Rails app on Ubuntu 12.0.4, tzdata 2016j pulling incorrect time zone abbreviations

Question

I\'m wondering if anyone else is seeing an issue with specific time zone abbreviations in their Rails apps on Ubuntu 12.0.4 boxes with tzdata 2016j.

For Asia/Yereva

Answer 1

The source data itself has been changed. Over the last several releases, the TZ maintainers have been removing abbreviations that were previously invented or otherwise unsubstantiated.

The fact of the matter is that the idea of a "time zone abbreviation" is not a universal concept. We'd like to think that everyone around the world uses them, but really they don't. And when they do, they do not necessarily mean the same things as we think they do, or are the chosen abbreviations used universally. For example, A person in Minsk might happen to use the same UTC offset as a person in Moscow, but Moscow's use of MSK is well-known. Applying it to Minsk could be taken as an insult. Indeed, the TZDB used to use MSK for "Minsk Time", until this recent set of changes started.

It gets even more complicated when you think about abbreviations in other langugages.

If you have documentation to show that an abbreviation is actually used by those who live in the place in question (i.e., do people in Baku actually say "AZT"), then please present your findings on the discussion mailing list at IANA.

If you're just trying to get back what you had before - you'll have to make a list of your own "invented" abbreviations and refer to that. The TZDB is clear that it no longer wants to be the source of misinformation.

The better option, IMHO, is just to avoid using time zone abbreviations at all.