When is Google’s birthday? Surely Google knows. You do know, right, Google?

Google is old enough to drink, buy cigarettes and vote in the UK. But does it know its date of birth?

What’s that Google? It’s your 18th birthday today? Happy birthday Google! You’re now old enough to drink in Britain. Though the existence of Google Plus suggests you’ve been quietly breaking that law for a while now.

Sorry to nitpick though, but are you sure it’s your birthday? Only, there’s been some confusion over that in the past. Right now, on 27 September, you have one of your merry “Google doodles” up on your homepage wishing yourself a happy birthday (also, Google, that’s a little sad? Are you OK? Normally we rely on our friends to wish us a happy birthday rather than buying our own cards).

In fact, most years you have a Google Doodle up on 27 September. Except in 2005, when you put it up on 26 September. And 2004, when you put it up on 7 September. And 2003, when you put it up on 8 September.

Oh, and your own company history says you registered Google.com on 15 September 1997 and filed for incorporation on 4 September 1998.

Are you just celebrating today because it’s the anniversary of the first time you put up your own birthday doodle, this day in 2002?

I mean, come on: your corporate mission is “to organise the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful”. You know what they say: if you don’t even know your own birthday, you probably aren’t very good at organising information.

OK, they don’t say that, but they should.