Set the version to 2.0.0rc1 for the release candidate

_version.py could not express a PEP 440 pre-release: it built the
string from a numeric tuple, so "2.0.0rc1" (no dot before rc) was
unreachable. Split the pre-release segment into PRE_RELEASE, joined
without a dot, and keep VERSION a pure numeric tuple so
`nameparser.VERSION >= (2, 0, 0)` still works. Set PRE_RELEASE = "" for
2.0.0 final.

Release log notes the rc1 up front: it is a pre-release, so a plain
pip install skips it (needs --pre), and feedback goes to #284. The
notes themselves describe 2.0.0 as a whole and stay under the
"unreleased" heading until the final tag.

Verified: __version__ == "2.0.0rc1" (packaging confirms is_prerelease),
the wheel/sdist carry it, and twine check passes on both.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Author: derek73

docs/release_log.rst

@@ -2,6 +2,13 @@ Release Log
 ===========
 * 2.0.0 - unreleased
 
+    **2.0.0rc1 released 2026-07-23** for testing ahead of the final
+    2.0.0. Install it with ``pip install --pre nameparser`` (a
+    pre-release is not selected by a plain ``pip install``); please
+    report anything the migration missed on `issue #284
+    <https://github.com/derek73/python-nameparser/issues/284>`_. The
+    notes below describe 2.0.0 as a whole.
+
     nameparser 2.0 adds a new parsing API alongside ``HumanName``.
     ``parse()`` returns an immutable ``ParsedName`` whose seven fields
     are named for what they are (``given``, ``family``) rather than

nameparser/_version.py

@@ -1,2 +1,9 @@
-VERSION = (1, 4, 0)
-__version__ = '.'.join(map(str, VERSION))
+#: Release version parts (major, minor, micro). VERSION stays a pure
+#: numeric tuple so `nameparser.VERSION >= (2, 0, 0)` keeps working; the
+#: pre-release segment lives separately.
+VERSION = (2, 0, 0)
+#: PEP 440 pre-release/dev segment appended to the numeric version, or
+#: "" for a final release. Joined WITHOUT a dot ("2.0.0rc1", not
+#: "2.0.0.rc1"); setuptools reads __version__ as the package version.
+PRE_RELEASE = "rc1"
+__version__ = ".".join(map(str, VERSION)) + PRE_RELEASE