First Published: 16th of November, 2021.
Last updated: November 16, 2021 at 17:48 pmA reader of my blog, after reading the article, Capitalization and School Subjects, contacted me via email with the following inquiry:
Dear Mr. Carper,
I have just found your website on the Internet and I really hope that you can help me and supply an answer to my question (it’s about a bet with an author of English school books for Austrian children):
Has there ever been a time when standard school subjects (math, geography, etc. – apart from languages like French, Italian, etc.) were written with an initial capital letter in English (Math, Geography, etc.)?
Thank you much for your very much appreciated answer in advance.
Yours sincerely,
Christian Danzmair
Linz/Austria
My Response
Hi Christian,
Thanks for reaching out. Not that I know about, but then again, I don’t know everything. So many weird things have been happening in the English Language that it’s still possible that the rule changed from time to time in some countries, but I can assure you that it never happened in Canada where I got most of my English education. All in all, it’s very unlikely since it would have to be officially documented and remnants of that rule would still be found – but I haven’t found any.
I think the confusion might have come about because school subjects are often used in a listed item format, and these tend to be capitalized. Example: Science students will study the following subjects:
- Mathematics
- English
- Geography
- Physics
- French
Also, when writing up timetables, because the subject stands alone, the first letter is capitalized, and that might lead people to subconsciously think that the first letter is usually capitalized. Naturally, we also capitalize the first letter when it comes at the start of the sentence.
So:
Mathematics is my favorite subject.
But:
I hate mathematics.
In high school, I studied French, English, physics, and mathematics.
But:
In high school, I studied:
French
English
Physics
Mathematics.
Based on these factors, it’s easy for someone, without having learned the official rule, to think that school subjects need to be capitalized. And logically, it does seem so, as it fits the requirements for being a proper noun.
However, the rule is the rule, and if we want to excel at English, we have to follow the rules. You may find this article interesting: https://patrickcarpen.com/english/discussions/even-the-university-gets-it-wrong-sometimes/
Cheers
