polygoon

Polygoon is a term used in various contexts to refer to a polygon, particularly in Dutch where polygoon translates directly as polygon. In English, polygoon appears rarely outside of loanwords, brand names, or historical texts, with polygon as the standard term.

Geometrically, a polygon is a plane figure formed by a closed chain of straight-line segments called sides, meeting at points called vertices. The interior is a single region. A polygon has at least three sides. Polygons are classified by the number of sides (triangle, quadrilateral, pentagon, etc.) and by other properties: convex polygons have all interior angles less than 180 degrees and no indentations; concave polygons have at least one interior angle greater than 180 degrees. A regular polygon has all sides and all interior angles equal. A simple polygon does not cross itself; a complex or self-intersecting polygon does.

In computer graphics and geometric modeling, polygons (often triangles or quads) are the basic building blocks for surfaces. A polygon mesh represents a three-dimensional object as a network of polygons; the polygon count affects rendering performance and visual detail. In map tiling and geographic information systems, polygons define areas such as country borders or land parcels.

Terminology and etymology: polygoon follows the same roots as polygon, from Greek poly-'many' and gonia-'angles.' The term underscores the shared concept of multi-angled, closed shapes across languages and disciplines.