Surely not one word Southeast? Only capitalize state when it follows the states name, such as New York State is also known as the Empire State, or when it is part of a traditional state name, such as Empire State or Lone Star State, can be capitalized. To find out when to capitalize North, South, East, and West, read our guide to capitalizing directions below. In case it's not obvious, I have a bachelor's in writing. 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. Short story taking place on a toroidal planet or moon involving flying, Doubling the cube, field extensions and minimal polynoms. In some cases, like country and city names, this is clear. September 18, 2013, at 9:56 pm. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Please include the research youve done. So you would only capitalize federal when you use it in the name of a federal agency, an act, or some other proper noun. Geographic Regions Used as Adjectives 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. 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. Q. Hello! Most style guides say that compass points and the terms derived from them are lowercased if they just mean direction or location. A diathermal wall between two thermodynamic systems in thermodynamics allows heat transfer but does not allow for the transfer of matter across it. In general, lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, etc., when they indicate compass direction. However, it is accepted that these are capitalized when discussing the American Civil War, for example, and, as mentioned in this article in the final Summary section, some style guides prefer north and south to always be capitalized when referring generally to these areas of the United States. As an Amazon Associate, CapitalizeMyTitle.com earns from qualifying purchases. For example, you would write "the Southern United States," but "the southern way of . Usage guide. . ANS: Demand, Copyright 2023 TipsFolder.com | Powered by Astra WordPress Theme. 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. doesn't shout the need for "capitalization", it's safe to write it in lowercase. Capitalize directions that are names; North, South, East, and West when used as sections of the country, but not as compass directions. The geographical areas "The North," "The East," "The South," and "The West" are treated like proper nouns. , Capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence. 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. Lowercase articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions (regardless of length). When to capitalize North East south west? 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 . So, if a person is from South Africa, south would be capitalized since it's the proper name of the country. The key factor here is that were using these words descriptively (i.e., to specify the direction or location of something), not to name something. 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. When it's an adjective ("bicentennial year"), I agree that no cap is needed . A title like this would appear as: A Guide to English: Perfecting Grammar in an Academic Paper. The North, The East, The South, and The West. Thus, here are 10 capitalization rules you should know for a well written write-up: Capitalize the first word of every sentence. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Capitalize My Title makes title capitalization easy. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? ), Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. The Chicago Manual of Style. 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. Capitalize locations in a country if the proper noun is given in other words, the name of a region or city, such as the Congo, the Mississippi River, etc. 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? Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Duck Vs. Loon: How Are These Words Connected? You would capitalize "Southern" when referring to the people, or their culture, politics, or social activities, e.g., Southern hospitality, Southern cuisine, Southern accents. Should Southern colonies be capitalized? @EdwinAshworth I didn't notice any argument in his answer at all. Knowing whether to capitalize directional adjectives can be challenging. Are both letters capitalized in state abbreviations? Hi there! Of course, they should be capitalized at the start of sentences and in titles, as they are with other nouns. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. I studied Pisces, a constellation of the North sky, on a cloudless night. As a general thumb rule, if a particular direction (north, south, etc.) Who wrote the music and lyrics for Kinky Boots? By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. 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. 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). It's similar to why your name is always capitalized. The Department decided on the current two-letter abbreviations in October 1963. The Midwest is the breadbasket of the United States. 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. Capitalize the first word of every sentence. For example, "Global is a proper noun." . So, option 2 is correct. (I have no authority for this opinion, other than my intuition as an English speaker. 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). When these words are included in the place name, however, they must be capitalized. The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. For example, Southern France is capitalized because it is a proper noun and . So it would be best to check your style guide if you have one and to make sure whatever you choose is used consistently. How can I find out which sectors are used by files on NTFS? During the Civil War, Northerners and Southerners battled in twenty-three states. The street is named Bolton Avenue. The first letter of someone's first, middle, and last name is always capitalized, as in John William Smith . 3. Other assets have a wide range of liquidity. For example, capitalizing "Southerner" in the sentence "As a Southerner, she had a distinct drawl" can be up for debate. Home | About | Contact | Copyright | Report Content | Privacy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions | Sitemap. ), but I'd suggest not capitalizing it unless you're certain it is necessary. 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. By convention, however, southern is capitalized when it refers to the region of California: I live in Southern California. 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. But when the words are used in specific contexts, denote people belonging to a particular region, or refer to their social, political, or cultural activities, they are capitalized. We lowercase the terms when they refer to directions: The United States is located north of Mexico. 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 cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". Is Grandma a well-behaved woman? It also looks at when to capitalize those regions when they are used as adjectives and to describe U.S. geographic populations. Lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, and other lowercase letters are used when indicating compass direction. This is known as 'title case'. However, I was recently advised by someone who I consider to be educated to capitalize "southern" in this context. In all cases, though, you should: And if you need help, our expert proofreaders are ready! 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. 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. @Devil07, the geographical adjective "southern" is not usurped -- it just means something different. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: Subscribe to our newsletter and get writing tips from our editors straight to your inbox. You should capitalize "North," "South," "East," and "West" when they're part of a proper noun (i.e., the name of a unique thing). Popular usage sets the rules for standard practice especially in the case of region names. Lowercase north, south, northeast, etc. The Chicago Manual of Style and the MLA Handbook, for instance, say to only capitalize Southern when referring to the American Civil War. When writing or proofreading manuscripts, names of regions and their capitalization rules could be tricky to discern or ascertain. Hi, Lynne. TimesMojo is a social question-and-answer website where you can get all the answers to your questions. We always use a capital letter when we write the days of the week. The argument I hear is this is a region of the building not a direction, so it should be capitalized. The image of a Southern belle is often characterized by fashion elements such as a hoop skirt, a corset, pantalettes, a wide-brimmed straw hat, and gloves. For example, Southern US is proper because it is a specific region. Each morning, the sun rises in the east . Federal or federal? If youre referring to a specific location, such as the southern winds, southern should be lowercase. Job seekers, Is Pepsi the owner of KFC? For instance, the term "ecoregion" is used commonly in environmental geography, "bioregion" in biogeography, etc. Explanation: Because, Pisces is a noun. Thus people who live in southern California may prefer to write Southern California. To make room for the ZIP Code, state names needed to be abbreviated. When did states go to 2 letter abbreviations? Chicago style is best for writers who want to adhere to traditional publishing standards and academic writers in non-scientific fields. "The State Finance Department," for example, is a good example. It only takes a minute to sign up. Capitalize these words when they designate regions. 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. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. 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. Home | About | Contact | Copyright | Privacy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions | Sitemap. 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 proofreading or editing documents, we often find that writers are confused about when to capitalize these terms. @SvenYargs This is a very useful answer; I'm processing it. It might be amusing to look for instances of "southern Southern California" or "northern Southern California". The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. 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. 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. In other words, when the word "region" is a part of a name or is being specific in its meaning, the word is capitalized. Note that exceptions based on specific regional, political, or historical contexts are inevitable and that an author's strong preference should usually be respected. With names of states The same rule applies as with names of nations. In general, you should capitalize the names of countries and languages. 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. When a database has been given a proper name, capitalize that name, but do not italicize it or place it inside quote marks. In the case of prime minister, either both words begin with a capital letter or neither, except, obviously, when it starts a sentence. The following sentence is capitalized correctly : I learned that Thor is the god of thunder when I read a book about myths from Norway. Why do many companies reject expired SSL certificates as bugs in bug bounties? The word white is not usually capitalized in this situation; men would never be. AP style is primarily for journalists and writers who want to conform to traditional journalism styles. So the upshot of my answer is that you didn't miss the memo (or perhaps I should say The Memo) on this issue, but at the same time you didn't notice a larger phenomenon in accordance with which initial-capping Southern California is by no means a unique, inexplicable, or indefensible treatment of a regional name. When the name of a city and state are used together, the name of the state should be abbreviated (except for Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas and Utah).

How To Leave An Edpuzzle Class As A Student, Articles S