Choronym (from
Greek: χώρα "region" or "country" and
Greek: ὄνομα "name") is a
linguistic term that designates a
proper name of an individual
region or a
country. The study of regional and country names is known as choronymy, or choronymics. Since choronyms are a subclass of
toponyms, choronymic studies represent a distinctive
subfield of toponymic studies and belong to the wider field of
onomastic studies.
Choronymic studies are primarily focused on questions related to the origin (
etymology) and meanings (
semantics) 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 and
ethnolinguistic studies.[1][2]
The term choronym was introduced to
linguistic terminology in the second half of the 20th century.[3][4][5]
Typology
Choronyms can be classified by several criteria, primarily related to their origin (etymology) or meaning (semantics).
According to their origin (
etymology), choronyms are divided in two basic groups:
Endonymic choronyms, known as endochoronyms,[6] represent regional or country names of
endonymic (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,[7] 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 (
semantics), 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).[8]
Kapfhammer, Günther (1989). "Choronym - die zukünftige wissenschaftliche Bezeichnung für Landschaftsname?". Blätter für oberdeutsche Namenforschung. 26: 32–34.