NGS Style Manual
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NGS Style Manual - N - |
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See main entries for names of individuals and organizations, trade names, etc. See also Aircraft; Company Names; Estates and Houses; Foreign Terms; Nicknames of Persons; Place-names; Royalty and Nobility; Scientific Nomenclature; Titles of Articles; Titles of Art, Literary and Musical Works; and Titles of Persons.
| 1. | Personal Names: Give a person's full name on first reference in text and in legends. Either the first or last name can be used on subsequent mention depending on the tone of text, but be consistent throughout an article. For spellings of names of historical figures, consult Webster's Biographical Dictionary or the biographical appendix to Webster's Collegiate. See also individual entries in the manual for specific names. Jr., Sr.: Preceded and followed by comma in full name: Scott R. Wyerman, Jr. (left), went to . . . ; but Scott Jr. hurried. . . . Omit commas with Roman numerals attached to names: Joel Bourne III arrived. Titles, Honorifics, and Military Ranks: With exceptions noted in Abbreviations, section 9, abbreviate these on first appearance when full name is used. On subsequent appearance, spell out in full (except for Dr., Mr., M., Mme, Mlle) with last name only. Do not use Mr., Miss, Mrs., or Ms. with full name. See also Military Ranks. Family Relationships: For styling with uncle, mother, etc., see Family Relationships. Middle Initials: Follow the preference of the individual. A few persons use no period with the initial: W J McGee. Put the period in Harry S. Truman. Plurals of Names: Add s or es; do not change y to i before the ending. |
| the Joneses (not Jones or Jones') the Joneses' house two Charleses | two Johnnys the Smiths the two Mary Lous |
| 2. | Foreign Personal Names: Use roman type. If the meaning of a name is given, capitalize the translation without quotes: Hsu Yuen-yue Capitalization of particles, such as de, du, la, von, varies, depending on the preference of the individual. If this cannot be ascertained, lowercase the particle (except for La, Le, Les in French names) with the full name or surname only. Occasionally the particle is dropped entirely. |
| Vasco da Gama, da Gama Charles de Gaulle, de Gaulle Comte de Grasse, de Grasse Michel de Montaigne, Montaigne Marquis de Montcalm, Montcalm Duc de La Rochefoucauld, La Rochefoucauld Ludwig van Beethoven, Beethoven Vincent van Gogh, van Gogh Wernher von Braun, Von Braun Friedrich von Schiller, Schiller |
| See also Spanish Surnames, Portuguese Surnames, Chinese Names and Terms, Japanese Personal Names, and India, Personal Names. |
| 3. | Organizations, Agencies, Schools, Companies, etc.: For organizations, incorporated or not, it is unnecessary to give the exact name if a clear and simpler name is available: Future Farmers of America, Future Farmers (for National Future Farmers of America Organization); Ford and General Motors (for Ford Motor Company and General Motors Corporation). Use discretion in shortening. When an organization plays an important part in an article, include the full name at least once. Lowercase the despite the institution's own usage: the American University; the White House; the Nature Conservancy (TNC), the Conservancy. |
| 4. | Plants and Animals: Developed varieties of plants take initial caps: the prize iris Wedding Bouquet, Red Delicious apples. As a general rule, for breeds of animals, capitalize any part of the name that derives from a proper noun: a Boston bull, the Holstein cow, but arctic hare. Names given to pets or wild animals take initial caps and no quotes: Mary Crocodile, Koko. Lowercase numbered groups or individuals: group 817, male 204, herd 111, bull number 55. See also Scientific Nomenclature. |
| 5. | Tribes and Peoples: Generally follow first spelling in Webster's for North and South American Indians. For tribal plurals do not add s: Comanche, Cuna, Shoshone, Aztec, Maya; for individuals, s may be added: three Comanches. But a Blackfeet, the Blackfeet Nation, the Blackfeet in U.S. context. For other peoples follow Webster's or individual Style Manual entries. |
| 6. | Ships and Boats: Ship and boat names in text are in italics with initial caps. The use of the with ship and boat names depends on readability and personal preference. Possessives take italic apostrophe plus roman s; plurals add italic s. If foreign name and translation are given, use same typeface for both. Do not italicize U.S.S., H.M.S., M.V., etc. Nicknames of ships and boats carry initial caps, roman, no quotation marks. |
| Mayflower II, Queen Elizabeth 2, QE2 U.S.S. Missouri, the Missouri's stern, Mighty Mo the two previous Yankees the Fighting Lady (carrier Lexington) Old Ironsides (U.S.S. Constitution) Nuestra Seņora de los Milagros His Majesty's Armed Vessel (H.M.A.V.) Bounty |