Here's a breakdown:
Proper Nouns:
* Names: These are unique identifiers for people, places, things, etc. Examples: John, Mary, London, Mars.
* In Italian: Proper nouns are generally capitalized just like in English. However, there are some key differences:
* Gender: Italian nouns have grammatical gender (masculine or feminine). This applies to names as well. For example, "John" (Giovanni) is masculine, and "Mary" (Maria) is feminine.
* Articles: Italian often uses articles (the, a, an) before nouns. Articles are gendered, so they change based on the noun's gender. For example, "the city" is "la città" (feminine) and "the man" is "l'uomo" (masculine).
* Plurals: Plurals in Italian are formed differently than in English. Some names will change their endings to become plural (like "the Smiths" – "i Smith").
Example:
* English: "John is going to London."
* Italian: "Giovanni sta andando a Londra."
Key Points:
* Capitalization: Proper nouns are capitalized in Italian.
* Gender: Italian names have gender, which impacts how they are used in sentences.
* Articles: Articles are often used before names in Italian, and they must match the gender of the name.
* Plurals: Pluralization rules in Italian are different from English.
Let me know if you want to explore specific examples or have more questions about names in Italian.