Capitalisation

 Capitalisation: Don’t Commit a Capital Crime

Over-capitalisation and under-capitalisation are crimes of a capital nature, and the punishment is lack of readership.  Generally, capital letters signify proper nouns and proper adjectives, announce the start of a new sentence, and begin quotations. 

Here are thirty good rules:

1. Capitalise proper nouns. A proper noun is the official name of a person, place, or thing:

John Doe

Boise, Idaho

Kentucky Derby

the Empire State Building

the University of South Dakota

Saturday, June 30

But do not capitalise common nouns. A common noun is a general classification:

any man

the city

the horse race

the building

the college

a day

2. Capitalise proper adjectives. A proper adjective is derived from a proper noun:

Japanese tourist

Southern states

Texas ranchers

Machiavellian

3. Do not capitalise common words: some nouns and adjectives have become so common they aren’t capitalised:

french fries

dutch oven

china (dishes)

danish pastry

roman numeral

napoleon dessert

4. Capitalise words that show family relationships when they are used instead of a name or as part of a name:

I waved hello to Mother.

There goes Uncle John.

But don’t capitalise them if they are preceded by a possessive (my, your, their):

I waved hello to my mother.

There goes your uncle.

5. Capitalise nicknames and other identifying names:

Alexander the Great

A-Rod

JLo

the Presidential Palace

Hell’s Angels

the Bronze Age

6. Capitalise titles when they immediately precede a personal name as a title:

Mayor John Smith

Senator Jane Jones

General Eisenhower

President Wilma Day

Ms. Abigail Wood

Dr. Evan Jameson

Do not capitalise when they are descriptive:

Dwight D. Eisenhower was a great general and president.

Next month the president, Wilma Day, will give a speech.

7. Capitalise professional titles and their abbreviations when they follow a personal name:

Jane Smith, J.D.

John Jones, D.O.

8. Capitalise personified nouns:

He heard Justice cry out his name.

She wore Winter well.

9. Capitalise brand names, proprietary names, trademarks, and commercial products:

Wheaties

Volkswagen Bug

Brawny

Clorox

10. Capitalise specific political and geographical locations and derived adjectives:

Salt Lake City

Oneida County

Tinseltown

Down Under

Egypt

Egyptian

Only capitalise “state”, “city” and “county” if it follows the name:

Maryland State

The state of Maryland

She works for the county

Chicago is also called the Windy City

11. Capitalise the names of nationalities, languages, races, and tribes and their derived adjectives:

Italian

Caucasian

Apache

Farsi

12. Capitalise words of direction when used to designate a specific place:

South Pole

Middle East

Upper West Side

Lower Manhattan

Deep South

Eastern Seaboard

Do not capitalise north, south, east, and west if they refer to a direction or section:

He drove southwest of Denver to vacation in northern New Mexico.

She left northern California.

The westerly winds are strong.

They expect snow in the eastern part of the state.

13. Capitalise the names of specific geographic features and the common nouns that are part of proper names:

Appalachian Mountains

Indian Ocean

Suez Canal

the Great Lakes

14. Capitalise the names of buildings, monuments, streets, bridges, parks, and other specific locations and the common nouns that are part of proper names:

Pentagon

Route 66

Central Park

Statue of Liberty

Gorky Park

15. Capitalise the names of organizations, business firms, and institutions:

Roosevelt High School

American Red Cross

General Mills

Coleg Llandrillo

Harvard University

Grŵp Llandrillo Menai

16. Capitalise the names of political parties and religious denominations and their members:

Democrats

Tea Party

Methodist

Buddhism

17. Capitalise the names of sacred writings and specific creeds, confessions of faith, and prayers:

King James Bible

Koran

Lord’s Prayer

the Resurrection

18. Capitalise nouns and pronouns that refer to a specific Supreme Being:

God

Allah

Lord

Yahweh

19. Capitalise specific cultural and historical events, wars, treaties, laws, and documents:

Brexit

Declaration of Independence

Revolutionary War

World War II

Geneva Convention

the Fifth Amendment

20. Capitalise the names of historical and cultural periods:

Golden Ages

Prohibition

Dust Bowl

Elizabethan Era

But don’t capitalize decades or centuries:

the sixties

the nineteenth century

the seventeen hundreds

the nineteen-seventies

21. Capitalise the names of international organisations, and specific branches, departments, and other divisions of government:

the Supreme Court

the Armstrong Commission

Department of Defense

the United Arab Emirates

the House of Parliament

the House of Lord

the European Union

22. Capitalise the names of specific awards and prizes:

Purple Heart

Grammy Award

Pulitzer Prize

Congressional Medal of Honour

The Nobel Peace Prize

23. Capitalise the names of specific trains, planes, ships, satellites, and submarines (italicise them as well):

USS Constitution

Nautilus

Air Force One

Sputnik

24. Capitalise the names of stars, planets, constellations, and other astronomical designations:

Orion

Andromeda Galaxy

Earth

Aries

Milky Way 

North Star

But don’t capitalise sun, moon, or earth if it is used in general terms:

The sun isn’t shining.

Tonight will be a full moon.

He has travelled all over the earth.

25. Capitalise the days of the week, months of the year, and holidays:

Friday

April

Father’s Day

Mother’s Day

Don’t capitalise the seasons: spring, summer, fall, autumn, winter

26. Capitalise the first word of a sentence and any word or phrase that has the force of a sentence:

The grass is green.

Wait!

Really?

Twist and shout.

27. Capitalise the first word of a direct quotation:

“Have a great day,” said John.

The weatherman said, “It’s going to rain.”

28. Capitalise the first word following a colon if it introduces two or more related sentences:

The decision is final: You are fired. Please turn in your keys and badge immediately.

29. Capitalise the first word in the salutation and the first word of the close of a letter:

Dear friends

Best wishes

30. Capitalise the first and last words and all important words in the titles of works of art, books, magazines, newspapers, poems, songs, articles, television shows, plays, reports, and other writing:

Washington Post

Sunday Times

Time Magazine

Daily Planet  

“Hawaii Five-O”

“How to Write a Novel”

“Who Is Kris Kringle?”

“It’s Something to Be Proud Of”

Don’t capitalise the, a, an, and, as, but, if, or, nor, at, by, for, in, off, on, out, to, or up unless it is the first or last word or is actually part of the title:

“Williams Gets an Easy Win”

From The New York Times

Also, in, out, off, and up will be capitalised if they are adverbs (not prepositions), but in and up will be capitalised if they are used with another preposition that has more than four letters:

“Stocks Went Up for the Third Consecutive Quarter”

“Going Up and Down the Staircase”

These rules should keep you out of trouble, and keep the big and small letters in their place.