Key:name:uk
 name:uk
|
 |
| Description |
|---|
A name in Ukrainian. 
|
| Group: names |
| Used on these elements |
    |
| Requires |
|
| Status: de facto |
| Tools for this tag |
A name in Ukrainian.
The name:uk=* tag is used to record the primary name of an object that is normative within the Ukrainian language system. The suffix uk also indicates the writing system — Cyrillic[1].
This tag is useful in cases where an object has names in several languages. If the name:uk=* value contains the same name as the name=* value, it indicates that name=* is in Ukrainian. If the name=* tag contains a name in another language, then name:uk denotes an additional Ukrainian version of the object’s name.
Good practice
The OpenStreetMap project operates on the principle of “map what’s on the ground”. Names on the map should match the names on the ground, as these are what users see and use for orientation and navigation.
However, there are exceptions to this rule. It is important to remember that names on signs may contain errors[2]. Assuming that people intuitively search for the correct spelling, it is advisable to fix these errors, especially if they are obvious typos.
It is also recommended, where possible, to record names without abbreviations. Decorative characters should be avoided, and brand or company names written in all-caps should be converted to title case, unless this causes confusion or contradicts established usage.
Detailed explanations on how to correctly determine and document names can be found in the article Names.
Ukrainian orthography
In addition to global guidelines, there are purely local aspects of recording names. In the Ukrainian context, this primarily concerns compliance with the current orthography, which defines, among other things, the rules for writing 
toponyms and other proper nouns.
Orthographic norms can be helpful when a name is recorded from the words of local residents — a mapper will be able to record it with the correct spelling. If several signs on one street have different spellings of the same name, it is the orthography that will help determine the normative version.
In such cases, one should refer to the relevant paragraphs of the orthography: §§ 50–59 contain rules for the use of capital letters in proper nouns, and §§ 148–154 provide examples of the correct spelling of Ukrainian and foreign toponyms.
Name examples
Names are difficult to classify strictly, as they can have diverse structures and origins. Therefore, the division below is conditional: from shorter and simpler to longer and more complex variants.
These examples should be regarded as guidelines only. When mapping, it is important to consider the context of each specific name.
Short names and abbreviations
Many names consist of a single word: Амстор, Сільпо, Укрсиббанк, Пасаж, Дніпро, Десна, Київ, Словʼянськ, Говерла, Джомолунґма, Німеччина. These are proper nouns, so they must be written with a capital letter.
Some names contain a hyphen: Експрес‑Банк[3], Ням‑ням, АТБ‑Маркет, Київ‑Пасажирський, Івано‑Франківськ, Буенос‑Айрес, Франкфурт‑на‑Майні.
Often, instead of long or official names, shorter versions in the form of abbreviations or acronyms are more common. You should not create your own abbreviations, as they may be unclear to other users. However, if a shortened name is in common use, prevails over the full form, and is used in advertising, signs, and logos, it can be tagged with the keys name and name:uk:
name=*, name:uk=* |
Full but rarely used version |
|---|---|
| ПУМБ | Перший український міжнародний банк |
| АТБ | Агротехбізнес |
| Навгеотех | Навігаційні та геодезичні технології |
On the page Uk:Abbreviations, you can learn more about expanding abbreviations, acronyms, situational simplification, and view examples.
Compound names
For most compound names, one can conventionally distinguish their specific and generic parts. The generic part of the name indicates the type of object (вулиця (street), парк (park), острів (island), район (district), etc.) and answers the question “what is it?”. The specific part clarifies which exact object is being referred to and distinguishes it from others.
| Compound name | Specific part | Generic term |
|---|---|---|
| Калуська міська громада | Калуська | міська громада |
| Згурівський професійний ліцей | Згурівський | професійний ліцей |
| перевал Легіонів | Легіонів | перевал |
| вулиця Академіка Заболотного | Академіка Заболотного | вулиця |
| бульвар Верховної Ради | Верховної Ради | бульвар |
| площа Ринок | Ринок | площа |
| вулиця Хутір | Хутір | вулиця |
Capital and lower-case letters
Generic terms are usually written in lower case. However, if the defining word that is part of the name is not a generic designation and does not denote a real object, it is written with a capital letter.
For example, in the name of the city Біла Церква, the word Церква does not mean a specific building, so it is written with a capital letter. In contrast, in the name Андріївська церква, this word is used in its direct sense — as the name of a religious building, so it is generic and written in lower case. Here are a few more examples of proper nouns where the defining word does not perform its nomenclatural function and is not a generic term: Біловезька Пуща, Булонський Ліс, Вогняна Земля, Золотий Ріг, Єлисейські Поля, Київська Перепічка, Смачна Хата.
Names with modifiers
A large proportion of names contain an adjectival modifier or a genitive construction. If the specific part is an adjective (adjectival modifier), it is usually placed first, followed by general generic terms in lower case: Магічна крамниця, Калуська міська громада, Згурівський професійний ліцей, Приморська вулиця, Боричів узвіз, Турійське озеро, Таранева бухта. Sometimes such names include numerals or several adjectives: 1‑ша Південна вулиця, 1‑й Болгарський провулок, Нова Степова вулиця, Бічна Бродівська вулиця.
If the specific part of the name is a substantive modifier (noun in the genitive case), the generic terms are positioned first: гора Кука, острів Святої Єлени, півострів Файнберга, перевал Легіонів, парк Захисників України, бульвар Верховної Ради, памʼятник Тарасові Шевченку.
Appositive names
Some names may have a structure where the generic term comes first, followed by a clarifying proper noun (appositive construction): площа Ринок, вулиця Ярославів Вал, село Вільне, кафе Ратуша, гора Говерла.
The generic term should be kept if it is an integral part of the name or performs a distinguishing function. In such cases, removing it deprives the name of part of its meaning or necessary context. Here are examples of streets and lanes with the same proper name located nearby: вулиця Самчики — провулок Самчики; вулиця Лан — провулок Лан; вулиця Конюховка — провулок Конюховка.
Conversely, the generic term is not recorded if it is redundant or traditionally omitted. For example, for the names кафе Ельдорадо, ресторан МакДональдз, кафе Ратуша, фаст‑фуд Київська Перепічка, the type of establishment is already indicated using tags such as shop=*, amenity=*, etc. Similarly, names of settlements, rivers, and peaks are usually filled in without nomenclatural terms: село Берестя, місто Нью‑Йорк, річка Кривий Торець, гора Магура. Modern official categories of settlements in Ukraine — село (village), селище (settlement), and місто (city) — are filled in separately in name:prefix=*.
Quotation marks in names
Names are written without quotation marks. Names that require double quotation marks retain only the inner pair:
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| «Молодіжний квартал» | Молодіжний квартал |
| кавʼярня «Свої» | Свої and amenity=cafe
|
| паб «Раковарня „Хмільна Одеса“» | Раковарня «Хмільна Одеса» and amenity=pub
|
More details on which symbols to use for quotation marks and other punctuation marks can be found in the section on punctuation.
When name standardisation is appropriate
Names upon which the address system is built require a certain level of standardisation. This is necessary for the correct and more predictable operation of search and navigation systems.
Names of administrative units — regions (oblasts), districts, hromadas, city districts — have a high level of formality and are clearly defined in regulatory acts, so they are usually indicated according to official sources.
The types and names of settlements are also well-formalised and validated at the state level; however, they may have historical or colloquial variants that can be marked with the keys old_name, alt_name, or loc_name.
Names of road network elements — streets, lanes, squares, highways, etc. — are the least standardised category, where discrepancies often occur (abbreviations, different spellings, errors on signs), so these names require special attention regarding unification. In the article Uk:Addresses, you can learn about bringing such names to a single standard.
Natural word order
Ukrainian orthography prefers natural word order. Unless an inverted form of a name is more common than the natural one, preference should be given to the name form with direct syntactic word order.
| Direct order | Inversion ↺ |
|---|---|
| Київська область | область Київська |
| Південний вокзал | вокзал Південний |
| Канівське водосховище | водосховище Канівське |
| Кривий провулок | провулок Кривий |
| 1-ша Садова вулиця | вулиця 1-ша Садова |
| вулиця Шевченка | Шевченка вулиця |
| бульвар Лесі Українки | Лесі Українки бульвар |
Punctuation and special characters
Apostrophe
In Ukrainian texts, the apostrophe can be represented by several visually similar Unicode characters: ' (ASCII apostrophe), ’ (typographic single quotation mark), and ʼ (modifier letter apostrophe). The first arose as a technical compromise in typewriters; the second is normative primarily for the English language and is used as both a quotation mark and an apostrophe.
The modifier letter apostrophe ʼ (U+02BC) is described by the Unicode standard as a “glottal stop, ejective, glottalization; many languages use this character as a letter of the alphabet”. This specific symbol is considered the most appropriate for the Ukrainian apostrophe according to the IDN Variant TLDs — Cyrillic Script Issues report.
Quotation marks
In most cases, names should be recorded without quotation marks. If quotation marks are nonetheless necessary, typographic French quotation marks (guillemets) « » (U+00AB, U+00BB) should be used.
Hyphens and dashes
It is necessary to distinguish between a hyphen and a dash, as they are different characters with different functions. The hyphen - (U+002D) is used much more frequently in names as part of words — particularly in compound proper names such as АТБ‑Маркет, Київ‑Пасажирський — and is a basic ASCII character.
Dashes are used much less frequently. The en dash – (U+2013) is used to denote ranges and occasionally appears in names (for example, of routes). The em dash — (U+2014) is intended for semantic pauses in text and is generally not used in names.
Stress marks
Stress marks (accents) are not added to names in the name=* and name:uk=* tags to avoid problems with unification and search.
If it is still necessary to preserve phonetic information, use the separate tag name:uk:word_stress=*. The Unicode standard contains the “Combining acute accent” symbol ́ (U+0301), which can be used with Ukrainian letters. To place a stress mark on a vowel letter, the U+0301 character must be placed after it.
Please avoid changing radically this text without translation also updating the original article, and notify the international community or ask for help on this site. Orthographic, grammatical, lexical or stylistic corrections are welcome.
Notes
- ↑ According to the BCP 47 international standard (RFC 5646), language tags should be as short as possible. In the IANA registry for Ukrainian, the Suppress-Script: Cyrl parameter is defined, making Cyrillic script implicit but the default standard for the
uksubtag. - ↑ Address signs with errors were found in Kropyvnytskyi; see the Suspilne material.
- ↑ The official name of a bank (full or short) must include the word “bank” and the legal form. Article 15 of the Law of Ukraine “On Banks and Banking”.
Maps in Ukrainian
- Wikimedia Maps (wikimedia.org)
- Wikimedia Maps (toolforge.org)
- OpenStreetMap Americana
- TracesMap
- OpenMapTiles – raster and vector tiles (demo)
See also
- Multilingual names
- Names – about names in general
official_name:uk=*alt_name:uk=*old_name:uk=*loc_name:uk=*name:ru=*