Extension method to get a user-friendly string representation of a specified Type's name.

TypeExtensions.cs

// Copyright Matthew King 2012.

// Boost Software License - Version 1.0 - August 17th, 2003

// Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person or organization
// obtaining a copy of the software and accompanying documentation covered by
// this license (the "Software") to use, reproduce, display, distribute,
// execute, and transmit the Software, and to prepare derivative works of the
// Software, and to permit third-parties to whom the Software is furnished to
// do so, all subject to the following:

// The copyright notices in the Software and this entire statement, including
// the above license grant, this restriction and the following disclaimer,
// must be included in all copies of the Software, in whole or in part, and
// all derivative works of the Software, unless such copies or derivative
// works are solely in the form of machine-executable object code generated by
// a source language processor.

// THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
// IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
// FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT
// SHALL THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS OR ANYONE DISTRIBUTING THE SOFTWARE BE LIABLE
// FOR ANY DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE,
// ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER
// DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

using System;
using System.Linq;

/// <summary>
/// Extension methods for System.Type.
/// </summary>
public static class TypeExtensions
{
    /// <summary>
    /// Returns a human-friendly representation of the Type's name.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="type">The Type.</param>
    /// <returns>A human-friendly representation of the Type's name.</returns>
    public static string GetFriendlyName(this Type type)
    {
        if (type == null)
            throw new ArgumentNullException("type", "type should not be null.");

        if (!type.IsGenericType || type.IsGenericParameter)
            return type.Name;

        const StringComparison sc = StringComparison.Ordinal;
        string name = type.Name.Substring(0, type.Name.IndexOf("`", sc));
        string[] arguments = type.GetGenericArguments()
            .Select(arg => arg.GetFriendlyName())
            .ToArray();

        return String.Concat(name, '<', String.Join(", ", arguments), '>');
    }
}

TypeExtensionsTests.cs

// Copyright Matthew King 2012.

// Boost Software License - Version 1.0 - August 17th, 2003

// Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person or organization
// obtaining a copy of the software and accompanying documentation covered by
// this license (the "Software") to use, reproduce, display, distribute,
// execute, and transmit the Software, and to prepare derivative works of the
// Software, and to permit third-parties to whom the Software is furnished to
// do so, all subject to the following:

// The copyright notices in the Software and this entire statement, including
// the above license grant, this restriction and the following disclaimer,
// must be included in all copies of the Software, in whole or in part, and
// all derivative works of the Software, unless such copies or derivative
// works are solely in the form of machine-executable object code generated by
// a source language processor.

// THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
// IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
// FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT
// SHALL THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS OR ANYONE DISTRIBUTING THE SOFTWARE BE LIABLE
// FOR ANY DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE,
// ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER
// DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using NUnit.Framework;

[TestFixture]
public sealed class TypeExtensionsTests
{
    [Test]
    public void GetFriendlyName_TypeIsNull_ThrowsArgumentNullException()
    {
        Type type = null;

        const string message = "type should not be null.";
        Assert.That(() => type.GetFriendlyName(),
            Throws.TypeOf<ArgumentNullException>()
                    .And.Message.Contains(message));
    }

    [TestCaseSource("GetFriendlyName_TestCaseData")]
    public string GetFriendlyName(Type type)
    {
        return type.GetFriendlyName();
    }

    private static IEnumerable<TestCaseData> GetFriendlyName_TestCaseData()
    {
        yield return new TestCaseData(typeof(string))
            .Returns("String");

        yield return new TestCaseData(typeof(String))
            .Returns("String");

        yield return new TestCaseData(typeof(DateTime))
            .Returns("DateTime");

        yield return new TestCaseData(typeof(List<String>))
            .Returns("List<String>");

        yield return new TestCaseData(typeof(Nullable<DateTime>))
            .Returns("Nullable<DateTime>");

        yield return new TestCaseData(typeof(IList<IEnumerable<IDictionary<String, Int32>>>))
            .Returns("IList<IEnumerable<IDictionary<String, Int32>>>");
    }
}