Capitalization:

1. Proper names and their derivatives, established nicknames:

Mary, George, Georgian, Indo-European, Latin, the Union Jack, Ginger,
Fluffy, Daddy
2. Common nouns used as proper nouns:
The Union (USA), the United Kingdom, the Court, the Church, the Crown
3. Proper nouns when they have lost their primary significance:
Cardigan, cashmere, morocco, tweed, mackintosh, wellingtons, ampere,
ohm, volt, watt, china, macadam, bologna, champagne, sandwich, utopia,
quixotic, titian (auburn)
Indian corn, Indian ink, French bean, French polish, French window,
Roentgen rays, Arabic numerals
4. Government titles,
professional titles:

titles

of

honor,

academic,

religious

and

Her Majesty, His Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth, the Pope, the
Chancellor, Prime Minister, Member of Parliament, Senator, Mr.
President, Professor Austin, Sir Thomas Browne, Doctor Watson
5. Official names:
The Government, the Federal Reserve System, the Democratic Party, the
Nazis, the Treaty of Versailles, the First World War, Dark Ages, the
Renaissance, the Antiquity (but the antiquity)
Generic terms, such as colony, department, dominion, empire, kingdom,
republic, state, territory, church, club, college, company, railroad, school,
are capitalized when they appear as part of a historical or political term,
or form a name of an institution: British Empire, Commonwealth of
Australia, Holy Roman Empire, State of Illinois, Lincoln High School.
6. Religious terms:
God, the Almighty, Providence, Lord, Creator, Christ, the Saviour, the
Messiah, the Virgin Mary, Holy Ghost, Satan, Jehovah, Manitou, the Bible,
the Scriptures, Old Testament, the Book of Job, Gospel of Luke, Koran,
Mohammedan, Easter, Thanksgiving, Boxing Day, Christmas Eve
7. Weekdays, months:
Monday, December

8. Names of specific geographical areas:

East Anglia, the Cape Province, the District of Columbia, the Far East, the
Middle East, the Old World, the Orient, the Occident, the Lake District,
East Tennessee, the Continent, the Channel, the Straits (those of Dover or
of Gibraltar)
Words like bay, borough, continent, county, district, hemisphere, island,
lake, mountain, ocean, pass, peninsula, river, sea, current, avenue,
boulevard, bridge, park, road, square, street are capitalized when they
form an integral part of a proper name:
Gulf Stream, Western Hemisphere, Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Treasure
Island, Ohio River, Central Park, Glacier Pass
9. The points of the compass:
Not capitalized, but in geographic names: the Southern States of the
USA, the West (the non-communist world), the Near East
10.

Planets and stars:

Mars, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Moon, Earth, the Evening Star, Great Bear,
Sirius, Halleys Comet
Sun, moon and earth are capitalized only when they are used as planets.