User:Rupert Clayton/Proposal for MOS:INSTITUTIONS
Capitalization for Board of Aldermen, etc.
[edit]Here's my proposal for a revision to MOS:INSTITUTIONS (changes in purple). I am very open to discussing the exact rules we're going to set, how to phrase them, and the choice of examples:
- Full names of institutions, organizations, companies, etc. are proper nouns and require capitals.
Correct (proper noun): Northern Ireland's Department of Justice was established in 2010. Correct (proper noun): The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has 11 members. Incorrect (no caps for descriptive terms): The Parliament of Iceland is called the Althing. Correct (descriptive): The parliament of Iceland is called the Althing.
- Short names used to refer to a specific organization and consistently capitalized in reliable generalist sources should also be treated as a proper noun and capitalized. Use the full name instead if using a short name would lead to ambiguity, such as on first reference, or where there is another similarly named organization. Where a short term is merely descriptive, do not capitalize it.
Correct (proper nouns): The headquarters building of the U.S. Justice Department was designed by Milton Bennett Medary.
The Justice Department's budget for Fiscal Year 2015 is approximately $21 billion.Correct (proper noun): The Board of Supervisors has 11 members. Incorrect (ambiguous): City leaders in Milwaukee and Chicago supported the initiative. The Common Council voted 10 to 5 in favor. Correct (use full name for clarity): City leaders in Milwaukee and Chicago supported the initiative. The Milwaukee Common Council voted 10 to 5 in favor. Incorrect (don't capitalize descriptive terms): In Tennessee the State Legislature has the power to decide a contested gubernatorial election. Correct (use lower case): In Tennessee the state legislature has the power to decide a contested gubernatorial election. Correct (or the correct name): In Tennessee the General Assembly has the power to decide a contested gubernatorial election.
- Common nouns used as short names for institutions, organizations, companies, etc. do not take capitals (university, college, hospital, high school) :
Incorrect (don't capitalize common nouns): The University offers programs in arts and sciences. Correct (use lower case): The university offers programs in arts and sciences. Correct (or a proper noun): The University of Delhi offers programs in arts and sciences. Correct (common noun): The department's budget is approximately $21 billion.. Correct (common noun): The board has 11 members. Correct (common noun): The council voted to declare February 29 a public holiday.
- Avoid ambiguous common nouns such as "city" or "state" to indicate a governing body. Write clearly to indicate the city council, the state legislature or the state government.
- The word the at the start of a title is uncapitalized, regardless of the institution's own usage (researchers at the Ohio State University not researchers at The Ohio State University).
- 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).
- Political or geographical units such as cities, towns, and countries follow the same rules: As proper nouns they require capitals; but as generic words and rough descriptions (sometimes best omitted for simplicity) they do not.
Incorrect (generic): The City has a population of 55,000. Correct (generic): The city has a population of 55,000. Correct (title): The City of Smithville has a population of 55,000. Correct ("city" omitted): Smithville has a population of 55,000. Exception ("City" used as proper name for the City of London): In the medieval period, the City was the full extent of London.