Initial capitalization of foreign surnames when starting a sentence


In the book, "The Crystal Shard," by R.A. Salvatore, a character is surnamed "de Bernezan." Which of the following complete sentences uses the correct English-language capitalization:



  • de Bernezan entered the room.

  • De Bernezan entered the room.


The Wikipedia page on "de Vries" capitalized "De Vries" as a standalone, but writes "Marc de Vries" when using the full name.


Edits in response to comments:



  • The book starts sentences as "de Bernezan," which seems incorrect. Hence my question.

  • The Wikipedia page is neither authoritative nor clear. It seems to refers to "De Vries" as the correct capitalization of the surname, except when actually used as a surname. Since I am not Dutch, I do not know how their names work, especially when used in an English-language context. Again, hence my question.



Answer



Fortunately, The Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition) deals with this question on page 388:



8.5 Names with particles. Many names include particles such as de, d', de la, von, van, and ten. Practice with regard to capitalization and spacing the particles varies widely, and confirmation should be sought in a biographical dictionary or other authoritative source. When the surname is used alone, the particle is usually retained, capitalized or lowercased and spaced as in the full name (though always capitalized when beginning a sentence). [emphasis added]



So, following Chicago, the correct sentence is, "De Bernezan entered the room."


The variation in capitalization you found on the De Vries Wikipedia page is explained by the Chicago rule for Dutch names used in an English context (page 390):



8.10 Dutch names. In English usage, the particles van, van den, ter, and the like are lowercased when full names are given but usually capitalized when only the last name is used.


Johannes van Keulen; Van Keulen


Pieter van den Keere; Van den Keere


Vincent van Gogh; Van Gogh


Gerard ter Borch; Ter Borch



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