Q. Hi, I see that CMOS 8.36 discusses kinship names and when to capitalize versus when to lowercase. I’m wondering about a term like “sir” or “ma’am” used in direct address: “Yes, ma’am” or “Yes, Ma’am”? I think probably the former, but what do you recommend? Thank you.
A. You’re right to prefer lowercase. Terms like “sir” and “ma’am” are almost never used literally as titles these days. Instead they’re more often like common nouns or pronouns, as in “Hello, stranger,” or “Hey, you.” So unless you are transcribing a conversation with Sir Paul McCartney or Dame Judi Dench (two modern celebrities on whom titles have been conferred; see CMOS 8.32), write “Yes, sir” and “Yes, ma’am.” Compare “Greetings, Doctor.” In that case, “Doctor” is a proper noun standing in for a person’s name in the form “Dr. Surname.” But these distinctions can be fuzzy; when in doubt—or to convey a less formal tone—use lowercase.
Q. I see that CMOS 8.155 has “Google Docs” as an example. Would you also cap the singular “Google Doc,” or because it’s not the name of a program and just referring to a document in the Google Docs platform, would it be “Google doc,” akin to “Word doc”?
A. The answer depends on how formal you want to be and whom you are writing for and why. Many writers would consider “doc” to be too casual for formal prose. Unlike “app”—which was considered casual a generation ago but is now a universally accepted synonym for “application” or “program”—“doc” is still listed in Merriam-Webster as an abbreviation only.
But if you do write about docs instead of documents, be consistent. Your suggestion that a Google doc is akin to a Word doc is exactly right. If, on the other hand, you work for Google or you’re describing how to use Google Docs, you might write “Doc” with a capital “D”—as in, “Create a new Google Doc.” (That’s what Google does in its tutorials for teachers.)
Otherwise, refer generally to documents created or edited in Google Docs; ditto for Microsoft Word. This advice extends to spreadsheets created or edited in Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel and to slides created or edited in Google Slides or Microsoft PowerPoint.
Q. Why do you folks at CMOS continue to describe words whose initial letters are capitals as “capitalized.” I suppose it’s easier than the more precise formulation and could be defended as commonly understood—but it’s not. This usage is at best confusing. Words are often truly capitalized, and I’m sure that most English speakers unschooled in CMOS’s peculiar practice will take “capitalized” to mean what it says. And if “France” is said to be “capitalized,” what is “EPA”? Super-capitalized?
A. We, too, like precision. But the first definition of “capitalize” at Merriam-Webster.com is “to write or print with an initial capital or in capitals.” As you suggest, this is especially convenient for people like us who write and maintain a style guide. Rather than being obliged to write “spelled with an initial capital letter” each and every time we refer to the principle, we can simply say “capitalized.” And when we need to distinguish a word like “France” from an abbreviation like “EPA,” we have a handy go-to: the former is merely capitalized whereas the latter is in all caps.
Q. Should the term “Fourth Estate,” as a collective noun for journalism and journalists, be capitalized?
A. Merriam-Webster specifies “often capitalized F&E” in its entry for the term. In citing 1837 as the first known use, M-W is likely referring to the term’s appearance in The French Revolution by Thomas Carlyle. Carlyle wrote “Fourth Estate,” but he capitalized lots of words that would remain lowercase today:
Alas, yes: Speculation, Philosophism, once the ornament and wealth of the saloon, will now coin itself into mere Practical Propositions, and circulate on street and highway, universally; with results! A Fourth Estate, of Able Editors, springs up; increases and multiplies; irrepressible, incalculable. New Printers, new Journals, and ever new (so prurient is the world), let our Three Hundred curb and consolidate as they can! (vol. 1, bk. 6, chap. 5)
This passage could almost be referring to today’s social media—which has been called a Fifth Estate in its role as an additional check on institutional power beyond the traditional press. The initial capitals, though optional, provide a helpful clue that these terms are being used in a special sense. So whereas general references to the historical concept can remain lowercased (“the three estates”), initial capitals are usually appropriate for referring to specific estates (“the Fourth Estate,” “the First and Third Estates”).
Q. Should the word “nation” be capitalized?
A. If you are quoting from the Pledge of Allegiance (to the United States and its flag), then yes. As originally published, on September 8, 1892, in the Youth’s Companion, as part of a Columbus Day program for American schools, the pledge read as follows: “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands: one Nation indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.”
The capital N was retained when the pledge was enacted by Congress into law in 1942, as were the capitals in “Flag” and “Republic”; “Liberty” and “Justice,” however, were demoted to “liberty” and “justice.” The current version retains the 1942 capitalization along with the words “under God” (added by congressional amendment in 1954).
All these capital letters evoke a religious and patriotic sensibility that was typical of a certain brand of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century American prose. They also echo a Germanic influence according to which all nouns are capitalized, a practice that can be seen in English as late as the 1749 publication of Henry Fielding’s The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling.
But unless you are quoting the Pledge of Allegiance or writing a historical novel—or otherwise deliberately invoking a bygone age—write “nation.”
Q. Do you capitalize graduating classes? For example, is it “Class of 2020” or “class of 2020”?
A. We prefer lowercase: “class of 2020.” You’ll see an example at CMOS 9.30, which includes “the class of ’06” as an example demonstrating the proper use of the apostrophe. The original class of ’06 at the University of Chicago was graduating when the first edition of the Manual referred to “the class of ’96” (in paragraph 147, also to show the proper use of the apostrophe)—meaning the class of 1896, not 1996. So this is not a new preference.
Q. Elsewhere in the Q&A you wrote, “The day I was introduced to the The was the day I learned that irony was finished.” This is just wrong and makes no sense whatsoever. To call The The “the The” is absolutely wrong. Further, The Who should be “The Who.” It’s a proper name, and “the Who” is just wrong. Fix this.
A. Some writers would also prefer The Rolling Stones and The Beatles and The Pointer Sisters—and The Grateful Dead and The Mothers of Invention. And maybe even The University of Chicago Press and The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Consistently applied, those look fine, but they’re not Chicago style.
Instead, we treat the definite article as a generic bit of syntax that’s required for some band names and organizations but not for others (Santana, for example). If we extend this logic to the The and the Who, we do so in the spirit of fairness and regardless of official usage—which can be difficult to determine.
But we see your point. Some of the more cleverly nondescript one-word band names risk getting lost outside the context of an album cover without a little help from their editorial friends. So you have our permission to write The The and The Who—and The Band, for that matter. Our rules are not laws. They are meant to be adjusted for the unusual case or to suit a particular context. And that’s The Truth.
Q. Does CMOS weigh in on whether email subject lines should be capitalized in sentence style or headline style?
A. Great question! CMOS doesn’t cover email subject lines, but if we did we’d make a distinction between personal email messages, on the one hand, and formal announcements or mailings, on the other.
For personal messages (even if they’re related to work), sentence style would usually be appropriate. Not only will sentence style come across as less formal than headline style, but it will save the sender the trouble of determining which words get capitalized and which do not.
Subject: Last year’s Halloween party
Formal messages sent out by an organization, on the other hand, may be subject to the same editorial scrutiny that a press release or similar document might get. In that case, Chicago’s version of headline style would be appropriate for organizations that otherwise follow Chicago style (see paragraph 8.159 for the principles of headline-style capitalization).
Subject: Supporting Our Community through the Coronavirus Crisis
Note that not all styles apply headline-style capitalization in the same way. For example, whereas Chicago and MLA lowercase all prepositions in a title (including “through” in the example above), APA and AP capitalize all words of four letters or more. AP further distinguishes between titles mentioned in text and headlines for news stories, prescribing sentence style for the latter. So be sure to review your organization’s style before applying it to formal email subject lines.
Q. I am convinced “the prophet Isaiah” in CMOS 8.93 is a typo. So my question is: Really? Is “prophet” really down in “the prophet Isaiah”? Or “apostle” in “the apostle Paul”? Thank you for your time.
A. It’s not a typo. Chicago lowercases generic descriptive titles, so we advise writing “the prophet Isaiah” or “the apostle Paul” just as we would advise writing “the artist Frida Kahlo” or “German chancellor Angela Merkel” (but “Chancellor Merkel,” in which the title is part of the name; see CMOS 8.21).
On the other hand, Saint Paul is normally referred to as Paul the Apostle, in which case “the Apostle” is part of the name in the same way as “the Great” is for Catherine the Great. But again, you would refer to “the apostle Paul”—for example, in a passing mention of Paul in his role as an apostle.
We realize that terms such as “apostle” and “prophet” are often capitalized more liberally in religious contexts and that many publications develop a house style geared toward a particular subject matter and audience. If that means uppercase for Prophets and Apostles, then you have our blessing.
Q. Greetings, wise ones. I work with a university press; the university itself insists on capitalizing the first “The” in its name, even in running text and with the abbreviated form. I have refused to do this in our books because it flies in the face of house style and looks ridiculous in the context of other university names (“We conducted our research at the University of X, The University of Y [The UY], and the University of Z”). Needless to say, the university itself did not consult its press when developing its style guide. Those authors who are staff members keep “correcting” the lowercase t. Do I have a leg to stand on here? Or do I have to update our style sheet to indicate this exception? (Surely only The Hague gets to keep the capital T?) Grateful for at least sympathy if not vindication.
A. So you work for a school like The New School or The Ohio State University? We understand. The editors at the University of Chicago Press have long had to swallow our stylebook and allow “© [year] by The University of Chicago” on page iv of our books, including The Chicago Manual of Style. Evidently our attorneys want to ensure that some rogue institution calling itself “University of Chicago” doesn’t claim the copyright to our works. Elsewhere in these same books, however, the “the” doesn’t get a capital T (except at the beginning of a sentence or heading—or where all caps have been applied). So your predicament is not quite the same as ours. And whereas outsiders can write about “the Ohio State University”—which reflects the preference for the definite article but doesn’t go so far as to apply the promotional T—you might do well to let your institutional authors have it their way. Life’s too short to fight about such things.