Capitalize the names of countries, regions, counties, cities and other official and specified political, administrative and geographical divisions and topographical features:
- El Salvador
- the Northern Hemisphere
- the International Boundary
- the Prairies
- the Canadian Shield
- the Maritimes
- the Atlantic provinces
- the Ontario Region (sector of government department)
- the Crow’s Nest Pass
- the Grassy Narrows Reserve
- the Pacific
- Lanark County
- Sherbrooke
- Pickle Lake
- Elm Street West
- the Okanagan Valley
- the South Saskatchewan River
- the Northwest Territories
Generic terms
Capitalize a generic term when it is an accepted short form of the proper noun:
- the Continent
- the States
Do not capitalize a generic term such as city, county, state or province when it precedes the proper noun or stands alone, unless it is used in a corporate sense:
- She lives in the city of Regina. (place)
- I have travelled all over the province of Ontario. (place)
- The states of Switzerland are called cantons.
but
- Buy Province of Ontario bonds. (provincial government)
- The City of Regina took him to court. (municipal government)
- The State of New York has revamped its social assistance programs. (state government)
Do not capitalize a generic term used in the plural unless it is part of a geographical name:
- lakes Huron and Ontario
- the Thompson and Fraser rivers
but
- the Rocky Mountains
- the South Seas
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