REPORT OF THE UNITED STATES GEOGRAPHIC BOARD. 19 



The possessive form should be avoided whenever it can be done 

 without destroying the euphony of the name or changing its descrip- 

 tive application. 



In names ending in " burgh " the final " h " should be dropped. 



Names ending in " borough " should be abbreviated to " boro." 



The word " center," as part of a name, should be spelled as above 

 and not " centre." 



The use of hyphens in connecting parts of names should be dis- 

 continued. 



The letters " C, H." (courthouse) appended to the names of county 

 seats should be omitted. 



In the case of names consisting of more than one word it is some- 

 times desirable to combine them into one word. 



It is desirable to avoid the use of diacritic characters. 



It is desirable to avoid the use of the words city and town as 

 parts of names. 



It must be understood that these are not designed as rules, but 

 as guiding principles, from which the Board reserves liberty to de- 

 part whenever, in its judgment, it deems it advisable to do so. 



PRINCIPLES FOR SPECIAL APPLICATION IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 



(1) Geographic names in countries that use Roman characters 

 should be rendered in the form adopted by the country having juris- 

 diction, except where there are English equivalents already fixed 

 by usage. In cases where the English equivalent is so different from 

 the local form that the identity of the latter with the former might 

 not be recognized, the English form should be adopted, but, both 

 forms may be given. 



(2) The spelling of geographic names that require transliteration 

 into Eoman characters should represent the principal sounds of the 

 word as pronounced in the native tongue, in accordance with the 

 sounds of the letters in the following system. 



An approximation only to the true sound is aimed at in this 

 system. The vowels are to be pronounced as in Italian and on the 

 Continent of Europe generally, and the consonants as in English : 



a has the sound of a in father. Examples: Java, Banana, Somali, Bari. 



e has the sound of e in men. Examples: Tel el Kebir, Medina, Peru. 



i has the sound of i in ravine, or the sound of ee in beet. Examples: Fiji, 



Hindi. 

 o has the sound of o in mote. 



u has the sound of oo in boot. Examples: Umnak, Unga. 

 ai has the sound of i in ice. Example: Shanghai. 

 ao is slightly different from above. Example: Nanao. 



ei has the sound of the two Italian vowels, but is frequently slurred over, 

 when it is scarcely distinguishable from ey in the English they. 

 Examples: Beirut, Beilul. 



