Choronym (from gr, χώρα "region" or "country" and gr, ὄνομα "name") is a

linguistic Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

term that designates a

proper name A proper noun is a noun that identifies a single entity and is used to refer to that entity (''Africa'', ''Jupiter'', '' Sarah'', ''Microsoft)'' as distinguished from a common noun, which is a noun that refers to a class of entities (''continent, ...

of an individual

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

or a

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

. The study of regional and country names is known as choronymy, or choronymics. Since choronyms are a subclass of

toponyms Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

, choronymic studies represent a distinctive subfield of toponymic studies and belong to the wider field of

onomastic Onomastics (or, in older texts, onomatology) is the study of the etymology, history, and use of proper names. An ''orthonym'' is the proper name of the object in question, the object of onomastic study. Onomastics can be helpful in data mining, w ...

studies. Choronymic studies are primarily focused on questions related to the origin (

etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...

) and meanings (

semantics Semantics (from grc, σημαντικός ''sēmantikós'', "significant") is the study of reference, meaning, or truth. The term can be used to refer to subfields of several distinct disciplines, including philosophy Philosophy (f ...

) of choronyms. Since names of regions and countries have great historical, cultural, political and social significance, the field of choronymic studies is closely related to

sociolinguistic Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any or all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context, on the way language is used, and society's effect on language. It can overlap with the sociology of l ...

and

ethnolinguistic Ethnolinguistics (sometimes called cultural linguistics) is an area of anthropological linguistics that studies the relationship between a language and the nonlinguistic cultural behavior of the people who speak that language. __NOTOC__ Examples ...

studies. The term ''choronym'' was introduced to

terminology in the second half of the 20th century.

Typology

Choronyms can be classified by several criteria, primarily related to their origin (''etymology'') or meaning (''semantics''). According to their origin (

), choronyms are divided in two basic groups: * ''Endonymic choronyms'', known as endochoronyms, represent regional or country names of

endonymic An endonym (from Greek language, Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a Location, geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that p ...

(native) origin, created and used by native populations of those territories. For example, term ''Deutschland'' is an endochoronym (native name) for a country that is called Germany in English. * ''Exonymic choronyms'', known as exochoronyms, represent regional or country names of exonymic (foreign) origin that are created and used by those who do not belong to the native population of a referred territory. For example, the term ''Germany'' is an exochoronym (foreign name) used in English as a designation for a country that is called ''Deutschland'' by its native population. According to their meanings (

), choronyms can also be divided into: * Natural, or geographical choronyms - proper names of natural (geographical) regions, spanning from names of local geographical areas, to regional names of global significance (Scandinavia, Amazon, Sahel, Siberia, Africa) * Political, or administrative choronyms - proper names of political (administrative) regions (counties, provinces, states, state unions).

Typology

See also

References

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