Your questions
When to use capital letters in English
Jutta S. from Grevenbroich writes:
Can you please settle an argument? My colleague says it should be, I am learning english. I think it should be, I am learning English, because ‘English’ is a noun and not an adjective. Who is right?
Answer
It is correct that ‘English’ should be written with a capital ‘e’, so you are right. But the reason is not because it is a noun and not an adjective. It is, of course, correct that proper names are always written with a capital letter. This is the same as in German. But in English, adjectives which are formed from proper names are also written with a capital letter. English is different from German in this respect.
You say:
I like Germans (noun) and also, I like German (adjective) beer;
I speak Italian (noun), and I love Italian (adjective) opera.
When to use capital letters in English
Englische Substantive werden in der Regel klein, manche Adjektive dafür groß geschrieben – ganz anders als im Deutschen. Beeindrucken Sie Ihren Chef und Geschäftspartner mit Ihrer perfekten Groß- und Kleinschreibung.
| the first word in the body of a business letter | Dear Ms Banks Thank you for your reply to my letter. |
| the pronoun “I” | I said I would come. |
| proper nouns | English, Manchester United |
| adjectives derived from proper nouns | the American president, French wine. |
| religious deities, religious figures | God / Shiva / Buddha / holy books Zeus / Muslim / Jewish / Christian / the Bible / the Koran but: the Roman gods. |
| titles before names, but not after names | I met Major Tom Moss. I met Harry Smith, mayor of Littlewood. |
| directions that are used as names (North, South, to describe sections of the country, but not as compass directions) | Bloggs Ltd has moved to the North. We are moving to the Southwest. Our office is twelve miles north of Lincoln. |
| the days of the week and months of the year | We sold a lot during the January sales. I never work on Tuesdays. |
| seasons when they are used in titles | You can see our new Spring Collection at our showroom, but, The new subsidiary opens in spring next year. |
| public holidays | Our office closes at Christmas and Easter but remains open at Halloween. |
| the first word in a sentence that is a direct quote | Someone once said, “Money is the root of all evil.” |
| members of political, racial, social and civic groups | Democrats and Republicans, African- Americans, Friends of the Earth. |
| Words and abbreviations of specific names, except when they are now general types | Freudian, Thatcherism, Marxism, but pasteurize, french fries. |
| Periods and events, but not century numbers | the Great Depression, the First World War, the sixteenth century, the Victorian Era. |
Note: you do not usually use a capital letter after a colon (:).
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