Is it RAM or Ram Cruiser tank?
 

I mean: is it spelled RAM or Ram? I see people using “RAM” consistently, while I know no better than that it is written as “Ram”.

Attachment 131673

May be the RAM.....
 

....was meant for the tanks that had 5 Dodge RAM 6 cylinders engines....

Cheers Hanno

Hanno,

It generally appears that when RAM is included in a formal title it is fully capitalized. Whereas when Ram is included in the text only the first letter is capitalized (there are exceptions!).

Most original documents include both RAM, and Ram.

Colin

I would think that it isn’t an abbreviation, but that the tank was given an animal name along the same line as other Canadian vehicles like Grizzly, Wasp, etc. That means it would be “Ram” like any proper noun, unless the rest of the text is also entirely in capitals of course, such as under the drawing posted. That says “CRUISER TANK RAM II—right-hand side”, so the whole designation is in all-caps. The documents Colin posted bear this out.

I’m guessing the spelling you sometimes see, like “the RAM cruiser tank”, is due to mistaking the name for an abbreviation — much like how a lot of people today write MAC rather than Mac when they mean the computer.

Hi

It has always been my understanding that the Ram tank was named after the "Father" of our Armoured Corps, MGen FF Worthington.

Like the badge used for the 1st Canadian Army Tank Brigade, the Ram animal figures from Worthington's Family crest.

The badge use and the tank naming were ways to recognize Worthy's contributions to the creation of "Armour" in Canada.

Of course, I could be completely out to lunch on that!

regards
Darrell

I have no idea if that’s true or not, but if it is, then it’s also clear it’s not an abbreviation and so it’s “Ram” and not “RAM” :)

Ram is a name, not an abbreviation
 

THAT is the error I tried to point out. Somehow, quite a few authors refer to the "RAM Cruiser Tank" rather than "Ram Cruiser Tank". The examples shown by Colin demonstrate what Gary Donaldson pointed out "it’s a grammar thing and has nothing to do with the official title it is merely how a document is presented. What most style guides prescribe is that nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs are capitalized in titles of books, articles, and songs. You’d also capitalize the first word and (according to most guides) the last word of a title, regardless of what part of speech they are."

More examples via Peter Samsonov...
Attachment 131751 Attachment 131752

... Anthony Sewards...
Attachment 131753

... and as shown all caps on a Ram tank data plate:
Attachment 131754

Just to make sure: “capitalized” in typography means the first letter of a word is an uppercase one, with all the rest in lowercase; when all the letters are in uppercase, it’s called “all caps”. Thus, “Ram” is capitalized, “RAM” is all caps. And don’t forget this can get a bit hazy with handwriting, because some people write some letters as lowercase ones but bigger to indicate uppercase, and the other way around :)