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.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
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.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
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.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
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.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. You advise capitalizing the shared generic term in topographical names (“the Illinois and the Chicago Rivers,” CMOS 8.53). Do you advise the same for other things, such as churches (“the Anglican, Armenian, and Catholic Churches”) and parties (“the Democratic and Republican Parties”)?
A. Yes, Chicago’s rule for rivers, mountains, and the like would normally extend to other types of proper nouns—including the names of political divisions (CMOS 8.51), streets (CMOS 8.56), and buildings and monuments (CMOS 8.57). As with those categories, the rule would apply to churches and parties only when each of the formal names (or sometimes a shorter version thereof) incorporates the generic term, capitalized as part of the name—the Anglican Church, the Democratic Party (in the US), and so forth.
As rules go, however, this one is pretty arbitrary. It took three editions of CMOS to settle on a recommendation for the plural forms of topographical divisions. The 14th edition introduced the current recommendation (which had formerly applied only when the generic term preceded the names: Lakes Erie and Huron)—only to have it reversed for the 15th and then (after an in-house poll and input from readers) reinstated for the 16th. As for churches and parties, these weren’t capitalized even for singular entities until the 14th edition (the 13th listed “Republican party”; its Democratic counterpart was absent from the list). So a preference for lowercase wouldn’t be unreasonable—particularly for churches and parties. Just be consistent.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Hi there! Does Chicago style capitalize animal breeds such as “pit bull” and “goldendoodle”? Thanks in advance!
A. For the common names of animals (as opposed to the binomial scientific name, in which the genus is always capitalized: e.g., Canis familiaris, for the domestic dog), you can usually limit capitalization to any proper nouns and adjectives that are part of the name (see CMOS 8.128). But check Merriam-Webster for exceptions, because the names of some breeds may be capitalized.
Merriam-Webster lists “pit bull” but “goldendoodle or Goldendoodle”; in the case of such equal variants (which M-W separates with “or”), Chicago recommends choosing the first-listed one, so you can write “goldendoodle.”
Professional organizations typically capitalize the names of officially recognized breeds—including the goldendoodle (a cross between a golden retriever and a poodle) and, for example, the American pit bull terrier (a specific breed of the pit bull type)—and some writers copy this usage (i.e., American Pit Bull Terrier), but unless it’s the first-listed form in M-W, it’s not Chicago style.
The choice won’t always be so clear. For example, another poodle hybrid, the labradoodle, is listed as “often capitalized” in M-W. The first part of the name is borrowed from the Labrador retriever, which in turn derives its name from the Canadian region that lends its name to the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. You could defend a preference for “Labradoodle,” then, on the principle that it’s derived from a proper name.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Do you capitalize both words in “happy birthday”?
A. Not always. To describe the act of wishing someone a happy birthday, neither term is capitalized. To name the traditional song, both words are capitalized: “Happy Birthday to You,” or “Happy Birthday.” In dialogue (as in a published novel or story), the first term would normally be capitalized at the beginning of a sentence: “Happy birthday, Rhoda!” But in a personal greeting, you can style it however you wish: Happy Birthday! 🎈🎈🎈 (birthday-themed emoji optional).
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I have a question regarding an episode my fiction author mentions quite a few times in her story. She’s currently italicizing it: the incident. I think caps would be better: the Incident (“the” not capped). Or would “the” be capped in this case?
A. Italics would work well for the occasional emphasis: “Did you hear about the incident?” But to immortalize an event—especially if the desired effect is irony (or tragicomedy)—we agree that capitalization would be the better choice. As for the initial article, Chicago would normally recommend lowercase “the” for events that occur in real life—for example, the Great Fire of London (see CMOS 8.75)—but the point of a single capital I for a solitary common noun that wouldn’t normally be capitalized risks being lost on readers. To take full advantage of the opportunity for humor (or pathos), you would be justified in making a reasonable departure from Chicago style and referring to The Incident.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Permission forms sometimes use ALL CAPS for authors, titles, or copyright holders—for example, “All Rights Controlled and Administered by [MUSIC PUBLISHER].” Must a credit line copy that style? Changing to italic title capitalization seems acceptable where all caps were used in place of italics in a title, but what about names?
A. There is no meaningful difference between “MUSIC PUBLISHER” and “Music Publisher” in a published credit line, so no, you are not obligated to apply all caps to a name that does not ordinarily require such treatment. Nor are you obligated to use headline-style capitalization for the rest of the statement, which is technically a sentence. So, to follow Chicago, you would style your example as follows: “All rights controlled and administered by Music Publisher.” But be sure to retain all caps for names (or elements thereof) that are always so styled: “EMI Blackwood Music Inc.” If you are unsure of the correct capitalization for a given entity, follow the style in the rightsholder’s permission form, all caps or not.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I am writing a report for a corporate client describing his construction project. When not using the formal name of the project, he insists that I refer to it as “the Project,” where the word “Project” is capitalized. That does not bother me. But when an adjective precedes the word “project,” it strikes me as odd to maintain the capitalization. For example, “this redevelopment Project.” Does Chicago have a recommendation about capitalization in these two instances?
A. Presumably “the Project” has been defined at first use—for example,
The project for redevelopment of the brownfield area at the intersection of Street St. and N. Avenue (“the Project”), which consists of . . .
After that, to refer to the “redevelopment Project” would be redundant. So the best course is simply to replace “this redevelopment Project” with “the Project.” Any additional details can be added after the term (or incorporated into the original definition of the term). (It should perhaps be noted that, outside of certain legal or corporate contexts, Chicago style would normally call for lowercase “project.”)
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]