The Use of the English Definite Article with Proper Nouns

Jan 4, 2012
Tanja Batista

Cambridge University - foshie

Learn how to use the definite article with proper nouns.

Each time we use a noun in English, we have to decide whether we should use an article with it or not. If we decide that an article is necessary, we then also have to decide which one—the indefinite (a, an) or the definite article (the). We usually use the definite article before a noun when our reader or listener knows (or will soon know) which particular person, place or thing we are talking about.

If you want to improve the knowledge of articles in English, then you should carefully study their rules of use. Students who memorize most of the rules have less trouble understanding and using the articles. Learners often make mistakes in this field of grammar because they don't know or haven't mastered the rules, or they haven't learned the fixed expressions. It is also important to remember that some of the rules are very generalizing, and there are always exceptions.

This article will help you understand the use of the definite article with proper nouns. Nouns name people, places and things. A proper noun names a specific item and begins with a capital letter.

Personal Names

A person's own name already sufficiently defines that person; we do NOT use the. Before a personal name, we can also have social, professional, military and religious status words; we still do NOT use the:

Tanja / Davis / James Dean / Ms Batista / Mr James / Lord Byron / Princess Diana / President Obama /Professor Stallone / Nurse Jolie / Captain Cook / Father Swayze / Sister Goldberg

an exception: the Reverend (Rev) Stanley Black

We also refer to a whole family in the plural with the:

the Presleys

Personal Titles without a Person's Name

These usually have a prepositional phrase in them. The comes before the title even when the prepositional phrase is left out:

the Count of Monte Cristo / the Dean (of the Faculty) / the Prince of Wales / the Queen

Unique Items

Unique items (when there is only one of something) such as works of art, natural phenomena, and famous buildings are also proper nouns. Use the with them:

the Bible / the Koran / the Vatican / the Eiffel Tower / the Mona Lisa / the Golden Gate Bridge / the sun / the moon / the Unfinished Symphony

Many names (especially names of important buildings and institutions) are two words. When the first word is usually the name of a person or place, we do NOT use the:

Kennedy Airport / Oxford University / London Zoo / Buckingham Palace / Canterbury Cathedral

The Calendar

The names of the seven days of the week and the twelve months of the year are all proper nouns. They do NOT take the:

Monday / Friday / Sunday / November / June / March

Don't forget that the seasons of the year are not proper nouns BUT common nouns; do NOT use the with them:

spring / summer / autumn (North America uses the word ''fall'') / winter

Special (festive) days do NOT require the:

Christmas / Easter / New Year's Day / Independence Day / Ramadan / Labour Day / Thanksgiving

However, do remember that we use the when a day, month or season has a defining phrase or clause after it:

the Christmas before Don was born / the November of 1976 / the first Sunday in July / the summer of '69

Newspapers and Magazines

The names of newspapers usually have the, especially if the names of newspapers are single countable nouns:

The Times / The Washington Post / The Globe and Mail / The Guardian / the Oregonian / the Northwest Explorer

The names of magazines often don't use the, especially when the name of a magazine is an abstract noun or when the common noun is premodified by a proper name in the possessive case:

Life / Vogue / Cosmopolitan / New Scientist / Playboy / Marie Claire / Men's Health / Science and Art / Harper's Magazine

Names of Companies, Airports and Airlines

These do NOT take the:

Sony / Kodak / British Airways / Adria Airways / Toyota / Peugeot / Kennedy Airport / Heathrow Airport

Streets, Roads, Squares, Parks

Named streets in cities, towns and villages do NOT require the. In addition to the word Street, the English language uses a lot of terms that refer to streets, such as Avenue, Square, Crescent, Gardens, Terrace, Place, Way.

Oxford Street / Fifth Avenue / Mayfield Way / Belmont Circle

Squares and parks also do NOT require the:

Hyde Park / Central Park / Trafalgar Square / Times Square

There are a few streets in almost every city or town that take the, but without the word Street:

the Strand / the Haymarket (both are in London)

Public Places

Cinemas, theatres, clubs, museums, galleries, restaurants, pubs, libraries and the like usually take the except when it is a person's name in the possessive form:

the Odeon Cinema / the Royal London Hospital / the British Museum / the Tate Gallery / the Savoy Hotel / the Hard Rock Cafe / the Westminister Library / the Blind Beggar (pub) / Claridge's (restaurant) / White's Theatre / the Black Cat Club

Note that many shops, department stores, hotels, banks, etc. are named after the people who started them. These names end in 's or –s. Don't use the:

Lloyds Bank / McDonalds / Harrods

Also note that you should not use the with churches named after saints + the possessive 's:

St Paul's Cathedral

Continents, Countries, Cities and Towns

We do NOT normally use the with these; however, there are a few exceptions:

Continents: Africa / Europe / Antarctica
Countries: Slovenia / Canada / England
Cities, towns: New York / Ljubljana / Bath

Exceptions are : the Hague / the Netherlands / the Argentine or Argentina / the Antarctic or Antarctica

Use the with place names when they include the of phrase and/or a countable noun eg. union, republic, states, kingdom.

the Soviet Union / the United States of America / the United Kingdom (the UK) / the Dominican Republic

It is also good to know that the precedes the names of many regions:

the Balkans / the Midlands / the Middle East

Mountains, Mountain Ranges, Deserts and Islands

Mountain peaks are generally used with the:

Mount Everest / Mont Blanc

But: the Jungfrau and the Matterhorn (two exceptions)

The is also used before the names of mountain ranges:

the Rockies / the Andes / the Alps

All deserts take the:

the Sahara (Desert) / the Kalahari (Desert) / the Mojave Desert

You should use the before the names of groups of islands and also before the names of single islands when the word isle (island) precedes:

the British Isles / the Bahamas / the Isle of Man / the Isle of Wight

Individual islands don't use the:

Crete / Capri / Long Island

Lakes, Oceans, Rivers, Seas

Lakes usually don't take the:

Lake Bled / Lake Geneva

an exception : the Crater Lake

The also precedes the names of all oceans, rivers and seas:

the Atlantic Ocean / the Adriatic Sea / the Amazon River / the Thames

Channels, canals and straits generally take the:

the English Channel / the Suez Canal / the Straits of Dover

With the names of bays and gulfs there are a few rules to remember. When the name of a bay or gulf includes an of phrase, the is obligatory:

the Gulf of Mexico / the Bay of Biscay

Otherwise, we use the only before national adjective + Gulf:

the Arabian Gulf / the Persian Gulf

When a common or a personal (possessive noun) precedes the word Bay, we do NOT use the:

Thunder Bay / Goose Bay / Amundsen's Bay / Hudson's Bay

Languages

The name of a language is a proper noun and singular. In English we do NOT use the when the names of languages are not followed by the noun language:

English / Portuguese

However, we can say: the English language, the Spanish language etc. in which English and Spanish are adjectives.

Historical Events and Documents

Historical events and documents are considered unique; therefore, they usually take the. However, when there is a personal possessive noun in the name of a historical event or document, then we do NOT use the:

the Middle Ages / the Industrial Revolution / the Gettysburg Address / Victoria's Jubilee

Nationalities

The is also used before proper names in the plural denoting whole nations:

the French / the Portuguese / the English / the Swiss

The above words all end in -sh, -ch, or –ese. With such nationality words, you should always use the.

With other nationalities, we use a plural noun ending in –s with or without the:

the Canadians / the Germans / the Indians or
Canadians / Germans / Indians

Ships and Trains

The is used before the names of ships and trains:

the Titanic / the Orient-Express

Formally, British Navy ships take HMS (Her/His Majesty's Ship) without the.

HMS Thunder

The English often pronounce articles in a weak form, so learners (especially the beginners) quite often fail to recognise them in speech. Therefore, learners who listen to a lot of spoken English but who rarely read English texts may be at a disadvantage in learning how articles are used. By reading a lot of English texts and memorizing a lot of idiomatic expressions in which articles appear, you will definitely improve your knowledge of English in this area of English grammar.

Source:

Murphy, Raymond. English Grammar in Use: A Self-Study Reference and Practice Book for Intermediate Students. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1994