Canon Abbeviations

One often sees references to four-letter capitalized abbreviations for the Sherlock Holmes stories. Professor J. Finley Christ, an early member of the Baker Street Irregulars, devised these abbreviations and they have been universally accepted by Sherlockians worldwide ever since.

Abbreviations are built on a simple rule: take the 4 first letters of the title, ignoring “The … of”.

ABBE — The Adventure of the Abbey Grange

BERY — The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet

BLAC — The Adventure of Black Peter

BLAN — The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier

BLUE — The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

BOSC — The Boscombe Valley Mystery

BRUC — The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans

CARD — The Adventure of the Cardboard Box

CHAS — The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton

COPP — The Adventure of the Copper Beeches

CREE — The Adventure of the Creeping Man

CROO — The Adventure of the Crooked Man

DANC — The Adventure of the Dancing Men

DEVI — The Adventure of the Devil’s Foot

DYIN — The Adventure of the Dying Detective

EMPT — The Adventure of the Empty House

ENGR — The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb

FINA — The Final Problem

FIVE — The Five Orange Pips

GLOR — The Gloria Scott

GOLD — The Adventure of the Golden Pince-nez

GREE — The Greek Interpreter

HOUN — The Hound of the Baskervilles

IDEN — A Case of Identity

ILLU — The Adventure of the Illustrious Client

LADY — The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax

LAST — His Last Bow

LION — The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane

MAZA — The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone

MISS — The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter

 MUSG — The Musgrave Ritual

NAVA — The Naval Treaty

NOBL — The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor

NORW — The Adventure of the Norwood Builder

PRIO — The Adventure of the Priory School

REDC — The Adventure of the Red Circle

REDH — The Red-Headed League

REIG — The Reigate Squires

RESI — The Resident Patient

RETI — The Adventure of the Retired Colourman

SCAN — A Scandal in Bohemia

SECO — The Adventure of the Second Stain

SHOS — The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place

SIGN — The Sign of the Four

SILV — Silver Blaze

SIXN — The Adventure of the Six Napoleons

SOLI — The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist

SPEC — The Adventure of the Speckled Band

STOC — The Stockbroker’s Clerk

STUD — A Study in Scarlet

SUSS — The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire

THOR — The Problem of Thor Bridge

3GAB — The Adventure of the Three Gables

3GAR — The Adventure of the Three Garridebs

3STU — The Adventure of the Three Students

TWIS — The Man with the Twisted Lip

VALL — The Valley of Fear

VEIL — The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger

WIST — The Adventure of the Wisteria Lodge

YELL — The Yellow Face