Capitalize north, south, east, west, and derivative words when they designate definite regions or are an integral part of a proper name. Unless you are referring to the Four Seasons, there is no reason for seasons to . Some could argue the word "Southerner" in the sentence denotes someone who belongs to a specific region, and the letter "S" should therefore be capitalized. Thus, here are 10 capitalization rules you should know for a well written write-up: Capitalize the first word of every sentence. The Starved Rock Lodge offers world-famous midwestern hospitality in a scenic environment. When a database has been given a proper name, capitalize that name, but do not italicize it or place it inside quote marks. Should north southeast and West be capitalized? I am a technical writer and editor who shares writing-related software tutorials on this website and on YouTube. You capitalize state only when it follows the name of the state, as in New York State is also called the Empire State, or when its part of a traditional name for a state, like Empire State or Lone Star State. When it precedes the name of the state, dont capitalize the word unless its part of a title of . For example, capitalizing "Southerner" in the sentence "As a Southerner, she had a distinct drawl" can be up for debate. Do you capitalize north? The seasons arent proper nouns, so theyre not usually capitalized. By convention, however, southern is capitalized when it refers to the region of California: I live in Southern California. Do you like West Asia? The correct sentence is Carlotta and I love Halloween. You should only capitalize directions, such as south, when you are referring to it as the proper noun, such as in the South. If you are merely referring to a direction, such as go south on I-90, then you should keep south lowercase. For example: But when the terms are used to indicate a region, they are capitalized for example, the "West Coast". Names of racial and ethnic groups are treated as proper nouns, which means they are capitalized (e.g., African American, Asian American, Black, European American, First Nations, Hispanic, Native American, Latinx, White). capitalization. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. But the AP Stylebook says to always capitalize Southern when referring to the South in the United States, regardless of whether youre discussing the Civil War. And "north" in that sentence refers to a direction (i.e., where you turned), not the place (i.e., Bolton Avenue). Without capitalization, it could refer to anyone in the southern hemisphere, or perhaps southern England. Time arrow with "current position" evolving with overlay number. Terms that denote regions of the world or of a particular country are often capitalized, as are a few of the adjectives and nouns derived from such terms. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are the days of the week. The name of a theatrical play, but this is also a conventional geographical region that would be capitalized anyway. In what contexts would I capitalize "city" and "county"? The English language has grammar and usage rules by the boatload. But it would be unusual to do this for a less well-known location, such as south Coventry.. However, when these words are actually part of the place name, they must be capitalized. The sentence reads "I turned on north Bolton." As noted in the post, there's no need to capitalize generic directions (only when they're part of a proper noun). You wouldnt normally unless north and south are part of a proper noun (e.g., South Africa). If you are referring to a group of proper nouns such as the Southern States. However, if instead you reference a general location, such as the southern winds, then the word southern should be lowercase. The word should only be capitalized if it appears in the body's name. Does the word federal need to be capitalized? To capitalize or not quoted text after be form, How to handle a hobby that makes income in US. The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. Rule 2. (I have no authority for this opinion, other than my intuition as an English speaker. For example, The Associated Press Stylebook (AP style) recommends capitalization:2. When there is no proper name, lowercase "mountain", "gorge", "valley", "beach", and other geographical features. It only loosely defines a region of California and its border is not officially defined either. Capitalize the first word of a document and the first word after a period. "southern California" is not the same as "Southern California". It was first put into effect for large businesses, but it was gradually adopted as a standardized format by everyone. When dealing with geographic terms, capitalize nouns such as "river", "lake", etc. Capitalization For WebCT Users in Writing Classes: The "caps" icon (usually immediately before a word) indicates either that the following word ought to be capitalized (for one of the reasons listed here) or, if it is already capitalized, that it shouldn't be. the Deep South. Is Colorado in the west or the West? What's the difference between a power rail and a signal line? What is, In a front-wheel drive setup, theyre what transfers power to the wheels via the transmission or differential (in a rear-wheel drive setup). . We lowercase the terms when they refer to directions: The United States is located north of Mexico. 9 Should north southeast and West be capitalized? One reason partisans capitalize "White" or "Black" is to denote its importance in messages, even subliminally, magnified by lowercasing the "other." As always, we believe that labels can oversimplify, and that a specific description is better. Are seasons capitalized or not? Should southern be capitalized? 1 Is south capitalized when referring to Southern states? In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. The pastor prayed that God should deliver us from our sins. Despite that, knowing how to capitalize names of places, regions, geographical features, directions, etc. The main thing is to be consistent with whatever you choose. Lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, and other lowercase letters are used when indicating compass direction. So: North Carolina is north of South Carolina and east of West Virginia. Capitalize nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs (including phrasal verbs such as play with), adverbs, and subordinate conjunctions. Capitalize the Southern California region? Except for Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas, and Utah, the name of a city and state should be abbreviated when they are used together. Capitalization Do not capitalize federal, state, department, division, board, program, section, unit, etc., unless the word is part of a formal name. But the AP Stylebook says to always capitalize "Southern" when referring to "the South" in the United States, regardless of whether you're discussing the Civil War. However, some people also suggest capitalizing the names of: The uniting theme here is the idea of naming a well-known or well-defined region. Each morning, the sun rises in the east . However, there are a few exceptions you should learn about. However, be consistent and do not write: "Visitors to southern California climbed while visitors to northern California fell." Should south be capitalized? As an aside, when we toured through the San Francisco Peninsula earlier this year, our guide told us that the natives generally didn't like the name 'Silicon Valley'. Yes, Southern is capitalized because it refers to the South (= the southern US). Is Southern California capitalized AP style? In general, midwesterners are friendly and down to earth. The basic guidelines for using capital letters in English appear simple enough: Capitalize the first word in a sentence. But when the term is used in a formal name, it's capitalized, as in "the Hudson River". In general, Midwesterners are friendly and down to earth. However, a co-author argues that southern should not be capitalized, because it is an adjective, not a noun. When does a locational distinction change its suffix and capitialization in a proper name? Example: "War-weary ministers in London asked themselves why they fought a costly war in the [north] when they had friends in the Carolinas and Georgia.". I have published a variety of other capitalization posts related to time periods, geographic features, people, and product names. A title like this would appear as: A Guide to English: Perfecting Grammar in an Academic Paper. Besides the global continents, there are also atmospheric and hydrospheric regions that encompass the oceans, discrete climates, or environments above the water and landmasses of earth. 10 Do I capitalize southern as in the US region? States and territories Use initial capitals for words in the formal name. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Of course, as with other nouns, they should be capitalized at the beginning of sentences and in titles. References to God (s) The word "god" should be capitalized if it is being used as a proper name of a monotheistic god, as in God in Christianity and Judaism. By attaching itself to a common object, the language or country name takes on a new meaning. One exception to this rule: common objects with a country or nationality as part of the name ( french fries, scotch whiskey, venetian blinds, and so forth). The example you give is a generic direction used as an adjective (like the "east wing of the mansion" example in the post), so no capitalization is required. However, if, like Northern Ireland and North Korea, the direction is part of the proper name, it should be capitalized. @Devil07, the geographical adjective "southern" is not usurped -- it just means something different. Who wrote the music and lyrics for Kinky Boots? Why are trials on "Law & Order" in the New York Supreme Court? Filed Under: For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook. To know what other words you should capitalize, try our free title capitalization tool. On a cloudless night, I studied Pisces, a constellation in the North sky. Only when it's very apparent or writing the direction names in small letters looks completely off, capitalize them. West is directly opposite east. As a general thumb rule, if a particular direction (north, south, etc.) NOTE: Within certain regions it is not uncommon for many who live there to capitalize the adjective because of the special importance they attach to the regional designation. 'CMOS recognizes that common usage and context determine conventional approaches to capitalization in connection with the treatment of certain terms related to regions.' For example: The words are also not capitalized if they only indicate locations or the climate or geography of a region. The following formal names of specific degrees should always be capitalized in AP style: As you can see, master's degrees are capitalized when abbreviated. Most style guides recommend capitalizing "West Coast" when referring to the western seaboard of the U.S. hi, should i capitalize 'west' in 'west Africa' or 'north' in north Africa'? If you are merely referring to a direction, such as "go north on I-90," then you should keep north lowercase. Direction-denoting terms such as north, south, east, west, etc. Explanation: Because, Pisces is a noun. The Chicago Manual of Style. Southern California; West Texas; the Lower East Side of New York; If in doubt, use lowercase. Do You Capitalize "Real Estate"? Here are the types of words that should be capitalized: Proper nouns. In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. Is summer a good time? proofreading, So capitalize The Pacific Northwest and Central Texas, but not We drove west for two hours., The States that make up The South are usually considered to be: Virginia Tennessee Arkansas Louisiana North Carolina South Carolina Mississippi Alabama Georgia Florida Texas. Are you supposed to capitalize north south east and west? Likewise, the rules for sentences apply: capitalize the common name at the . The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. In some cases, like country and city names, this is clear. editing, Capitalize directions that are names; North, South, East, and West when used as sections of the country, but not as compass directions. Federal or federal? You should only capitalize directions, such as south, when you are referring to it as the proper noun, such as "in the South.". However, capitalization may depend on the style guide you're using. Capitalize such words as northern, southern, eastern, and western when they refer to the people in a region or to their political, social, or cultural activities. Opportunities exist on the east and west sides of the city. The mines are in the plateaus western region. Each state has its own shortened name codes, which are used in written documents and mailing addresses. Be consistent (e.g., dont use south England in one part of a document and South England in another if youre referring to the same place). The following sentence is capitalized correctly : I learned that Thor is the god of thunder when I read a book about myths from Norway. I still don't see any "descriptivist argument", much less a strong one. Why are non-Western countries siding with China in the UN. How to tell which packages are held back due to phased updates. So, option 2 is correct. However, when giving an address, or in tables or other uses in which space is limited, use the US Postal Services symbol system, which consists of a two-letter abbreviation in which both letters are always capitalized and no periods are used (for example, NY for New York). If states is being referred to in a general manner, such as There are two senators for each state, then the word states would remain lower case. In other words, directions can be tricky! Which sentence is capitalized correctly I learned that Thor? Seasons. Did I miss the memo on this issue? For example, Southern US is proper because it is a specific region. To Capitalize or not to Capitalize Independence? For example, Southern France is capitalized because it is a proper noun and . You don't even want to know what he calls pancakes. And Wisconsin is known as the Badger State (not "the badger state") even though its official name is Wisconsin. You should capitalize North, South, East, and West when theyre part of a proper noun (i.e., the name of a unique thing). However, in certain pairings, the common noun appears after a name or proper noun for instance, "the Highlands Region". Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The administration's solution: Ease credit for riskier borrowers. By prevailing usage, roughly the most southerly one-third or two-fifths of California is referred to as Southern California, in initial caps. He's one part content manager, one part writing ninja organizer, and two parts leader of top content creators. Most of the north is sandy, and the northern coast is mountainous. The geographical areas "The North," "The East," "The South," and "The West" are treated like proper nouns. Title Case Capitalization (APA 7th) Sentence Case Capitalization (APA 7th) The Chicago Manual of Style and the MLA Handbook, for instance, say to only capitalize Southern when referring to the American Civil War. If it's a name, it's a proper noun. This is known as 'title case'. Hi, Chris. It also looks at when to capitalize those regions when they are used as adjectives and to describe U.S. geographic populations. Circling back to the "title" rule, if the headline is in sentence case and the word "region" is not the starting word of the title, "region" should be written in lowercase. (There is a lot of leniency on whether to capitalize "The." Few would argue that the region is called "The North" as . when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. As an Amazon Associate, CapitalizeMyTitle.com earns from qualifying purchases. If it's a general noun such as a river, lake, ocean, etc., the region need not be capitalized. Another example, "Eastern" in the phrase "Eastern bankers" is capitalized since the word denotes a certain group of people. Thus, here are 10 capitalization rules you should know for a well written write-up: According to most style guides, nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs are capitalized in titles of books, articles, and songs. Capitalize such words as northern, southern, eastern, and western when they refer to the people in a region or to their political, social, or cultural activities. Whichever version you use, then, we'd suggest not capitalizing the direction, just the country name. The periods are omitted in headlines. You should only capitalize "east" when you are referring to it as the proper noun, such as "in the East" or "in the Middle East". 2023 Caniry - All Rights Reserved Capitalize the pronoun. However, if you use the word southern instead of a general location, such as the southern winds, the word should be lowercase. 1. Capitalization Unless the word is part of a formal name, do not capitalize federal, state, department, division, board, program, section, unit, or other similar words. Settlers moved into the West. The official USPS postal abbreviation is this format. Which sentence is capitalized correctly Carlotta? Can you drive with a broken front differential? When words like northern, southern, eastern, or western precede a place name, they aren't usually capitalized because they only indicate a general location within a region. When used to refer to direction and location, dont capitalize the names of directions like north, south, east, or west; however, when they appear in the names of places and regions, do capitalize these words. That means you should lowercase articles, Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. What does it mean that the Bible was divinely inspired? You have entered an incorrect email address! Chicago style is best for writers who want to adhere to traditional publishing standards and academic writers in non-scientific fields. In short, it says to capitalize northern, southern, eastern, western and related words when they refer to the PEOPLE in a region or what they DO (i.e., their political, cultural or social activities) or are part of the place name. The Midwest is the breadbasket of the United States. If a is used, go with prime minister.). What is the rule for state abbreviations? English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. It's a site that collects all the most frequently asked questions and answers, so you don't have to spend hours on searching anywhere else. It only loosely defines a region of California and its border is not officially defined either. The AP Stylebook, which is the guiding stylebook for a number of news organizations, including The Daily Tar Heel, advises against using the Oxford comma in most basic series. Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. I is always capitalized, along with all its contractions. the Southern States the Eastern Seaboard Northern Ireland the Western Hemisphere The street is named Bolton Avenue. Southern, on the other hand, is capitalized by convention when it refers to California: I live in Southern California. Similarly, the European Union is an assortment of multiple countries. Geographic Regions Used as Adjectives Should compass directions (i.e., north, south, east, and west) ever be capitalized? Capitalize regional terms when they refer to a commonly accepted proper name of an area. Note that it doesn't seem to be treated as a compound proper noun (e.g., searching for "Southeastern Albania" produces an error since Ngrams is case sensitive and there don't seem to be any instances of that capitalization in the Google Books database). Be the first to read new posts and updates about MLA style. That means that official names of departments and units should be capitalized and not when referring to just a type of department or unit. How can I find out which sectors are used by files on NTFS? . The sentence which is capitalized correctly is My easiest classes are Chemistry and Spanish. Colorado is part of the Southwest. Certain public figures get capitalized, but others dont. Some common examples of when you should capitalize north include: down North. For example, Silicon Valley isn't a proprietary name or legally defined area, but it receives initial caps anyway. How do I connect these two faces together? capitalization, maps, writing tips. Others may argue that the word simply denotes the direction of the region the individual lives and must not have the capital letter. These are not governed entities, but they are official designations. When referring to Greek, Roman, and other groups of gods and goddesses, only the name is capitalized. any that aren't articles, conjunctions or prepositions) should be capitalised. When did they standardize state abbreviations? Some authorities also capitalize titles if they immediately follow the name without the word "the.". When to capitalize North East South West? More answers below For example, The hurricane move north towards the Gulf Coast. Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. The difference between the phonemes /p/ and /b/ in Japanese. Capitalize names of organizations, institutions, stores, businesses, teams, political parties, and government bodies. Do you know "what is the Western Hemisphere?" If these geographic areas are part of a name, however, such as "River Thames", capitalize the term. Hi, Kelly. When these words are included in the place name, however, they must be capitalized. How to Export PDF Tables from Adobe Acrobat to Excel (PC & Mac), How to Insert Images into Shapes in Microsoft Word (PC & Mac), How to Align the Periods in Numbered Lists in Microsoft Word (PC & Mac), How to Password Protect Files in Microsoft Word, How to Password Protect PDFs in Adobe Acrobat (PC & Mac). The correct answer is option C. In option A, the word Chemistry is only capitalized leaving the other proper noun in lower case. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Capitalize My Title makes title capitalization easy. If youre referring to a collection of proper nouns, such as the Southern States, this is the case. By convention, however, southern is capitalized when it refers to the region of California: I live in Southern California. Capitalize words that are part of the formal name, but lowercase in less formal uses: he crossed the Hudson River; but: he fell into the river. It was put into effect at first for big businesses, but was then gradually adopted by everyone as a standardized format. Words Which Should Not Be Capitalized in a Title. But southerner and northerner are capitalized when they refer to people on either side of the civil war in the United States: We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Home-buyers pay a 1.75% fee up . Do not drive, Five Below Job Opportunities Earning consideration for Five Below jobs begins with meeting the companys minimum employment age, which is 16 years old. When the word state forms the full name of a specific body, you must also capitalize it. Capitalize the traditional geographic regions in the United States: the Midwest, the North, the South, the West, and the combined regions (i.e., the Northeast, the Southeast, and the Southwest). when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. Do you capitalize the word state when referring to a state? 4 Is Southern California capitalized AP style? Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this websites owner is strictly prohibited. Unless the direction is part of the country's actual name, it remains lowercased. If you are referring to a group of proper nouns such as the Southern States. However, if youre referring to a general location, such as the southern winds then southern should be lowercase. If youre referring to a specific location, such as the southern winds, southern should be lowercase. Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. To know what other words you should capitalize, try our free title capitalization tool. Therefore, use "Black" and "White" instead of "black" and "white" (do not use colors to refer to other human groups; doing so is considered pejorative). Dates. rev2023.3.3.43278. But if someone prefers "African American," use that term rather than a more generic "black." the East, the North, the South, the West (of a country) northern, southern, eastern, western (parts of a country) In your first paragraph after the caption you make a good comparison between Wild West and Southern California, but I'm still troubled by a couple of issues.
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