OST164 Text Editing Applications

Section 3 – CapitalizationPart II: Paragraphs 318-345

Family Titles ¶ 318

Capitalize words such as mother, father, aunt, and uncle when they stand alone or are followed by a personal name.

Let me ask Mother and Dad whether…

We’ll be glad to put up Aunt Peg and …

I hear Brother Bobby has gone…

Do you think Grandmother Harvey will…

Do not capitalize family titles when they are preceded by possessives (such as my, your, his, her, and their) and simply describe a family relationship.

Let me ask my mother and dad whether…Do you think your brother Bobby would…Joseph told his uncle to come to….

If the word aunt, uncle, or cousin form a unit when used together with a first name, capitalize these titles, even when they are preceded by a possessive.

Frank wants us to meet his Uncle John.I hope you can meet my Cousin May.

Family Titles ¶319

Family Titles ¶319

Family titles introduced by the prefix “grand” are written solid. grandmother grandson

Those introduced by the prefix “great” are hyphenated.

great-grandmothergreat-granddaughter

Family titles that include terms like once removed require not special treatment.

Phyllis and I are first cousins.Melonie is my first cousin twice removed.

Names of Organizations ¶320 Capitalize the names of companies, unions, associations,

societies, independent committees and boards, schools, political parties, clubs, religious bodies, and teams.Carteret Co. Board of Health Democratic partyFuture Business Leaders of America Baptists, MethodistsTeachers’ Association Phi Kappa Beta

Environmental Protection Agency the Carolina Panthers Try to follow the style established by the organization itself, as

shown in the letterhead. Capitalize imaginative names used to refer to specific

organizations. Big Blue (for IBM)Ma Bell (for AT&T)The Big Eight (large accounting companies)

Common organizational terms such as advertising department, manufacturing division, finance committee, and board of directors are capitalized when they are the actual names of units.

The actual organizational name should be modified by the word “the” if it is to be capitalized.

The Board of Directors will meet…Jane has been elected to the Board of Directors…I work in the Advertising Department at…

Do not capitalize these organizational names when they are modified by a word other than “the”.

The efficiency of your accounting department….I’ll send a copy to their research division….

I like working for our business department because…

Names of Organizations ¶322

NOTE: The book says something a little different, but we will go with this rule.

Names of Government Bodies ¶325-326 Capitalize the names of countries and international

organizations, as well as national, state, county, and city bodies and their subdivisions.

the United Nationsthe Boston City Councilthe People’s Republic of ChinaWisconsin Court of Appealsthe New York State Board of Education

Capitalize short forms of names of national and international bodies and their major divisions.

the House (referring to the House of Representatives)the Department (example: to the Department of Justice)the Bureau (example: Federal Bureau of Investigation)the Commission (example: Federal Trade Commission)

Common terms such as police department, board of education, county court house, need not be capitalized since they are terms of general classification.

However, capitalize these terms when they are specific:

Carteret County Board of Education

Morehead City Police Department

Carteret County Court House

Names of Government Bodies ¶327

Capitalize “federal” only when it is part of the official name of a federal agency, a federal act, or some other proper noun.

the Federal Reserve Boardthe Federal Insurance Contributions Act

The terms “federal government” and “government” are now commonly written in lowercase because they are considered terms of general classification

However, in government documents, and other types of official documents, they are capitalized.

Names of Government Bodies ¶328-329

Names of Places ¶331-332 Capitalize the names of places, such as streets,

buildings, parks, mountains, rivers, oceans, and mountains.

Do not capitalize short forms used in place of the full name.

street - Arendell Streetfalls - Niagara Fallsthe mall - Nicollet Mall

A few short terms are capitalized because of clear association with one place.

the Coast (the West Coast)the Channel (English Channel)the Hill (Capitol Hill)

Capitalize imaginative names that designate specific places or areas.

Down East (coastal Maine) the Lower East Side (Manhattan) the Outer Banks (of North Carolina) Tinseltown (Los Angeles) the French Quarter (in New Orleans) the South Lawn (of the White House) the Big D (Dallas) the Big Apple (New York) SoHo (in New York) – Soho (in London) Silicon Valley (high-tech industries in San Francisco) Wall Street (the financial industry)

Names of Places ¶333

Capitalize the word “city” only when it is part of the corporate name of the city or part of an imaginative name. Kansas City Morehead City the Windy City (Chicago)

Capitalize “state” only when it follows the name of a state or is part of an imaginative name. New York State The state of Alaska The States (meaning the United States)

Do not capitalize “state” when it is used in place of the actual state name. He is an employee of the state. He is moving to another state.

Names of Places ¶334-335

Capitalize “the” only when it is part of the official name of the place. The Dalles v/s the Bronx

Capitalize the words “upper” and “lower” only when they are part of an actual place name or a well-established imaginative name.

Upper Peninsula - Lower East Side

Capitalize the word “greater” when it precedes a city name, referring to the city plus the outlying suburbs. Greater Atlanta

Names of Places ¶337

Points of the Compass ¶338-339 Capitalize north, south, east, west, and derivative words

when they designate definite regions or are an integral part of a proper name.

in the North the Far Northdown South the Deep Southout West the South SideEastern Seaboard the North Pole

Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate direction or general location.

south of France west side of town

Capitalize such words as Northerner, Southerner, and Midwesterner.

Points of Compass ¶340-341 Capitalize such words as northern, southern, etc., when

they refer to the people in a region or their political, social, or cultural activities.

Southern hospitality - Western civilization Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate

general location or refer to the geography or climate of the region.

southern temperatures - westerly winds When words like northern, southern, etc., precede a

place name, they are ordinarily not capitalized; however, they are capitalized if they are actually a part of the place name.

northern New Jersey – Northern Ireland

Days, Months, Holidays, Religious Days, and Seasons ¶342-343 Capitalize the names of days, months, holidays,

and religious days.TuesdayNew Year’s Evethe Fourth of JulyElection DayGood Friday

Do not capitalize the names of the seasons unless they are personified.

Note: Some companies sometimes capitalize the names of seasons in promotional materials.

Historical Events ¶344 – a and b Capitalize the names of historical events and

imaginative names given to historical periods.the Renaissancethe Great Depressionthe Industrial Revolution

Capitalize references to cultural agesthe Bronze Age – the Dark Ages

Contemporary references are not usually capitalized unless they appear together with a capitalized reference.

the space age – the atomic age – the digital age

Historical Events ¶344 and 345 References to cultural eras are usually capitalized, but

references to cultural periods are usually not.the Common Era the romantic periodthe Victorian Era the colonial period

Capitalize the names of sporting events.the Super Bowlthe Mastersthe U.S. Openthe World Series (or Series)the Kentucky Derby (or Derby)

Do not capitalize the names of decades and centuries.During the fifties… In the nineteen-nineties…The twenty-first century… During the nineteen

hundreds..