View source for Wiki143:Manual of Style/Capital letters

{{Short description|Wikipedia guidelines in regard to capital letters}}
{{Redirect|MOS:CAPS}}
{{MoS guideline |MOS:CAPS |WP:MOSCAPS |sortkey=Capital Letters}}
{{MoS sidebar |formatting}}

Wikipedia avoids unnecessary [[capitalization]]. In [[English language|English]], capitalization is primarily needed for [[Proper name (linguistics)|proper names]], [[acronym]]s, and for the first letter of a sentence.{{efn |name=Sentence case |1=Wikipedia uses [[sentence case]] for sentences, [[WP:Article titles|article titles]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Layout|section titles]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Tables|table headers]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Images|image captions]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Lists|list entries]] (in most cases), and entries in [[WP:Infobox|infoboxes]] and similar templates, among other things. Any instructions in MoS about the start of a sentence apply to items using sentence case.<!-- Please keep this footnote synched with the version at the main WP:MOS page.-->}} Wikipedia relies on sources to determine what is conventionally capitalized; only words and phrases that are {{em|consistently capitalized in a substantial majority of independent, reliable sources}} are capitalized in Wikipedia.
There are exceptions for specific cases discussed below.

==Do not use for emphasis==
{{shortcut|MOS:EMPHCAPS|MOS:SIGNIFCAPS}}
{{further|WP:Manual of Style/Text formatting}}
Initial capitals or all capitals should not be used for emphasis. If wording alone cannot provide the required emphasis, the {{tag|em}} HTML element (or its {{tlx|em}} template wrapper) should be used:
:''Use'': {{xt|It is not only a <em>little</em> learning that is dangerous.}}
:''Avoid'':
::{{!xt|It is not only a LITTLE learning that is dangerous.}}
::{{!xt|It is not only a Little learning that is dangerous.}}
::{{!xt|It is not only a <strong>little</strong> learning that is dangerous.}}
This includes over-capitalization for {{em|signification}}, i.e. to try to impress upon the reader the importance or specialness of something in a particular context. Introduction of a [[term of art]] may be wikilinked and, optionally, [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Text formatting#Words as words|given in non-emphasis italics]] on first occurrence. Example: use {{xt|The community of researchers in a field may produce a {{em|[[scientific consensus]]}}}}, not {{!xt|...&nbsp;may produce a Scientific Consensus}}.

==Acronyms==
{{anchor|Acronyms and initialisms}}
{{Shortcut|MOS:CAPSACRS}}{{Anchor|Acronyms}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Abbreviations#Acronyms}}
On Wikipedia, most [[acronyms]] are written in all capital letters (such as ''[[NATO]]'', ''[[BBC]]'', and ''[[JPEG]]'').  Wikipedia does not follow the practice of distinguishing between acronyms and [[wikt:initialism|initialism]]s; unless that is their common name (e.g. {{xt|Nasdaq}}), do not write [[word acronym]]s, that are pronounced as if they were words, with an initial capital letter only, e.g., do not write {{xt|UNESCO}} as {{!xt|Unesco}}, or {{xt|NASA}} as {{!xt|Nasa}}.
* Some acronyms (mostly trademarks like ''[[Yahoo!]]'' and ''[[Taser]]'') conventionally or officially use a mixture of capitals and lower-case letters, even non-letters; for any given example, use the spelling found in the majority of [[WP:Identifying reliable sources|reliable]], [[WP:Independent sources|independent sources]] (e.g., ''[[LaTeX]]'', ''[[M&Ms]]'', ''[[3M]]'', and ''[[InBev]]'').  Do not mimic trademark stylization otherwise. {{crossref|(See [[WP:Manual of Style/Trademarks]].)}}
* Non-trademarked acronyms that have become assimilated into English as everyday words may be written as common nouns when it is conventional to do so (e.g., ''[[Scuba set|scuba]]'' and ''[[laser]]'', whereas ''[[ZIP Code]]'' and ''bank [[Personal identification number|PIN]]'' are unassimilated acronyms and are capitalized as such).

Use only source-attested acronyms and initialisms; [[WP:No original research|do not make up]] new ones (for example, the [[World Pool-Billiard Association]] is the WPA, and it is not referred to as the "[[Women's Professional Billiard Association|WPBA]]").

"Also known as", when abbreviated on second or later occurrences, or in a table, should be given as {{xt|a.k.a.}} or {{xt|AKA}} (whichever reads more easily in the context). Do not use {{!xt|aka}}, {{!xt|A/K/A}}, or other unusual renderings.

===Expanded forms of abbreviations===
{{excerpt|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Abbreviations#Expanded forms|bold=true}}

==After hyphenation==
{{Shortcut|MOS:HYPHENCAPS}}
In article text, do not use a capital letter after a hyphen except for terms that would ordinarily be capitalized in running prose, such as proper names (e.g. [[demonym]]s and brand names): {{xt|Graeco-Roman}} and {{xt|Mediterranean-style}}, but not {{!xt|Gandhi-Like}}. Letters used as designations are treated as names for this purpose: {{xt|a size-A drill bit}}. {{crossref|(For cases involving titles of people, see {{section link|WP:Manual of Style/Biography#Hyphenation and compounds}}; for titles of works, see {{section link|WP:Manual of Style/Titles#Hyphenation}}.)}}

==All caps and small caps==
{{anchor|All caps|reason=Old, too-narrow section name.}}
{{Shortcut|MOS:ALLCAPS|MOS:SMALLCAPS}}
{{about|using all caps in articles|the talk page guideline|WP:SHOUTING|misleading or misunderstood shortcuts|WP:UPPERCASE|section=yes}}

Avoid writing with [[all caps]] (all capital letters), including [[small caps]] (all caps at a reduced size), when they have only a [[Stylistics|stylistic]] function. Reduce them to [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Titles|title case]], [[sentence case]], or normal case, as appropriate.
* Reduce newspaper headlines and other titles from all caps to title case – or to sentence case if required by the [[Wikipedia:Citing sources#Citation style|citation style]] established in the article. For example, replace the headline or title "WAR BEGINS TODAY" with {{xt|"War Begins Today"}} or, if necessary, {{xt|"War begins today"}}.{{efn|1=E.g.: {{cite news |work=The New York Times |url= https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0910.html |title=Troops Use Machine Gun on Boston Mob: 5,000 Guarding City as Riots Continue – City Acclaims Parade of Fighting First |access-date=June 20, 2021 |date=September 10, 1919}} }}
* Reduce track titles on albums where all or most tracks are listed in all capitals. {{crossref|For which words should be capitalized, see {{section link|WP:Manual of Style/Titles#Capital letters}}.}}
* Reduce court decisions from all caps. Write {{xt|''[[Roe v. Wade]]''}}, even though the decision as issued reads {{!xt|ROE v. WADE}}.<ref>''[[Roe v. Wade]]'', {{ussc|410|113|1973}}.</ref>
* Reduce proclamations, such as those for the [[Medal of Honor]], from all capitals.
* Reduce text written in all capitals in trademarks – {{crossref|see [[WP:Manual of Style/Trademarks]]}}.
* Reduce Latin quotations and terms from all capitals,{{efn|1=The alphabet in which Latin and related languages were originally written had no lower case.}} and put them in italics as non-English.  As this is a form of transliteration, the Latin {{sc2|V}} should be normalized to ''v'' or ''u'', as appropriate, per modern conventions for rendering Latin. {{crossref|(See below for a linguistics exception. See also {{section link|WP:Manual of Style/Text formatting#Non-English language terms}}.)}}
* Reduce names of companies or other trademarks from all caps to sentence case, unless they are acronyms or initialisms, even if the company normally writes them in all caps. See also [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Trademarks]].
* Do not write with all capitals for emphasis; italics are preferred {{crossref|(see {{section link||Do not use for emphasis}}, above)}}. [[WP:Manual of Style#Typographic conformity|In quoted material]], all caps or small caps for emphasis should be replaced with italic {{em|emphasis}} or, in an already italic passage, boldface (with HTML {{tag|strong|o}} or {{tlx|strong}}).

Certain material may be written with all capitals or small capitals:
* Acronyms and initialisms {{crossref|(see {{section link||Acronyms}}, above)}}; these are given in all caps, not small caps.{{efn|1=While some (primarily [[News style|news]]) publishers prefer small caps over all caps for acronyms and initialisms, this is not the majority usage. As a more practical concern, Wikipedia has tens of millions of acronyms in its articles, and marking up all of them in small caps would be a nearly endless drain on editorial productivity, while complicating the wikicode for no clear reader or editor benefit.}}
** There are some exceptions on Wikipedia. Acronyms that have been fully assimilated into English as words are given in lowercase ({{xt|laser}}, {{xt|scuba}}), as are various Latinisms such as {{xt|am}}, {{xt|pm}}; {{crossref|see [[WP:Manual of Style/Abbreviations]] for details}}.
** Some uses of small caps that are common in the [[style guide|house styles]] of particular publishers are not used on Wikipedia; the most common are for Roman numerals (use {{xt|XIV}}, not {{!xt|{{sc2|XIV}}}}) and for acronyms for eras (use {{xt|BCE}}, {{xt|AD}}, etc., not {{!xt|{{sc2|BCE}}}}, {{!xt|{{sc2|AD}}}}).
* In religion, renderings of the [[Tetragrammaton]] (''{{sc2|YHWH}}'') – but not of ''[[Names of God in Judaism#Adonai|Adonai]]''&nbsp;– can be formatted with the templates {{tlx|LORD}} and {{tlx|GOD}}, when the distinction is important. These employ a mixture of all caps and small caps common in many Bible editions: {{Lord}}.  Do not style these or similar words in colored text.{{efn|1=Various Bible editions put "Lord", "God", "Jesus", and even all words attributed to Jesus in red or otherwise highlighted text. This is not done on Wikipedia.}} 
* Certain citation styles (e.g., ''[[Bluebook]]'') require that certain parts of a citation, such as author names in alphabetical reference sections, be written in small caps. If an article has been consistently using such a citation style, it [[Wikipedia:Citing sources#Variation in citation methods|should be respected]], absent a consensus to change the style. For readability, this should be done with the template {{tlx|sc1}}, which distinguishes the case of the input, giving uppercase full-size and lowercase in a readable small-caps size; this makes the output both more [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility|accessible]] and accurate to copy-paste: {{tlx|sc1|DeVoto}} visually produces {{sc1|DeVoto}}, which copy-pastes as DeVoto. However, if such a citation style is not already established at an article, it is better avoided, as it is difficult to read and complicates the markup.
* {{anchor|1=Smallcaps_Unicode}} The names of [[Unicode]] code points are conventionally given in small caps using the template {{tlx|unichar}} or similar. Example: {{xt|the character {{unichar|2053}}}}. This is only done when presenting tables of Unicode data, and when discussing code point names as such. Otherwise prefer unstyled, plain-English character names (whether they coincide with code point names or not): {{xt|the hyphen and the en dash}}, not {{!xt|the {{sc2|HYPHEN-MINUS}} and the {{sc2|EN DASH}}}}.
* Textual excerpts, inscriptions, example words, and letterforms in classical Latin, Greek, and other [[unicase]] scripts may be given in all caps or preferably small caps (the template {{tlx|sc2}} is intended for this purpose) to reflect the letterforms of that era. This should only be done when it is contextually useful, as in [[linguistic]] material and descriptions of [[Artifact (archaeology)|artifacts]]. Examples: letterforms at {{section link|Gaulish language#Orthography}}, and excerpts at [[Duenos inscription]]. This usage should preserve the original orthography to the extent possible in Unicode (e.g., use of {{sc2|V}} in Latin for both ''v'' and ''u'').  When rendered this way, such material need not be italicized as non-English.{{efn|As with non-Latin-based scripts like Cyrillic and Chinese being automatically distinct from English, the presentation of ancient Latin, Gaulish, etc., in small caps makes italicizing it as non-English a superfluous over-stylization, and may even be misinterpreted to imply that the original inscription was slanted, defeating the attempt at fairly faithful reproduction.}} When it is not possible to render such material as text, a photograph may prove useful, if [[Wikipedia:Non-free content|a free one is available]].
* In linguistics and [[philology]], [[Gloss (annotation)#In linguistics|glossing]] of text or speech uses small caps for the [[List of glossing abbreviations|standardized abbreviations]] of [[functional morpheme]] types (e.g., {{xt|[[Plural|{{sc|pl}}]]}}, {{xt|[[Auxiliary verb|{{sc|aux}}]]}}); this is done with the linguistics template {{tlx|gcl}}, or by feeding a lowercase value to the generic template {{tlx|sc}}.{{efn|1=Template {{tlx|sc}} reduces input to all lowercase (when copy-pasted), but displayed as smallcaps: {{tlx|sc|AbCdEF}} produces {{sc|AbCdEF}}, copy-pastes as <samp>abcdef</samp>. The actual rule in linguistics has been expressed as "Put glosses of grammatical morphemes into a font which contrasts some way with the font used for glosses which translate lexical morphemes."<ref>{{cite book |first=Monica Ann |last=Macaulay |title=Surviving Linguistics: A Guide for Graduate Students |publisher=Cascadilla Press |date=2006 |isbn=1-57473-028-2 }}</ref> While small caps is often recommended,<ref>{{cite web |work=[[International Journal of American Linguistics]] |editor1-first=David |editor1-last=Beck |editor2-first=Donna |editor2-last=Gerdts |title=Style for the formatting of interlinearized linguistic examples |date=24 May 2017 |url= https://www.americanlinguistics.org/wp-content/uploads/IJAL-interlinear.pdf |format=PDF |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |access-date=26 November 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Leipzig Glossing Rules: Conventions for interlinear morpheme-by-morpheme glosses |author1=Bernard Comrie |author2=Martin Haspelmath |author3=Balthasar Bickel |website=Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology |url= https://www.eva.mpg.de/lingua/pdf/Glossing-Rules.pdf |date=31 May 2015 |access-date=26 March 2022}}</ref> not forcing these abbreviations to uppercase permits [[Wikipedia:Reusing Wikipedia content|reusers of our content]] to use whatever styling suits their purposes.}} On first occurrence, use a piped link around the template: <code>{{mxt|<nowiki>[[Plural|{{sc|pl}}]]</nowiki>}}</code>. This style is not used for [[Morphology (linguistics)#Lexical morphology|lexical]] glosses of [[content morpheme]]s; these [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Double or single|go in single quotes]] in a linear (inline) gloss (e.g., in {{xt|Spanish {{lang|es|perro}}, 'dog'}}), but no markup at all in an [[interlinear gloss]].<!-- This next part does not appear to actually be applicable on Wikipedia; will get clarification from WT:LINGUISTICS: Transcription of [[logogram]]s (as opposed to [[Phonogram (linguistics)|phonograms]]) can also be done with small caps or all caps.-->
* A further linguistics use of smallcaps ({{tlx|sc2}}) is representation of a [[lexical set]]; this markup is used in various linguistic articles and in our own reader-facing documentation that involves lexical sets, such as [[Help:IPA/English]].

==''Anglo-'' and similar prefixes==
{{shortcut|MOS:ANGLO-}}
Most words with prefixes such as ''Anglo-'', ''Franco-'', etc. are capitalized. For example, ''Anglo-Saxon'', ''Anglo-French'', and ''Anglo-Norman'' are all capitalized. However, there is some variation concerning a small number of words of French origin. In French these words are not capitalized, and this sometimes carries over to English. There are variations, and since editors often refer to only one dictionary, they may unwittingly contravene {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Varieties of English}} by changing a usage to that which is more common in their own national dialect. The main (but not mandatory) exceptions to the capitalization rule are the following.<ref>Sources have been consulted for the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, but not for Ireland or South Africa. Sources: US: ''Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary'', 10th ed., ''The New Oxford American Dictionary''. Canada: ''The Canadian Oxford Dictionary'', ''Gage Canadian Dictionary''. UK: ''The Oxford Dictionary of English'' (2nd ed., revised), ''The Concise Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary'' (English–French). Australia: ''The Australian Oxford Dictionary''. New Zealand: ''The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary''.</ref>
* ''anglicism'', ''gallicism'', etc.: These words are often, but not always, capitalized. ''Anglicism'' is less likely to be capitalized in Canada.
* ''anglicize'' (''anglicise''), ''gallicize'' (''gallicise''), etc.: ''Anglicize'' is often capitalized in the US, and sometimes in other countries. ''Gallicize'' is often capitalized in the US, and usually capitalized in other countries.
* ''anglophile'', ''francophile'', etc.: Words in this category are usually capitalized both as nouns and adjectives, except in Canada, where they sometimes are.
* ''anglophone'', ''francophone'', etc.: These words are often capitalized in the US as adjectives, and usually as nouns. They are usually not capitalized in other countries, whether as nouns or adjectives.
* ''anglophobe'', ''francophobe'', etc.: Words in this category are usually capitalized in all countries except Canada, where they sometimes are. The same applies to ''anglophobic''.
''Romanize'', ''Latinize'', and related words are often lowercased in a linguistic context in particular, but [[Cultural Romanization|otherwise]] usually capitalized; ''italic[s]'', in the typography sense, is always lowercase.

==Animals, plants, and other organisms==
{{shortcut|MOS:BIOCAPS}}
{{details|topic=article titles about organisms, including scientific names and common names and how and when to italicize their display|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (fauna)|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (flora)}}

===Scientific names===

[[Binomial name|Scientific names]], which include both [[genus]] and [[species]] (sometimes also [[subspecies]] or [[infraspecific name (botany)|other infraspecific names]]), have an initial capital letter for the genus, but not for the [sub]species ([[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Text formatting#Italic face|and are always italicized]]): {{xt|the tulip tree is ''Liriodendron tulipifera''}}; {{xt|all modern humans are ''Homo sapiens''}}. More specifically:
* The names of genera are always capitalized (and italicized), even when not paired with a species name: {{xt|''Allosaurus'', ''Falco'', ''Anas''}}.
* The second part of a [[binomial name|binomial species name]] is never capitalized, even when derived from a proper name (but is always italicized), and is always preceded by either the genus name, or a capitalized abbreviation of it if the full version has occurred previously in the same text: {{xt|Thomson's gazelle is ''Eudorcas thomsonii'' or ''E. thomsonii''}}.
* In zoology, the same applies to the third part of a [[trinomial name]]: {{xt|the arctic wolf is ''Canis lupus arctos'' or ''C. l. arctos''}}.
* In botany, the third part of a trinomial is preceded by an indication of rank which is not italicized: {{xt|''Poa secunda'' subsp. ''juncifolia'', ''Acanthocalycium klimpelianum'' var. ''macranthum''}}.

[[Cultivar]] and [[cultivar group]] names of plants are not italicized, and are capitalized. Cultivar names appear within single quotes: {{xt|''Malus domestica'' 'Red Delicious'}}. Cultivar groups do not use quotation marks, but do include and capitalize the word "Group" in the name: {{xt|''Cynara cardunculus'' Scolymus Group}}. While the [[International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants|ICNCP]] has recently preferred the term "Group" (used by itself and capitalized) to refer to the cultivar group concept, please use the lower-case phrase "cultivar group" (aside from "Group" within an actual scientific name), as it is both less ambiguous and less typographically confusing to the average reader.

Orders, families and other [[rank (zoology)#All ranks|taxonomic ranks]] above genus level have an initial capital letter (and are not italicized): {{xt|bats belong to the order Chiroptera}}; {{xt|rats and mice are members of the family Muridae and the order Rodentia}}. However, the English form derived from the Latin name should not be capitalized or italicized: {{xt|members of the order Chiroptera are chiropterans}}; {{xt|members of the family Muridae are murids and members of the order Rodentia are rodents}}.

===Common names===
{{shortcut|MOS:COMMONNAMES|MOS:COMMONNAMECAPS}}
Lower-case initial letters are used for each part of the English (common, vernacular) names of species, genera, families and all other taxonomic levels ({{xt|bacteria}}, {{xt|zebra}}, {{xt|bottlenose dolphin}}, {{xt|mountain&nbsp;maple}}, {{xt|bald&nbsp;eagle}}), except where they contain a [[Proper name (linguistics)|proper name]] ({{xt|Przewalski's horse}}, {{xt|Amur tiger}}, {{xt|Roosevelt elk}}), or when such a name starts a sentence{{efn|name=Sentence case}} ({{xt|Black bears eat white suckers and blueberries}}). If interpretation could be ambiguous, use links or rewording to make it clearer.

Names of standardized animal [[breed]]s should generally retain the capitalization used in the breed standards ({{xt|German Shepherd}}). Species names like "cat" or "hound" added to the end of a breed name for disambiguation should not be capitalized ({{xt|Greyhound dog}}), unless it is a part of the breed name itself and is consistently capitalized in the breed standards ([[Norwegian Forest Cat|{{xt|Norwegian Forest Cat}}]], [[American Quarter Horse|{{xt|American Quarter Horse}}]]). 

{{As of|2017|post=,}} wikiprojects for some groups of organisms are in the process of converting to sentence case where title case was previously used. Some articles may not have been changed yet (this may still be true of some [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Insects|insect]] articles and some [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Botany|plant]] ones, as well as a few on [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles|amphibians and reptiles]]).

===Names of groups or types===

The common name of a ''group'' of species or ''type'' of organism is always written in lower case (except where a proper name occurs):
* {{xt|New World monkeys}}, {{xt|slime molds}}, {{xt|rove beetles}}, {{xt|great apes}}, {{xt|mountain dogs}}, {{xt|Van cats}}

This also applies to an individual creature of indeterminate species.

==Calendar items==
{{see also|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Dates and numbers#Seasons}}

Capitalize the names of months, days, and holidays: {{xt|June}}, {{xt|Monday}}, {{xt|Fourth of July}}, {{xt|Michaelmas}}, {{xt|the Ides of March}}.
Seasons are uncapitalized ({{xt|a hot summer}}) except when personified: {{xt|soon Spring will show her colors}}; {{xt|Old Man Winter}}.

==Celestial bodies==
{{shortcut|MOS:CELESTIALBODIES|MOS:ASTRONOMICALBODIES}}
The words ''Sun'', ''Earth'', ''Moon'' and ''Solar System'' are capitalized (as proper names) when used to refer to a specific celestial body in an astronomical context ({{xt|The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System}}; {{xt|the Moon orbits Earth}}). They are not capitalized when used outside an astronomical context, such as when referring to sunshine ({{xt|It was a clear day and the sun felt warm}}), or when used in a general sense ({{xt|Io is a moon of Jupiter}}). However, they are capitalized in personifications, as in {{xt|Sol Invictus ('Unconquered Sun') was the ancient Roman sun god}}.

Names of planets, moons, asteroids, comets, stars, constellations, and galaxies are proper names and begin with a capital letter ({{xt|The planet Mars can be seen tonight in the constellation Gemini, near the star Pollux}}). The first letter of every word in such a name is capitalized ({{xt|Alpha Centauri}} and not {{!xt|Alpha centauri}}; {{xt|Milky Way}}, not {{!xt|Milky way}}). In the case of compounds with generic terms such as ''comet'' and ''galaxy'' (but not ''star'' or ''planet''), the generic is retained at the end of the name and capitalized as part of it ({{xt|Halley's Comet is the most famous of the periodic comets}}; {{xt|astronomers describe the Andromeda Galaxy as a spiral galaxy}}). However, {{xtn|Milky Way galaxy}} is a descriptive phrase, without capitalized "galaxy", and should usually be reduced to the actual name, {{xt|Milky Way}}, because that name is not ambiguous. If it is unclear what the Milky Way is in the context, consider using something clearer, like {{xt|Earth's galaxy, the Milky Way}}.  Do not capitalize descriptive terms that precede the name of an astronomical object: {{xt|comet Bradfield 1}}, {{xt|galaxy HCM-6A}}.

==Compass points==
{{shortcut|MOS:COMPASS}}
Points of the compass (''north'', ''north-east'', ''southeast'', etc.), and their derived forms (''northern'', ''southeasterly'', etc.) are not generally capitalized: {{xt|nine miles south of Oxford}}, {{xt|a northern road}}. They are capitalized only when they form part of a proper name, such as {{xt|Great North Road}}.

Doubts frequently arise when referring to regions, such as ''eastern Spain'' and ''Southern California''. If one is consistently capitalized in reliable sources (as with ''[[North Korea]]'', ''[[Southern California]]'', or ''[[Western Europe]]''), then the direction word in it is capitalized. Otherwise it is not, as with ''eastern Spain'' or ''southwest Poland''. If you are not sure whether a region has attained proper-name status, assume it has not.

Follow the same convention for related forms: a person from the [[Southern United States]] is a ''Southerner''.

Compound compass points are usually fully compounded in [[American English]], for example ''northwest'', while in [[British English]] they are sometimes written as separate words or hyphenated, as in ''north-west''. This also affects names of regions such as ''[[Southeastern United States]]'' and ''[[South East England]]''.  Finer compass points take a hyphen after the first word, regardless, and never use a space: {{xt|south-southeast}} or {{xt|south-south-east}}, but not {{!xt|south-south east}}, {{!xt|south southeast}}, etc.

==Geological periods==

The names of formally defined [[Geologic time scale|geological periods]] and the rock layers corresponding to them are capitalized. Thus the {{xt|Devonian Period}} or the {{xt|Late Cretaceous Epoch}} are internationally defined periods of time, whereas the {{xt|late Cretaceous}} is an unspecified time towards the end of the Cretaceous. Do not capitalize outside a complete formal name: thus {{xt|the Devonian is a period}} rather than {{!xt|the Devonian is a Period}}.

==Headings, headers, and captions==
{{Anchor|Section headings}}
{{shortcut|MOS:SECTIONCAPS|MOS:HEADCAPS}}
{{main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Section headings}}

Use [[sentence case]], not [[title case]], in all section headings. Capitalize the first character of the first element if it is a letter, but leave the rest lower case except for proper names and other items that would ordinarily be capitalized in running text.
:''Use'': {{xt|Economic and demographic shifts after World War II}}
:''Avoid'': {{!xt|Economic and Demographic Shifts After World War II}}

The same applies to the [[Wikipedia:Article titles#Article title format|titles of articles]], [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Tables#Captions and headers|table headers and captions]], the headers of [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Infoboxes|infoboxes]] and [[Wikipedia:Categories, lists, and navigation templates#Navigation templates|navigation templates]], and [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Images#Syntax|image captions and alt text]]. {{crossref|(For list items, see next section.)}}

Linking is easier if titles are in sentence case. It is easier for articles to be merged or split if headings resemble titles.

==Initial letters in sentences and list items==
{{shortcut|MOS:SENTENCECAPS|MOS:LISTCAPS}}
The initial letter in a sentence{{efn|name=Sentence case}} is capitalized. This does not apply if it begins with a letter which is always left uncapitalized (as in "[[eBay]]"; {{crossref|see {{section link||Items that require initial lower case}}, below}}), although it is usually preferable to recast the sentence.

When an independent clause ends with a dash or semicolon, the first letter of the following word should not be capitalized, even if it begins a new independent clause that could be a grammatically separate sentence: {{xt|Cheese is a dairy product; bacon is not.}} For guidance after colons, see [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Colons|WP:Manual of Style §&thinsp;Colons]].

In a list, if each item of the list is a complete sentence, then it should be capitalized like any other sentence. If the list items are sentence fragments, then capitalization should be consistent – sentence case should be applied to either all or none of the items. See [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Bulleted and numbered lists|WP:Manual of Style §&thinsp;Bulleted and numbered lists]].

=== {{Anchor|LCITEMS}}Items that require initial lower case ===
{{Shortcut|MOS:LCITEMS}}

In contexts where the case of symbols is significant, like those related to [[programming language]]s, [[mathematical notation]] (for example, the mathematical constant [[e (mathematical constant)|''e'']] is not equivalent to ''E''), or the names of [[SI units|units of physical quantities]] or their symbols, the correct case should always be retained, even in situations where normal rules would require capitalization, such as at the beginning of a sentence.{{efn|name=Sentence case}} Try to avoid putting such lowercase symbols (or any non-alphabetic ones) at the start of a sentence within running text. {{crossref|(See also [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Mathematics]].)}}

Some individuals do not want their personal names capitalized. In such cases, Wikipedia articles may use lower-case variants of personal names if they have regular and established use in reliable third-party sources (for example, [[k.d. lang]]). When such a name is the first word in a sentence, the rule for [[#Initial letters in sentences and list items|initial letters in sentences and list items]] should take precedence, and the first letter of the personal name should be capitalized regardless of personal preference.

For proprietary names such as [[Adidas]] (written as "adidas" by the company itself) and [[eBay]], see {{section link||Trademarks}}, below.

If an article title begins with such a letter that needs to be in lower case (as in the above examples), use the {{tl|lowercase}} template or equivalent code. Note that it is not currently possible to make [[Wikipedia:Category|categories]] display with an initial lowercase letter in an article's category box. Hence the link to [[:Category:eBay]] at the foot of the article [[eBay]] must display as "EBay". Similarly the article title [[eBay]] will be displayed as "EBay" in the category listing.

==Institutions==
{{shortcut|MOS:INSTITUTIONS|MOS:GEOUNITS|MOS:POLITICALUNITS|MOS:THEINST}}
* '''Full names''' of institutions, organizations, companies, etc. ({{xt|United States Department of State}}) are proper names and require capitals. Also treat as a proper name a shorter but still specific form, consistently capitalized in reliable generalist sources (e.g., {{xt|US State Department}} or {{xt|the State Department}}, depending on context).
** Avoid ambiguous use of terms like "city", "state", etc. to indicate a governing body. Write clearly to indicate "the city council", the "state legislature", or "the state government".
**{{anchor|THEINST}} The word ''the'' at the start of a name is uncapitalized in running text, regardless of the institution's own usage ({{xt|members of <u>the</u> Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints}} {{em|not}} {{!xt|members of <u>The</u> Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints}}).
** If you are not sure whether the English translation of a foreign name is exact or not, assume it is rough and use lower case (e.g., the French parliament).
* '''Generic words''' for institutions, organizations, companies, etc., and rough descriptions of them (''university'', ''college'', ''hospital'', ''church'', ''high school'') do not take capitals:
*: ''Incorrect (generic)'': {{!xt|The University offers programs in arts and sciences.}}
*: ''Correct (generic)'': {{xt|The university offers programs in arts and sciences.}}
*: ''Correct (proper name)'': {{xt|The University of Delhi offers programs in arts and sciences.}}
* '''Political or geographical units''' such as cities, towns, and countries follow the same rules: As proper names they require capitals; but as generic words and rough descriptions (sometimes best omitted for simplicity) they do not:
*: ''Incorrect (generic)'': {{!xt|The City has a population of 55,000.}}
*: ''Correct (generic)'': {{xt|The city has a population of 55,000.}}
*: ''Correct (name of legal entity)'': {{xt|The City of Smithville was incorporated in 1873.}}
*: ''Correct ("city" omitted)'': {{xt|Smithville has a population of 55,000.}}
*: ''Exception'': {{xt|In the medieval period, the City was the full extent of London.}}{{snd}}"City" used as shortened proper name for the [[City of London]]{{pb}}
*: ''Incorrect (generic plural)'': {{!xt|The Cities of Calgary and Edmonton are in Alberta.}}
*: ''Correct (generic plural)'': {{xt|The cities of Calgary and Edmonton are in Alberta.}}
*: ''Correct (plural legal entities)'': {{xt|The City of Calgary and the City of Edmonton have dissimilar rent-control ordinances.}}

These principles also apply to terms for the output of institutions, companies, and other organizations (''act'', ''bill'', ''law'', ''regulation'', ''product'', ''service'', ''report'', ''guideline'', etc.).

==Military terms==
{{Hatnote|WP:MARINE redirects here. You may also be looking for [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Oceans]], [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Marine life]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Seattle Mariners]].}}
{{Shortcut|MOS:MILTERMS|MOS:MILITARY|MOS:MARINE}}

The general rule is that wherever a military term is an accepted proper name, as indicated by consistent capitalization in sources, it should be capitalized. Where there is uncertainty as to whether a term is generally accepted, consensus should be reached on the talk page.
* Military ranks follow the same capitalization guidelines as given under {{section link||Titles of people}}, below. For example, {{xt|Brigadier General John Smith}}, but {{xt|John Smith was a brigadier general}}.
* Formal names of military units, including armies, navies, air forces, fleets, regiments, battalions, companies, corps, and so forth, are proper names and should be capitalized. However, the words for types of military unit (army, navy, fleet, company, etc.) do not require capitalization if they do not appear in a proper name. Thus, {{xt|the American army}}, but {{xt|the United States Army}}. Unofficial but well-known names should also be capitalized ({{xt|the Green Berets}}, {{xt|the [[United States National Guard|Guard]]}}).
*: ''Correct'': {{xt|the Fifth Company; the Young Guard; the company rallied.}}
*: ''Incorrect'': {{!xt|The Company took heavy losses. The 3rd battalion retreated.}}
* Accepted names of wars, battles, revolts, revolutions, rebellions, mutinies, skirmishes, fronts, raids, actions, operations, and so forth are capitalized if they are usually capitalized in sources ([[Spanish Civil War]], [[Battle of Leipzig]], [[Boxer Rebellion]], [[Action of 8 July 1716]], [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]], [[Operation Sea Lion]]). The generic terms (war, revolution, battle) take the lowercase form when standing alone ({{xt|France went to war}}; {{xt|The battle began}}; {{xt|The raid succeeded}}).  Words such as ''campaign'', ''offensive'', ''siege'', ''action'', ''pocket'', etc., are typically not frequently capitalized in sources, so are lowercase in Wikipedia ([[Bougainville campaign]], [[American logistics in the Normandy campaign]]).
* Proper names of specific [[military awards and decorations]] are capitalized ({{xt|Medal of Honor}}, {{xt|Victoria Cross}}).
* Terms such as ''soldier'', ''sailor'', ''airman'', ''marine'', and ''coast guardsman'' are not capitalized when describing an individual or a group, but are when used as a rank (see above). 
*: ''Correct'': {{xt|The soldiers landed on the beach.}}
*: ''Incorrect'': {{!xt|John Doe is a Marine}}

==Musical and literary genres==
{{Shortcut|MOS:GENRECAPS}}

Names of genres (such as musical or literary) are not capitalized unless they contain a proper name. For example:

:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|The Rouge Admins are a Goa Trance band.}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|The Rouge Admins are a goa trance band.}}
:''Correct'': {{xt|The Rouge Admins are a Goa trance band.}}{{pb}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|YouTube Poop is a type of video mashup.}}
:''Correct'': {{xt|YouTube poop is a type of video mashup.}}{{pb}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|Asimov is widely considered a master of Science Fiction.}}
:''Correct'': {{xt|Asimov is widely considered a master of science fiction.}}

Radio formats such as {{xt|adult contemporary}} or {{xt|classic rock}} are also not capitalized. [[#Sports, games, and other activities|The same goes for dance]], including types, genres, styles, moves, and social activities ({{xt|{{lang|fr|ballets de cour}}}}, {{xt|ballroom dancing}}, {{xt|traditional square dance}}, {{xt|rock step}}, {{xt|line dancing}}). Proper names, as always, are excepted: {{xt|St. Louis shag}}.

==Proper names==
{{Shortcut|MOS:PROPER|MOS:PROPERNAME|MOS:PROPERNOUN}}
In English, [[proper noun|proper names]], which can be either single words or phrases, are typically capitalized. Such names are frequently a source of conflict, especially when different cultures, using different names, claim someone or something as their own. (Avoid [[Wikipedia:Edit warring|edit warring]] or pushing a [[Wikipedia:Neutral point of view|particular viewpoint]].) Wikipedia does not adjudicate such disputes, but as a general rule uses the name which is likely to be most familiar to readers of English. Alternative names often [[MOS:BOLDSYN|are also given]], for greater clarity and fuller information.

{{crossref|pw=y|For information on the use of proper names as article titles, see [[Wikipedia:Article titles]]. See also [[Wikipedia:Use English]].}}<br />
{{crossref|pw=y|For use of diacritics (accent marks), see {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Spelling and romanization}}.}}<br />
{{crossref|pw=y|For treatment of trademarks, see [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Trademarks]].}}

===Peoples and their languages===
{{Shortcut|MOS:PEOPLANG}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (languages)}}
Names for peoples and cultures, languages and dialects, nationalities, ethnic and religious groups, demonyms, and the like are capitalized, including in adjectival forms ([[Japanese cuisine|{{xt|Japanese cuisine}}]], [[Cumbrian dialect|{{xt|Cumbrian dialect}}]]).  Cultural terms may lose their capitalization when their connection to the original culture has been lost (or there never really was one). Some fairly conventionalized examples are [[French fries|{{xt|french fries}}]], typographical [[Romanization|{{xt|romanization}}]], [[Glossary of cue sports terms#english|{{xt|english}}]] (cue-ball spin) in pool playing, [[Glossary of cue sports terms#scotch doubles|{{xt|scotch-doubles tournament}}]], [[Bone china|{{xt|bone china}}]], [[Gum arabic|{{xt|gum arabic}}]], [[wikt:byzantine|{{xt|byzantine}}]] ('overly complex'). Some are more transitional and can be written either way: [[Latinisation of names|{{xtn|latinization}}]] of names, [[Going Dutch|{{xtn|dutch date}}]], [[Lynching|lynching]], and [[Russian Roulette|{{xtn|russian roulette}}]].  Always capitalized: [[French cuisine|{{xt|French cuisine}}]], [[Romanization (cultural)|{{xt|cultural Romanization}}]], [[English billiards|{{xt|English billiards}}]], [[Scotch whisky|{{xt|Scotch whisky}}]], [[Arabic coffee|{{xt|Arabic coffee}}]], [[Liturgical Latinisation|{{xt|liturgical Latinization}}]], [[Byzantine Empire|{{xt|the Byzantine Empire}}]], [[Dutch oven|{{xt|Dutch oven}}]]. Avoid over-capitalizing adjectival forms of such terms in other languages, most of which do not capitalize as much as English does. E.g., the book title [[Diccionario biográfico español|{{xt|{{lang|es|Diccionario biográfico español}}}}]] ('Spanish Biographical Dictionary') [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Titles#Capitalization in foreign-language titles|does not capitalize]] the ''e'' of {{lang|es|español}}. If in doubt, check how multiple high-quality reliable sources in English treat the name or phrase.

{{anchor|antisemitism|anti-Semitism|unamerican|un-American|panamerican|pan-American|panafrican|pan-African}}
{{shortcut|MOS:ANTISEMITISM}}
Combining forms are also generally capitalized where the proper name occurs: ([[Pan-Celticism|{{xt|pan-Celticism}}]], [[Austro-Hungarian Empire|{{xt|Austro-Hungarian}}]], [[Un-American|{{xt|un-American}}]]). Some may be fully fused and decapitalized if the name is mid-word; e.g., {{xtn|unamerican}}, {{xtn|panamerican}}, [[Transatlantic|{{xtn|transatlantic}}]], and [[Antisemitism|{{xtn|antisemitism}}]] are well-attested. There is no consensus on Wikipedia for or against either form, except for {{Xt|antisemitism}}, which is preferred in wikivoice per the consensus of scholars and historians of antisemitism. For [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Consistency within articles|consistency within the article]], prefer {{xt|un-American}} and {{xt|pan-American}} in an article that also uses {{xt|anti-American}}, {{xt|pan-African}}, and similar compounds. {{crossref|pw=y|(See also {{section link|WP:Manual_of_Style|US and U.S.}}, for consistency between country abbreviations.)}}

Where a common name in English encompasses both a people and their language, that term is preferred, as in [[Swahili people|{{xt|Swahili people}}]] and [[Swahili language|{{xt|Swahili language}}]] rather than [[Waswahili|{{!xt|''Waswahili''}}]] and [[Kiswahili|{{!xt|''Kiswahili''}}]].<!--This really belongs somewhere else, since it doesn't pertain to capitalization. Maybe at MOS:JARGON.-->

{{Anchor|Race}}{{Shortcut|MOS:RACECAPS|WP:RACECAPS}}
[[Wikipedia:Race and ethnicity|Ethno-racial]] "[[Color terminology for race|color labels]]" may be given capitalized ([[Black people|{{xtn|Black}}]] and [[White people|{{xtn|White}}]]) or lower-case ({{xtn|black}} and {{xtn|white}}).{{efn|1=A [[Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style/Capital_letters/Archive 32#Proposed update to MOSCAPS regarding racial terms|June–December 2020 proposal]] to capitalize "Black" (only) concluded against that idea, and also considered "Black and White", and "black and white", with no consensus to implement a rule requiring either or against mixed use where editors at a particular article believe it's appropriate. The {{lang|la|status quo}} practice had been that either style was permissible, and this proposal did not overturn that.  The somewhat unclear proposal closure was [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style/Capital_letters&oldid=1015816705#Discussion_about_capitalisation_of_Black_(people) refined January–April 2021] and implemented, after [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style/Capital_letters&oldid=1015816705#Overhauling_MOS:CAPS#Peoples_and_their_languages a February–March 2021 overhaul of the rest of this section].}} The capitalized form will be more appropriate in the company of other upper-case terms of this sort ({{xt|Asian–Pacific, Black, Hispanic, Native American, Indigenous,{{efn|1=For more on Native American, First Nations and Indigenous naming conventions see [[MOS:CITIZEN]], [[WP:TRIBE]] and [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Canada-related articles#Capitalization]]}} and White demographic categories}}). [[Brown (racial classification)|{{!xt|Brown}}]] should not be used in Wikipedia's own voice, as it is ambiguous, and in the popular sense is [[Wikipedia:Writing better articles#Tone|informal]], an [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Opportunities for commonality|Americanism]], and a [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Words to watch#Neologisms and new compounds|neologistic usage]] which conflicts with prior more specific senses.  The old epithets [[Redskin|{{!xt|Red}}]] and [[Yellow Peril|{{!xt|Yellow}}]], plus [[Colored|{{!xt|Colored}}]] (in the American sense) and [[Negro|{{!xt|Negro}}]], are generally taken to be offensive, and should only be used in quotations.  When used in the context of direct quotations, titles of works, and organization names ("...&nbsp;Dr. [[Fu Manchu]], the yellow peril incarnate in one man"; E. R. Baierlein's ''In the Wilderness with the Red Indians''; [[NAACP|National Association for the Advancement of Colored People]]; [[UNCF|United Negro College Fund]]), [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Principle of minimal change|follow the original's spelling]].  The term [[Coloureds|{{xt|Coloured}}]] in reference to a specific ethnic group of Southern Africa is not a slur, and is capitalized; [[Person of color|{{xt|person}}/{{xt|people of colo[u]r}}]] is not offensive, and not capitalized.

{{crossref|pw=y|For eponyms more broadly, see {{section link|WP:Manual of Style|Eponyms}}}}

===Personal names===
{{short|MOS:PERSONAL}}
{{Main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Biography#Names}}
{{see also|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (people)|Wikipedia:WikiProject Anthroponymy}}
'''Personal names''' are the names given to people, but can be used as well for some animals (like race horses) and natural or man-made inanimate objects (like ships and geological formations). As proper nouns, these names are almost always first-letter capitalized. An exception is made when the lowercase variant has received regular and established use in reliable independent sources. In these cases, the name is still capitalized when at the beginning of a sentence, per the normal rules of English.  Minor elements in certain names are not capitalized, but this can vary by individual: [[Marie van Zandt|{{xt|Marie van Zandt}}]], [[John Van Zandt|{{xt|John Van Zandt}}]]. Use the style that dominates for that person in reliable sources; for a [[Wikipedia:Biographies of living persons|living subject]], prefer the spelling consistently [[WP:ABOUTSELF|used in the subject's own publications]].

=== Place names ===
{{short|MOS:GEOCAPS}}
{{Main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Geographical items}}
{{see also|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (geographic names)}}
'''Geographical''' or '''place names''' are the nouns used to refer to specific places and geographic features. Names such as Japan, the Nile, New York, Buenos Aires, and Tierra del Fuego are treated as proper names and take an initial capital letter on all major elements. If a place belongs to a class and the class is conventionally capitalized as part of the name of the place, the class is capitalized, such as Mississippi River and Gulf of Tonkin, but not [[Bongaigaon district]]. Terms for types of places and features do not take capitals: {{xt|the town hall}}; {{xt|the capital city}}; {{xt|an ocean}}; {{xt|the savannah}}; {{xt|karst topography}}.<!--There may be an eponymous type that does take capitalization; add an exception with example if this arises.-->

==Religions, deities, philosophies, doctrines, and their adherents==
{{Anchor|Religions|Religion|God|Gods|Deity|Deities}}
<!-- DO NOT REMOVE anchor names if section name is changed - they are used by incoming links. Just add old section name to list of anchors until link to old section name are updated. -->{{shortcut|MOS:ISMCAPS|MOS:GOD}}
{{see also|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Titles of works#Religious texts}}

Names of organized religions (as well as officially recognized sects), whether as a noun or an adjective, and their adherents start with a capital letter. Unofficial movements, ideologies or philosophies within religions are generally not capitalized unless derived from a proper name. For example, ''Islam'', ''Christianity'', ''Catholic'', ''Pentecostal'', and ''Calvinist'' are capitalized, while ''evangelicalism'' and ''fundamentalism'' are not.

[[Proper name (linguistics)|Proper names]] and conventional titles referencing deities are capitalized: ''God'', ''Allah'', ''Freyja'', ''the Lord'', ''the Supreme Being'', ''the Messiah''. The same is true when referring to important religious figures, such as Muhammad, by terms such as ''the Prophet''. [[Common noun]]s not used as titles should not be capitalized: {{xt|the Norse gods}}, {{xt|personal god}}, {{xt|comparison of supreme beings in four indigenous religions}}. In biblical and related contexts, ''God'' is capitalized only when it is a title for the deity of the [[Abrahamic religions]], and ''prophet'' is generally not capitalized. ''Heaven'' and ''Hell'' are capitalized when referring to a specific place ({{xt|Christians believe Jesus ascended to Heaven}}) but lowercase in other circumstances ({{xt|the heavens opened up with rain; the ice cream was heavenly; reading this book was hell for him}}).

Transcendent ideas in the Platonic sense may also begin with a capital letter: ''Good'' and ''Truth''.  However, this can often seem stilted, biased, or even sarcastic, so it is best avoided when possible (e.g., confined to directly quoted material, or used in a philosophical context in which the usage is conventional); use {{xt|an inquest seeking justice for the victims}}, not {{!xt|Justice}}.  Nouns (other than names) referring to any material or abstract representation of any deity, human or otherwise, are not capitalized: {{xt|an avatar of Shiva}}, {{xt|an ikon of Saint John}}, {{xt|Gabriel, a messenger of God}}, {{xt|the crow as a manifestation of the Irish goddess Morrígan}} (not {{!xt|Avatar}}, {{!xt|Ikon}}, {{!xt|Messenger}}, {{!xt|Crow}}, or {{!xt|Manifestation}}).

{{Anchor|deity-pronouns}}Except in direct quotation, [[pronouns]] for deities and figures of veneration are not capitalized, even if they are capitalized in scripture or according to a religious convention: {{xt|Jesus addressed his followers}}, not {{!xt|Jesus addressed His followers}}.

The names of major works of scripture, such as the Bible, the Quran, the Talmud, and the Vedas, should be capitalized (but are often not italicized). The adjective ''biblical'' should not be capitalized. ''Quranic'' is normally capitalized, but usage varies for ''talmudic'', ''vedic'', etc.  Be consistent within an article.

Do not capitalize terms denoting types of religious or mythical beings, such as ''angel'', ''fairy'', or ''deva''. The personal names of individual beings are capitalized as normal ({{xt|the archangel Gabriel}}). An exception to the general rule is made when such terms are used to denote races and the like in [[speculative fiction]], in which case they are capitalized if the work capitalizes them ({{xt|the Elves of Tolkien's Middle-earth}}).

Spiritual or religious events are capitalized only when referring to proper names of specific incidents or periods ({{xt|the Great Flood}} and {{xt|the Exodus}}; but {{xt|ancient Egyptian myths about the Nile's annual flooding}}, and {{xt|an exodus of refugees from Soviet religious persecution}}).

{{Anchor|Doctrine|Doctrines|Ideology|Philosophies|Philosophy|Movements|Movement|Fields|Field}}{{shortcut|MOS:MOVEMENT|MOS:MVT|MOS:DOCTCAPS|MOS:IDEOLOGY|MOS:FIELD}}
Doctrines, ideologies, philosophies, theologies, theories, movements, methods, processes, systems or schools of thought and practice, and fields of academic study or professional practice are {{em|not}} capitalized, unless the name derives from a proper name. E.g., lowercase ''republican'' refers to a general system of political thought ({{xt|republican sentiment in Ireland}}); uppercase ''Republican'' is used in reference to [[Republican Party (disambiguation)|specific political parties]] with this word in their names (each being a proper-noun phrase) in various countries ({{xt|a Democratic versus Republican Party stalemate in the US Senate}}). Nevertheless, watch for idiom, especially a usage that has become disconnected from the original doctrinal/systemic referent and is often lower-cased in sources (in which case, do not capitalize): [[Platonic idealism|{{xt|Platonic idealism}}]] but {{xt|a [[Platonic love|platonic]] relationship}}; {{xt|the [[Draconian constitution]] of Athens}} but {{xt|complained of draconian policies at her workplace}}. Doctrinal topics, canonical religious ideas, and procedural systems that may be traditionally capitalized within a faith or field are given in lower case in Wikipedia, such as {{xt|a virgin birth}}, {{xt|original sin}}, {{xt|transubstantiation}}, and {{xt|method acting}}.

==Science and mathematics==
{{Shortcut|MOS:SCIMATH}}
In the names of scientific and mathematical concepts, only proper names (or words derived from them) should be capitalized: ''[[Hermitian matrix]]'' or ''[[Lorentz transformation]]'', ''[[Down syndrome]]''. However, some conventionalized exceptions exist, such as ''[[abelian group]]'' and ''[[Big Bang]] theory''. In some specialized fields, a [[WP:CHEMPREFIX|character other than the first]] is considered the "first letter" for sentence- and title-case capitalization purposes.

{{crossref|printworthy=|For more guideline material relating to mathematics and sciences, see: [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Dates and numbers]], and [[:Category:Wikipedia Manual of Style (science)]].}}

== Sports, games, and other activities ==
{{shortcut|MOS:SPORTCAPS|MOS:GAMECAPS|MOS:ACTCAPS}}
Trademarked sports and games are capitalized [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Trademarks|like any other trademarks]]. Those that are published works (board games, roleplaying games, video games) are italicized like titles of other major works: {{xt|''Scrabble''}}, {{xt|''Dungeons & Dragons''}}, {{xt|''The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind''}}. Non-stand-alone add-on publications, such as RPG modules and [[Downloadable content|DLCs]] are minor works and take quotation marks. Sport and game rule books and rule sets are also capitalized, italicized works; named chapters within them take quotation marks, and may be given in sentence case or title case as appropriate for the context, as with chapters of other works. {{crossref|(For more information on titles of works, see [[WP:Manual of Style/Titles]].)}} 

Terms relating to trademarked sports, games, and activities are capitalized if they are usually capitalized in the context of this activity: [[ability score]]s in ''Dungeons & Dragons'', card names in ''Magic: The Gathering'', etc. However, generic terms such as {{xt|hit point}}, {{xt|victory point}}, or {{xt|player character}} are not capitalized.

Sports, games, and other activities that are not trademarked or copyrighted are not capitalized (except where one contains a proper name or acronym, or begins a sentence). This includes groups of sports or games ({{xt|winter sports}}, {{xt|carom billiards}}, {{xt|trick-taking card games}}), traditional sports including modern ones ({{xt|field hockey}}, {{xt|triathlon}}, {{xt|BASE jumping}}), traditional games ({{xt|Texas hold 'em poker}}, {{xt|chess}}, {{xt|spin-the-bottle}}), folk and social dances and dance styles ({{xt|{{lang|pl|kołomyjka}}}}, {{xt|Viennese waltz}}, {{xt|line dancing}}), and other such group and solo activities ({{xt|flash mob}}, {{xt|hackathon}}, {{xt|birthday party}}, {{xt|workout}}, {{xt|biology class}}, {{xt|political rally}}, {{xt|binge-watch}}, {{xt|speed dating}}, {{xt|tweeting}}).

Likewise, venue types, sports equipment, game pieces, rules, moves, techniques, jargon, and other terms relating to sports, games, and activities are given in lower case and without special stylization such as italics (with the standard exceptions; e.g., capitalize proper names, italicize non-English words): {{xt|football pitch}}, {{xt|pool cue}}, {{xt|queen of diamonds}}, {{xt|infield fly rule}}, [[Lutz jump|{{xt|triple Lutz}}]], {{xt|semi-{{lang|fr|massé}}}}, {{xt|spear tackle}}).

There are occasional, conventionalized variances, e.g.:
* The names of standard [[chess openings]] are capitalized ({{xt|Queen's Gambit}}, {{xt|Neo-Grünfeld Defence}}).{{efn|Chess openings are usually capitalized even in non-specialist works such as newspapers and novels, and near-universally in chess-specific ones, so this meets the Wikipedia "consistently capitalized in a substantial majority of independent, reliable sources" standard.}}
* The name of the game [[Go (game)|Go]] is capitalized.{{efn|Reliable sources conventionally capitalize ''Go'' because of readability issues given the common English verb ''go''.}}
* The [[McTwist|{{xt|McTwist}}]], an aerial skateboarding move, is named for its inventor, [[Mike McGill]], and would be confusing as "{{!xt|mctwist}}".{{efn|{{xt|McTwist}} is consistent with [[camel case]] treatment of similar words derived from ''Mc-'' names, e.g., [[McJob|{{xt|McJob}}]], [[McMansion|{{xt|McMansion}}]].}}
* [[Olympic Games|{{xt|Olympic[s]}}]] and [[Paralympic Games|{{xt|Paralympic[s]}}]] are capitalized, including when used as adjectives.

Specific competition titles and events (or series thereof) are capitalized if they are usually capitalized in independent sources: {{xt|WPA World Nine-ball Championship}}, {{xt|Tour de France}}, {{xt|Americas Cup}}.  Generic usage is not: {{xt|a three-time world champion}}, {{xt|international tournaments}}. None take italics or other special markup.

The above rules of thumb should also be applied to [[WP:Manual of Style/Glossaries|glossary entries]]; they are collectively an exception to the general practice of starting all list items with a capital letter, since upper-casing them all confuses readers as to which are proper names. {{crossref|(For our most-developed example of a glossary article, see [[Glossary of cue sports terms]].)}}

There are also three related naming-conventions guidelines:
{{block indent|{{flat list|
* [[WP:Naming conventions (sports teams)]]
* [[WP:Naming conventions (sportspeople)]]
* [[WP:Naming conventions (video games)]]
}}}}

Various [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Directory/Culture/Games|games-]] and [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Directory/Culture/Sports|sports-related wikiprojects]] also provide [[WP:PROJPAGE|advice essays]] that often include topical style, naming, and layout tips. (However, many aren't well-maintained, and may conflict with some current guideline and policy wording; remember that they are essays.)

==Capitalization of ''The''==
{{shortcut|MOS:THECAPS}}
{{See also|Wikipedia:Naming conventions (definite or indefinite article at beginning of name)}}

Do not ordinarily capitalize the definite article after the first word of a sentence;{{efn|name=Sentence case}} however, some idiomatic expressions, including the titles of artistic and academic works, should be quoted exactly, according to common usage.

:''Correct (generic)'': {{xt|an article about the [[United Kingdom]]}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|an article about [[The United Kingdom]]}} (a redirect){{pb}}
:''Correct (title)'': {{xt|J. R. R. Tolkien wrote ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|J. R. R. Tolkien wrote ''the [[Lord of the Rings]]''.}} (a redirect){{pb}}
:''Correct (title)'': {{xt|Homer wrote the ''[[Odyssey]]''.}}
:''Incorrect'':  {{!xt|Homer wrote ''[[The Odyssey]]''.}} (a redirect){{pb}}
:''Correct (exception)'': {{xt|public transport in [[The Hague]]}}{{efn|1=The capitalized ''The'' in [[The Hague]] is an exception because virtually all reliable sources consistently make this exception, and it is listed in major off-Wikipedia style guides and dictionaries as conventionally spelled this way.}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|public transport in the [[Hague]]}} (a redirect){{pb}}
:''Correct'': {{xt|weather in [[the Bahamas]]}}
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|weather in [[The Bahamas]]}}{{pb}}
:''Correct (exception)'': {{xt|competed in [[The Open Championship]]}} (a specific golf tournament conventionally styled this way)
:''Incorrect'': {{!xt|competed in [[The British Open]]}} (a redirect from a description, not a name)

This also applies to indefinite articles (''a'', ''an''): [[System of a Down|{{xt|System of a Down}}]] not {{!xt|System of A Down}}. Other than titles of works, proper names starting with a required indefinite article that would be exceptions, like [[A Split-Second|{{xt|A Split-Second}}]], are very rare.

There are special considerations for: [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Music#Names (definite article)|band names]] &middot;&nbsp;[[MOS:THEINST|institution names]] &middot;&nbsp;[[MOS:NICKNAMETHE|nicknames]] &middot;&nbsp;[[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Titles#Indefinite and definite articles|titles of works]] &middot;&nbsp;[[MOS:TMTHE|trademarks]].

==Titles of people==
{{Main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Biography#Titles of people}}

*'''In generic use''', apply lower case to words such as ''president'', ''king'', and ''emperor'' ({{xt|De Gaulle was a French president}}; {{xt|Louis XVI was a French king}}; {{xt|Three prime ministers attended the conference}}).
*'''Directly juxtaposed with the person's name''', such words begin with a capital letter ({{xt|President Obama}}, not {{!xt|president Obama}}). Standard or commonly used names of an office are treated as proper names ({{xt|David Cameron was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom}}; {{xt|Hirohito was Emperor of Japan}}; {{xt|Louis XVI was King of France}}). Royal styles are capitalized ({{xt|Her Majesty}}; {{xt|His Highness}}); exceptions may apply for particular offices.

==Titles of works==
{{Anchor|Composition titles|reason=Old, music-specific heading name.}}
{{Main|WP:Manual of Style/Titles of works#Capital letters}}

In English-language titles, every word is capitalized, except for [[Article (grammar)|articles]], short coordinating conjunctions, and short prepositions. The first and last words within a title (and within a subtitle) are capitalized regardless of their grammatical role. This is known as [[title case]]. Capitalization of non-English titles varies by language. 

This is not applied to Wikipedia's own articles, which are given in [[sentence case]]:{{efn|name=Sentence case}} capitalize the first letter, and proper names (e.g., [[List of cohomology theories]], [[Foreign policy of the Hugo Chávez administration]]).

==Trademarks==
{{Anchor|TMCAPS}}
{{main|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Trademarks}}
{{Shortcut|MOS:TMCAPS}}

For trademarks, editors should choose among styles already in common use (not invent new ones) and, among those, use the style that most closely resembles standard English text formatting and capitalization rules. For trademarks that are given in mixed or non-capitalization by their owners (such as [[Adidas|{{!xt|adidas}}]]), follow the formatting and capitalization used by [[WP:Identifying and using independent sources|independent]] reliable sources.  When sources are mixed, follow the standard formatting and capitalization used for [[Proper name (linguistics)|proper names]] (in this case, as in most, {{xt|Adidas}}). The mixed or non-capitalized formatting should be mentioned in the article lead, or illustrated with a graphical logo.

Trademarks beginning with a one-letter lowercase prefix pronounced as a separate letter, followed by a capitalized second letter, such as [[iPod]] and [[eBay]], are written in that form if this has become normal English usage for that name. For considerations relating to such items, see {{section link||Items that require initial lower case}} above and {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Trademarks|Trademarks that begin with a lowercase letter}}.

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Style wide}}

[[Category:Wikipedia Manual of Style (formatting)]]