An ethnonym (from the Greek: thnos "nation" and noma "name") is the name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (where the name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms or endonyms (self-designation; where the name is created and used by the ethnic group itself).

As an example the ethnonym for the ethnically dominant group in Germany is the Germans. This ethnonym is an exonym used by the English-speaking world although the term itself is derived from Latin. Conversely Germans themselves use the autonym of die Deutschen. Germans are indicated by exonyms in many European languages such as Italian (tedeschi) French (Allemands) Spanish (Alemanes) and Polish (niemcy). Contents 1 Variations 2 Change over time 3 Linguistics 4 See also 5 References Variations

Numerous ethnonyms can apply to the same ethnic or racial group with various levels of recognition acceptance and use. The State Library of South Australia contemplated this issue when considering Library of Congress Headings for literature pertaining to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Some 20 different ethnonyms were considered as potential Library of Congress headings but it was recommended that only a fraction of them be employed for the purposes of cataloguing.1 Change over time

Ethnonyms can change in character over time; while originally socially acceptable they may come to be considered offensive. For instance the term Gypsy has been used to refer to the Roma. Other examples include Vandal Bushman Barbarian and Philistine.

The ethnonyms applied to African Americans have demonstrated a greater evolution; older terms such as colored carried negative connotations and have been replaced by modern-day equivalents such as black or African-American.2 Other ethnonyms such as Negro have a different status. The term was considered acceptable in its use by activists such as Martin Luther King in the 1960s3 but other activists took a different perspective. In discussing an address in 1960 by Elijah Muhammad it was stated "to the Muslims terms like Negro and colored are labels created by white people to negate the past greatness of the black race".4

Four decades later a similar difference of opinion remains. In 2006 one commentator suggested that the term Negro is outdated or offensive in many quarters2 although its use remains in organisations such as the United Negro College Fund;5 similarly the word "colored" still appears in the name of the NAACP or National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

In this context an ethnonym has the potential to mimic the phenomenon of the euphemism treadmill. Linguistics Main article: Demonym

In English ethnonyms are generally formulated through suffixation; by applying an -n to people of Austria their nationality is known as Austrian. In English in many cases the word for the dominant language of a group is identical to their English-language ethnonym; the French speak French the Germans speak German. This is sometimes erroneously overgeneralized; a child may assume that people from India speak "Indian"6 despite there being no language which is called by that name. See also -onym Diaspora studies demonym exonym Hyphenated American Statistext References Aboriginal Rountable (1995): LCSH for ATSI People. a b http://faculty.ncwc.edu/toconnor/soc/355lect11.htm http://books.google.com/booksidTUHozbJSC8C&pgPA40&vqnegro&sigycXGnb7ZfX3pMQAaFXnollgzuJU Message from the Wilderness of North America. A Journal for MultiMedia History article. Mrs. Bush's Remarks at United Negro College Fund Anniversary. http://books.google.com/booksidKOsXN9eJvDkC&pgPA34&lpgPA34&dq%22talking+in+indian%22&sourceweb&otsf3UdtDOKf5&sigQFESOJKnRr7DVHNjkQpgi6nhBk