<P> | NN all IE all HTML all
<P>...</P> | HTML End Tag: Optional
A p element defines a paragraph structural element in a document. With HTML 4, the p element is formally a block-level element, which means that content for a p element begins on its own line, and content following the p element starts on its own line. No other block-level elements may be nested inside a p element. If you omit the end tag (not permissible in XHTML), the element ends at the next block-level element start tag.

The nature of the p element has changed over time. In early implementations of HTML, the element represented only a paragraph break (a new line with some extra line spacing). Version 4 and later browsers render p elements in a hybrid way such that the start tag of a p element inserts a line space before the block. This means that a p element cannot start at the very top of a page unless it is positioned via CSS. Use the p element for structural purposes, rather than formatting purposes.

The content of a p element does not recognize extra whitespace that appears in the source code. Other elements, such as pre, render content just as it is formatted in the source code.

Example
    <P>This is a simple, one-sentence paragraph.</P>
    <P>This second paragraph starts on its own line, with a little extra
    line spacing.</P>
Object Model Reference
    [window.]document.getElementById(elementID)
Element-Specific Attributes

align

Element-Specific Event Handler Attributes
None.

align | NN all IE all HTML 3.2
align="where" | Optional
Determines how the paragraph text is justified within the box that the p element occupies. See the discussion about horizontal alignment for a block element's content in Section 8.1.5 earlier in this chapter. The align attribute is deprecated in HTML 4 in favor of the text-align style sheet attribute.
Example
    <P align="center">...</P>
Value
Text alignment values are center | justify | left| right, although the justify value does not validate in strict HTML or XHTML DTDs.
Default
left
Object Model Reference
    [window.]document.getElementById(elementID).align

lang | NN 3 IE 4 HTML 4
lang="languageCode" | Optional
The language being used for the element's attribute values and content. A browser can use this information to assist in proper rendering of content with respect to details such as treatment of ligatures (when supported by a particular font or required by a written language), quotation marks, and hyphenation. Other applications and search engines might use this information to aid the selection of spell-checking dictionaries and the creation of indices.
Example
    <SPAN lang="de">Deutsche Bundesbahn</SPAN>
Value
Case-insensitive language code.
Default
Browser default.
Object Model Reference
    [window.]document.getElementById(elementID).lang