Knowing whether to capitalize directional adjectives can be challenging. 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). any that aren't articles, conjunctions or prepositions) should be capitalised. Unless they are actually part of the place name, directions dont need to be capitalized, but this depends on personal preference (e.g., if it might make this clearer to the reader) and whether its specified by a style guide. However, if you use the word southern instead of a general location, such as the southern winds, the word should be lowercase. This is known as 'title case'. In June 1963, the Department provided an initial list of abbreviations, but many had only three or four letters, which were still too long. On a cloudless night, I studied Pisces, a constellation in the North sky. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Are seasons capitalized or not? The main style guides all agree on this, although . The question as to whether something should be considered a name or not is one of style, and as such you should adhere to the discipline of your editor, publication, or organization, or in the absence of a house style, you should adopt a suitable. Is Southern capitalized in southern states? Hi, James. It only takes a minute to sign up. Are coca cola and pepsi owned by the same company? Erin Wright, 20122023. The same rule applies for specific regions when you add -ern onto the end of a direction. She moved from the East Coast to the West Coast. This seems a difficult case; as this discussion at. Should Southern colonies be capitalized? However, as in the case of plant names, animal names are not capitalized ("I spotted a red-tailed hawk," not "I spotted a Red-Tailed Hawk"), except when an element of the name is a proper noun, as in "Steller . When did they standardize state abbreviations? When words like northern, southern, eastern, and western precede a place name, they are not ordinarily capitalized, because they merely indicate general location within a region. In 1963, the state postal codes were formalized into two character abbreviations. Names of people People's names are proper nouns, and therefore should be capitalized. The water and land global areas are further divided into subregions bounded by huge geographical features influencing large-scale ecologies. As a general thumb rule, if a particular direction (north, south, etc.) You should always capitalize Westerner since it refers to a group of people who are proper nouns. (Most uses will be uppercase.) Capitalizing western and capitalizing west have the same rules. Lorry Vs. Truck: Meaning And How To Use Each One, Turnip Vs. Radish: Meaning And Differences Of These Words. By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. 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. 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. Western (and Northern) blots however, were not named after inventors but were given these names in honor of . For example, we capitalizenorth,south,east, andwest when the terms refer to regions or cultures: Customs in the East differ from those in the West. For example, we capitalize north, south, east, and west when the terms refer to regions or cultures: Customs in the East differ from those in the West. She moved from the East Coast to the West Coast. 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. "southern California" is not the same as "Southern California". That means that official names of departments and units should be capitalized and not when referring to just a type of department or unit. Capitalize proper nouns and most adjectives formed from proper nouns. When does a locational distinction change its suffix and capitialization in a proper name? In this particular sentence, I is capitalized because it is placed at the beginning of the sentence. To capitalize or not quoted text after be form, How to handle a hobby that makes income in US. 9 Should north southeast and West be capitalized? Dont capitalize names of directions like north, south, east, and west when used to refer to direction and location, but do capitalize these words when they appear in the names of places and regions. Which Teeth Are Normally Considered Anodontia? In contrast, The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago style) recommends lowercasing specific U.S. geographic regions used as adjectives:3. However, a co-author argues that southern should not be capitalized, because it is an adjective, not a noun. Likewise, the rules for sentences apply: capitalize the common name at the . You would capitalize "Southern" when referring to the people, or their culture, politics, or social activities, e.g., Southern hospitality, Southern cuisine, Southern accents. MLA style follows The Chicago Manual of Style (8.47) for geographic terms. I am living in Western Downtown. hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(42679, '499cbd76-cfa5-4fea-836f-ead06058d874', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); North, East, South or West - Capitalize or Not? When referring to Greek, Roman, and other groups of gods and goddesses, only the name is capitalized. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? 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. So, should you capitalize regions when writing? When the word "state" comes after a state's name, it should be capitalized. 17th ed., U of Chicago P, 2017,www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/book/ed17/part2/ch08/psec047.html. Generally, you do not need to capitalize the names of the seasons. The Content Authority is where you will find great content, written by amazing writers, around topics like grammar, writing, publishing, and marketing. Is that an argument? The names of things are known as common nouns. You should read both Western and Eastern philosophy. This suffix makes the direction an adjective, and when it describes a specific region, it should be capitalized. Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. When referring to a specific region, you should capitalize the words East Coast such as Im traveling to the East Coast since East Coast is a proper noun in this case. When the word state forms the full name of a specific body, you must also capitalize it. AP Style states that when referring to the names of a nation, directions should . The official USPS postal abbreviation is this format. Why are trials on "Law & Order" in the New York Supreme Court? Home | About | Contact | Copyright | Report Content | Privacy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions | Sitemap. Do Men Still Wear Button Holes At Weddings? 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. Q. Debating with an editor over capitalization of the word bicentennial. Rule 1. Instead of using the frequently used double-space, only use one space after a period to properly follow AP style guidelines. Back East. When north, south, east, and west refer to generic directions (i.e., the points of the compass), they are not capitalized: The master bedroom is in the east wing of the mansion. Here are directions capitalized in sentences: Words such as "southerner" and "northerner" are usually not capitalized if they denote people. At the most basic level, the standard advice is to lowercase north, south, east and west when used as compass directions and to capitalize them when they are used as part of a proper noun or adjective or refer to regions or geographic areas. Other assets have a wide range of liquidity. Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. Lowercase with names of nations (southern France) unless they indicate a political division (South Korea). So it would be best to check your style guide if you have one and to make sure whatever you choose is used consistently. Alternatively, some style guide suggest that all of the main words (i.e. Everyone on the bus tour enjoyed the Southern food in Tennessee. is considered basic and should be known by people who claim to have a good command of the language. 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. If youre referring to a collection of proper nouns, such as the Southern States, this is the case. TimesMojo is a social question-and-answer website where you can get all the answers to your questions. I wanted to know how to write Southeast Albania correctly (proof reading). It only loosely defines a region of California and its border is not officially defined either. By convention, however, southern is capitalized when it refers to the region of California: We also lowercase the terms when they refer to people: Butsouthernerandnorthernerarecapitalized when they refer to people on either side of the civil war in the United States: The civil war was fought between Southerners and Northerners. editing, To Capitalize or not to Capitalize Independence? It's not a continent, nor is it a country. Clearly, LA, OC, and SD are part of Southern California, but there are a lot of other places that are located in southern California that are not located in Southern California, such as Palm Springs, Salton Sea, Joshua Tree, Blythe, etc. In most forms of writings, not capitalizing direction names when they could have been capitalized doesn't bother the readers much. To capitalize or not to capitalize "southern" California [duplicate]. Did the Allman Brothers Band play southern rock or Southern rock? What states in the US are consider southern states? Is summer a good time? Here are the types of words that should be capitalized: Proper nouns. Thank you. ANS: Demand, Copyright 2023 TipsFolder.com | Powered by Astra WordPress Theme. The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago style) suggests lowercasing terms like midwesterner, northerner, southerner, and westerner, except when referencing the Civil War, in which case Northerner and Southerner should be capitalized:6. The North, The East, The South, and The West. Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. In other words, directions can be tricky! To summarize the advice above, we suggest: However, capitalization may depend on the style guide youre using. In general, midwesterners are friendly and down to earth. Our primary dictionaries, Merriam-Websters Collegiate Dictionary, Websters New World College Dictionary, and The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language all capitalize U.S. geographic regions when used as adjectives or indicate that these adjectives are typically capitalized.4, Like adjectives, the decision to capitalize or lowercase geographic populations in the United States will depend on your style guide. Which sentence is capitalized correctly I learned that Thor? Pronouns that refer to any god or gods should be lowercased. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. 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). Guidance to capitalize proper nouns in APA Style. Hi, Lynne. The word "southern" is not part of the official name of California or any city or county, so I never capitalize it. Once again, refer to your dictionary if your preferred style guide doesnt address this issue. 1 Is south capitalized when referring to Southern states? However, I was recently advised by someone who I consider to be educated to capitalize "southern" in this context. 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. the Southern States the Eastern Seaboard Northern Ireland the Western Hemisphere This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. That means you should lowercase articles, Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. Each morning, the sun rises in the east . Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. 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". Use the US Postal Services symbol system, which is a two-letter abbreviation that consists of a two-letter abbreviation in which both letters are capitalized and no periods are used when giving an address or in tables or other uses where space is limited. When you're talking about America's West Coast or the Middle East, the directional word is also part of a proper name, and it gets a capital letter. The main thing is to be consistent with whatever you choose. Are you supposed to capitalize north south east and west? Another example, "Eastern" in the phrase "Eastern bankers" is capitalized since the word denotes a certain group of people. After all, it was named after its inventor, Edwin Southern, and therefore the use of the capital is justified. In what contexts would I capitalize "city" and "county"? Capitalizing southern and capitalizing south have the same rules. In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. If you are referring to a group of proper nouns such as the Western States. However, if youre referring to a general location, such as the western winds then western should be lowercase. Along with the proper nouns listed in the table above, you should also always capitalize: the first word after a colon when what follows the colon is an independent clause, most nouns when they are followed by numerals or letters (e.g., Table 1, Figure 2, Panel A; see section 4.17), and. Popular usage sets the rules for standard practice especially in the case of region names. Use lower case for generic or plural references. 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. northern New Jersey, western Massachusetts Northern Ireland, Western Australia 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 . I is always capitalized, along with all its contractions. The mines are located in the western part of the plateau. Filed Under: When people form a group and give it a name, it should be capitalized. Less democratic. rev2023.3.3.43278. The Chicago Manual of Style. I am a technical writer and editor who shares writing-related software tutorials on this website and on YouTube. The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. Do you capitalize the word state when referring to a state? Otherwise, the word should be lowercased, as in "the god of war.". Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate general location or refer to the geography or climate of the region. Except for England, the other three countries have their own parliaments. As explained in the post, there is no need to capitalize these words when used generically (only when they're part of a proper noun). Everyone knows that Southern blot is written with a capital "S". These should not be capitalized unless they are the first or last word of the title. Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter! If the is used, use Prime Minister. 5 Should states and territories be Capitalised? Is South capitalized when talking about the Civil War? 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. Capitalize the pronoun. For example: When words such as "northern", "southern", "western", and "eastern" precede a region or place's name, do not capitalize them as they are only indicating a general location in a region. Is this correct. 1. 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. Words Which Should Not Be Capitalized in a Title. Is Southern California capitalized AP style? What is the rule for state abbreviations? Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. I tried to describe the difference in my answer below. The seasons arent proper nouns, so theyre not usually capitalized. If you are merely referring to a . Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Job seekers, Is Pepsi the owner of KFC? Regardless of what side of the debate table you are on, the different thoughts clearly illustrate how differing opinions could be on the matter, causing people to use capitalization rules the way they deem appropriate.
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