Capitalization
ONLINE WRITING CENTER
DARTON STATE COLLEGE
1. The First Word
 Capitalize the first word of sentences:
 Books of immense importance line the shelves at Oxford
University’s Bodleian Library.
 Capitalize the first word following a colon:
 I must repeat my request: Please refund my money.
 Capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence:
 Ruland and Bradbury argued that “For many [Robert Frost]
was a plain, popular rural sage, a moral sentimentalist, a poet
of the rural heartland…” (285).
“I”
Need we say this?
Always capitalize the first person singular pronoun,
I.
2. Proper Nouns and Adjectives
 A proper noun names a particular person, place, thing, or
idea (as opposed to a common noun that refers to persons,
places, things, and ideas as one of many).
 A proper adjective is a derivative of a proper noun.
Common Noun
Proper Noun
Proper Adjective
a queen
Queen Elizabeth
Elizabethan times
a country
France
French cuisine
a language
Spanish
Spanish idioms
a religion
Shinto
Shinto spirits
a writer
Dickens
Dickensian social
criticism
3. Capitalize Names
 Persons/animals: Michael Phelps, D. H. Lawrence, Misha
 Geographical names of (just to mention a very few)
 Towns/cities: Berlin, Louisville, Los Angeles, Sydney
 States/provinces/countries: Georgia, Veracruz, Georgia
 Regions: the South, Latin American, Sub-Saharan Africa
 Continents: Asia, North America, Australia
 Bodies of Water: Potomac, Lake Superior, Orinoco, Atlantic Ocean
 Islands: Ryukyu Islands, Guernsey, Long Island
 Roads/streets/highways: Lakewood Road, Interstate 64
 Mountains: Mount Blanc, Carpathian, Sierra Madre, Ural
4. Organizations, Teams, Institutions, Government
Bodies
Common Nouns
Examples
organizations
• National Organization of Disability
• Center for Auto Safety
• American Council on Science and Health
teams
• Boston Red Sox
• Manchester United
• Chicago Blackhawks
institutions
• Darton State College
• The Brookings Institute
• Institution of Engineering and Technology
government agencies
• Department of Human Services
• Supreme Court
• United States Postal Service
Be careful not to capitalize words such as “team” or “institution” unless the word is
part of a name.
our local football team
National Football League
Nick’s college choice
Darton State College
the hospital emergency room
DePaul Hospital
5. Historical and Special Events and Holidays
Types of Names
Examples
Historical Events, Periods, and
Documents
• Victorian Era
• Boer War
• Great Depression
• Treaty of Versailles
Special Events
• Boston Marathon
• Olympics
•Azalea Festival
Holidays and Other Calendar Days
• Thursday
• July
• Memorial Day
Do NOT capitalize names of seasons, unless they are part of a proper noun:
winter – Winter Olympics
6. Peoples, Nations, Religions
Proper Noun
Examples
nationalities
• Canadian
• Portuguese
• Chinese
peoples
• Magyar
• Maasai
• Inuit
religions and their followers
• Hindu/Hindu
• Christianity/Christian
• Judaism/Jewish
holy days
• Christmas
• Yom Kippur
• Hanukah
holy writings
• Quran
• Bible
• Torah
deities
• Vishnu
• Jesus
• Allah
7. Planets, Stars, Constellation
Types of Names
Examples
Planets
• Mercury
• Venus
• Earth
Stars
• Proxima Centauri
• 14 Herculis
• R Doradus
Constellations
• Andromeda
• Cassiopeia
• Pegasus
8. School Subjects and Names of Degrees
 Do NOT capitalize school subjects, unless they are a
part of a class’s name or the subject includes a
proper adjective:



biology
Biology 2110
Spanish
Spanish 1102
a master’s degree
Master of Arts in German
 Capitalize common nouns when adding a number or
a letter:



room
fall
district
Room 43
Fall 2012
District B
9. Titles and Family Relationships
 Capitalize common nouns only when they follow a
person’s name or are part of direct address:




colonel
senator
doctor
professor
Colonel Jones
Senator Adams
Doctor Kirkland
Good morning, Professor.
 A few titles are always capitalized:
 Surgeon General
 President (of the United States)
 Vice President (of the United States)
 Chief Justice
10. Abbreviations
Types
Examples
Personal names
T. S. Eliot
P.T. Barnum
D. H. Lawrence
Titles
Mrs. Jones
Gov. Ely
Dr. Kovacs
Prof. Ferguson
Academic degrees
Amy Fellows, D.V.M
Tony Booker, Ph.D.
Daniela Smith, MA
Agencies and Organizations
NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
WHO
World Health Organization
HMO
health maintenance organization
AARP
American Association of Retired Persons
MVP
most valuable player
Works Cited
Odell, Lee, Richard Vacca, and Renee Hobbs. Elements of Language. 6th
course. Austin, Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2001. Print.
Ruland, Richard and Malcolm Bradbury. From Puritanism to
Postmodernism: A History of American Literature. New York:
Penguin, 1992. Print.