1 st Interonoma - International Conference of Onomastics

 

Social impact of naming processes

UFMG, Belo Horizonte (Brazil), November 3–7, 2025

FIRST CIRCULAR / CALL FOR SYMPOSIUM PROPOSALS

Presentation

Onomastic studies have grown significantly over the last two decades in Brazil (Amaral; Seide, 2022; Ananias; Tavares, 2022; Carvalhinhos, 2022; Seide; Saparas, 2023) and abroad (Li; Kit; Cheng, 2024). This increase is due, among other factors, to the social impact caused by various naming processes. This becomes more evident when considering the different agents involved in naming processes, namely, the individual or object bearing the name, the namer, as well as the sociocultural context in which the naming occurs. The 1st Interonoma: International Conference of Onomastics aims to create a space for discussion on the social impact of naming processes. Within this framework, research addressing issues relevant to contemporary society stands out, such as:

a) the attribution and change of people's names, especially, but not exclusively, transgender people;

b) the granting of naming rights, where the conflict arises between public administration's interests in revenue generation and the need to preserve cultural values of public heritage, represented by the toponym (Jayo; Tavares Lima, 2021; Moreira, 2023);

c) recognizing names not only as a guarantee of a personal right, but also as a fundamental right, and, as more recent studies argue, as an integral part of human rights (Varennes; Kuzborska, 2015);

d) the use of names as a means of resistance and identity affirmation by minority linguistic groups, such as deaf people, indigenous peoples, quilombolas, migrants, among others;

e) the need to include the aforementioned issues in the curricula of basic and higher education schools, in order to train citizens who are critical of personal and geographical naming processes in their surroundings and in the nation.

Although onomastic researchers have been meeting for some time in specific sessions at other events (such as the World Symposium on Portuguese Language Studies and the ANPOLL Meetings), there is still no specific space in Brazil to bring together researchers and professionals interested in issues related to proper names, as there is in other countries (such as the Congresses of the International Council of Onomastic Sciences (ICOS) and the ICONN Congresses, for example, held periodically in Europe). In this sense, the proposed event aims to fill this gap and provide a space for disseminating scientific production in the field of Onomastics, encouraging the generation of knowledge and products, as well as the application of results in sectors that can benefit the population. It also aims to strengthen postgraduate-level production, providing opportunities for national and international partnerships.

Languages

The official languages of the event are Portuguese, Brazilian Sign Language (Libras), Spanish, and English.

Target audience: professors and researchers in Onomastics and related fields, postgraduate and undergraduate students, basic education teachers, and others interested in the study of proper names.

Thematic Areas

1. Description of onomastic systems

2. Interface of Onomastics with other areas

3. Theories, research methods in Onomastics

4. Development of Onomastic databases

5. Language policies and norms regarding proper names

6. Onomastics in sign languages

7. Onomastics in minority groups

8. Onomastics applied to translation

9. Onomastics applied to teaching

10. Fictional Onomastics

Program

The event will be held predominantly in person and will include lectures, round tables, mini-courses, and scientific communication symposia. In order to broaden participation opportunities for both Brazilians and foreigners, the event will also feature online symposia for scientific communications. The following speakers have already confirmed their attendance:

Alexandre Melo de Sousa (Federal University of Alagoas)

C. Fernández Juncal (University of Salamanca)

Derek H. Alderman (University of Tennessee)

Terhi Ainiala (University of Helsinki)

References

AMARAL, Eduardo Tadeu Roque; SEIDE, Márcia Sipavicius. Personal names: an introduction to Brazilian anthroponymy. Araraquara: Letraria, 2022.

ANANIAS, Anna Carolina Chierotti dos Santos; TAVARES, Marilze. Pesquisas em toponímia no Brasil: trabalhos produzidos na pós-graduação stricto sensu. Acta Scientiarum. Language and Culture, v. 44, n. 1, p. e53282, 2022.

CARVALHINHOS, Patrícia. Onomastics and toponomastics. In: KABATEK, Johannes; WALL, Albert (org.). Manual of Brazilian Portuguese Linguistics. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2022.

JAYO, Martin; TAVARES LIMA, Adriana. Comodificação toponímica e a cidade neoliberal: sobre a venda de direitos de nomeação (naming rights) das estações do metrô de São Paulo. Domínios de Lingu@gem, Uberlândia, v. 15, n. 2, p. 347–370, 2021.

LI, Siyue; KIT, Chunyu; CHENG, Le. Unveiling the landscape of Onomastics from 1972 to 2022: a bibliometric analysis. Names: a Journal of Onomastics, v. 72, n. 3, p. 40-64, 2024.

MOREIRA, Vitor Gomes. Naming rights de bens reversíveis em concessões públicas. Revista da Procuradoria Geral do Estado de São Paulo, v. 97, p. 34-48, 2023.

SEIDE, Márcia Sipavicius.; SAPARAS, Marcelo. Trends in Onomastic Research in Brazil. Linguistik Online, [S. l.], v. 101, n. 1, p. 139-155, 2020. DOI: 10.13092/lo.101.6681.

VARENNES, Fernand; KUZBORSKA, Elżbieta. Human rights and a person’s name: legal trends and challenges. Human Rights Quarterly, v. 37, p. 977-1023, 2015.

CALL FOR SYMPOSIUM PROPOSALS

Symposium proposals may be submitted by members of the Onomastic Observatory (Onoma) and external researchers.

Each symposium must have two proposers, with at least one of them holding a PhD.

The proposal must be submitted through the event platform (Even3), including information regarding the mode (in-person symposium or online symposium) and the thematic area in which it will be linked.

The proposals received will be evaluated by the scientific committee, which may accept, reject, or request modifications.

Symposium proposers must:

a) participate in a virtual alignment meeting on a date to be defined by the event organizing committee;

b) receive, evaluate, and select the works submitted to their symposium;

c) issue and send the acceptance letter, following instructions provided by the organizing committee;

d) organize the presentations schedule for the works, according to the general program of the event, and send them to the organizing committee, which may make adjustments if necessary;

e) coordinate the presentations of their symposium during the event, either in person or remotely, according to the proposed and approved modality;

f) keep track of the list of participants presenting their works and send it to the organizing committee at the end of the symposium activities for certification purposes.

Contato / Support / Contact

inter.onoma@gmail.com

https://www.even3.com.br/interonoma 

Calender

1st Circular : 15/10/24

Submission of proposals for in-person or online symposium : 30/11/24

2nd Circular : 15/12/2024

Submission of abstracts for symposiums: 31/03/25

3rd Circular : 15/04/25

Evaluation of the abstracts : 30/06/25

Sending of acceptance letter : 31/07/25

Registration : 31/08/25

Deadline for payment of registration with presentation of work : 31/08/25

Congress realization : 03/11/25 to 07/11/25