diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DateFieldMapper.java b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DateFieldMapper.java
index ce03fc0a6b4..d2833d4bfb3 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DateFieldMapper.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DateFieldMapper.java
@@ -70,6 +70,7 @@ public class DateFieldMapper extends FieldMapper {
 
         private Boolean ignoreMalformed;
         private Locale locale;
+        private boolean dateTimeFormatterSet = false;
 
         public Builder(String name) {
             super(name, new DateFieldType(), new DateFieldType());
@@ -97,8 +98,14 @@ public class DateFieldMapper extends FieldMapper {
             return Defaults.IGNORE_MALFORMED;
         }
 
+        /** Whether an explicit format for this date field has been set already. */
+        public boolean isDateTimeFormatterSet() {
+            return dateTimeFormatterSet;
+        }
+
         public Builder dateTimeFormatter(FormatDateTimeFormatter dateTimeFormatter) {
             fieldType().setDateTimeFormatter(dateTimeFormatter);
+            dateTimeFormatterSet = true;
             return this;
         }
 
diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DocumentParser.java b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DocumentParser.java
index d7f32f4663b..a35b06a06ad 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DocumentParser.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DocumentParser.java
@@ -694,6 +694,12 @@ final class DocumentParser {
                     if (builder == null) {
                         builder = newDateBuilder(currentFieldName, dateTimeFormatter, Version.indexCreated(context.indexSettings()));
                     }
+                    if (builder instanceof DateFieldMapper.Builder) {
+                        DateFieldMapper.Builder dateBuilder = (DateFieldMapper.Builder) builder;
+                        if (dateBuilder.isDateTimeFormatterSet() == false) {
+                            dateBuilder.dateTimeFormatter(dateTimeFormatter);
+                        }
+                    }
                     return builder;
                 }
             }
diff --git a/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DynamicMappingTests.java b/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DynamicMappingTests.java
index 28a24f67ac9..f5c8d38503e 100644
--- a/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DynamicMappingTests.java
+++ b/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/index/mapper/DynamicMappingTests.java
@@ -644,6 +644,59 @@ public class DynamicMappingTests extends ESSingleNodeTestCase {
         assertThat(mapper, instanceOf(TextFieldMapper.class));
     }
 
+    public void testDateDetectionInheritsFormat() throws Exception {
+        String mapping = XContentFactory.jsonBuilder().startObject().startObject("type")
+                .startArray("dynamic_date_formats")
+                    .value("yyyy-MM-dd")
+                .endArray()
+                .startArray("dynamic_templates")
+                    .startObject()
+                        .startObject("dates")
+                            .field("match_mapping_type", "date")
+                            .field("match", "*2")
+                            .startObject("mapping")
+                            .endObject()
+                        .endObject()
+                    .endObject()
+                    .startObject()
+                        .startObject("dates")
+                            .field("match_mapping_type", "date")
+                            .field("match", "*3")
+                            .startObject("mapping")
+                                .field("format", "yyyy-MM-dd||epoch_millis")
+                            .endObject()
+                        .endObject()
+                    .endObject()
+                .endArray()
+                .endObject().endObject().string();
+
+        IndexService index = createIndex("test");
+        client().admin().indices().preparePutMapping("test").setType("type").setSource(mapping).get();
+        DocumentMapper defaultMapper = index.mapperService().documentMapper("type");
+
+        ParsedDocument doc = defaultMapper.parse("test", "type", "1", XContentFactory.jsonBuilder()
+                .startObject()
+                    .field("date1", "2016-11-20")
+                    .field("date2", "2016-11-20")
+                    .field("date3", "2016-11-20")
+                .endObject()
+                .bytes());
+        assertNotNull(doc.dynamicMappingsUpdate());
+        assertAcked(client().admin().indices().preparePutMapping("test").setType("type").setSource(doc.dynamicMappingsUpdate().toString()).get());
+
+        defaultMapper = index.mapperService().documentMapper("type");
+
+        DateFieldMapper dateMapper1 = (DateFieldMapper) defaultMapper.mappers().smartNameFieldMapper("date1");
+        DateFieldMapper dateMapper2 = (DateFieldMapper) defaultMapper.mappers().smartNameFieldMapper("date2");
+        DateFieldMapper dateMapper3 = (DateFieldMapper) defaultMapper.mappers().smartNameFieldMapper("date3");
+        // inherited from dynamic date format
+        assertEquals("yyyy-MM-dd", dateMapper1.fieldType().dateTimeFormatter().format());
+        // inherited from dynamic date format since the mapping in the template did not specify a format
+        assertEquals("yyyy-MM-dd", dateMapper2.fieldType().dateTimeFormatter().format());
+        // not inherited from the dynamic date format since the template defined an explicit format
+        assertEquals("yyyy-MM-dd||epoch_millis", dateMapper3.fieldType().dateTimeFormatter().format());
+    }
+
     public void testDynamicTemplateOrder() throws IOException {
         // https://github.com/elastic/elasticsearch/issues/18625
         // elasticsearch used to apply templates that do not have a match_mapping_type first