This is another section where the use of the with names can be quite confusing!

• As a general rule - but there are many exceptions - we do not use the with names. We do not say the John Smith, the Doctor Pearson, etc.

• But with names of families, we can say

The Smiths (the Smith family), the Robinsons, the Wisniewskis.

• However, if there are two people who have the same name, we use the when we want to be clear as to which one we are talking about: You’re not the Daniel Craig, are you?

• We can use the with a name if there is an adjective between the and the name: The late Ronald Reagan; the incredible, fantastic Andy Pickford!

• But remember - we can use a with a name when it is unclear as to which individual of the same name is being talked about:

There was an Angel in my class - well, to be more accurate, his name was Angelo! There is a Fred Smith in reception who says he has an appointment to see you.

We do not usually use the with names of countries, towns and cities. We do not say The Poland, The France, The Malaysia, The Saudi Arabia, The Paris, The Madrid, etc., BUT…

• If the country or place has a plural name (usually because it is made up of many parts – islands, states, etc), or has kingdom, republic, commonwealth, or federation as part of its official name, then we say The United Kingdom, The Netherlands, The Philippines, The United States, The Russian Federation, The Irish Republic, The Commonwealth of Nations.

• But for various other reasons (perhaps historical) we say Ukraine or The Ukraine, Sudan or The Sudan. And there is one town in Holland that is called The Hague.

Now when it comes to geographical features, this is where it gets interesting.

• We use the with names of most of those features connected with water: rivers, seas, oceans, canals, waterfalls, particularly if it is part of the name. The River Amazon (or The Amazon River); The Suez Canal, The Niagara Falls, The Atlantic Ocean, The Baltic Sea.

However…

• Lakes (and lochs and loughs, which are Gaelic words for lake, but are used in the English language) do NOT USE The. Lake Victoria, Loch Ness, Lough Neagh. Of course, you can argue that The Caspian Sea is in fact a lake, but it has sea in the name, so it uses the. 

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• We use the with deserts: The Kalahari Desert. The Sahara Desert. The Atacama.

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• With groups of islands: The Canary Islands (or The Canaries), The Philippines. The Soloman Islands.

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• With ranges of mountains, lakes, and certain areas: The Tatra Mountains (or The Tatras), The Alps, The Pyrenees, The Atlas Mountains, The Great Lakes, The tropics, etc. But we do not use the when we talk about one mountain or one lake: Mount Everest. Lake Tahoe.

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• We say the north/south/east/west of a place: The north (e.g., of Russia), The south (e.g., of Arizona), The north-east (of London). BUT…

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…as an adjective, we do not! Northern France, South-east Malaysia, Eastern Europe.

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• However: The Eastern seaboard of the USA. (Seaboard is not a specific place, but a description of a coastline that happens to be in the east of the United States.)

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• But if it is part of the official name, we do not use the: South Africa. North Dakota.

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• And should you decide to travel to specifically named points on the world that are determined by lines of latitude and longitude, then you can visit the North Pole, the South Pole, the Equator, and to the Tropic of Capricorn, the Tropic of Cancer, or even the Arctic Circle.

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• And when we talk about general geographical features, we use the: the seaside, the country, the forest, the beach, etc: I live in the country as I don’t like the city.

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• Finally, the is usually dropped from maps, so you will see Atlantic Ocean, North Pole, Sahara Desert, etc., all mentioned without the.

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I suggest we take a short break before we move on. I’m quite exhausted after all that...