TY - SER KW - Bilingualism KW - cultural heritage KW - Field names (Flurnamen) KW - Microtoponyms KW - rural development AU - A. Sancho Reinoso AB - In multilingual areas, geographical (or place) names are often a sensitive issue. In the southern part of the Austrian province of Carinthia, bilingual place names gained visibility and acceptance after decades of conflict. Departing from the notions of “place attachment” and “toponymic attachment”, this chapter investigates whether acceptance has also led to more appreciation, particularly of microtoponyms, and whether this appreciation is used by local and regional authorities to foster regional development, taking advantage of the inclusion of Slovene field and house names in the Austrian National Inventory of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010. Results show overwhelming positive attitudes towards Slovene place names among local population, yet differences exist depending on linguistic background. Interviews with local authorities reflect uneven bilingual policies resulting in gaps, notably concerning street names. In some cases, new names with no connection with existing field names are created and incorporated in postal addresses, resulting in impoverishment in the visibility and the use of bilingual names. Bilingualism is recognised as an asset for the region, but bilingual place names are neglected in (rural) development strategies, plans and projects. Social acceptance has not brought about generalised social appreciation. Both positive and negative manifestations of toponymic attachment coexist. C1 - GeoJournal Library DO - 10.1007/978-3-031-09775-1_14 N1 - Journal Abbreviation: Geoj. Libr. Pages: 254 Publication Title: Geoj. Libr. N2 - In multilingual areas, geographical (or place) names are often a sensitive issue. In the southern part of the Austrian province of Carinthia, bilingual place names gained visibility and acceptance after decades of conflict. Departing from the notions of “place attachment” and “toponymic attachment”, this chapter investigates whether acceptance has also led to more appreciation, particularly of microtoponyms, and whether this appreciation is used by local and regional authorities to foster regional development, taking advantage of the inclusion of Slovene field and house names in the Austrian National Inventory of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010. Results show overwhelming positive attitudes towards Slovene place names among local population, yet differences exist depending on linguistic background. Interviews with local authorities reflect uneven bilingual policies resulting in gaps, notably concerning street names. In some cases, new names with no connection with existing field names are created and incorporated in postal addresses, resulting in impoverishment in the visibility and the use of bilingual names. Bilingualism is recognised as an asset for the region, but bilingual place names are neglected in (rural) development strategies, plans and projects. Social acceptance has not brought about generalised social appreciation. Both positive and negative manifestations of toponymic attachment coexist. PB - Springer Science and Business Media B.V. SN - 09245499 (ISSN) TI - From Place Attachment to Toponymic Attachment: Can Geographical Names Foster Social Cohesion and Regional Development? The Case of South Carinthia (Austria) UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85140249539&doi=10.1007%2f978-3-031-09775-1_14&partnerID=40&md5=6fbee79c18c3070a0b33840f1e8704df VL - 131 ER -