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own name ( a proper noun) can be the name of a structure, organization, institution, or any other place. In this article, we tried to cover as many proper names as possible and talked about the rules that they obey.

The use of articles with proper names is a very broad topic with many exceptions. For this reason, we recommend that you always consult the dictionary when you come across a new name. You can also bookmark our article, because we have compiled for you a large list of the most common proper names.

• We also wrote separate articles about and.

General rules for the use of articles with proper names

The use of the article with proper names can be difficult for English learners, as there are many exceptions to this group of nouns. Perhaps this is due to the fact that all names are unique and inimitable, and articles are also uniquely and inimitably combined with them? It is impossible to answer this question unambiguously. Fortunately, many names are combined into groups that obey certain patterns.

To begin with, we suggest that you get acquainted with some general rules applicable to proper names:

1. If an institution is named after a famous person or the locality in which it is located, the article is not needed.
   

   He entered Stanford University. - He entered Stanford University.

   We will land at Heathrow Airport. - We will land at Heathrow airport.

   If a building or institution is named not in someone's honor, then you should use the.

   We visited the Winter Palace. - We visited Winter Palace. (no famous person with that name, winter is an adjective that has become part of the name)

   We visited Buckingham Palace. - We visited Buckingham Palace. (named after the Duke of Buckingham)

2. If a store, cafe, restaurant, bank, hotel or other organization is named after someone with the ending - s or - ‘s, the article is not used.
   

   I don't like fast food, that's why I don't eat at McDonald's. - I don't like fast food, so I don't eat at " McDonald's».

   This rule also applies to churches, temples, cathedrals named after saints.

   You must visit St Paul's Cathedral in London. - You just have to see St Paul's Cathedral in London.

3. If there is a suggestion in the title of, we will use the article the.
   

   The Great Wall of China is more than twenty kilometers long. - the great Wall of China over twenty kilometers long.

   Have you been to the Museum of Modern Art in New York? - You were in Museum of Modern Art in New York City?

4. Some proper names have two forms: a long official name, which will be used with an article, and an abbreviated informal name, which is usually used without an article.
   

   Last week I was in the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George. = Last week I was in Manchester Cathedral. - Last week I was in Manchester Cathedral.

   I've been working in the Eastman Kodak Company for ten years. = I've been working in Kodak for ten years. - I work in the Kodak company ten years.

Proper names with the definite article

The definite article will accompany the titles:

1. Theaters, museums, galleries, cinemas, monuments and other unique buildings and structures:
   • Bolshoi Theater- The Bolshoi Theatre;
   • the Coliseum Theater- theater "Colosseum";
   • the Royal Opera House- Royal Opera House;
   • the Hermitage- Hermitage;
   • the Louvre– Louvre;
   • the Royal Academy of Arts- Royal Academy of Arts;
   • the National Gallery- National Gallery;
   • the British Museum- British museum;
   • the Queen Elizabeth Hall- Queen Elizabeth Concert Hall;
   • the Lincoln Memorial- Lincoln Memorial
   • the National Film Theater– National Cinema House;
   • the Odeon- (cinema) "Odeon";
   • the Eiffel Tower- Eiffel Tower;
   • the Tower of London- Tower of London;
   • the Kremlin- the Kremlin;
   • the Pentagon- The Pentagon.
2. Hotels, restaurants, pubs:
   • the Michelangelo Hotel- Hotel "Michelangelo";
   • the King David Hotel- Hotel "King David";
   • The Plaza Hotel– hotel “Plaza”;
   • Hilton Hotel– Hilton hotel;
   • the Ledbury- restaurant "Ledbury";
   • the Red Lion- (pub) "Red Lion";
   • the Mayflower- (pub) "Mayflower";
   • the White Horse Tavern- Tavern "White Horse".
3. Notable ships and trains:
   • the Titanic- "Titanic";
   • the Trans-Siberian Express- train "Trans-Siberian Express";
   • the Oriental Express- Orient Express train.
4. Organizations political parties:
   • the UN (the United Nations) - UN (United Nations Organization);
   • the BBC (the British Broadcasting Corporation) - BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation);
   • the FBI (the Federal Bureau of Investigation) - FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation);
   • the Red Cross- Red Cross;
   • the Democratic Party- Democratic Party;
   • the Labor Party- the Labor Party;
   • the Cooperative Party- Cooperative Party.

   Please note that the abbreviated names of some organizations can be used as independent words. With such proper names, the article is not used. However, with full names, the article is needed.

   • UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) - UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization);
   • NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) - NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration);
   • NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) - NATO (North Atlantic Alliance);
   • UNICEF (the United Nations Children's Emergency Fund) - UNICEF (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund).
5. Political institutions:
   • the House of Commons- The House of Commons;
   • the Senate– Senate (USA);
   • the Supreme Court- Supreme Court;
   • the Ministry of Foreign Affairs- Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
   • the Navy– Navy (USA).
6. Sports events:
   • the Olympic Games - Olympic Games;
   • the World Championship- world championship;
   • the British Grand Prix- British Grand Prix.
7. Historical eras and events:
   • the Middle Ages– Middle Ages;
   • the Renaissance- Renaissance;
   • the Enlightenment- Age of Enlightenment
   • the First World War- World War I.

Proper names with zero article

With many proper names, the zero article is used. It comes with the names:

1. Streets, parks, squares:
   • Regent Street– Regent Street;
   • broadway– Broadway;
   • Trafalgar Square- Trafalgar Square;
   • Hyde Park- Hyde Park;
   • St James's Park- St. James Park;
   • red square- The Red Square.

   Pay attention to the street high street(High Street): in modern English language it can be used with and without the definite article.

2. Road

   The names of city roads in English are usually written without the article:

   • park lane– Park Lane;
   • Piccadilly- Piccadilly;
   • King's Road (King's Road) - King Road;
   • Fifth Avenue- Fifth Avenue.

   The names of motorways and freeways are usually accompanied by the definite article:

   • the Lincoln Highway- Lincoln Highway
   • the Jefferson Highway- Jefferson Highway
   • the South Eastern Freeway- Southeast Freeway.

   Many major roads are identified by a number and a letter. Such names in British English are often accompanied by a definite article, in American - zero:

   • Br.E.: the A35 road– motorway A35;
   • Br.E.: the M5 motorway– motorway M5;
   • Am.E.: U.S. route 101 - motorway 101;
   • Am.E.: state road 15 - motorway 15.
3. Schools, colleges, universities:
   • Ashford School– Ashford School;
   • Harrow School- Harrow School
   • American Heritage School- American Heritage School;
   • Brighton College– Brighton College;
   • Eton College– Eton College;
   • Cambridge University- Cambridge university;
   • Harvard University— Harvard University.
4. Airports, airlines, railway stations, bridges:
   • Heathrow Airport– Heathrow airport;
   • Gatwick Airport– Gatwick airport;
   • Kennedy Airport- Kennedy Airport;
   • british airways– airline british airways;
   • american airlines– airline american airlines;
   • Aeroflot– Aeroflot;
   • Victoria Station- Victoria Station
   • King's Cross station- King's Cross Station
   • Charing Cross railway station- Charing Cross station;
   • Westminster Bridge- Westminster Bridge;
   • tower bridge- Tower Bridge;
   • Waterloo Bridge- Waterloo Bridge.
5. Churches, cathedrals, temples, abbeys:
   • St Martin's Church- St. Martin's Church;
   • Canterbury Cathedral- Canterbury Cathedral;
   • Saint Sophia Cathedral- Saint Sophie Cathedral;
   • Westminster Abbey- Westminster Abbey;
   • Shrewsbury Abbey- Shrewsbury Abbey.
6. Palaces, castles:
   • Buckingham Palace- Buckingham Palace;
   • Lambeth Palace- Lambeth Palace;
   • richmond palace- Richmond Palace
   • Edinburgh Castle- Edinburgh castle;
   • Harlech Castle- Castle Harlech;
   • Windsor Castle- Windsor castle;
   • Kronborg- (castle) Kronborg.
7. Languages:
   • English- English;
   • French- French;
   • German- Deutsch;
   • Spanish– Spanish;
   • Italian- Italian.

   If the word appears in the name of the language language(language), then the definite article should be used with the name:

   • the English language- English language;
   • the French language- French.

   Be careful: without a word language, but with the article the some names may indicate nationality:

   • the English- the English;
   • the French- French people.
8. Days of the week, months, holidays:
   • Monday- Monday;
   • Wednesday– environment;
   • Friday- Friday;
   • January- January;
   • March- March;
   • July- July;
   • December- December;
   • Christmas- Christmas;
   • Easter- Easter;
   • independence day- Independence Day;
   • Bastille Day- Bastille Day.

   The article is also used with days of the week and holidays. the, if we are talking about a particular day:

   • the Sunday of that week- Sunday of that week;
   • the worst Christmas we've ever had- Worst Christmas we've ever had.

   If you want to show that the day is not important, use the article a (an):

   • a Tuesday- one of the Tuesdays / any Tuesday;
   • an independence day one of the Independence Days.

Other uses of the article with proper names

It is sometimes difficult to formulate rules for certain groups of proper names. Below we invite you to find out what these names are.

1. Newspapers

   Most English and American newspapers have an article. But, as a rule, it is part of the name itself and therefore is capitalized. There are no articles in the titles of some newspapers.

   I'm reading The Times. - I am reading newspaper The Times.

   I'm reading Today. - I am reading newspaper Today.

   The	Zero article
   The Times The Daily Telegraph The Guardian The Washington Post The Morning Star The Independent The Wall Street Journal The Boston Globe The Sun	Today Daily Express Newsday Chicago Tribune

   The article is not used before the names of foreign newspapers:

   • Le Monde- "Mond";
   • Liberation- "Liberation";
   • Pravda- "Truth".
2. Magazines

   Articles are rarely found in journal titles. However, exceptions are possible here too: the definite article can be part of the name.

   I read Forbes Forbes magazine.

   I read The Economist regularly. - I read regularly The Economist magazine.

   Zero article	The
   Forbes Newsweek New Music Express national geographic Car and Driver BBC Focus amateur gardening Men's Health Doctor Who Magazine	The Family Handyman The Cricketer The Economist The One

   • If you have a burning desire to read a British or American periodical, be sure to check out our school's blog and check out the articles " 6 great sites with newspapers in English" and " 10 cool magazines in English that you can't put down".
3. Music bands

   Group names may have the definite article as part of the name. In general, English grammar does not in any way limit the members of musical groups in choosing a name: a musician can combine words and letters as he sees fit, and contrary to all the rules. However, there are also some patterns here: the article the usually used if the name is plural, the zero article is used if the name is singular.

   • The Beatles;
   • The Rolling Stones;
   • The Doors;
   • Gorky Park;
   • ABBA;
   • Queen.

   But: Guns N' Roses, Beastie Boys, Ramones, The Revolution, The Who, Hootie & the Blowfish.

We learned the basic rules for using articles with proper names in English. In order not to get lost in the halls of your memory, we recommend downloading the table and taking the tests.

(*.pdf, 240 Kb)

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Test

Articles with proper names in English

The use of the article "The" with geographical names, countries and languages.

Names are used without the article (including the names of cities and countries).

For instance:
John, Mary, Julianna, Irina, Moscow, Odessa, Ukraine, America (but: the Hague - excl.)

Nations, nationalities, ethnic groups as a whole are used with "The".

For instance:
the Americans, the Japanese, the Indians (Americans, Japanese, Indians).

Languages ​​(only with the word language) - the English language, the Russian language.
But! Just languages ​​without the article - English.

For instance:
English, French, Russian, Thai, Swahili.

Names of states containing the word republic, union, kingdom, etc. used with "The".

For instance:
The United States,
the United Kingdom,
the South African Republic,
the Soviet Union,
the German Federal Republic,
the People's Republic of China.

Countries in the singular, the name of which is perceived as a name (usually consists of 1 word), including the names of individual states, are used without the article.

For instance:
England, France, China, Ukraine, Germany, Georgia, Utah, Arkansas, Great Britain, Northern Ireland, South Africa.

Countries and other place names are pluralized with "The".

For instance:
the Netherlands,
the United States,
the Philippines,
the Canary Islands,
the urals,
the Great Lakes.

Oceans, seas, bays, straits, rivers, groups of lakes, archipelagos, mountain ranges, deserts have the article "The".

For instance:
the Arctic, the Black Sea, the Persian Gulf, the British Channel, the Danube, the Great Lakes, the Bahamas, the Caucasus, the Sahara Desert.

But! separate lakes, waterfalls, mountains are used without the article.

For instance:
Baikal, Victoria Falls, Vesuvius, Montblanc, Everest, Elbrus.

Cardinal directions - with "The".

For instance:
the South, the North, the West, the Middle East.

Continents - no article.
For instance:
Europe, North America, East Asia, South Africa.

Earth, sky, moon, sun - with "The".
For instance:
The Earth, the sky, the Moon, the Sun.

Planets, stars, constellations do not have an article.
For instance:
Jupiter, Mars.

Countries and states (no article)

Argentina - Argentina
Australia
Austria - Austria
Belgium
Brazil - Brazil
Canada
Chile - Chile
China - China
Denmark - Denmark
Egypt - Egypt
England - England
France
Germany
(Great) Britain
Greece - Greece
Holland - Holland
Hungary - Hungary
India - India
Iran - Iran
Ireland
Israel - Israel
Italy - Italy
Japan
Japan
Lebanon - Lebanon
Luxembourg - Luxembourg
Mexico - Mexico
Mongolia - Mongolia
Morocco - Morocco
Mozambique - Mozambique
New Zealand - New Zealand
Norway
Poland - Poland
Portugal - Portugal
Russia - Russia
Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia
Scotland - Scotland
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Wales - Wales

Countries and states (with the article the)

The Congo - Congo
the Netherlands
the UK (United Kingdom)
the USA (United States of America) - USA (United States of America)

Continents and geographical areas (no article)
(South/North/Latin/ Central) America - (North/South/Latin/Central) America
(Western/Eastern) Europe - (Western/Eastern) Europe
(Southeast/Central) Asia - (Southeast/Central) Asia
(South/North) Africa - (North/South) Africa
Australia
Antarctica - Antarctica
Siberia - Siberia

Continents and geographical areas (with the article the)
the (Western/Eastern/Northern/Southern) Hemisphere
the Arctic
the Antarctic - Antarctica
the (Far/Middle) East - (Far/Middle) East
the (North/South) Pole - (North/South) pole

Some bays and lakes (no article)
Hudson Bay - Hudson Bay
San Francisco Bay - San Francisco Bay

(Lake) Baikal
Lake Victoria - Lake Victoria
Lake Superior - lake superior
Lake Huron - Lake Huron
Lake Michigan - Lake Michigan
Lake Erie - Lake Erie
Lake Ontario - Lake Ontario
Crater Lake - Crater Lake
Utah Lake - Utah Lake
Lake Geneva - Lake Geneva
Great Pond

Oceans, seas, bays, lakes, rivers, straits, canals and currents (with the article the)

The Atlantic Ocean (the Atlantic) - Atlantic Ocean
the Pacific Ocean (the Pacific) - Pacific Ocean
the Arctic Ocean - Arctic Ocean
the Indian Ocean - Indian Ocean

The Mediterranean Sea (the Mediterranean) - Mediterranean Sea
the Caribbean Sea (the Caribbean) - Caribbean Sea
the Red Sea
the Black Sea
the Caspian Sea
the North Sea
the Baltic Sea
the Barents Sea
the Bering Sea
the Yellow Sea
the Sea of ​​Okhotsk
the Sea of ​​Japan
the Laptev Sea - Laptev Sea

The Gulf of Mexico - Gulf of Mexico
the Bay of Bengal - Bay of Bengal
the Gulf of Finland - Gulf of Finland
the Bay of Biscay
the Persian Gulf

The Amazon (River)
the Nile (River)
the Mississippi (River) - Mississippi River
the Missouri (River) - Missouri River
the Rio Grande - Rio Grande
the Yangtze (River) - the Yangtze River
the Thames (River) / the River Thames
the Seine (River)
the Danube (River) - Danube river
the Amur (River)
the Dnepr (River) / the Dnieper
the Lena (River)
the Ob (River)
the Volga (River)
the Yenisei (River)
the Amu Darya - Amu Darya

The Strait of Gibraltar - Strait of Gibraltar
the Strait of Dover (Pas de Calais) - Strait of Dover (Pas de Calais)
the Strait of Magellan - Strait of Magellan
the Bering Strait - Bering Strait
the Dardanelles - Strait of the Dardanelles
the Bosporus/Bosphorus - the Bosporus

The English Channel (La Manche) - English Channel (La Manche)
the Mozambique Channel - Mozambique Channel
the Suez Canal
the Panama Canal - Panama Canal
the Erie Canal

The Gulf Stream
the Florida Current
the Japan Current (the Kuroshio)

With other proper names

I The article is not used with titles (all words capitalized):

1) streets and squares: Broadway Broadway, Wall Street Wall Street; Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square(in London), Red Square the Red Square;

2) bridges and parks: Westminster Bridge westminster bridge; Hyde Park Hyde Park in London, Central Park central park in New York City;

3) airports, seaports, railway and metro stations: London Airport London airport; Kennedy (Airport) kennedy airport; London Port London port;"> 4) educational institutions(universities, colleges, etc.): Columbia University Columbia University, Cambridge Cambridge, Oxford Oxford;

5) magazines: Time Magazine, National Geograohic -magazines.

6) exceptions(meetings sometimes): the Arbat Arbat(in Moscow), the garden ring Garden Ring road(in Moscow), the Via Manzoni Manzoni street(in Milan); the Gorky Park park named after M. Gorky(in Moscow), etc.

II The definite article the used with names:

1) facilities and individual unique buildings: the great Wall of China, the Ostankino Television Tower, the Kremlin, the Tower, the whitehouse, the Winter Palace, the Royal Palace;

There are many exceptions to this rule, especially if the name of a structure or building contains a definition expressed by a proper name (name of a person or place name): Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Hyde Park, London Zoo, Edinburgh Castle, etc.

2) theaters, cinemas, concert halls, orchestras, clubs: the Royal Opera House Royal Opera House, the Bolshoy Theater The Bolshoi Theatre;

3) art galleries, museums, monuments: the National Gallery National Art Gallery, the Tretyakov Gallery Tretyakov Gallery; the british museum British museum, the Hermitage Hermitage; the Washington Monument Washington monument , the Lincoln Memorial Lincoln Memorial;

4) hotels, restaurants: the metropole hotel "Metropol", the Savoy hotel "Savoy", the Hilton hotel "Hilton", the Astoria hotel "Astoria";

5) ships, musical groups: the Titanic ship "Titanic", the"Queen Mary" ship "Queen Mary", the"Cutty Sark" clipper ship "Cutty Sark"; the Beatles The Beatles;

6) majority newspapers: the Guardian The Guardian newspaper, the Times The Times newspaper, the Washington Post "Washington Post". It is not customary to use the article with the names of newspapers where it is not in the original language: Izvestia newspaper "Izvestiya".

7) public institutions, organizations and political parties: the labor party Labor Party, the United Nations Organization United Nations, the red cross Red Cross, the Greens "green", the Democratic Party Democratic Party.

Traditionally, the article is not used with the word Parliament parliament(in England); NATO; may be omitted before the word ( The) Congress(in USA).

In the ranking of the most "unloved" topics in the English language, the use of the article occupies one of the top positions. This is due to the absence of this article in our native language. In addition, the use of the article the implies a huge number of exceptions. Unfortunately, the British could not come up with one universal rule for all cases.

Of particular difficulty for students is the use of the article the with proper names. Proper names include:

• names and surnames of people
• names of streets, roads, various buildings, sights, public places
• names of educational and other institutions
• names of various organizations
• names of newspapers and magazines
• historical names
• astronomical names
• titles of works of art and many others

There are certain rules for using the article the with proper names and titles, but there are also a huge number of exceptions that, with all desire, cannot be contained within the framework of one article. Even native speakers are not always sure which names need an article and which do not.

To introduce you to this topic, we have prepared a table of rules and examples, which shows the main cases of using the article the with proper nouns.

This table shows the main uses of the definite article the with proper nouns. If you do not remember all the rules at once, do not be discouraged. One reading of the article is not enough to memorize so much information.

If you want to improve your knowledge on this topic, we recommend that you read and listen more. English speech. For this purpose, news resources and radio programs, programs and publications on historical and political topics, articles on art and architecture are best suited. Such materials contain a large number of proper names and various names. Notice which ones are used with the article and which ones are not. Remember that many names cannot be subordinated to the rules, but you only need to remember.

We wish you success in learning English! If you have questions about this topic, we will be happy to help you. And if you need professional help - sign up for a free introductory lesson and become a student of our online school.

» Articles. place names

Red Square, the Volga River or the USSR - do we need articles in English when we talk about geographical names? There are some rules for countries, others for streets and squares, and third rules for rivers and seas. Moreover, for each of the categories there are a number of exceptions when the rules do not apply. Articles are used or not used with geographical names simply because "it happened". Let's try to figure it out.

The article is needed only in two cases - firstly, if the name of the country contains what is called the "form of government" - union, kingdom, states, republic, and so on. Therefore, there is a definite article in the names of such states, as the United States of America, the United Kingdom(the article remains in abbreviations - the USA, the UK). For lovers of exotic and skyscrapers - add here the UAE – the United Arab Emirates, but for those who remember the Olympics-80 and the Berlin Wall – the USSR, the GDR. For modern Russia, everything is simple - Russia(without article) or the Russian federation(with an article, since federation is a form of government).

I'm back in the USSR. You don't know how lucky you are, boys. I am returning to the USSR. Guys, you don't know how happy you are here (The Beatles song full of irony).

The second case when an article is needed with countries is when the name of the country is a plural noun. Usually these are islands lost in the middle of the ocean - for example, the Philippines(Philippines) or the Bahamas(Bahamas). There is also a non-island state, in the name of which there is a plural - the Netherlands, Netherlands.

An exception that is unlikely to come in handy in life is a small African country The Gambia(Gambia), she is perhaps the only one who is written with the article "just like that."

An interesting situation has developed with Ukraine - Ukraine or The Ukraine? Until 1991, Ukraine was part of the USSR, in which case other grammatical rules apply - and until 1991, indeed, the form The Ukraine. And since 1991, Ukraine, having become an independent state, is officially written without the article - Ukraine.

Cities