Vol. 38 No. 3 (1990)
Research Article

A Toponymic Approach to the Geography of American Cemeteries

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  • Wilbur Zelinsky
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/nam.1990.38.3.209

Published 1990-09-01

Copyright (c) 1990 Maney

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Abstract

The recent availability of the GNIS data base makes it practical to study the names of features throughout the United States, for example the names of cemeteries. One way of classification identifies ten categories: family, location, standard terms, hagiolatrous, biblical, nationalistic, “upbeat,” religious denominations, ethnic communities, and fraternal organizations. The first seven of these provide an interesting look at a significant part of the name-cover in America.

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References

  1. American Cemetery Association. International Cemetery Directory. Columbus, OH, 1957.
  2. American Cemetery Association. International Cemetery Directory. Columbus, OH, 1967.
  3. Jordan, Terry G. Texas Graveyards: A Cultural Legacy. Austin: U of Texas P,1982.
  4. Payne, Roger L. Geographic Names Information System: Data Users Guide 6. Reston, VA: U. S. Geological Survey,1985.
  5. Zelinsky, Wilbur. “Unearthly Delights: Cemetery Names as a Key to the Map of the Changing American Afterworld.” Geographies of the Mind: Papers in Geosophy in Honor of John K. Wright. Ed. Martyn Bowden and David Lowenthal. New York: Oxford UP, 1975. 171–95
  6. Zelinsky, Wilbur. “Nationalism in the American Place-Name Cover.” Names 30 (1983): 1–28.