Totum pro parte

Totum pro parte is Latin for "the whole for a part"; it refers to a kind of metonymy. The plural is tota pro partibus, "wholes for parts". In context of language, it means something is named after something of which it is only a part (or only a limited characteristic, not necessarily representative of the whole). For example, "Russia" or "Russians", referring to the political institution (both historically and contemporary) or its people (as in “the Russians signed the treaty” or “Russia signed the treaty” where “the Russians” and “Russia” refer to the government officials who signed it). A pars pro toto (in which a part is used to describe the whole) is the opposite of a totum pro parte.