Transcript OST164 Text Editing Applications

OST164
Text Editing Applications
Section 3 – Capitalization
Part 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…
Family Titles ¶319

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 introduced by the prefix “grand” are
written solid.
grandmother
grandson

Those introduced by the prefix “great” are
hyphenated.
great-grandmother
great-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
Future Business Leaders of America
Teachers’ Association
Environmental Protection Agency

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Democratic party
Baptists, Methodists
Phi Kappa Beta
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)
Names of Organizations ¶322

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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…
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 Nations
the Boston City Council
the People’s Republic of China
Wisconsin Court of Appeals
the 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)
Names of Government Bodies ¶327

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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 ¶328-329

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 Board
the Federal Insurance Contributions Act
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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 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 falls
the mall -
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Arendell Street
Niagara Falls
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)
Names of Places ¶333
Capitalize imaginative names that designate specific
places or areas.
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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 ¶334-335

Capitalize the word “city” only when it is part of the
corporate name of the city or part of an imaginative
name.
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Capitalize “state” only when it follows the name of a state
or is part of an imaginative name.


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Kansas City
Morehead City
the Windy City (Chicago)
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 ¶337

Capitalize “the” only when it is part of the official
name of the place.
The Dalles v/s the Bronx
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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
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Capitalize the word “greater” when it precedes a
city name, referring to the city plus the outlying
suburbs.
Greater Atlanta
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
down South
out West
Eastern Seaboard
the Far North
the Deep South
the South Side
the North Pole
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Do not capitalize these words when they merely
indicate direction or general location.
south of France
west side of town
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Capitalize such words as Northerner, Southerner, and
Midwesterner.
Points of Compass ¶340-341
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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.
Tuesday
New Year’s Eve
the Fourth of July
Election Day
Good Friday
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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 Renaissance
the Great Depression
the Industrial Revolution
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Capitalize references to cultural ages
the Bronze Age – the Dark Ages
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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
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References to cultural eras are usually capitalized, but
references to cultural periods are usually not.
the Common Era
the romantic period
the Victorian Era
the colonial period
Capitalize the names of sporting events.
the Super Bowl
the Masters
the U.S. Open
the 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..