'The definite article before place names is going missing'

[fluffyhamster]

Pass notes no 2,874: 'The'

The definite article before place names is going missing

Age: 1,000 years old, or thereabouts, first cropping up early in Middle English as a comprehensive replacement for the several cases (masculine, feminine, neuter, etc) of definite article used in Old English.

Appearance: formerly ubiquitous; these days, not so much.

Why? The definite article "the" is normally used before a name or object already known or contextually understood, or an object of which there is only one example (eg the Hope Diamond) or to denote a specific example (eg the Queen) or as part of certain place names.

None of that answers my question, so I'm just going to say "Why?" again. Because, increasingly, the "the" before place names is going missing.

Really? Which ones? There are loads. You're probably not old enough to remember when people called Argentina "The Argentine" or Lebanon "The Lebanon".

I remember a Human League song called "The Lebanon". In which case, you're older than I thought. But haven't you noticed everyone writing "Shetlands" instead of "The Shetlands" lately?

Actually, both are wrong. It's either "Shetland", or possibly "the Shetland Islands". I didn't realise you were some sort of expert. What about Congo instead of "The Congo"? Or Ukraine? Or Sudan?

Those have been standard for some time now. Where have you been? Moon? You mean "the moon". Are you from the north or something?

I assume you're referring to definite article reduction, a feature of northern dialects in which "the" is reduced to a voiceless dental fricative, or disappears altogether. That's something else entirely. Hang on – aren't you supposed to be the ignorant one who asks all the questions?

Sorry, it's just a hobby of mine. There must be some "the" place names left, surely? According to the Guardian's style guide, we've still got the Gambia. And it will be a long time before anyone visits Bronx.

Do say: "If we were from t'Dales, none of this would matter."

Don't say: "Can I call you back, prime minister? I'm in Hague at the moment."

( http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/201 ... inguistics )

[ouyang]

My least favorite grammar topic is the use of the definite article before proper nouns.

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/540/01/
Geographical use of "the"
There are some specific rules for using the with geographical nouns.
Do not use "the" before:
names of most countries/territories: Italy, Mexico, Bolivia; however, the Netherlands, the Dominican Republic, the Philippines, the United States
names of cities, towns, or states: Seoul, Manitoba, Miami
names of streets: Washington Blvd., Main St.
names of lakes and bays: Lake Titicaca, Lake Erie except with a group of lakes like the Great Lakes
names of mountains: Mount Everest, Mount Fuji except with ranges of mountains like the Andes or the Rockies or unusual names like the Matterhorn
names of continents (Asia, Europe)
names of islands (Easter Island, Maui, Key West) except with island chains like the Aleutians, the Hebrides, or the Canary Islands
Do use the before:

names of rivers, oceans and seas: the Nile, the Pacific
points on the globe: the Equator, the North Pole
geographical areas: the Middle East, the West
deserts, forests, gulfs, and peninsulas: the Sahara, the Persian Gulf, the Black Forest, the Iberian Peninsula

[Lorikeet]

One of my favorites, is the use of "the" before bridges. Thus, it was always fun to explain to students that they could visit "the Golden Gate Bridge" or "Golden Gate Park".