RT Journal Article
T1 Material traces of past cultures as a motive for the creation of Spanish place names
A1 Ruhstaller, Stefan
A1 Gordón Peral, María Dolores
K1 Place names
K1 Spanish language
K1 Onymic motivation
K1 Archaeological remains
K1 Popular interpretation
AB Place names referencing the material traces of past cultures are relatively common in the microtoponymy, of Spanish-speaking areas. Since they were created by rural speech communities completely lacking in historical and archaeological culture, they make it possible to reconstruct how realities of archaeological interest (fragments of tools and building materials, ruins of buildings, dolmens, menhirs, tombs, old coins, inscriptions, engraved or painted cave art, among others) were popularly perceived and interpreted long before becoming objects of scientific study. Taking an extensive toponymic corpus as its starting point, this paper presents an exhaustive classification of such names, differentiating those of a purely descriptive nature from those intended to provide answers to questions concerning the origins, age, and purpose of the enigmatic discoveries. This toponomastic analysis facilitates the rigorous study of the process of onymic creation and its underlying motives.
PB Polish Academy of Sciences
YR 2022
FD 2022
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10433/21820
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10433/21820
LA en
NO Onomastica, vol. 66, p. 125-146
NO Departamento de Filología y Traducción
DS RIO
RD May 22, 2026