Proper nouns

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• 1 Proper nouns: Personal names
• 2 Proper nouns: Organizational names

A proper noun is a noun that represents a unique entity in the category of person, place or thing. It is distinguished from a common noun, which is not unique. In English and most Latin-based languages, proper nouns are capitalized, regardless of their placement in a sentence. Common nouns are only capitalized if the capitalization is required by other rules governing capitalization.

A temporary proper noun occurs when a common noun is paired with a number or other word to create a name specific to the instance. It is then referred to as a specific designator.

COMMON NOUN: The patient was placed on the fifth floor of the main hospital building.
SPECIFIC DESIGNATOR: The patient was placed on Floor 5 of the main hospital building.