PROPER NAMES OF SPATIAL OBJECTS ON VENUS

Abstract

The article analyzes the features of the names of spatial objects on Venus, in particular Venusooronyms and Venusohoronyms – proper names of denotates of vertical (mountains, canyons, craters, etc.) and horizontal (valleys, regions, plains, etc.) division of territory.Compound names (56.01%) formed syntactically prevail; only the names of craters formed by actual semantization are simple. Astronomical terms make up 56.01% of onyms, anthroponyms – 48.38%, theonyms – 37.44%, proper names of mythical creatures – 18.48%. Eponyms are the only feminine substantives among all Venusonims. Simple onymes have memorial (24.32%) or nominal (19.46%) motivation; compound onymes have a combined motivation: essential motivation is combined with nominal (51.36%) or memorial (4.38%). 93.99% of Venusonyms are new, 6.01% are the latest structures. The analyzed propriatives are mostly borrowed (transliterated from different languages t hrough Latin mediation) or combined proper names. These are artificial onyms with a known, but mostly opaque etymology. Most Venusonyms are approved by the International Astronomical Union in Latin writing (the model «proper name + astronomical term», both words are capitalized); in Ukrainian, the name is transliterated (not translated), the term comes first and is written with a lowercase letter, and the proper name is on the second, capitalized, and functions in the nominative or genitive case.In the future, it is planned to characterize the names of spatial objects on other planets, their satellites and some asteroids. This will make it possible to objectively determine the peculiarities of the Solar System’ cosmotoponyms.