Vol. 39 No. 3 (1991)
Research Article

The Wonderful World of Geographic Names: Things Learned and Things Yet To Be Learned

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  • Meredith F. Burrill
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/nam.1991.39.3.181

Published 1991-09-01

Copyright (c) 1991 Maney

Creative Commons License

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

Abstract

Abstract

During thirty years as Executive Secretary of the Board on Geographic Names I had many learning experiences: team work by geographers and descriptive linguists broke new ground at this disciplinary interface; resolution of controversial Antarctic name problems demonstrated the practicability of international cooperation; systematic processing of millions of foreign and domestic names made possible many generalizations about name giving and using; mapping the occurrence of all generic terms in names on Geological Survey maps and coast charts published through 1958 gave new insights into the numbers, distribution, and varied application of terms.

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References

  1. Burrill, Meredith F. “Toponymic Generics I.” Names 4.3 (September 1956): 129–37.
  2. Burrill, Meredith F. “Toponymic Generics II.” Names 4.4 (December 1956): 226–40.
  3. Gillardin, J. Les essences forestières du Congo belge et du Ruanda-Urundi: Leurs dénominations indigènes, leur distribution et leur habitat. Bruxelles: Ministère du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi,1959.
  4. Whorf, Benjamin Lee. LanguageiThoughtiand Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf. Ed. J. B. Carroll. New York: Wiley, 1956.

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