proofreading, For example, Southern France is capitalized because it is a proper noun and . Keep reading to learn everything there is to regions and their capitalization, rules for related terms and phrases, what a region is, etc. Broadly speaking, a region is an area that's divided by: Geographic regions are usually depicted by their not-so-clearly defined, and at times transitory boundaries. The basic guidelines for using capital letters in English appear simple enough: Capitalize the first word in a sentence. Is it Southern or Southern? Wotan is one of the gods in Wagner's Ring Cycle. The Chicago Manual of Style and the MLA Handbook, for instance, say to only capitalize Southern when referring to the American Civil War. 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. You have entered an incorrect email address! Does Counterspell prevent from any further spells being cast on a given turn? To Capitalise or Not To Capitalise: A Useful Guide - Proofed English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. Lowercase articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions (regardless of length). 1. As a compass direction, south and southern are not capitalized: Capitalize each term when it is used as a proper name or as part of a proper name, and if the region is widely known: The Civil War pitted the South against the North. When it's an adjective ("bicentennial year"), I agree that no cap is needed . The state abbreviations are always in the same format: two letter abbreviations where both letters are uppercase and no periods or spaces between each letter. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. However, if you are referring to a general region, such as the east coast of the United States then you should keep the words lowercase. 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. Should southern be capitalized? Did any DOS compatibility layers exist for any UNIX-like systems before DOS started to become outmoded? Check your style guide (if applicable) for advice on specific terms. How can I find out which sectors are used by files on NTFS? You should only capitalize directions, such as north, south, east, and west, when you are referring to the direction as a proper noun, such as in the South or up North. If you are merely referring to a direction, such as go south on I-90, then you should keep the direction lowercase. Phil Jamieson Feb 16, 2010 5:00:00 AM. Should You Capitalize Western? (Western World, Culture - Grammarlookup 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. 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. Capitalize regional terms when they refer to a commonly accepted proper name of an area. However, if you use the word southern instead of a general location, such as the southern winds, the word should be lowercase. 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. 10 Do I capitalize southern as in the US region? If youre referring to a specific location, such as the western winds, western should be lowercase. Unless you are referring to the Four Seasons, there is no reason for seasons to . 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.". The Chicago Manual of Style, sixteenth edition (2010) has a useful and detailed discussion of this issue. 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. Column: Should 'white' be capitalized? It feels wrong, but it's the way It's all directional | Grammar Party Do You Capitalize the Word "Queen" in a Sentence? Currently, Merriam-Websters Collegiate Dictionary capitalizes Midwesterner, Northerner, Southerner, and Westerner, while Websters New World College Dictionary and The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language only capitalize Midwesterner and allow northerner, southerner, and westerner to be capitalized or lowercased.7. Which Teeth Are Normally Considered Anodontia? Am I a midwesterner or a Midwesterner? 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. Do I Capitalize Western Blot? - Advansta Inc. Q. Debating with an editor over capitalization of the word bicentennial. I don't think there's an established norm for identifying regions of Albania in English (although you might get a different answer if you asked an Albanian, I suppose), but looking at Google Ngrams, "southeastern Albania" seems to be the most common option: https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=southeast+Albania%2Csoutheastern+Albania%2Csouth-east+Albania%2Csouth-eastern+Albania&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=26&smoothing=3&direct_url=t1%3B%2Csoutheast%20Albania%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Csoutheastern%20Albania%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Csouth%20-%20east%20Albania%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Csouth%20-%20eastern%20Albania%3B%2Cc0 When to Capitalize Directional Words - Ellii Blog CMOS recognizes that common usage and context determine conventional approaches to capitalization in connection with the treatment of certain terms related to regions. Some common examples of when you should capitalize south include: down South the Deep South Should north East south West be capitalized? 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. 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. CMOS looks at what a large relevant tranche of people do; this ultimately defines what is acceptable. South Pacific. When does a locational distinction change its suffix and capitialization in a proper name? When And When Not To. Here Chemistry and Spanish are the proper nouns. So, should you capitalize regions when writing? Use lower case for generic or plural references. when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. Is Southern Capitalized? - Capitalize My Title A title like this would appear as: A Guide to English: Perfecting Grammar in an Academic Paper. 8 What states in the US are consider southern states? 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). Questions that can be answered using commonly-available references are off-topic, as are those lacking any signs of reasonable research. North, East, South or West - Capitalize or Not? - ProofreadNOW.com This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Have you ever wondered when its okay to capitalize north, east, south, and west? More answers below Should southern be capitalized? The word "southern" is not part of the official name of California or any city or county, so I never capitalize it. The United Kingdom, for instance, is a region that comprises four countries: Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, and Wales. 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. Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate general location or refer to the geography or climate of the region. Capitalization | Capitalization Rules - GrammarBook To summarize the advice above, we suggest: However, capitalization may depend on the style guide youre using. Names of gods are capitalized, including Allah, Vishnu, and God. Do You Capitalize North, South, East and West? The following examples illustrate not only the principles sketched in [an earlier section of CMOS] but also variations based on context and usage. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Proper nouns should always be capitalized. Capitalization Is south capitalized when referring to Southern states? When Do You Capitalize Geographic Terms? - dummies Other assets have a wide range of liquidity. However, if youre referring to a specific region, such as the east coast of the United States, keep the words lowercase. Botany Rules 1: Writing Plant Common Names and English Names - Blogger is considered basic and should be known by people who claim to have a good command of the language. When to Capitalize Directions - Writing Explained To find out when to capitalize North, South, East, and West, read our guide to capitalizing directions below. ), Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. It only loosely defines a region of California and its border is not officially defined either. Do not capitalize them when they follow possessive pronouns such as her, his, my, our, your. are widely recognized as popular names and are thus capitalized. When dealing with geographic terms, capitalize nouns such as "river", "lake", etc. But because it has defined boundaries and administration, it's a "region". 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. When possessive pronouns like her, his, my, our, and your are used, do not capitalize them. 5 Free French-to-English Translation Services, Broad geographical regions (e.g., the North or the Far East), People from a specific region (e.g., Northerners, Southerners), Cultures or movements related to a region (e.g., Western philosophy). Posted by But when the term is used in a formal name, it's capitalized, as in "the Hudson River". In general, lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, etc., when they indicate compass direction. Despite that, knowing how to capitalize names of places, regions, geographical features, directions, etc. For example, you would write "the Southern United States," but "the southern way of . Drive south for five miles. Back East. You should capitalize North, South, East, and West when theyre part of a proper noun (i.e., the name of a unique thing). Is north capitalized there? Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The first letter of someone's first, middle, and last name is always capitalized, as in John William Smith . Capitalization: Guidelines for Using Capital Letters - ThoughtCo The seasons are not proper nouns and are therefore not normally capitalized. For places names and proper names, the word "Southern" should be capitalized, but in other contexts, it is not. What about capitalizing western or Westerner? To know what other words you should capitalize, try our free title capitalization tool. With names of states The same rule applies as with names of nations. North Dakota; West Virginia; Also capitalize compass points when used in denoting widely known sections. 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. Should states and territories be Capitalised? There is room for variation here: if you live in Coventry and youre writing for other Coventry residents, then perhaps writing South Coventry would make sense. Meaning of Western world and alternative terms, Specifying geography with cardinal directions, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup, Meaning of " Western world" and alternative terms. The geographical areas "The North," "The East," "The South," and "The West" are treated like proper nouns. Do I capitalize southern as in the US region? Have you ever visited the Western United States? 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. 6 Does the word federal need to be capitalized? The Chicago Manual of Style and the MLA Handbook, for instance, say to only capitalize Southern when referring to the American Civil War. 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. To put it another way, capitalize words like Mother, Father, Grandmother, Grandfather, Son, Daughter, and Sis in place of the persons name. Dates. Here are the types of words that should be capitalized: Proper nouns. You should always capitalize Southerner since it refers to a group of people who are proper nouns. Geographic Regions Used as Adjectives I is always capitalized, along with all its contractions. The word white is not usually capitalized in this situation; men would never be. State names had to be abbreviated to make room for the ZIP code. In some cases, like country and city names, this is clear. 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. Southern California; West Texas; the Lower East Side of New York; If in doubt, use lowercase. The correct sentence is Carlotta and I love Halloween. In contrast, The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago style) recommends lowercasing specific U.S. geographic regions used as adjectives:3. Hi, Michael. Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. I have published a variety of other capitalization posts related to time periods, geographic features, people, and product names. 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. States should also be abbreviated when used as part of a short-form political affiliation. The rules are fairly standard for title case: Capitalize the first and the last word. That means you should lowercase articles, conjunctions, and prepositionshowever, some style guides say to capitalize conjunctions and prepositions that are longer than five letters. For instance, the term "ecoregion" is used commonly in environmental geography, "bioregion" in biogeography, etc. (1) often capitalized: of or relating to any of various population groups having dark pigmentation of the skin (black Americans) (2) : of or relating to the African-American people or their culture (black literature) (a black college) (black pride) (black studies) From Merriam-Webster Dictionary Part of the definition for white Generally, you do not need to capitalize the names of the seasons. Who wrote the music and lyrics for Kinky Boots? Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate direction or general location. 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. 3. Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. Should Southern colonies be capitalized? Youd also capitalize the first word and (according to most guides) the last word of a title, regardless of what part of speech they are. Why Do Cross Country Runners Have Skinny Legs? Southern United States, for example, is appropriate because it is located in a specific region. 'CMOS recognizes that common usage and context determine conventional approaches to capitalization in connection with the treatment of certain terms related to regions.' Hi, James. My friend is a southerner. Southern belle - Wikipedia If you are merely referring to a direction, such as "go south on I-90," then you should keep south lowercase. University Editorial Style Guidelines - Santa Clara University Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this websites owner is strictly prohibited. If a law is new but its interpretation is vague, can the courts directly ask the drafters the intent and official interpretation of their law? Are seasons capitalized or not? When people form a group and give it a name, it should be capitalized. Is Southern capitalized in southern states? Erin Wright, 20122023. For example: But when the terms are used to indicate a region, they are capitalized for example, the "West Coast". - thanks! (Most uses will be uppercase.) To capitalize or not quoted text after be form, How to handle a hobby that makes income in US. @SvenYargs This is a very useful answer; I'm processing it. capitalization, maps, writing tips. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. 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. 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. As explained in the post, some people do capitalize terms like "the North" when they refer to a well-established geographical area. 2 Do you capitalize state when referring to a state? Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Erin Wright with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. To know what other words you should capitalize, try our free title capitalization tool. down South. The pronoun "I" It's similar to why your name is always capitalized. Using Kolmogorov complexity to measure difficulty of problems? For example, The hurricane move north towards the Gulf Coast. Best Book Writing Software and Book Writing Apps, Cursive Text Generator , Buscador de palabras y descifrador de palabras. For example, NY for New York, use the US Postal Services symbol system. southern Atlanta; But capitalize compass points when part of a proper name. The plant common name has to conform to the rules of English, however, so if there's a proper noun in the common name, it must be capitalized. Words such as one, it, its, its, him, and own should all be capitalized no matter where they appear in a title. 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. Strength Vs. Strong: Differences, How To Tell Them Apart? When Should You Capitalize Geographic Regions in the United States? When used as part of a short-form political affiliation, states should also be abbreviated. You should read both Western and Eastern philosophy. Explanation: Because, Pisces is a noun. You should always capitalize Westerner since it refers to a group of people who are proper nouns. However, widely known designations are capitalized: the Upper East Side, Southern California.
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