Contraction of de el

Del is the contraction of "de el", meaning "of the; from the". Following are some useful rules.

1. When de is followed by el, the two words are combined into del:
   la capital del país      (the capital of the country)
   la oficina del director    (the office of the director)
    
2. De la, de las, de los, de él are never combined into one word:
   el puerto principal de la república (the principal port of the republic)
   el país de las pampas
   la capital de los Estados Unidos (the capital of the United States)
   el libro de él (his book)
    
3. When de is followed by a proper name there is no contraction:
   Tengo el libro de Felipe. (I have a book of Felipe.)

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