Toonymic

Toonymic is an adjective used in linguistics and onomastics to refer to matters related to toonyms, a term that denotes place names. The word is a less common variant of the more widely used term toponymic. In scholarly writing, toponymic is the standard form, while toonymic may appear as an alternative spelling or in older literature.

Etymology and scope: The form toonymic is built from the idea of a name linked to a place, combining a root associated with place names with the suffix -ic. In practice, toonymic (or topynic/toponymic) describes two related phenomena: the naming of people or things after a place (toponymic naming), and the study of how place names function as personal or family names within languages and cultures. The field concerned with these questions is typically called toponymy or onomastics, with toponymic as the common English descriptor.

Usage and examples: In discussions of naming practices, toonymic naming refers to the origin of certain surnames or given names derived from geographic locations. Examples include surnames that originate from places such as London or Chester, or given names like Georgia or Dakota that are drawn from place or geographic terms. These instances illustrate how place names transition into personal names, a primary concern of toponymic studies. The term emphasizes the geographic source of the name rather than its semantic meaning.

See also: Toponymy, Onomastics, Toponymic. Note that scholars more commonly use topynomic or toponymic; toonymic is encountered less frequently and may be regarded as a variant in some contexts.