Date: 2014-11-15.00:00:00

[Moved to DR at the November, 2014 meeting.]

Date: 2013-09-15.00:00:00

Proposed resolution (September, 2013):

Change the second bullet of 6.7 [basic.link] paragraph 3 as follows:

• a non-volatile variable that is explicitly declared const or constexpr and of non-volatile const-qualified type that is neither explicitly declared extern nor previously declared to have external linkage; or

Date: 2026-07-27.15:54:01

According to 6.7 [basic.link] paragraph 3,

A name having namespace scope (6.4.6 [basic.scope.namespace]) has internal linkage if it is the name of

• ...

• a non-volatile variable that is explicitly declared const or constexpr and neither explicitly declared extern nor previously declared to have external linkage; or

• ...

It would be more precise and less confusing if the phrase “explicitly declared const ” were replaced by saying that its type is const-qualified. This change would also allow removal of the reference to constexpr , which was added by issue 1112 because constexpr variables are implicitly const-qualified but not covered by the “explicitly declared” phrasing.