Personal names

Capitalize the names and initials of all real or fictitious people.

Exemple adequatDavid Bohm
Exemple adequatJoanot Martorell
Exemple adequatSilence Dogood


Many names contain articles, prepositions, conjunctions or other particles (for example, de, d’, de la, the, lo, el, la, i, y, von, van, etc.). English, Catalan and Spanish names tend to lowercase these elements. Therefore:


Exemple adequatXavier de Bofarull
Exemple adequatWalter de la Mare
Exemple adequatAlexander the Great


Exemple adequatTirant lo Blanc
Exemple adequatAntoni Rovira i Virgili
Exemple adequatSantiago Ramón y Cajal


However, capitalize the particle when a person is referred to by the surname and the particle is in initial position.

Exemple adequatThe writer D’Ors often used the pseudonym Xènius.

Universitat de Barcelona. Serveis Lingüístics
Darrera actualització: 24-7-2023
Recommended citation:
«Personal names» [en línia]. A: Llibre d’estil de la Universitat de Barcelona. Barcelona: Universitat de Barcelona. Serveis Lingüístics. <https://www.ub.edu/llibre-estil/criteri.php?id=3000> [consulta: 26 abril 2024].