In an opinion piece in The Washington Post, Benjamin Dreyer writes about the various spellings of Ukrainian place names and personal names. “Kyiv” and “Zelenskyy” are transliterations of Ukrainian spellings, whereas “Kiev” and “Zelensky” represent Russian spellings. Adding the definite article before “Ukraine” evokes a colonial past, when the now-sovereign state was a territory. Dreyer writes, “Those of us who follow publishers’ usages and standards at least as much as we set them out will continue to watch the Zelensky(y) matter with interest — and will be reminded that words, even “the” small ones, even their smallest components, can carry a big meaning.”

Read more in The Washington Post.

In November 2021, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland moved to declare the word “squaw” derogatory. Now, the Department of the Interior is seeking public comment on how to rename over 660 geographic features that contain the derogatory word. Secretary Haaland commented, “Words matter, particularly in our work to make our nation’s public lands and waters accessible and welcoming to people of all backgrounds … Consideration of these replacements is a big step forward in our efforts to remove derogatory terms whose expiration dates are long overdue.” Read more over at NPR.

The former Graves Hall at the University of Alabama (Photo by DXR, CC-BY-4.0)

The Trustees of the University of Alabama have voted to remove the name of former Governor and Ku Klux Klan Leader Bibb Graves from an academic building. The building will now be known as Autherine Lucy Hall, named for Autherine Lucy Foster, a student who attended the formerly all-white University for a short time in 1956. Read more about the decision over at NPR.

Luxembourg-based SPI group, makers of Stolichnaya Vodka, have announced that they will rebrand their products: Stolichnaya will now be “Stoli”. Even though the alcohol has been produced in Latvia since 2000, the Russian Vodka line has faced immense backlash following the Russian military invasion of Ukraine. American bars and liquor stores have organized a boycott of the Latvian vodka brand, bottles of which appear covered in images of a Soviet past.

Read more over at CNN.

Little Blue Penguins (Photo by frank wouters, CC-BY-2.0)

The Birch Aquarium in San Diego is selling naming right for its Little Blue Penguins. The cost? $50,000 per penguin. The fees will help pay for the living expenses for this group of the smallest penguin species on the planet. So far, five of ten penguins have been named. Read more in The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Photo by Укравтодор (State Agency of Automobile Roads of Ukraine)

In the wake of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, authorities are working to remove road signs in order to confuse the Russian military and delay their movement across the country. Ukrainians—both civilians and road service employees—are intentionally removing signs that identify names of roads and places. In their place, road service workers are installing signs that taunt the invading Russian army. One digital display reads “Putin lost, the entire world is with Ukraine.” Others display the final words of the Ukrainian border guards stationed on Snake Island before they were bombed by a Russian warship.

Read more over at NPR.

A report from the Raleigh News and Observer notes that North Carolina State University has removed the word “Dixie” from its Alma Mater. The Board of Trustees unanimously agreed with the change, which replaced the word “Dixie” with the word “Southern.” Chancellor Randy Woodson commented on the change, saying: “Traditions remain an important part of NC State…Those traditions must reflect who we are today and what we hope to achieve.” Read more in the Raleigh News and Observer.