Names with and without The

Marbella is a town in Andalusia, Spain. 
It is situated on the Mediterranean Sea, in the province of Málaga, beneath the La Concha mountain.
Marbella and nearby Puerto Banús are important tourist resorts on the Costa del Sol. Marbella is especially popular with tourists from Northern Europe (including the UK, Ireland and Germany), Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the U.S.A.



We do not use the with names of people ("Mark, Pedro, Carlos, Petra,.." etc.) and the with names of places (Asia, Mexico, Sardinia, London).

We use the in names of Republic, Kingdom, States:
- the Dominican Republic
- the United Kingdom
- the United States of America

  example:
  - Have you ever been to Canada or the United States?

COMPARE:
not using the:                                              using the:
- Mount Kilimajaro                                    
- Mount Everest
- I live near Lake Victoria         - I live near the lake
                                                              - the Atlantic Ocean
                                                              - the Mediterranean Sea
                                                              - the Sahara Desert
                                                              - the Gobi Desert
- We went to doctor Smith        - we went to the doctor
                                                              - the Rockefeller (the Rockfeller family)
                                                              - the MacMillan (the MacMillan family)
- northern Italy                              - the north of Italy
- south-eastern Argentina           - the south-east Argentina
- Scotland is in northern Europe   - Sicily is in the south of Europe
- north America
- south America
- Regent's park
- Queen's park
- Wall street
- Time Square
- Victoria Station
- Buckingham Palace                    - the Royal Palace (royal is adjective here)
                                                               - the Empire State Building
                                                               - the White House
                                                               - the Eiffel Tower
                                                               - the Pentagon
- Cambridge University               - the University of Cambridge
- Kodak    (names of companies don't take the)
- Siemens
- Sony