Names for special objects.
4. A proper noun is
a name applied to a particular object, whether person, place, or thing.
It specializes or limits the thing to which it is applied,
reducing it to a narrow application. Thus, city is a word applied to any
one of its kind; but Chicago names one city, and fixes the attention
upon that particular city. King may be applied to any ruler of a
kingdom, but Alfred the Great is the name of one king only.
The word proper is from a Latin word meaning
limited, belonging to one. This does not imply, however, that a proper
name can be applied to only one object, but that each time such a name is
applied it is fixed or proper to that object. Even if there are several Bostons
or Manchesters, the name of each is an individual or proper name. |
