should southern be capitalized

To capitalize or not to capitalize "southern" California [duplicate]. Names of regions should be capitalized if those are proper nouns or denote a country, city, continent, etc. In all cases, though, you should: And if you need help, our expert proofreaders are ready! Just make sure you are consistent with the letter case. In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. northern New Jersey, western Massachusetts Northern Ireland, Western Australia For example, the "river" is a general noun and not capitalized. Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate general location or refer to the geography or climate of the region. Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate direction or general location. Southern belle (from French belle 'beautiful') is a colloquialism for a debutante in the planter class of the Antebellum South. when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. 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. Thus, we have rigid goldenrod but Missouri goldenrod, azure penstemon but Torrey's penstemon and California penstemon. The sentence which is capitalized correctly is My easiest classes are Chemistry and Spanish. Capitalize common nouns such as party, river and street when they are part of a proper name. However, be consistent and do not write: "Visitors to southern California climbed while visitors to northern California fell." Should south be capitalized? That means you should lowercase articles, Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. CMOS recognizes that common usage and context determine conventional approaches to capitalization in connection with the treatment of certain terms related to regions. The concept of a "region" is significant and used widely among the several geography branches, each of which could describe the areas or zones in region-based terms. 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. As an Amazon Associate, CapitalizeMyTitle.com earns from qualifying purchases. However, a co-author argues that southern should not be capitalized, because it is an adjective, not a noun. 4 Is Southern California capitalized AP style? 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. However, if youre referring to a specific region, such as the east coast of the United States, keep the words lowercase. Is it Southern or Southern? Rule 2. The Chicago Manual of Style and the MLA Handbook, for instance, say to only capitalize Southern when referring to the American Civil War. The word "southern" is not part of the official name of California or any city or county, so I never capitalize it. Theoretically Correct vs Practical Notation. Once again, refer to your dictionary if your preferred style guide doesnt address this issue. But it would be unusual to do this for a less well-known location, such as south Coventry.. The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. It only takes a minute to sign up. A title like this would appear as: A Guide to English: Perfecting Grammar in an Academic Paper. Bulk update symbol size units from mm to map units in rule-based symbology. Is Colorado in the west or the West? The word 'southern' shouldn't be capitalized in a sentence unless it is a proper noun. The seasons are not proper nouns and are therefore not normally capitalized. This confusion can also be attributed to the fact that certain region names have direction names in their official names, such as "the Middle East". The word "southern" is not part of the official name of California or any city or county, so I never capitalize it. Please note that my close-vote reason was 'lack of reasonable signs of research'; I believe that there are differences between the 'northern Europe' example and this one. How can I find out which sectors are used by files on NTFS? 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. The word god is generally not capitalized if it is used to refer to the generic idea of a deity, nor is it capitalized when it refers to multiple gods. Thus, here are 10 capitalization rules you should know for a well written write-up: Capitalize the first word of every sentence. Is north capitalized there? 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 . Whichever version you use, then, we'd suggest not capitalizing the direction, just the country name. For instance, the term "ecoregion" is used commonly in environmental geography, "bioregion" in biogeography, etc. Capitalizing southern and capitalizing south have the same rules. 10 Do I capitalize southern as in the US region? 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. But when the term is used in a formal name, it's capitalized, as in "the Hudson River". PepsiCo, based in Purchase, New York, owns Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC, all of which have 29,000 locations, Money differs from other economic assets in that it is the most liquid asset available. 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. Is south capitalized when referring to Southern states? 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. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. In other words, directions can be tricky! For example, Silicon Valley isn't a proprietary name or legally defined area, but it receives initial caps anyway. 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). I wanted to know how to write Southeast Albania correctly (proof reading). September 18, 2013, at 9:56 pm. Capitalizing the Word States If a writer refers to the United States and refers to it only as the States, states must be capitalized. Does Counterspell prevent from any further spells being cast on a given turn? In some cases, like country and city names, this is clear. To know what other words you should capitalize, try our free title capitalization tool. any that aren't articles, conjunctions or prepositions) should be capitalised. Popular usage sets the rules for standard practice especially in the case of region names. Only when it's very apparent or writing the direction names in small letters looks completely off, capitalize them. Todays post explains when to capitalize geographic regions in the United States. When these words are included in the place name, however, they must be capitalized. There may be disagreement about where the border of Southern California begins, just as there was and is about the border of the Wild West, but the fact that the Los Angeles metropolitan area, Orange County, and San Diego are all located in Southern California is beyond debate. To find out when to capitalize North, South, East, and West, read our guide to capitalizing directions below. This is the sentence that is capitalized correctly. TimesMojo is a social question-and-answer website where you can get all the answers to your questions. Hi, Kelly. Is South capitalized when talking about the Civil War? "The South" is capitalized because it designates a definite region, e.g., "I was born and raised in the South." More answers below You should only capitalize directions, such as south, when you are referring to it as the proper noun, such as "in the South.". Are coca cola and pepsi owned by the same company? But you capitalize them when theyre specific regions or an integral part of a proper name. However, when these words are actually part of the place name, they must be capitalized. In 1963, the state postal codes were formalized into two character abbreviations. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". I studied Pisces, a constellation of the North sky, on a cloudless night. Are both letters capitalized in state abbreviations? 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. when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. West is directly opposite east. It's the inconsistency or the abrupt switching between capitalized letters and lowercase letters is what that puts readers off. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. 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). 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. Everyone on the bus tour enjoyed the southern food in Tennessee. Here Carlotta is the name hence it needs to be in capital and I, Halloween should be capitalized. 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 . Keep reading to learn everything there is to regions and their capitalization, rules for related terms and phrases, what a region is, etc. Hi, Victoria. Best Book Writing Software and Book Writing Apps, Cursive Text Generator , Buscador de palabras y descifrador de palabras. What's the difference between a power rail and a signal line? And Wisconsin is known as the Badger State (not "the badger state") even though its official name is Wisconsin. AP Style says it should be capitalized while the Chicago Style Manual says it should be lowercased. But because it has defined boundaries and administration, it's a "region". However, I was recently advised by someone who I consider to be educated to capitalize "southern" in this context. Guidance to capitalize proper nouns in APA Style. She moved from the East Coast to the West Coast. Lowercase to when it functions in an infinitive. Federal or federal? 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'? Do you like West Asia? Western (and Northern) blots however, were not named after inventors but were given these names in honor of . For example, The Associated Press Stylebook (AP style) recommends capitalization:2. Hi, Chris. Strength Vs. Strong: Differences, How To Tell Them Apart? You should capitalize North, South, East, and West when theyre part of a proper noun (i.e., the name of a unique thing). The Chicago Manual of Style. If a is used, go with prime minister.). The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. 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. However, it is only compulsory to do so when "North" is part of a proper noun. If you have a question about whether a specific word should be capitalized that doesn't fit under one of these rules, try checking a dictionary to see if the word is capitalized there. When there is no proper name, lowercase "mountain", "gorge", "valley", "beach", and other geographical features. Use capital letters in the following ways: The first words of a sentence When he tells a joke, he sometimes forgets the punch line. If the writer is referring to the United States and calling it just the States, then states needs to be capitalized. In a June 11 statement, the National Association of Black Journalists issued a recommendation "that whenever a color is used to appropriately describe race then it should be capitalized . North Dakota; West Virginia; Also capitalize compass points when used in denoting widely known sections. Lowercase articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions (regardless of length). However, they should be capitalized only in such contexts; names of compass points in sentences such as "I drove southeast for several hours" or "Have you been to any of the southwestern states?" are not capitalized. For example, Southern US is proper because it is a specific region. Explanation: Because, Pisces is a noun. @SvenYargs This is a very useful answer; I'm processing it. When Should You Capitalize Geographic Regions in the United States? Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. Each morning, the sun rises in the east . Thor and Norway are capitalized because they are proper nouns. hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(42679, '809ac5c4-ef90-4489-8311-03d2c90632ee', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); Topics: So, noun will be always first capital letter. Capitalize regional terms when they refer to a commonly accepted proper name of an area. 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. Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: AP style, capitalization, Chicago style, dictionaries. The North, The East, The South, and The West. States should also be abbreviated when used as part of a short-form political affiliation. However, when these words are actually part of the place name, they must be capitalized. "The State Finance Department," for example, is a good example. The same applies for related adjectives and other compass directions: We live in the eastern part of the country. In all cases, though, you should: Check your style guide (if applicable) for advice on specific terms. 1 The Midwest is the breadbasket of the United States. - thanks! 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. 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). 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 . Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. the Deep South. In general, lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, etc., when they indicate compass direction. Job seekers, Is Pepsi the owner of KFC? 2023 Caniry - All Rights Reserved The main style guides all agree on this, although . The FHA insures mortgages for buyers with low credit scores and down payments as low as 3.5%. Here are a few more examples: When the directional terms are not proper names and are affixed to proper nouns simply to denote direction, they are written in lowercase for example, "southern France", "northern New York", etc. 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 . These are not governed entities, but they are official designations. 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. But when these terms are part of an actual place's name, capitalize them, as in "Western Australia", "Northern Ireland", etc. The mines are located in the western part of the plateau. Likewise, capitalize terms such as "Native American," "Hispanic," and so on. It's similar to why your name is always capitalized. Generally, you do not need to capitalize the names of the seasons. Capitalize these words when they designate regions. 17th ed., U of Chicago P, 2017,www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/book/ed17/part2/ch08/psec047.html. The Starved Rock Lodge offers world-famous Midwestern hospitality in a scenic environment. What about capitalizing a Westerner or a Westerner? By convention, however, southern is capitalized when it refers to the region of California: I live in Southern California. Here are the types of words that should be capitalized: Proper nouns. Surely not one word Southeast? When combining with another common noun to form the name for a region . 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. The names of things are known as common nouns. Short story taking place on a toroidal planet or moon involving flying, Doubling the cube, field extensions and minimal polynoms. If youre referring to a specific location, such as the southern winds, southern should be lowercase. 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. the Southern States the Eastern Seaboard Northern Ireland the Western Hemisphere They live in the western part of the country. Please include the research youve done. Which Teeth Are Normally Considered Anodontia? Instead, I have compiled a partial list of things people shouldn't capitalize but commonly do anyway. We always use a capital letter when we write the days of the week. 8 What states in the US are consider southern states? NOTE: When terms like western region and southern district are used to name organizational units within a company, capitalize them. 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 geographical areas "The North," "The East," "The South," and "The West" are treated like proper nouns. . Here are some rules to follow. Do you capitalize the word state when referring to a state? Each state has its own shortened name codes, which are used in written documents and mailing addresses. Proper nouns include the specific names of people, places, and things. 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. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Erin Wright, 20122023. When it's an adjective ("bicentennial year"), I agree that no cap is needed . The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. However, widely known designations are capitalized: the Upper East Side, Southern California. The days of the week are: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 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. Geographic Regions Used as Adjectives Proper nouns are names of particular individuals, places, or things, such as Josephina, Michigan, Oreo, and United Auto Workers. 'I have no authority for this opinion, other than my intuition as an English speaker.' In most forms of writings, not capitalizing direction names when they could have been capitalized doesn't bother the readers much. The other concern I have is that southern is a geographical term, that I feel shouldn't be usurped in this way. 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. For example, Southern France is capitalized because it is a proper noun and . Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. 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. In other words, capitalize words such as Mother, Father, Grandmother, Grandfather, Son, Daughter, and Sis when they are used in place of the persons name. For example: But when the terms are used to indicate a region, they are capitalized for example, the "West Coast". Some authorities also capitalize titles if they immediately follow the name without the word "the.". Other assets have a wide range of liquidity. It was first put into effect for large businesses, but it was gradually adopted as a standardized format by everyone. Do not capitalize them when they follow possessive pronouns such as her, his, my, our, your. States and territories Use initial capitals for words in the formal name. Usage guide. Opportunities exist on the east and west sides of the city. Others may argue that the word simply denotes the direction of the region the individual lives and must not have the capital letter. 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). 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. However, in certain pairings, the common noun appears after a name or proper noun for instance, "the Highlands Region". 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. I am living in Western Downtown. [Relevant examples:] the South, southern, a southerner (of a country); the South, Southern, a Southerner (in American Civil War contexts); the Deep South; Southern California; the South of France (region); Southeast Asia; South Africa; South African (referring to the Republic of South Africa); southern Africa (referring to the southern part of the continent); south; southern; southward; to the south (directions). O needs to be capitalized since it is at the beginning of the sentence, I needs to be capital, Pisces is a specific constellation so it is a proper noun, and likewise North is proper noun. Of course, as with other nouns, they should be capitalized at the beginning of sentences and in titles. You can even submit asample document for free to see how our services work. When people form a group and give it a name, it should be capitalized. 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. At 8.47 ("Popular place names or epithets"), CMOS notes that certain other regions and epithets receive initial caps as well. In this particular sentence, I is capitalized because it is placed at the beginning of the sentence. only if it's a proper name. Some common examples of when you should capitalize north include: down North. Is it "southern California" or "Southern California?". when they indicate compass direction, but capitalize when they indicate a region: the West Coast. Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate general location or refer to the geography or climate of the region. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. In general, you should capitalize the names of countries and languages. I assume CMOS have done reasonable research before arguing against a rigid insistence on 'the principles sketched in [an earlier section of CMOS]' and have thought carefully before arguing against ignoring authors' strong preferences. However, the forms bachelor's degree, bachelor's, master's degree and master's are acceptable as general terms. This suffix makes the direction an adjective, and when it describes a specific region, it should be capitalized. For example: The words are also not capitalized if they only indicate locations or the climate or geography of a region. 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. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. These should not be capitalized unless they are the first or last word of the title. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. The periods are omitted in headlines. Capitalize nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs (including phrasal verbs such as play with), adverbs, and subordinate conjunctions. This is known as 'title case'. 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. Coordinate conjunctions: for, and, nor, but, or, yet & so (FANBOYS). Pronouns that refer to any god or gods should be lowercased. 5 Should states and territories be Capitalised? 'CMOS recognizes that common usage and context determine conventional approaches to capitalization in connection with the treatment of certain terms related to regions.' Common nouns are the names of things. Though a direction is a general noun, it could at times be not that straightforward to ascertain whether it's a common noun or a proper noun. 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. The following sentence is capitalized correctly : I learned that Thor is the god of thunder when I read a book about myths from Norway. Lorry Vs. Truck: Meaning And How To Use Each One, Turnip Vs. Radish: Meaning And Differences Of These Words. In headlines, the periods are omitted. The rules are fairly standard for title case: Capitalize the first and the last word. The basic guidelines for using capital letters in English appear simple enough: Capitalize the first word in a sentence. When they indicate compass direction, lowercase north, south, northeast, and so on, but capitalize when it indicates a region: the West Coast.