Abstract: This article seeks to study the relationships between neology and naming
taken from the viewpoint of the act of giving a name, to be distinguished from the
word or denomination itself, which is the result of this operation, producing a stable
form.
First of all, neology and naming do not coincide completely. The influence of
the syntactic context, desire to be identified as an insider or to achieve expressivity
can give rise to neologisms without there being any concomitant new realities to be
named. From the other point of view, naming is not always accompanied by
neologisms: usages may be extended and meanings may be specialized in context,
and in general old signs may be used for new realities.
Then again, several parameters must be taken into account when examining
naming by neology. The factor of the degree of urgency is fundamental: does the
speaker have time to give thought to the new name or is the sentence already half
out? The aim of convincing both hearer and speaker/writer of the existence of a new
reality or to express an opinion on the subject is a second parameter. Finally we
examine various cases of renaming.
