Should the word antebellum be capitalized?

Answer 1

Sure thing, honey. When you're talking about the antebellum period in American history, you can go ahead and capitalize it because it's a proper noun. But if you're just chatting about something being antebellum in a general sense, then keep it lowercase. Just remember, grammar rules are about as strict as a wet noodle, so do what feels right to you.

Answer 2

Yes. In the future, do this test, ask yourself if you mean the word as it relates to a specific time period, historical event, artistic movement etc. If you can attach it to something particular and concrete, it should be capitalized. In Latin, "antebellum" means "before the war;" in the case of United States history we use the term the Antebellum era to describe roughly the 1800s to 1861, i.e. around the time of Thomas Jefferson's presidency up until the Civil War began. There are trickier instances like Romantic/romantic. But use the test. If you mean something's romantic, as in lovey-dovey, or a romantic comedy, then it does not need to be capitalized. If you mean that it refers specifically to a literary/artistic movement spearheaded by the likes of Wordsworth and Shelley.. then it would be Romantic.

hope this helps!