Vol. 73 No. 4 (2025): Names: A Journal of Onomastic
Articles

More than a Meds Hub: Placemaking in the Names of Finnish Pharmacies

PDF
  • Satu Johanna Siiskonen
Satu Johanna Siiskonen
University of Helsinki
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5195/names.2025.2765

Published 2025-12-01

Keywords

  • onomastics,
  • cognitive linguistics,
  • Finland,
  • placemaking,
  • commercial names,
  • brand names
    • ...More
    Less

Copyright (c) 2025 Satu Johanna Siiskonen

Creative Commons License

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

Abstract

This study examines aspects of placemaking in the names of Finnish pharmacies through the frameworks of onomastics and cognitive linguistics. Pharmacies are places with multifaceted identities, roles and tasks within healthcare and medicines management, and pharmacy names are company names carrying meanings that can contribute to people’s sense of place. The data set contains 639 pharmacy names. The analysis is based on the functional-semantic method of company names. In Finnish pharmacy names, the most common identifying name part is a place name, usually of a region smaller than a municipality, referring to the physical location of the pharmacy. More than 90% of the names contain at least one index of localness. Some pharmacy names contain lexical items that may evoke images of high-quality service, happiness or health, literally or through metaphors; but only a few names reflect human-centeredness or emotional closeness to people in an explicit manner. The business concept ‘pharmacy’ (apteekki in Finnish, apotek(et) in Swedish) appears in every name. However, in the identifying name part, references to medicines or healthcare are rare. Overall, the names of Finnish pharmacies convey the image of a physically accessible, nearby “neighborhood pharmacy”.

PDF

References

  1. Ainiala, Terhi. 2010. “Use of Slang Toponyms in Helsinki”. Eigennamen in der gesprochenen Sprache. Edited by Elwys De Stefani and Nicolas Pepin, 101–125. Tübingen: Francke Verlag.
  2. Ainiala, Terhi. 2012. “Place Names and Identities: The Uses of Names of Helsinki”. Oslo Studies in Language 4, no. 2: 7–15.
  3. Ainiala, Terhi. 2020. “Aspects of Localness: A Pilot Study of Kiosk and Grill Food Names in Finland”. Onomastica 64: 167–177.
  4. Ainiala, Terhi, and Pia Olsson. 2021. “Places of Power: Naming of Affective Places”. Nordic Journal of Socio-Onomastics 1: 9–38.
  5. Ainiala, Terhi, Minna Saarelma, and Paula Sjöblom. 2012. Names in Focus: An Introduction to Finnish Onomastics. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society.
  6. Airaksinen, Marja, Terhi Toivo, Lenita Jokinen, Eeva Savela, Stina Parkkamäki, Charlotta Sandler, Hanna Kalliomäki, and Maarit Dimitrow. 2021. “Policy and Vision for Community Pharmacies in Finland: A Roadmap Towards Enhanced Integration and Reduced Costs”. Pharmacy Practice 19, no. 1: 2288.
  7. Ardhan, Dhea Tisane. 2023. “Anthropological Linguistics Study on Commercial Names of Drugstores in Surabaya”. ELLITE Journal of Education, Linguistics, Literature and Language Teaching 6,
  8. no. 1: 18–25.
  9. Babukh, Nadiia, and Yaroslav Redkva. 2020. “Pharmaconyms of Chernivtsi City (Semantic-Motivation Aspect)”. Current Issues of Social Studies and History of Medicine. Joint Ukrainian-Romanian Scientific Journal 25, no. 1: 6–11.
  10. Baker, Ronald L. 2001. “Sense of Place in Place Name Studies: Some Needed Work in Onomastics”. Names 49, no. 4: 268–272.
  11. Council of Finnish Shopping Centers. 2023. Finnish Shopping Centers 2023. Kauppakeskukset. https://www.kauppakeskusyhdistys.fi/media/kauppakeskusjulkaisu/kauppakeskusyhdistys_julkaisu2023_2.pdf
  12. Crang, Mike. 2005. “Time: Space”. Spaces of Geographical Thought: Deconstructing Human Geography’s Binaries. Edited by Paul Cloke and Ron Johnston, 199–220. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.
  13. Czapla, Anna, and Agnieszka Kutyła. 2012. “Nazwy Lubelskich Aptek”. [Names of Lublin Pharmacies]. Roczniki Humanistyczne 60, no. 5: 75–85.
  14. Donskova, Yu. V., A. D. Kurilova, and U.P. Prirodina. 2023. “Semantic and Pragmatic Characteristics of Pharmacy Ergonyms in Sweden and Great Britain”. Nauchnyi dialog 12, no. 4: 49–65.
  15. Eckert, Penelope. 2019. “The Limits of Meaning: Social Indexicality, Variation, and the Cline of Interiority”. Language 95, no. 4: 751–776.
  16. Ekström, Stig. 1978. “Varför har så många apotek djurnamn?” [Why Do So Many Pharmacies Have Animal Names?]. Farmacihistoriska Sällskapets Årsskrift. Republished online by Apotekarsocieteten. https://www.apotekarsocieteten.se/medlemskap/sektioner/farmaci-och-lakemedelshistoria/varfor-har-sa-manga-apotek-djurnamn/
  17. Elvey, Rebecca, Karen Hassell, and Jason Hall. 2013. “Who Do You Think You Are? Pharmacists’ Perceptions of Their Professional Identity”. The International Journal of Pharmacy Practice 21, no. 5: 322–332.
  18. Evans, Vyvyan. 2019. Cognitive Linguistics: A Complete Guide. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
  19. Finlay, Jessica M., and Graham D. Rowles. 2021. “Clinical Geography: A Proposal to Embrace Space, Place and Wellbeing Through Person-Centered Practice”. Wellbeing, Space and Society 2: 100035
  20. Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. 2021. “Key Concepts of the Health and Social Services Reform”. Entry for the term “lähipalvelu”. https://sotesanastot.thl.fi/. Accessed July 2, 2025.
  21. Gesler, Wilbert M. 1992. “Therapeutic Landscapes: Medical Issues in Light of the New Cultural Geography”. Social Science & Medicine 34, no. 7: 735–746.
  22. Government Decree on the Linguistic Status of Municipalities (1385/2022). [Valtioneuvoston asetus kuntien kielellisestä asemasta vuosina 2023–2032]. Finlex. https://www.finlex.fi/eli?uri=http://data.finlex.fi/eli/sd/2022/1385/ajantasa/2022-12-29/fin. Accessed August 13, 2025.
  23. Gustafson, Per. 2001. “Meanings of Place: Everyday Experience and Theoretical Conceptualizations”. Journal of Environmental Psychology 21, no. 1: 5–16.
  24. Gustafsson, Linnea. 2021. “The Persuasive Function of Company Names: Examples from Four Different Business Sectors”. The Economy in Names: Values, Branding and Globalization : Proceedings of Names in the Economy 6. International Conference, Uppsala, 3–5 June 2019 edited by Katharina Leibring, Leila Mattfolk, Kristina Neumüller, Staffan Nyström, and Elin Pihl. https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:sprakochfolkminnen:diva-1891
  25. Hay, Robert. 1988. “Toward a Theory of Sense of Place”. The Trumpeter 5, no. 4: 159-164.
  26. Helleland, Botolv. 2012. “Place Names and Identities”. Names and Identities, Oslo Studies in Language 4, no. 2: 95–116.
  27. Jalander, Y.W, and Lennart Skoglund, eds. 1938. Suomen apteekit ja apteekkarit 1689–1938: Finlands apotek och apotekare 1689-1938. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society.
  28. Keller, Kevin Lane, and Vanitha Swaminathan. 2020. Strategic Brand Management: Building, Measuring and Managing Brand Equity. 5th ed., Global ed. Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
  29. Kuopila, Antti, and Ville Nieminen. 2014. “Lähipalvelut - mitä nekin nyt ovat?” [Local Services - What Are They Even?]. Helsinki: Suomen Kuntaliitto. https://www.kuntaliitto.fi/julkaisut/2014/1643-lahipalvelut-mita-nekin-nyt-ovat.
  30. Language Act (423/2003) [Kielilaki (423/2003)] Finlex. https://www.finlex.fi/eli?uri=http://data.finlex.fi/eli/sd/2003/423/ajantasa/2024-12-19/fin. Accessed August 13, 2025.
  31. Medicines Act (395/1987) [Lääkelaki (395/1987)]. Finlex. https://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1987/19870395. Accessed July 5, 2025.
  32. Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. 2023. “Development of the Pharmacy System: Assessment of the Current Situation and Proposals for Further Measures 2023:6”. [Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriön raportteja ja muistioita 2023:6]. https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/handle/10024/164599
  33. Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. 2025a. “National Service Reform: Reform of the Content and Operating Methods of Health and Social Services”. https://stm.fi/en/national-service-reform. Accessed July 2, 2025.
  34. Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. 2025b. “Project on Medicines and Financial Base of Pharmacies 2024­–2026”. https://stm.fi/en/reform-of-pharmaceutical-matters. Accessed July 3, 2025.
  35. Paloumpi, Evgenia, Piotr Ozieranski, Margaret C Watson, and Matthew D Jones. 2024. “Pharmacy Users’ Perceptions, Awareness and Future Expectations of Community Pharmacy in England: A Focus Group Study”. International Journal of Pharmacy Practice 32, no. 1: 39–45.
  36. Peldán, Kerttu. 1967. Suomen farmasian historia. [History of Pharmacy in Finland]. Helsinki: The Finnish Pharmaceutical Society.
  37. Pike, Andy. 2015. Origination: The Geographies of Brands and Branding. Newark, United Kingdom: John Wiley & Sons.
  38. Project for Public Spaces. 2016. “The Case for Healthy Places: Improving Health Outcomes Through Placemaking”. New York, USA: Project for Public Spaces, Inc. https://www.pps.org/product/the-case-for-healthy-places
  39. Roxberg, Åsa, Kristina Tryselius, Martin Gren, Berit Lindahl, Carina Werkander Harstäde, Anastasia Silverglow, Kajsa Nolbeck, Franz James, Ing-Marie Carlsson, Sepideh Olausson, Susanna Nordin, and Helle Wijk. 2020. “Space and Place for Health and Care”. International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being 15, sup1.
  40. Sanastokeskus. n.d. Termipankki, under“ kunta”. https://www.termipankki.fi/. Accessed July 7, 2025.
  41. Sandst, Line. 2024. “Power, Language and Visibility Defining the Linguistic Landscape”. Sociolinguistic Variation in Urban Linguistic Landscapes edited by Sofie Henricson, Väinö Syrjälä, Carla Bagna, and Martina Bellinzona, 51–68. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society.
  42. Sebastien, Lea. 2020. “The Power of Place in Understanding Place Attachments and Meanings”. Geoforum
  43. 108: 204–216.
  44. Settlement Name Index. 2016. Continously updated. Institute for the Languages of Finland. https://kaino.kotus.fi/asutusnimihakemisto. Accessed between January 2024 and June 2025.
  45. Sixsmith, Judith. 1986. “The Meaning of Home: An Exploratory Study of Environmental Experience”. Journal of Environmental Psychology 6, no. 4: 281–298.
  46. Sjöblom, Paula. 2006. Toiminimen toimenkuva: Suomalaisen yritysnimistön rakenne ja funktiot [in Finnish]. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society.
  47. Sjöblom, Paula. 2014. “Commercial Names and Unestablished Terminology”. Names in Daily Life. Proceedings of the XXIV International Congress of Onomastic Sciences, Secció 1: 92–98.
  48. Sjöblom, Paula. 2016. “Commercial Names”. The Oxford Handbook of Names and Naming edited by Carole Hough, 453­–464. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  49. Statistics Finland. 2023a. Key Figures on Population by Region 1990–2024. https://pxdata.stat.fi/PxWeb/pxweb/en/StatFin/StatFin__vaerak/statfin_vaerak_pxt_11ra.px/. Accessed August 13, 2025.
  50. Statistics Finland. 2023b. Municipalities 2023. https://stat.fi/en/luokitukset/kunta/kunta_1_20230101. Accessed August 13, 2025.
  51. Stokowski, Patricia A. 2002. “Languages of Place and Discourses of Power: Constructing New Senses of Place”. Journal of Leisure Research 34, no. 4: 368–382.
  52. Thompson, Lee, and Susan Bidwell. 2015. “Space, Time, and Emotion in the Community Pharmacy”. Health & Place 34: 251–256.
  53. Trade Names Act (128/1979). [Toiminimilaki]. Finlex. https://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1979/19790128. Accessed July 5, 2025.
  54. Voutilainen, Eero, Tomi Visakko, Paula Sjöblom, Ulla Hakala, and Terhi Ainiala. 2024. “Place Branding and Translocal Chronotopes in Finnish Municipality Slogans”. Language & Communication 94: 56–68.
  55. World Health Organization. 2019. “The Legal and Regulatory Framework for Community Pharmacies in the WHO European Region”. World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe. https://iris.who.int/handle/10665/326394.
  56. Zitting, Joakim, and Katja Ilmarinen. 2010. “Missä on lähipalvelu? Lähipalvelukäsitteen määrittely ja käyttö julkisissa asiakirjoissa”. Rapporti 43/2010. [Where Is the Local Service? Definition of the Concept of Local Services and Its Use in Public Documents Report 43/2010]. Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe201205085197