Capitalization

Capitalization is the writing of a word with its first letter in uppercase and the remaining letters in lowercase.

Rules for capitalization 

Rule 1. Capitalize the first word of a document and the first word after a period.

Rule 2. Capitalize proper nouns—and adjectives derived from proper nouns.

      Examples

      Correct: He grew up in Texas, USA

      Incorrect: He grew up in texas, usa

      Correct: The Mexican boy
       Incorrect: The mexican boy

   Capitalization Reference List

• Brand names
• Companies
• Days of the week and months of the year
• Governmental matters
• Historical episodes and eras
• Institutions
• Natural and man-made landmarks
• Planets
• Races, nationalities, and tribes
• Religions
• Special occasions
• Streets and roads

Rule 3. Capitalize titles when they are used before names, unless the title is followed by a comma. Do not capitalize the title if it is used after a name or instead of a name.

    Example  The president will address Congress

Rule 4. Titles are not the same as occupations. Do not capitalize occupations before full names.

    Examples

• coach Gopichandh 
• manger Debjani Ghosh 
• owner Mohandas

Rule 5. Capitalize relatives' family names (kinship names) when they immediately precede a personal name, or when they are used alone in place of a personal name.                                             

    Examples 

• You look good, Grandpa.
• I found out that Mon is here 
• Anvin and Vian loved Aunt Bee's apple pies.

Rule 6. Capitalize specific geographical regions

   Examples

• We had three relatives visit from the West. 
• We left Florida and drove north. 
• We live in the Southeast 
• Most of the West Coast is rainy this time of year.

Rule 7. Always capitalize the first word in a complete quotation, even mid sentence.                                 
    Example  Jaya said, "They are in the stadium".   

Rule 8. Do not capitalize "the national anthem."

Rule 9. Do not capitalize the first item in a list that follows a colon. 
   Example  Bring the following: paper, a pencil, and a scale.

Rule 10. Many books have subtitles. When including these, put a colon after the work's title and follow the same rules of composition capitalization for the subtitle.                                                      

     Example The King's English: A Guide to Modern Usage  

Note that A is capitalized because it is the first word of the subtitle.