Rules of capitalization
I have noticed capitalization errors in many essays I corrected. The rules of capitalization aren’t all that complicated and with a little effort you can learn them and avoid these silly mistakes.
Capitalize I
This is the first time I have visited a foreign country.
Capitalize national adjectives (German, Indian, French, American, Arabian etc.) and nouns (India, America, Japan, Korea, Kuwait etc.)
- Have you ever been to Australia?
- The Japanese are known for their hospitality.
- India is the land of gods.
Capitalize the names of languages
- She has been learning English for six months.
- Can you speak Hindi?
Capitalize the first word of a sentence.
Capitalize proper nouns (names of people, festivals, institutions, days, months etc.)
- I met James yesterday.
- Julie is my best friend.
- He is at Oxford.
- He works at Toyota.
- North Indians celebrate Holi in March.
- I have invited Tom and Peter to my party.
What not to capitalize
Do not capitalize common nouns.
- There are fifty students in the class. (NOT There are fifty Students in the Class.)
- The camel is a beast of burden. (NOT The Camel is a Beast of burden.)
Study the following examples.
- He is at university. (Here the word ‘university’ is not capitalized because it is a common noun.)
- He is at the University of Harvard. (University of Harvard is a proper noun and hence we capitalize it.)
