Capitalization, or if you prefer the British spelling, capitalisation, may be more insidious than you can guess at first glance. But, let's start with the basics: what does capitalisation mean?
When it comes to grammar and spelling, the word "capitalisation" indicates the set of rules according to which the first letter of a word must be written in lowercase or with a capital letter, hence the term.
Yes, even simple tasks such as when and how to use capital letters can cause troubles, especially if you are not writing in your mother tongue. On the other hand, sometimes native speakers as well may have some doubts and the need for a clarification.
So, are you having issues in understanding how to use capital letters at the beginning of a word while writing your English masterpiece? Do not worry, this is not such a rare problem and Ludwig is here to help you!
A bit of egocentrism, please!
Unlike other languages written with the latin alphabet, the first person singular personal pronoun, I, is always capitalised in English. This rule is quite ancient, first attestations of it date back to the 1300s. The rise of this custom was probably meant to distinguish immediately the pronoun; the lowercase letter “i” is indeed too small and, in an age where texts were copied by hand to be transmitted and disseminated, this could cause quite a few misunderstandings…
It was also hypothesised that the capitalisation of I was also meant to provide importance to the writers.
At the beginning of a sentence
As in several other languages written with the latin alphabet, the capitalisation always occurs at the beginning of a sentence. It means that to capitalise the first letter of a word is mandatory after a full stop (.), a question mark (?), or an exclamation mark (!). Be careful, however, after a semicolon (;) capitalisation does not occur.
The basics: proper names of people and places
According to the rules of English grammar, capital letters must be used for proper names of people. Here are some examples taken by Ludwig:
Marco once told me that this woman is his mother.
It is perhaps to stop such situations that Robin Williams, it was revealed last week, signed a deed to prevent his image, or any likeness of him, being used at least 25 years after his death.
Another case in which the use of capital letters is mandatory concerns the names of places, such as cities, states, and geographical toponyms in general.
I Live in Texas
New York is an amazing city
The European Union is made up of a number of institutions and bodies.
Things are a bit more tricky when it comes to** cardinal points**. When they indicate just a mere compass direction, the lowercase must be used. On the other hand, when cardinal points are used to designate a part of a specific proper name of a place or to designate a specific recognised nation or region, a capital letter must be used. Here are some examples taken from Ludwig:
In the centre of town, turn north onto Gaston
North and South Korea exchange shots across the border.
The first minister has called for an emergency debate on the issue in the Northern Ireland assembly on Friday
Events, historical period, trademark and institutions names
Important events and historical periods must be capitalised:
The Middle Ages were not a dark age
The Great Depression was a deflationary period.
The Battle of Little BigHorn, is widely known as one of the most famous battles in American history.
What about family relations?
As for terms indicating family relations, they are usually written in lowercase, an exception is when someone is addressing a specific family member calling them by their names. See the following examples to clarify your doubts:
Uncle John was the kind of ghetto philosopher you'd find dropping knowledge in the barbershop.
When asked how she endured so much loss, Great Grandma Rose used to say, "After the storm, the birds sing.
My grandmother was the epicentre for me
My uncle bought me a present
When it comes to professional titles, such as
Book, thesis and essays titles
Capitalization principles for titles can differ depending on the style guide of each publishing house or journal. As a general rule, the first word, along with verbs, adjectives, nouns, and proper nouns should be capitalised. Prepositions, articles, and conjunctions should remain lowercase.
Ludwig’s wrap-up
As you can see, the rules concerning capitalization can be a bit tricky even for English mother tongue writers. If you are looking to publish a scientific article for a specific journal, my suggestion is to carefully check the author's style sheet provided by the publishing house or the journal itself.
