Whichever version you use, then, we'd suggest not capitalizing the direction, just the country name. Western (and Northern) blots however, were not named after inventors but were given these names in honor of . The Associated Press Stylebook (AP style) suggests capitalizing terms like Midwesterner, Northerner, Southerner, and Westerner:5. During the Civil War, Northerners and Southerners battled in twenty-three states. You have entered an incorrect email address! In October 1963, the Department settled on the current two-letter abbreviations. Should north East south West be capitalized? I have published a variety of other capitalization posts related to time periods, geographic features, people, and product names. It's similar to why your name is always 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. Also, if "region" is the first word in a sentence, it is capitalized. In general, Midwesterners are friendly and down to earth. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Capitalize My Title makes title capitalization easy. The West Coast has beautiful scenery. Usage guide. It's all directional | Grammar Party The capitalization of as depends upon its function. Is it Southern or Southern? The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". (Most uses will be uppercase.) 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). 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. Should the word northwest be capitalized? Explained by Sharing Culture Do you capitalize the S in Southern California? - TipsFolder.com Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this websites owner is strictly prohibited. any that aren't articles, conjunctions or prepositions) should be capitalised. What does it mean that the Bible was divinely inspired? 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. On a cloudless night, I studied Pisces, a constellation in the North sky. When there is no proper name, lowercase "mountain", "gorge", "valley", "beach", and other geographical features. Capitalization - APA Style Citation Guide 7th Edition - Library In general, midwesterners are friendly and down to earth. But when these terms are part of an actual place's name, capitalize them, as in "Western Australia", "Northern Ireland", etc. It also looks at when to capitalize those regions when they are used as adjectives and to describe U.S. geographic populations. In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. Does the word federal need to be capitalized? 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. Coordinate conjunctions: for, and, nor, but, or, yet & so (FANBOYS). For example, The Associated Press Stylebook (AP style) recommends capitalization:2. I is always capitalized, along with all its contractions. Do you capitalize Pacific Northwest? But because it has defined boundaries and administration, it's a "region". The Midwest is the breadbasket of the United States. proofreading, North, South, West, East Capitalizing Can Be a Beast - ProofreadNOW.com northern New Jersey, western Massachusetts Northern Ireland, Western Australia When using a U.S. geographic region as an adjective, the decision to capitalize or lowercase will depend on your style guide. Q. Debating with an editor over capitalization of the word bicentennial. 1 Is south capitalized when referring to Southern states? Hi, James. The sentence reads "I turned on north Bolton." When referring to Greek, Roman, and other groups of gods and goddesses, only the name is capitalized. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Opportunities exist on the east and west sides of the city. Capitalize these words when they designate regions. Should The South Be Capitalized? - FAQS Clear Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: AP style, capitalization, Chicago style, dictionaries. 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. For example, NY for New York, use the US Postal Services symbol system. Southern, on the other hand, is capitalized by convention when it refers to California: I live in Southern California. @SvenYargs This is a very useful answer; I'm processing it. So you would only capitalize federal when you use it in the name of a federal agency, an act, or some other proper noun. But when the term is used in a formal name, it's capitalized, as in "the Hudson River". Others may argue that the word simply denotes the direction of the region the individual lives and must not have the capital letter. Do I Capitalize Western Blot? - Advansta Inc. Use capital letters in the following ways: The first words of a sentence When he tells a joke, he sometimes forgets the punch line. The word white is not usually capitalized in this situation; men would never be. The name of a theatrical play, but this is also a conventional geographical region that would be capitalized anyway. Is the s capitalized in southern hospitality? - Answers Should Southern colonies be capitalized? To capitalize or not quoted text after be form, How to handle a hobby that makes income in US. However, when these words are actually part of the place name, they must be capitalized. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Capitalization: Guidelines for Using Capital Letters - ThoughtCo , Capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence. 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. Names of gods are capitalized, including Allah, Vishnu, and God. Do you like West Asia? We also lowercase the terms when they refer to people: My friend is a southerner. 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.". When to Capitalize North, South, East and West. Have you ever visited the Western United States? MLA style follows The Chicago Manual of Style (8.47) for geographic terms. If youre referring to a specific location, such as the western winds, western should be lowercase. (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 Of all the various names or terms, direction names could be the trickiest to handle. Lowercase to when it functions in an infinitive. 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'? In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. When did they standardize state abbreviations? English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. By attaching itself to a common object, the language or country name takes on a new meaning. Before capitalizing words like east, west, north, and south, check whether you are using them as part of a proper noun or merely to refer to direction or location.Don't capitalize directions (we sailed due east) and locations (western India), but do capitalize compass points when they occur in proper nouns (North Korea, South Sudan, East Dunbartonshire, the Great Western Plains). Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter! Only a few signs of the zodiac are automatically capitalized (Capricorn, Gemini, Sagittarius, Taurus). Capitalization | Capitalization Rules - GrammarBook Should colonies be Capitalised? - TimesMojo 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. Geographic Regions Used as Adjectives Colorado is part of the Southwest. The obvious examples of this are countries, states, cities, and other geographical areas: We study the history of Eastern Europe. However, be consistent and do not write: "Visitors to southern California climbed while visitors to northern California fell." Should south be capitalized? The mines are in the plateaus western region. 8 What states in the US are consider southern states? "southern California" is not the same as "Southern California". Do You Capitalize Regions When Writing? When & When Not To South-Eastern Albania? "I" is always capitalized, along with all its . Capitalizing North, South, East, and West when theyre part of a proper noun (i.e., the name of a specific geographical region or culture). 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. For example, Southern US is proper because it is a specific region. West is directly opposite east. How to tell which packages are held back due to phased updates. Which Is More Stable Thiophene Or Pyridine. Best Book Writing Software and Book Writing Apps, Cursive Text Generator , Buscador de palabras y descifrador de palabras. When did states go to 2 letter abbreviations? Settlers moved into the West. As a result, noun will always be the first capital letter. In what contexts would I capitalize "city" and "county"? capitalization. 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 . In other words, directions can be tricky! 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). When to Capitalize Words for Compass Points - Daily Writing Tips Is Southern capitalized in southern states? It might be amusing to look for instances of "southern Southern California" or "northern Southern California". So: North Carolina is north of South Carolina and east of West Virginia. Are seasons capitalized or not? 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). 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. 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. English Proofreading and Copyediting Prices, Spanish Proofreading and Copyediting Prices, northern New Jersey, western Massachusetts. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Capitalize the pronoun. 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. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Q. Hello! Characteristics. This is known as 'title case'. When to capitalize North East South West? Not capitalizing when referring to a general direction. You should only capitalize directions, such as north, when you are referring to it as the proper noun, such as "in the North.". Is Grandma a well-behaved woman? rev2023.3.3.43278. 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. However, it is only compulsory to do so when "North" is part of a proper noun. North, East, South or West - Capitalize or Not? - ProofreadNOW.com Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. 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. Hi, Chris. So, option 2 is correct. Many scholars now study the global South. capitalization, maps, writing tips. When dealing with geographic terms, capitalize nouns such as "river", "lake", etc. 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. You don't even want to know what he calls pancakes. Human settlements and their impact on the physical geography, and, The communication between the environment and humanity, The precipitation is the maximum in the interior, Cattle-breeding techniques or practices could vary across, Urundi and Ruanda are fertile, healthy, high-lying, and thickly populated, This text isn't a law but an abstract of the several special usages obtained in those, She passed the Lake Amadeus and the Reynolds range in that direction but had to turn, Many scholars are now studying the global.