Proper noun
From Halbeeg, the open encyclopedia · Af-Soomaali
59 languages
A proper noun is a grammatical category that names a single specific person, place, or entity rather than a class or general category. Examples include "Mogadishu", "Shabeelle", and "Fadumo", which are proper nouns, whereas "city", "river", and "girl" are common nouns.
The distinction between proper and common nouns is one of the basic divisions of grammar in many languages. Linguists describe the proper noun as having a direct reference tied to a single entity, and therefore it typically requires no modifying article or number.
Grammatical features
Proper nouns are typically not counted (they do not take plural forms) and do not regularly take demonstrative words such as 'this' or 'that'. When a proper noun is used generically—for example, "there are two Muhammads in the class"—it may acquire some features of a common noun.
Writing and capitalization
Languages using the Latin alphabet, including Somali, begin proper nouns with a capital letter. This is a writing convention that helps distinguish proper nouns from common nouns when reading. Some languages, such as Arabic, lack a distinction between capital and lowercase letters, and rely instead on other grammatical means, such as the absence of the definite article.
Types
Proper nouns are divided in various ways: personal names (given names and family names), place names (toponyms) such as cities, rivers, and mountains, names of organizations and companies, and names of specific times such as months and days in certain languages. There are also multi-word proper nouns, such as "Maydh Island".