the line range given by '<start>,<end>',
-	or by the function name regex '<funcname>'.
+`-L <start>,<end>`::
+`-L :<funcname>`::
+	Annotate only the line range given by _<start>,<end>_,
+	or by the function name regex _<funcname>_.
 	May be specified multiple times. Overlapping ranges are allowed.
 +
-'<start>' and '<end>' are optional. `-L <start>` or `-L <start>,` spans from
-'<start>' to end of file. `-L ,<end>` spans from start of file to '<end>'.
+_<start>_ and _<end>_ are optional. `-L <start>` or `-L <start>,` spans from
+_<start>_ to end of file. `-L ,<end>` spans from start of file to _<end>_.
 +
 include::line-range-format.adoc[]
 
--l::
+`-l`::
 	Show long rev (Default: off).
 
--t::
+`-t`::
 	Show raw timestamp (Default: off).
 
--S <revs-file>::
-	Use revisions from revs-file instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-list[1].
+`-S <revs-file>`::
+	Use revisions from _revs-file_ instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-list[1].
 
---reverse <rev>..<rev>::
+`--reverse <rev>..<rev>`::
 	Walk history forward instead of backward. Instead of showing
 	the revision in which a line appeared, this shows the last
 	revision in which a line has existed. This requires a range of
-	revision like START..END where the path to blame exists in
-	START.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
+	revision like _START..END_ where the path to blame exists in
+	_START_.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
 	--reverse START..HEAD` for convenience.
 
---first-parent::
+`--first-parent`::
 	Follow only the first parent commit upon seeing a merge
 	commit. This option can be used to determine when a line
 	was introduced to a particular integration branch, rather
 	than when it was introduced to the history overall.
 
--p::
---porcelain::
+`-p`::
+`--porcelain`::
 	Show in a format designed for machine consumption.
 
---line-porcelain::
+`--line-porcelain`::
 	Show the porcelain format, but output commit information for
 	each line, not just the first time a commit is referenced.
-	Implies --porcelain.
+	Implies `--porcelain`.
 
---incremental::
+`--incremental`::
 	Show the result incrementally in a format designed for
 	machine consumption.
 
---encoding=<encoding>::
+`--encoding=<encoding>`::
 	Specifies the encoding used to output author names
 	and commit summaries. Setting it to `none` makes blame
 	output unconverted data. For more information see the
 	discussion about encoding in the linkgit:git-log[1]
 	manual page.
 
---contents <file>::
-	Annotate using the contents from the named file, starting from <rev>
-	if it is specified, and HEAD otherwise. You may specify '-' to make
+`--contents <file>`::
+	Annotate using the contents from the named file, starting from _<rev>_
+	if it is specified, and `HEAD` otherwise. You may specify `-` to make
 	the command read from the standard input for the file contents.
 
---date <format>::
-	Specifies the format used to output dates. If --date is not
-	provided, the value of the blame.date config variable is
-	used. If the blame.date config variable is also not set, the
+`--date <format>`::
+	Specifies the format used to output dates. If `--date` is not
+	provided, the value of the `blame.date` config variable is
+	used. If the `blame.date` config variable is also not set, the
 	iso format is used. For supported values, see the discussion
-	of the --date option at linkgit:git-log[1].
+	of the `--date` option at linkgit:git-log[1].
 
---progress::
---no-progress::
+`--progress`::
+`--no-progress`::
 	Progress status is reported on the standard error stream
 	by default when it is attached to a terminal. This flag
 	enables progress reporting even if not attached to a
 	terminal. Can't use `--progress` together with `--porcelain`
 	or `--incremental`.
 
--M[<num>]::
+`-M[<num>]`::
 	Detect moved or copied lines within a file. When a commit
 	moves or copies a block of lines (e.g. the original file
-	has A and then B, and the commit changes it to B and then
-	A), the traditional 'blame' algorithm notices only half of
+	has _A_ and then _B_, and the commit changes it to _B_ and then
+	_A_), the traditional `blame` algorithm notices only half of
 	the movement and typically blames the lines that were moved
-	up (i.e. B) to the parent and assigns blame to the lines that
-	were moved down (i.e. A) to the child commit.  With this
+	up (i.e. _B_) to the parent and assigns blame to the lines that
+	were moved down (i.e. _A_) to the child commit.  With this
 	option, both groups of lines are blamed on the parent by
 	running extra passes of inspection.
 +
-<num> is optional but it is the lower bound on the number of
+_<num>_ is optional, but it is the lower bound on the number of
 alphanumeric characters that Git must detect as moving/copying
 within a file for it to associate those lines with the parent
 commit. The default value is 20.
 
--C[<num>]::
+`-C[<num>]`::
 	In addition to `-M`, detect lines moved or copied from other
 	files that were modified in the same commit.  This is
 	useful when you reorganize your program and move code
@@ -109,14 +109,14 @@ commit. The default value is 20.
 	option is given three times, the command additionally
 	looks for copies from other files in any commit.
 +
-<num> is optional but it is the lower bound on the number of
+_<num>_ is optional, but it is the lower bound on the number of
 alphanumeric characters that Git must detect as moving/copying
 between files for it to associate those lines with the parent
 commit. And the default value is 40. If there are more than one
-`-C` options given, the <num> argument of the last `-C` will
+`-C` options given, the _<num>_ argument of the last `-C` will
 take effect.
 
---ignore-rev <rev>::
+`--ignore-rev <rev>`::
 	Ignore changes made by the revision when assigning blame, as if the
 	change never happened.  Lines that were changed or added by an ignored
 	commit will be blamed on the previous commit that changed that line or
@@ -126,26 +126,26 @@ take effect.
 	another commit will be marked with a `?` in the blame output.  If the
 	`blame.markUnblamableLines` config option is set, then those lines touched
 	by an ignored commit that we could not attribute to another revision are
-	marked with a '*'. In the porcelain modes, we print 'ignored' and
-	'unblamable' on a newline respectively.
+	marked with a `*`. In the porcelain modes, we print _ignored_ and
+	_unblamable_ on a newline respectively.
 
---ignore-revs-file <file>::
-	Ignore revisions listed in `file`, which must be in the same format as an
+`--ignore-revs-file <file>`::
+	Ignore revisions listed in _<file>_, which must be in the same format as an
 	`fsck.skipList`.  This option may be repeated, and these files will be
 	processed after any files specified with the `blame.ignoreRevsFile` config
 	option.  An empty file name, `""`, will clear the list of revs from
 	previously processed files.
 
---color-lines::
+`--color-lines`::
 	Color line annotations in the default format differently if they come from
 	the same commit as the preceding line. This makes it easier to distinguish
 	code blocks introduced by different commits. The color defaults to cyan and
 	can be adjusted using the `color.blame.repeatedLines` config option.
 
---color-by-age::
+`--color-by-age`::
 	Color line annotations depending on the age of the line in the default format.
 	The `color.blame.highlightRecent` config option controls what color is used for
 	each range of age.
 
--h::
+`-h`::
 	Show help message.
diff --git a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
index adcbb6f5dc..7dc93f90b2 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
@@ -7,12 +7,12 @@ git-blame - Show what revision and author last modified each line of a file
 
 SYNOPSIS
 --------
-[verse]
-'git blame' [-c] [-b] [-l] [--root] [-t] [-f] [-n] [-s] [-e] [-p] [-w] [--incremental]
-	    [-L <range>] [-S <revs-file>] [-M] [-C] [-C] [-C] [--since=<date>]
-	    [--ignore-rev <rev>] [--ignore-revs-file <file>]
-	    [--color-lines] [--color-by-age] [--progress] [--abbrev=<n>]
-	    [ --contents <file> ] [<rev> | --reverse <rev>..<rev>] [--] <file>
+[synopsis]
+git blame [-c] [-b] [-l] [--root] [-t] [-f] [-n] [-s] [-e] [-p] [-w] [--incremental]
+	  [-L <range>] [-S <revs-file>] [-M] [-C] [-C] [-C] [--since=<date>]
+	  [--ignore-rev <rev>] [--ignore-revs-file <file>]
+	  [--color-lines] [--color-by-age] [--progress] [--abbrev=<n>]
+	  [ --contents <file> ] [<rev> | --reverse <rev>..<rev>] [--] <file>
 
 DESCRIPTION
 -----------
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ lines that were copied and pasted from another file, etc., see the
 `-C` and `-M` options.
 
 The report does not tell you anything about lines which have been deleted or
-replaced; you need to use a tool such as 'git diff' or the "pickaxe"
+replaced; you need to use a tool such as `git diff` or the "pickaxe"
 interface briefly mentioned in the following paragraph.
 
 Apart from supporting file annotation, Git also supports searching the
@@ -50,47 +50,47 @@ OPTIONS
 -------
 include::blame-options.adoc[]
 
--c::
+`-c`::
 	Use the same output mode as linkgit:git-annotate[1] (Default: off).
 
---score-debug::
+`--score-debug`::
 	Include debugging information related to the movement of
 	lines between files (see `-C`) and lines moved within a
 	file (see `-M`).  The first number listed is the score.
 	This is the number of alphanumeric characters detected
 	as having been moved between or within files.  This must be above
-	a certain threshold for 'git blame' to consider those lines
+	a certain threshold for `git blame` to consider those lines
 	of code to have been moved.
 
--f::
---show-name::
+`-f`::
+`--show-name`::
 	Show the filename in the original commit.  By default
 	the filename is shown if there is any line that came from a
 	file with a different name, due to rename detection.
 
--n::
---show-number::
+`-n`::
+`--show-number`::
 	Show the line number in the original commit (Default: off).
 
--s::
+`-s`::
 	Suppress the author name and timestamp from the output.
 
--e::
---show-email::
+`-e`::
+`--show-email`::
 	Show the author email instead of the author name (Default: off).
 	This can also be controlled via the `blame.showEmail` config
 	option.
 
--w::
+`-w`::
 	Ignore whitespace when comparing the parent's version and
 	the child's to find where the lines came from.
 
 include::diff-algorithm-option.adoc[]
 
---abbrev=<n>::
-	Instead of using the default 7+1 hexadecimal digits as the
-	abbreviated object name, use <m>+1 digits, where <m> is at
-	least <n> but ensures the commit object names are unique.
+`--abbrev=<n>`::
+	Instead of using the default _7+1_ hexadecimal digits as the
+	abbreviated object name, use _<m>+1_ digits, where _<m>_ is at
+	least _<n>_ but ensures the commit object names are unique.
 	Note that 1 column
 	is used for a caret to mark the boundary commit.
 
@@ -124,21 +124,21 @@ header at the minimum has the first line which has:
 This header line is followed by the following information
 at least once for each commit:
 
-- the author name ("author"), email ("author-mail"), time
-  ("author-time"), and time zone ("author-tz"); similarly
+- the author name (`author`), email (`author-mail`), time
+  (`author-time`), and time zone (`author-tz`); similarly
   for committer.
 - the filename in the commit that the line is attributed to.
-- the first line of the commit log message ("summary").
+- the first line of the commit log message (`summary`).
 
 The contents of the actual line are output after the above
-header, prefixed by a TAB. This is to allow adding more
+header, prefixed by a _TAB_. This is to allow adding more
 header elements later.
 
 The porcelain format generally suppresses commit information that has
 already been seen. For example, two lines that are blamed to the same
 commit will both be shown, but the details for that commit will be shown
 only once. Information which is specific to individual lines will not be
-grouped together, like revs to be marked 'ignored' or 'unblamable'. This
+grouped together, like revs to be marked _ignored_ or _unblamable_. This
 is more efficient, but may require more state be kept by the reader. The
 `--line-porcelain` option can be used to output full commit information
 for each line, allowing simpler (but less efficient) usage like:
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ for each line, allowing simpler (but less efficient) usage like:
 SPECIFYING RANGES
 -----------------
 
-Unlike 'git blame' and 'git annotate' in older versions of git, the extent
+Unlike `git blame` and `git annotate` in older versions of git, the extent
 of the annotation can be limited to both line ranges and revision
 ranges. The `-L` option, which limits annotation to a range of lines, may be
 specified multiple times.
@@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ which limits the annotation to the body of the `hello` subroutine.
 
 When you are not interested in changes older than version
 v2.6.18, or changes older than 3 weeks, you can use revision
-range specifiers similar to 'git rev-list':
+range specifiers similar to `git rev-list`:
 
 	git blame v2.6.18.. -- foo
 	git blame --since=3.weeks -- foo
@@ -232,7 +232,7 @@ parser (which should be quite natural for most scripting languages).
 +
 [NOTE]
 For people who do parsing: to make it more robust, just ignore any
-lines between the first and last one ("<sha1>" and "filename" lines)
+lines between the first and last one (_<sha1>_ and _filename_ lines)
 where you do not recognize the tag words (or care about that particular
 one) at the beginning of the "extended information" lines. That way, if
 there is ever added information (like the commit encoding or extended
-- 
2.47.3

Re: [PATCH] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Jean-Noël AVILA]

On Tuesday, 6 January 2026 00:02:17 CET Michael Lyons wrote:
> - Use _<placeholder>_ instead of <placeholder> in the description
> - Use _underscores_ around sample commits, ranges, and math involving
> or associated with <placeholders>
> - Use `backticks` for keywords and more complex option
> descriptions. The new rendering engine will apply synopsis rules to
> these spans.
> 
> Signed-off-by: Michael Lyons <git@michael.lyo.nz>

Thanks for helping out.

> ---
>  Documentation/blame-options.adoc | 100 +++++++++++++++----------------
>  Documentation/git-blame.adoc     |  60 +++++++++----------
>  2 files changed, 80 insertions(+), 80 deletions(-)
> 
> diff --git a/Documentation/blame-options.adoc b/Documentation/blame-
options.adoc
> index 1fb948fc76..1f5b6ec57d 100644
> --- a/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
> +++ b/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
> @@ -1,105 +1,105 @@
> --b::
> +`-b`::
>  	Show blank SHA-1 for boundary commits.  This can also
>  	be controlled via the `blame.blankBoundary` config option.
> 
> ---root::
> +`--root`::
>  	Do not treat root commits as boundaries.  This can also be
>  	controlled via the `blame.showRoot` config option.
> 
> ---show-stats::
> +`--show-stats`::
>  	Include additional statistics at the end of blame output.
> 
> --L <start>,<end>::
> --L :<funcname>::
> -	Annotate only the line range given by '<start>,<end>',
> -	or by the function name regex '<funcname>'.
> +`-L <start>,<end>`::
> +`-L :<funcname>`::
> +	Annotate only the line range given by _<start>,<end>_,

It would be better to use backticks, so that the comma is formatted as a 
keyword: `<start>,<end>`

> +	or by the function name regex _<funcname>_.
>  	May be specified multiple times. Overlapping ranges are allowed.
>  +
> -'<start>' and '<end>' are optional. `-L <start>` or `-L <start>,` spans 
from
> -'<start>' to end of file. `-L ,<end>` spans from start of file to '<end>'.
> +_<start>_ and _<end>_ are optional. `-L <start>` or `-L <start>,` spans 
from
> +_<start>_ to end of file. `-L ,<end>` spans from start of file to _<end>_.
>  +
>  include::line-range-format.adoc[]
> 
> --l::
> +`-l`::
>  	Show long rev (Default: off).
> 
> --t::
> +`-t`::
>  	Show raw timestamp (Default: off).
> 
> --S <revs-file>::
> -	Use revisions from revs-file instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-
list[1].
> +`-S <revs-file>`::
> +	Use revisions from _revs-file_ instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-
list[1].

Placeholders keep their brackets: _<rev-file>_ in prose.

> 
> ---reverse <rev>..<rev>::
> +`--reverse <rev>..<rev>`::

Here, I would differentiate the names of the two placeholders, <start>..<end> 
as used below.

>  	Walk history forward instead of backward. Instead of showing
>  	the revision in which a line appeared, this shows the last
>  	revision in which a line has existed. This requires a range of
> -	revision like START..END where the path to blame exists in
> -	START.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
> +	revision like _START..END_ where the path to blame exists in
> +	_START_.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
>  	--reverse START..HEAD` for convenience.

Here, let's transition to the <placeholder> format: <start>..<end> and so on.

> 
> ---first-parent::
> +`--first-parent`::
>  	Follow only the first parent commit upon seeing a merge
>  	commit. This option can be used to determine when a line
>  	was introduced to a particular integration branch, rather
>  	than when it was introduced to the history overall.
> 
> --p::
> ---porcelain::
> +`-p`::
> +`--porcelain`::
>  	Show in a format designed for machine consumption.
> 
> ---line-porcelain::
> +`--line-porcelain`::
>  	Show the porcelain format, but output commit information for
>  	each line, not just the first time a commit is referenced.
> -	Implies --porcelain.
> +	Implies `--porcelain`.
> 
> ---incremental::
> +`--incremental`::
>  	Show the result incrementally in a format designed for
>  	machine consumption.
> 
> ---encoding=<encoding>::
> +`--encoding=<encoding>`::
>  	Specifies the encoding used to output author names

During the conversion, I take the opportunity to change also the mood of the 
description to imperative: "Specify ..."

>  	and commit summaries. Setting it to `none` makes blame
>  	output unconverted data. For more information see the
>  	discussion about encoding in the linkgit:git-log[1]
>  	manual page.
> 
> ---contents <file>::
> -	Annotate using the contents from the named file, starting from <rev>
> -	if it is specified, and HEAD otherwise. You may specify '-' to make
> +`--contents <file>`::
> +	Annotate using the contents from the named file, starting from 
_<rev>_

Here, to lighten a bit the style and create visual internal references, we 
could make a "placeholder pun":

Annotate using the contents from _<file>_, ...

> +	if it is specified, and `HEAD` otherwise. You may specify `-` to 
make
>  	the command read from the standard input for the file contents.
> 
> ---date <format>::
> -	Specifies the format used to output dates. If --date is not
> -	provided, the value of the blame.date config variable is
> -	used. If the blame.date config variable is also not set, the
> +`--date <format>`::
> +	Specifies the format used to output dates. If `--date` is not

Imperative mood.

> +	provided, the value of the `blame.date` config variable is
> +	used. If the `blame.date` config variable is also not set, the
>  	iso format is used. For supported values, see the discussion
> -	of the --date option at linkgit:git-log[1].
> +	of the `--date` option at linkgit:git-log[1].
> 
> ---progress::
> ---no-progress::
> +`--progress`::
> +`--no-progress`::
>  	Progress status is reported on the standard error stream
>  	by default when it is attached to a terminal. This flag
>  	enables progress reporting even if not attached to a
>  	terminal. Can't use `--progress` together with `--porcelain`
>  	or `--incremental`.

Here maybe swap the first two sentences, remove the "This flags" and convert 
to imperative mood. The first sentence is a bit redundant.

As a general rule, I tend to reorder/reword the paragraph to describe the 
effect in the first sentence of the description with an imperative mood. 

> 
> --M[<num>]::
> +`-M[<num>]`::
>  	Detect moved or copied lines within a file. When a commit
>  	moves or copies a block of lines (e.g. the original file
> -	has A and then B, and the commit changes it to B and then
> -	A), the traditional 'blame' algorithm notices only half of
> +	has _A_ and then _B_, and the commit changes it to _B_ and then
> +	_A_), the traditional `blame` algorithm notices only half of
>  	the movement and typically blames the lines that were moved
> -	up (i.e. B) to the parent and assigns blame to the lines that
> -	were moved down (i.e. A) to the child commit.  With this
> +	up (i.e. _B_) to the parent and assigns blame to the lines that
> +	were moved down (i.e. _A_) to the child commit.  With this
>  	option, both groups of lines are blamed on the parent by
>  	running extra passes of inspection.
>  +
> -<num> is optional but it is the lower bound on the number of
> +_<num>_ is optional, but it is the lower bound on the number of
>  alphanumeric characters that Git must detect as moving/copying
>  within a file for it to associate those lines with the parent
>  commit. The default value is 20.
> 
> --C[<num>]::
> +`-C[<num>]`::
>  	In addition to `-M`, detect lines moved or copied from other
>  	files that were modified in the same commit.  This is
>  	useful when you reorganize your program and move code
> @@ -109,14 +109,14 @@ commit. The default value is 20.
>  	option is given three times, the command additionally
>  	looks for copies from other files in any commit.
>  +
> -<num> is optional but it is the lower bound on the number of
> +_<num>_ is optional, but it is the lower bound on the number of
>  alphanumeric characters that Git must detect as moving/copying
>  between files for it to associate those lines with the parent
>  commit. And the default value is 40. If there are more than one
> -`-C` options given, the <num> argument of the last `-C` will
> +`-C` options given, the _<num>_ argument of the last `-C` will
>  take effect.
> 
> ---ignore-rev <rev>::
> +`--ignore-rev <rev>`::
>  	Ignore changes made by the revision when assigning blame, as if the
>  	change never happened.  Lines that were changed or added by an 
ignored
>  	commit will be blamed on the previous commit that changed that line 
or
> @@ -126,26 +126,26 @@ take effect.
>  	another commit will be marked with a `?` in the blame output.  If 
the
>  	`blame.markUnblamableLines` config option is set, then those lines 
touched
>  	by an ignored commit that we could not attribute to another revision 
are
> -	marked with a '*'. In the porcelain modes, we print 'ignored' and
> -	'unblamable' on a newline respectively.
> +	marked with a `*`. In the porcelain modes, we print _ignored_ and
> +	_unblamable_ on a newline respectively.
> 

If the words are printed "verbatim", then the format is backticked: `ignored` 
and `unblamable`.


> ---ignore-revs-file <file>::
> -	Ignore revisions listed in `file`, which must be in the same format 
as an
> +`--ignore-revs-file <file>`::
> +	Ignore revisions listed in _<file>_, which must be in the same 
format as an
>  	`fsck.skipList`.  This option may be repeated, and these files will 
be
>  	processed after any files specified with the `blame.ignoreRevsFile` 
config
>  	option.  An empty file name, `""`, will clear the list of revs from
>  	previously processed files.
> 
> ---color-lines::
> +`--color-lines`::
>  	Color line annotations in the default format differently if they 
come from
>  	the same commit as the preceding line. This makes it easier to 
distinguish
>  	code blocks introduced by different commits. The color defaults to 
cyan and
>  	can be adjusted using the `color.blame.repeatedLines` config option.
> 
> ---color-by-age::
> +`--color-by-age`::
>  	Color line annotations depending on the age of the line in the 
default format.
>  	The `color.blame.highlightRecent` config option controls what color 
is used for
>  	each range of age.
> 
> --h::
> +`-h`::
>  	Show help message.

This diff is quite large. If there are no other reasons to split the patch 
according to some semantic reason, then please split file by file.


> diff --git a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
> index adcbb6f5dc..7dc93f90b2 100644
> --- a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
> +++ b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
> @@ -7,12 +7,12 @@ git-blame - Show what revision and author last modified 
each line
> of a file
> 
>  SYNOPSIS
>  --------
> -[verse]
> -'git blame' [-c] [-b] [-l] [--root] [-t] [-f] [-n] [-s] [-e] [-p] [-w]
> [--incremental] -	    [-L <range>] [-S <revs-file>] [-M] [-C] [-C] [-C]
> [--since=<date>]
> -	    [--ignore-rev <rev>] [--ignore-revs-file <file>]
> -	    [--color-lines] [--color-by-age] [--progress] [--abbrev=<n>]
> -	    [ --contents <file> ] [<rev> | --reverse <rev>..<rev>] [--] 
<file>
> +[synopsis]
> +git blame [-c] [-b] [-l] [--root] [-t] [-f] [-n] [-s] [-e] [-p] [-w]
> [--incremental] +	  [-L <range>] [-S <revs-file>] [-M] [-C] [-C] [-C]
> [--since=<date>]
> +	  [--ignore-rev <rev>] [--ignore-revs-file <file>]
> +	  [--color-lines] [--color-by-age] [--progress] [--abbrev=<n>]
> +	  [ --contents <file> ] [<rev> | --reverse <rev>..<rev>] [--] <file>
> 
>  DESCRIPTION
>  -----------
> @@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ lines that were copied and pasted from another file, etc., 
see
> the `-C` and `-M` options.
> 
>  The report does not tell you anything about lines which have been deleted 
or
> -replaced; you need to use a tool such as 'git diff' or the "pickaxe"
> +replaced; you need to use a tool such as `git diff` or the "pickaxe"
>  interface briefly mentioned in the following paragraph.
> 
>  Apart from supporting file annotation, Git also supports searching the
> @@ -50,47 +50,47 @@ OPTIONS
>  -------
>  include::blame-options.adoc[]
> 
> --c::
> +`-c`::
>  	Use the same output mode as linkgit:git-annotate[1] (Default: off).
> 
> ---score-debug::
> +`--score-debug`::
>  	Include debugging information related to the movement of
>  	lines between files (see `-C`) and lines moved within a
>  	file (see `-M`).  The first number listed is the score.
>  	This is the number of alphanumeric characters detected
>  	as having been moved between or within files.  This must be above
> -	a certain threshold for 'git blame' to consider those lines
> +	a certain threshold for `git blame` to consider those lines
>  	of code to have been moved.
> 
> --f::
> ---show-name::
> +`-f`::
> +`--show-name`::
>  	Show the filename in the original commit.  By default
>  	the filename is shown if there is any line that came from a
>  	file with a different name, due to rename detection.
> 
> --n::
> ---show-number::
> +`-n`::
> +`--show-number`::
>  	Show the line number in the original commit (Default: off).
> 
> --s::
> +`-s`::
>  	Suppress the author name and timestamp from the output.
> 
> --e::
> ---show-email::
> +`-e`::
> +`--show-email`::
>  	Show the author email instead of the author name (Default: off).
>  	This can also be controlled via the `blame.showEmail` config
>  	option.
> 
> --w::
> +`-w`::
>  	Ignore whitespace when comparing the parent's version and
>  	the child's to find where the lines came from.
> 
>  include::diff-algorithm-option.adoc[]
> 
> ---abbrev=<n>::
> -	Instead of using the default 7+1 hexadecimal digits as the
> -	abbreviated object name, use <m>+1 digits, where <m> is at
> -	least <n> but ensures the commit object names are unique.
> +`--abbrev=<n>`::
> +	Instead of using the default _7+1_ hexadecimal digits as the
> +	abbreviated object name, use _<m>+1_ digits, where _<m>_ is at
> +	least _<n>_ but ensures the commit object names are unique.
>  	Note that 1 column
>  	is used for a caret to mark the boundary commit.
> 
> @@ -124,21 +124,21 @@ header at the minimum has the first line which has:
>  This header line is followed by the following information
>  at least once for each commit:
> 
> -- the author name ("author"), email ("author-mail"), time
> -  ("author-time"), and time zone ("author-tz"); similarly
> +- the author name (`author`), email (`author-mail`), time
> +  (`author-time`), and time zone (`author-tz`); similarly
>    for committer.
>  - the filename in the commit that the line is attributed to.
> -- the first line of the commit log message ("summary").
> +- the first line of the commit log message (`summary`).
> 
>  The contents of the actual line are output after the above
> -header, prefixed by a TAB. This is to allow adding more
> +header, prefixed by a _TAB_. This is to allow adding more
>  header elements later.
> 
>  The porcelain format generally suppresses commit information that has
>  already been seen. For example, two lines that are blamed to the same
>  commit will both be shown, but the details for that commit will be shown
>  only once. Information which is specific to individual lines will not be
> -grouped together, like revs to be marked 'ignored' or 'unblamable'. This
> +grouped together, like revs to be marked _ignored_ or _unblamable_. This

Here, I would backtick instead.

>  is more efficient, but may require more state be kept by the reader. The
>  `--line-porcelain` option can be used to output full commit information
>  for each line, allowing simpler (but less efficient) usage like:
> @@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ for each line, allowing simpler (but less efficient) 
usage
> like: SPECIFYING RANGES
>  -----------------
> 
> -Unlike 'git blame' and 'git annotate' in older versions of git, the extent
> +Unlike `git blame` and `git annotate` in older versions of git, the extent
>  of the annotation can be limited to both line ranges and revision
>  ranges. The `-L` option, which limits annotation to a range of lines, may 
be
>  specified multiple times.
> @@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ which limits the annotation to the body of the `hello`
> subroutine.
> 
>  When you are not interested in changes older than version
>  v2.6.18, or changes older than 3 weeks, you can use revision
> -range specifiers similar to 'git rev-list':
> +range specifiers similar to `git rev-list`:
> 
>  	git blame v2.6.18.. -- foo
>  	git blame --since=3.weeks -- foo
> @@ -232,7 +232,7 @@ parser (which should be quite natural for most scripting

I noted in the section "INCREMENTAL OUTPUT" that there are some descriptions 
of line output that adhere to the synopsis style. In such case, we can apply 
the style for better uniformity:

diff --git a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
index adcbb6f5dc..390c3d1361 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
@@ -212,8 +212,9 @@ does not contain the actual lines from the file that is 
being
 annotated.
 
 . Each blame entry always starts with a line of:
-
-       <40-byte-hex-sha1> <sourceline> <resultline> <num-lines>
++
+[synopsis]
+<40-byte-hex-sha1> <sourceline> <resultline> <num-lines>
 +
 Line numbers count from 1.
 
@@ -224,8 +225,9 @@ Line numbers count from 1.
 
 . Unlike the Porcelain format, the filename information is always
   given and terminates the entry:
-
-       "filename" <whitespace-quoted-filename-goes-here>
++
+[synopsis]
+filename <whitespace-quoted-filename-goes-here>
 +
 and thus it is really quite easy to parse for some line- and word-oriented
 parser (which should be quite natural for most scripting languages).




> languages). +
>  [NOTE]
>  For people who do parsing: to make it more robust, just ignore any
> -lines between the first and last one ("<sha1>" and "filename" lines)
> +lines between the first and last one (_<sha1>_ and _filename_ lines)

_<sha1> does not appear anywhere; I guess they referred to _<40-byte-hex-
sha1>_
filename is a keyword which appears in the line above: `filename`

>  where you do not recognize the tag words (or care about that particular
>  one) at the beginning of the "extended information" lines. That way, if
>  there is ever added information (like the commit encoding or extended

That's very good for a first try. Now, I hope that you will be ok to review my 
patches :-)

JN

Re: [PATCH] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Michael Lyons]

On Tuesday, January 6, 2026 1:57:27 PM Eastern Standard Time you wrote:
> Thanks for helping out.

Glad to!

> > --L <start>,<end>::
> > --L :<funcname>::
> > -	Annotate only the line range given by '<start>,<end>',
> > -	or by the function name regex '<funcname>'.
> > +`-L <start>,<end>`::
> > +`-L :<funcname>`::
> > +	Annotate only the line range given by _<start>,<end>_,
> 
> It would be better to use backticks, so that the comma is formatted as a
> keyword: `<start>,<end>`

Okay. I changed them back and forth a couple times before the first submission. 
I have a question about this further down...

> > 
> > --S <revs-file>::
> > -	Use revisions from revs-file instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-
> > +`-S <revs-file>`::
> > +	Use revisions from _revs-file_ instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-
> 
> Placeholders keep their brackets: _<rev-file>_ in prose.

Smart.

> > ---reverse <rev>..<rev>::
> > +`--reverse <rev>..<rev>`::
> Here, I would differentiate the names of the two placeholders,
> <start>..<end> as used below.
> 
> >  	Walk history forward instead of backward. Instead of showing
> >  	the revision in which a line appeared, this shows the last
> >  	revision in which a line has existed. This requires a range of
> > 
> > -	revision like START..END where the path to blame exists in
> > -	START.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
> > +	revision like _START..END_ where the path to blame exists in
> > +	_START_.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
> > 
> >  	--reverse START..HEAD` for convenience.
> 
> Here, let's transition to the <placeholder> format: <start>..<end> and so
> on.

This is the continuation of my question on `<start>,<end>`: Do these also go 
to backticks or keep the underscores? My impulse is backticks, but let me 
know: `<start>..<end>` or _<start>..<end>_?

The start/end change from rev/rev makes sense.

> > ---progress::
> > ---no-progress::
> > +`--progress`::
> > 
> > +`--no-progress`::
> >  	Progress status is reported on the standard error stream
> >  	by default when it is attached to a terminal. This flag
> >  	enables progress reporting even if not attached to a
> >  	terminal. Can't use `--progress` together with `--porcelain`
> >  	or `--incremental`.
> 
> Here maybe swap the first two sentences, remove the "This flags" and convert
> to imperative mood. The first sentence is a bit redundant.
> 
> As a general rule, I tend to reorder/reword the paragraph to describe the
> effect in the first sentence of the description with an imperative mood.

New commit will reword a couple things here. Fingers crossed. :)

> > -	marked with a '*'. In the porcelain modes, we print 'ignored' and
> > -	'unblamable' on a newline respectively.
> > +	marked with a `*`. In the porcelain modes, we print _ignored_ and
> > +	_unblamable_ on a newline respectively.
> 
> If the words are printed "verbatim", then the format is backticked:
> `ignored` and `unblamable`.

Another one where I had backticks originally and switched them. I'm not super-
familiar with the porcelain parts.

> This diff is quite large. If there are no other reasons to split the patch
> according to some semantic reason, then please split file by file.

Okay. Next try will just be blame-options for now.

> 
> That's very good for a first try. Now, I hope that you will be ok to review
> my patches :-)

That's very kind. I'll probably need a couple more rounds before my changes 
pass inspection, let alone be declared competent to review yours. :)

For the purposes of re-submission, should I be doing something with scissors 
on this thread, or make a new thread?

Thanks again for the help!
ML

Re: [PATCH] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Jean-Noël AVILA]

On Tuesday, 6 January 2026 22:16:02 CET Michael Lyons wrote:
> > Here, let's transition to the <placeholder> format: <start>..<end> and so
> > on.
> 
> This is the continuation of my question on `<start>,<end>`: Do these also go
> to backticks or keep the underscores? My impulse is backticks, but let me
> know: `<start>..<end>` or _<start>..<end>_?
> 
> The start/end change from rev/rev makes sense.


Definitely backticks here, because this is a complex synopsis span.


> 
> > > -	marked with a '*'. In the porcelain modes, we print 'ignored' and
> > > -	'unblamable' on a newline respectively.
> > > +	marked with a `*`. In the porcelain modes, we print _ignored_ and
> > > +	_unblamable_ on a newline respectively.
> > 
> > If the words are printed "verbatim", then the format is backticked:
> > `ignored` and `unblamable`.
> 
> Another one where I had backticks originally and switched them. I'm not 
super-
> familiar with the porcelain parts.
> 
> > This diff is quite large. If there are no other reasons to split the patch
> > according to some semantic reason, then please split file by file.
> 
> Okay. Next try will just be blame-options for now.

You can push two commits in this series.

> 
> > That's very good for a first try. Now, I hope that you will be ok to 
review
> > my patches :-)
> 
> That's very kind. I'll probably need a couple more rounds before my changes
> pass inspection, let alone be declared competent to review yours. :)
> 
> For the purposes of re-submission, should I be doing something with scissors
> on this thread, or make a new thread?

Usually, the reworked series is pushed with v2 as reply to the first mail of 
the first submission, using for instance:

git send-email '--in-reply-to=<20260105230220.519303-1-git@michael.lyo.nz>' 
v2-*.patch

JN

[PATCH v2 0/2] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Michael Lyons]

Split and updated with JN's suggestions.

I tweaked the `--progress` documentation a bit more than requested. It was
hard to write grammatical English that didn't imply something incorrect.

Michael Lyons (2):
  doc: blame-options: convert to new doc format
  doc: git-blame: convert to new doc format

 Documentation/blame-options.adoc | 120 +++++++++++++++----------------
 Documentation/git-blame.adoc     |  72 ++++++++++---------
 2 files changed, 97 insertions(+), 95 deletions(-)

-- 
2.47.3

[PATCH v2 1/2] doc: blame-options: convert to new doc format

[Michael Lyons]

- Use _<placeholder>_ instead of <placeholder> in the description
- Modify some samples to use <placeholders>
- Use `backticks` for keywords and more complex option
descriptions. The new rendering engine will apply synopsis rules to
these spans.

Signed-off-by: Michael Lyons <git@michael.lyo.nz>
---
 Documentation/blame-options.adoc | 120 +++++++++++++++----------------
 1 file changed, 60 insertions(+), 60 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/blame-options.adoc b/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
index 1fb948fc76..1ae1222b6b 100644
--- a/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/blame-options.adoc
@@ -1,105 +1,105 @@
--b::
+`-b`::
 	Show blank SHA-1 for boundary commits.  This can also
 	be controlled via the `blame.blankBoundary` config option.
 
---root::
+`--root`::
 	Do not treat root commits as boundaries.  This can also be
 	controlled via the `blame.showRoot` config option.
 
---show-stats::
+`--show-stats`::
 	Include additional statistics at the end of blame output.
 
--L <start>,<end>::
--L :<funcname>::
-	Annotate only the line range given by '<start>,<end>',
-	or by the function name regex '<funcname>'.
+`-L <start>,<end>`::
+`-L :<funcname>`::
+	Annotate only the line range given by `<start>,<end>`,
+	or by the function name regex _<funcname>_.
 	May be specified multiple times. Overlapping ranges are allowed.
 +
-'<start>' and '<end>' are optional. `-L <start>` or `-L <start>,` spans from
-'<start>' to end of file. `-L ,<end>` spans from start of file to '<end>'.
+_<start>_ and _<end>_ are optional. `-L <start>` or `-L <start>,` spans from
+_<start>_ to end of file. `-L ,<end>` spans from start of file to _<end>_.
 +
 include::line-range-format.adoc[]
 
--l::
+`-l`::
 	Show long rev (Default: off).
 
--t::
+`-t`::
 	Show raw timestamp (Default: off).
 
--S <revs-file>::
-	Use revisions from revs-file instead of calling linkgit:git-rev-list[1].
+`-S <revs-file>`::
+	Use revisions from _<revs-file>_ instead of calling
+	linkgit:git-rev-list[1].
 
---reverse <rev>..<rev>::
+`--reverse <start>..<end>`::
 	Walk history forward instead of backward. Instead of showing
 	the revision in which a line appeared, this shows the last
 	revision in which a line has existed. This requires a range of
-	revision like START..END where the path to blame exists in
-	START.  `git blame --reverse START` is taken as `git blame
-	--reverse START..HEAD` for convenience.
+	revision like `<start>..<end>` where the path to blame exists in
+	_<start>_.  `git blame --reverse <start>` is taken as `git blame
+	--reverse <start>..HEAD` for convenience.
 
---first-parent::
+`--first-parent`::
 	Follow only the first parent commit upon seeing a merge
 	commit. This option can be used to determine when a line
 	was introduced to a particular integration branch, rather
 	than when it was introduced to the history overall.
 
--p::
---porcelain::
+`-p`::
+`--porcelain`::
 	Show in a format designed for machine consumption.
 
---line-porcelain::
+`--line-porcelain`::
 	Show the porcelain format, but output commit information for
 	each line, not just the first time a commit is referenced.
-	Implies --porcelain.
+	Implies `--porcelain`.
 
---incremental::
+`--incremental`::
 	Show the result incrementally in a format designed for
 	machine consumption.
 
---encoding=<encoding>::
-	Specifies the encoding used to output author names
+`--encoding=<encoding>`::
+	Specify the encoding used to output author names
 	and commit summaries. Setting it to `none` makes blame
 	output unconverted data. For more information see the
 	discussion about encoding in the linkgit:git-log[1]
 	manual page.
 
---contents <file>::
-	Annotate using the contents from the named file, starting from <rev>
-	if it is specified, and HEAD otherwise. You may specify '-' to make
+`--contents <file>`::
+	Annotate using the contents from _<file>_, starting from _<rev>_
+	if it is specified, and `HEAD` otherwise. You may specify `-` to make
 	the command read from the standard input for the file contents.
 
---date <format>::
-	Specifies the format used to output dates. If --date is not
-	provided, the value of the blame.date config variable is
-	used. If the blame.date config variable is also not set, the
+`--date <format>`::
+	Specify the format used to output dates. If `--date` is not
+	provided, the value of the `blame.date` config variable is
+	used. If the `blame.date` config variable is also not set, the
 	iso format is used. For supported values, see the discussion
-	of the --date option at linkgit:git-log[1].
+	of the `--date` option at linkgit:git-log[1].
 
---progress::
---no-progress::
-	Progress status is reported on the standard error stream
-	by default when it is attached to a terminal. This flag
-	enables progress reporting even if not attached to a
-	terminal. Can't use `--progress` together with `--porcelain`
-	or `--incremental`.
+`--progress`::
+`--no-progress`::
+	Enable progress reporting on the standard error stream even if
+	not attached to a terminal. By default, progress status is
+	reported only when it is attached. You can't use `--progress`
+	together with `--porcelain` or `--incremental`.
 
--M[<num>]::
+`-M[<num>]`::
 	Detect moved or copied lines within a file. When a commit
 	moves or copies a block of lines (e.g. the original file
-	has A and then B, and the commit changes it to B and then
-	A), the traditional 'blame' algorithm notices only half of
+	has _A_ and then _B_, and the commit changes it to _B_ and then
+	_A_), the traditional `blame` algorithm notices only half of
 	the movement and typically blames the lines that were moved
-	up (i.e. B) to the parent and assigns blame to the lines that
-	were moved down (i.e. A) to the child commit.  With this
+	up (i.e. _B_) to the parent and assigns blame to the lines that
+	were moved down (i.e. _A_) to the child commit.  With this
 	option, both groups of lines are blamed on the parent by
 	running extra passes of inspection.
 +
-<num> is optional but it is the lower bound on the number of
+_<num>_ is optional, but it is the lower bound on the number of
 alphanumeric characters that Git must detect as moving/copying
 within a file for it to associate those lines with the parent
 commit. The default value is 20.
 
--C[<num>]::
+`-C[<num>]`::
 	In addition to `-M`, detect lines moved or copied from other
 	files that were modified in the same commit.  This is
 	useful when you reorganize your program and move code
@@ -109,14 +109,14 @@ commit. The default value is 20.
 	option is given three times, the command additionally
 	looks for copies from other files in any commit.
 +
-<num> is optional but it is the lower bound on the number of
+_<num>_ is optional, but it is the lower bound on the number of
 alphanumeric characters that Git must detect as moving/copying
 between files for it to associate those lines with the parent
 commit. And the default value is 40. If there are more than one
-`-C` options given, the <num> argument of the last `-C` will
+`-C` options given, the _<num>_ argument of the last `-C` will
 take effect.
 
---ignore-rev <rev>::
+`--ignore-rev <rev>`::
 	Ignore changes made by the revision when assigning blame, as if the
 	change never happened.  Lines that were changed or added by an ignored
 	commit will be blamed on the previous commit that changed that line or
@@ -126,26 +126,26 @@ take effect.
 	another commit will be marked with a `?` in the blame output.  If the
 	`blame.markUnblamableLines` config option is set, then those lines touched
 	by an ignored commit that we could not attribute to another revision are
-	marked with a '*'. In the porcelain modes, we print 'ignored' and
-	'unblamable' on a newline respectively.
+	marked with a `*`. In the porcelain modes, we print `ignored` and
+	`unblamable` on a newline respectively.
 
---ignore-revs-file <file>::
-	Ignore revisions listed in `file`, which must be in the same format as an
+`--ignore-revs-file <file>`::
+	Ignore revisions listed in _<file>_, which must be in the same format as an
 	`fsck.skipList`.  This option may be repeated, and these files will be
 	processed after any files specified with the `blame.ignoreRevsFile` config
 	option.  An empty file name, `""`, will clear the list of revs from
 	previously processed files.
 
---color-lines::
+`--color-lines`::
 	Color line annotations in the default format differently if they come from
 	the same commit as the preceding line. This makes it easier to distinguish
 	code blocks introduced by different commits. The color defaults to cyan and
 	can be adjusted using the `color.blame.repeatedLines` config option.
 
---color-by-age::
-	Color line annotations depending on the age of the line in the default format.
-	The `color.blame.highlightRecent` config option controls what color is used for
-	each range of age.
+`--color-by-age`::
+	Color line annotations depending on the age of the line in
+	the default format.  The `color.blame.highlightRecent` config
+	option controls what color is used for each range of age.
 
--h::
+`-h`::
 	Show help message.
-- 
2.47.3

[PATCH v2 2/2] doc: git-blame: convert to new doc format

[Michael Lyons]

- Use _<placeholder>_ instead of <placeholder> in the description
- Use _underscores_ around math associated with <placeholders>
- Use `backticks` for keywords and more complex option
descriptions. The new rendering engine will apply synopsis rules to
these spans.

Signed-off-by: Michael Lyons <git@michael.lyo.nz>
---
 Documentation/git-blame.adoc | 72 ++++++++++++++++++------------------
 1 file changed, 37 insertions(+), 35 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
index adcbb6f5dc..8808009e87 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/git-blame.adoc
@@ -7,12 +7,12 @@ git-blame - Show what revision and author last modified each line of a file
 
 SYNOPSIS
 --------
-[verse]
-'git blame' [-c] [-b] [-l] [--root] [-t] [-f] [-n] [-s] [-e] [-p] [-w] [--incremental]
-	    [-L <range>] [-S <revs-file>] [-M] [-C] [-C] [-C] [--since=<date>]
-	    [--ignore-rev <rev>] [--ignore-revs-file <file>]
-	    [--color-lines] [--color-by-age] [--progress] [--abbrev=<n>]
-	    [ --contents <file> ] [<rev> | --reverse <rev>..<rev>] [--] <file>
+[synopsis]
+git blame [-c] [-b] [-l] [--root] [-t] [-f] [-n] [-s] [-e] [-p] [-w] [--incremental]
+	  [-L <range>] [-S <revs-file>] [-M] [-C] [-C] [-C] [--since=<date>]
+	  [--ignore-rev <rev>] [--ignore-revs-file <file>]
+	  [--color-lines] [--color-by-age] [--progress] [--abbrev=<n>]
+	  [ --contents <file> ] [<rev> | --reverse <rev>..<rev>] [--] <file>
 
 DESCRIPTION
 -----------
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ lines that were copied and pasted from another file, etc., see the
 `-C` and `-M` options.
 
 The report does not tell you anything about lines which have been deleted or
-replaced; you need to use a tool such as 'git diff' or the "pickaxe"
+replaced; you need to use a tool such as `git diff` or the "pickaxe"
 interface briefly mentioned in the following paragraph.
 
 Apart from supporting file annotation, Git also supports searching the
@@ -50,47 +50,47 @@ OPTIONS
 -------
 include::blame-options.adoc[]
 
--c::
+`-c`::
 	Use the same output mode as linkgit:git-annotate[1] (Default: off).
 
---score-debug::
+`--score-debug`::
 	Include debugging information related to the movement of
 	lines between files (see `-C`) and lines moved within a
 	file (see `-M`).  The first number listed is the score.
 	This is the number of alphanumeric characters detected
 	as having been moved between or within files.  This must be above
-	a certain threshold for 'git blame' to consider those lines
+	a certain threshold for `git blame` to consider those lines
 	of code to have been moved.
 
--f::
---show-name::
+`-f`::
+`--show-name`::
 	Show the filename in the original commit.  By default
 	the filename is shown if there is any line that came from a
 	file with a different name, due to rename detection.
 
--n::
---show-number::
+`-n`::
+`--show-number`::
 	Show the line number in the original commit (Default: off).
 
--s::
+`-s`::
 	Suppress the author name and timestamp from the output.
 
--e::
---show-email::
+`-e`::
+`--show-email`::
 	Show the author email instead of the author name (Default: off).
 	This can also be controlled via the `blame.showEmail` config
 	option.
 
--w::
+`-w`::
 	Ignore whitespace when comparing the parent's version and
 	the child's to find where the lines came from.
 
 include::diff-algorithm-option.adoc[]
 
---abbrev=<n>::
-	Instead of using the default 7+1 hexadecimal digits as the
-	abbreviated object name, use <m>+1 digits, where <m> is at
-	least <n> but ensures the commit object names are unique.
+`--abbrev=<n>`::
+	Instead of using the default _7+1_ hexadecimal digits as the
+	abbreviated object name, use _<m>+1_ digits, where _<m>_ is at
+	least _<n>_ but ensures the commit object names are unique.
 	Note that 1 column
 	is used for a caret to mark the boundary commit.
 
@@ -124,21 +124,21 @@ header at the minimum has the first line which has:
 This header line is followed by the following information
 at least once for each commit:
 
-- the author name ("author"), email ("author-mail"), time
-  ("author-time"), and time zone ("author-tz"); similarly
+- the author name (`author`), email (`author-mail`), time
+  (`author-time`), and time zone (`author-tz`); similarly
   for committer.
 - the filename in the commit that the line is attributed to.
-- the first line of the commit log message ("summary").
+- the first line of the commit log message (`summary`).
 
 The contents of the actual line are output after the above
-header, prefixed by a TAB. This is to allow adding more
+header, prefixed by a _TAB_. This is to allow adding more
 header elements later.
 
 The porcelain format generally suppresses commit information that has
 already been seen. For example, two lines that are blamed to the same
 commit will both be shown, but the details for that commit will be shown
 only once. Information which is specific to individual lines will not be
-grouped together, like revs to be marked 'ignored' or 'unblamable'. This
+grouped together, like revs to be marked `ignored` or `unblamable`. This
 is more efficient, but may require more state be kept by the reader. The
 `--line-porcelain` option can be used to output full commit information
 for each line, allowing simpler (but less efficient) usage like:
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ for each line, allowing simpler (but less efficient) usage like:
 SPECIFYING RANGES
 -----------------
 
-Unlike 'git blame' and 'git annotate' in older versions of git, the extent
+Unlike `git blame` and `git annotate` in older versions of git, the extent
 of the annotation can be limited to both line ranges and revision
 ranges. The `-L` option, which limits annotation to a range of lines, may be
 specified multiple times.
@@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ which limits the annotation to the body of the `hello` subroutine.
 
 When you are not interested in changes older than version
 v2.6.18, or changes older than 3 weeks, you can use revision
-range specifiers similar to 'git rev-list':
+range specifiers similar to `git rev-list`:
 
 	git blame v2.6.18.. -- foo
 	git blame --since=3.weeks -- foo
@@ -212,8 +212,9 @@ does not contain the actual lines from the file that is being
 annotated.
 
 . Each blame entry always starts with a line of:
-
-	<40-byte-hex-sha1> <sourceline> <resultline> <num-lines>
++
+[synopsis]
+<40-byte-hex-sha1> <sourceline> <resultline> <num-lines>
 +
 Line numbers count from 1.
 
@@ -224,16 +225,17 @@ Line numbers count from 1.
 
 . Unlike the Porcelain format, the filename information is always
   given and terminates the entry:
-
-	"filename" <whitespace-quoted-filename-goes-here>
++
+[synopsis]
+filename <whitespace-quoted-filename-goes-here>
 +
 and thus it is really quite easy to parse for some line- and word-oriented
 parser (which should be quite natural for most scripting languages).
 +
 [NOTE]
 For people who do parsing: to make it more robust, just ignore any
-lines between the first and last one ("<sha1>" and "filename" lines)
-where you do not recognize the tag words (or care about that particular
+lines between the first and last one (_<40-byte-hex-sha1>_ and `filename`
+lines) where you do not recognize the tag words (or care about that particular
 one) at the beginning of the "extended information" lines. That way, if
 there is ever added information (like the commit encoding or extended
 commit commentary), a blame viewer will not care.
-- 
2.47.3

Re: [PATCH v2 0/2] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Jean-Noël AVILA]

On Thursday, 8 January 2026 16:30:19 CET Michael Lyons wrote:
> Split and updated with JN's suggestions.
> 
> I tweaked the `--progress` documentation a bit more than requested. It was
> hard to write grammatical English that didn't imply something incorrect.
> 
> Michael Lyons (2):
>   doc: blame-options: convert to new doc format
>   doc: git-blame: convert to new doc format
> 
>  Documentation/blame-options.adoc | 120 +++++++++++++++----------------
>  Documentation/git-blame.adoc     |  72 ++++++++++---------
>  2 files changed, 97 insertions(+), 95 deletions(-)

LGTM

Thanks!

Re: [PATCH v2 0/2] doc: git-blame: convert blame to new doc format

[Junio C Hamano]

Jean-Noël AVILA <jn.avila@free.fr> writes:

> On Thursday, 8 January 2026 16:30:19 CET Michael Lyons wrote:
>> Split and updated with JN's suggestions.
>> 
>> I tweaked the `--progress` documentation a bit more than requested. It was
>> hard to write grammatical English that didn't imply something incorrect.
>> 
>> Michael Lyons (2):
>>   doc: blame-options: convert to new doc format
>>   doc: git-blame: convert to new doc format
>> 
>>  Documentation/blame-options.adoc | 120 +++++++++++++++----------------
>>  Documentation/git-blame.adoc     |  72 ++++++++++---------
>>  2 files changed, 97 insertions(+), 95 deletions(-)
>
> LGTM
>
> Thanks!

Thanks, both.