Tables & Figures: To Capitalize or not to Capitalize

In most of the Japanese-to-English translations that I have edited over the past 12+ years, the translators or authors have capitalized the words table or figure in the running text (see figure 1 above).

To date, I have yet to find any solid reference that clearly states a writer should capitalize the words table or figure in the running text of a document when it refers to a figure or table that is provided in the document.

Conversely, my favorite reference, The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS), clearly states in section 8.190 Numbered chapters, parts, and so on, that the words figure and table are not capitalized. This makes perfect sense since the words figure and table in and of themselves are not proper nouns. Therefore, there is no logical reason whatsoever for capitalizing them. By the same token you wouldn't capitalize the words section, paragraph, page, appendix, chapter, and so on in the running text. So why would you do that for figure and table. Below is a copy of section 8.190 from the CMOS:

The words chapter, part, appendix, table, figure, and the like are lowercased and spelled out in text (though sometimes abbreviated in parenthetical references). Numbers are given in arabic numerals, regardless of how they appear in the original. If letters are used, they may be upper- or lowercase and are sometimes put in parentheses. See also 9.30–31.

• This matter is discussed in chapters 4 and 5.
• The Latin text appears in appendix B.
• The range is presented numerically in table 4.2 and diagrammed in figure 4.1.
• These connections are illustrated in table A3.
• Turn to section 5(a) for further examples.

I can, however, understand the desires of Japanese authors and translators to capitalize the words listed above. The figures themselves are titled, as shown in the image at the top of this blog entry, with the words figure or fig. being capitalized as Figure or Fig. So, it might be understandable that the author or translator would want to capitalize those same words in the running text.

However, what needs to be understood is that the words figure or fig. are only capitalized under a given figure because either one is the first word of the line where the actual title is given. They are not capitalized because they are proper nouns--they are only capitalized because they are the first words. The the same goes for any English phrase or sentence: Capitalize the first letter of the first word of a sentence or phrase.

Therefore, it is only logical that the capitalized words at the beginning of a line would thus use lowercase if they are not the first words of a line, such as when being used in running text.

Here are some more examples from The Chicago Manual of Style

13.10 Form

Every table should be given a number (arabic numerals are used) and should be cited in the text by the number, either directly or parenthetically. For table titles, see 13.14–18.

• The wide-ranging nature of the committee’s discussions can be judged from the topics listed in table 14.
• Topics covered by the worker-management committee in three years of deliberations fell into five general categories (table 14).

Ultimately, engineers, doctors, and other professionals who submit their work for publication in a journal, catalog, or any other publication, will have to abide by the style manuals of the applicable organization or submission guides of the journal. If an organization explicitly states that authors need to capitalize the words figure or table in the running text, then so be it.

In my experience, few Japanese companies, academic organizations, or professional publications have style manuals that are of any use when dealing with documents translated into English. If an author or translator is not restricted by pressures to conform to the status quo, then I strongly urge him or her to follow the guidelines so clearly provided to us by the CMOS.

Do you know of any other references that we can share with readers regarding the capitalization of certain words in the running text? Have you ever had to capitalize the words figure or table in the running text even though you knew it was wrong because the boss demanded that you do so? Share your thoughts and tribulations by clicking on the comment link below.

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