• Collect names in current usage
  
  
• Ascertain their proper spelling (and meaning and pronunciation)
  
  
• Indicate location of the named object (see Chapter 12 on Graphic techniques for showing extent of named objects)

Current usage: a name in current usage is used on a day to day basis by the local population in order to refer to a specific feature or object

• Current usage can be opposed to historical usage
  
  
• Legal usage ( = used on legal documents)
  
  
• Legislated usage ( = used in laws)
  
  
• Verbal usage (used in oral communication)
  
  
• Written usage

Current usage can be further defined as:

current legal usage or

current legislated usage, or

current verbal usage or

current written usage.

Remember that current usage can depend on:

• Age classes: young people might use other names than old people for the same object.
  
  
• Social classes: Persons may use other names for the same object when speaking to people belonging to higher or lower social groups.
  
  
• Time (1): In winter and summer different features are visible in the Arctic, so different name sets are used.
  
  
• Time (2): In nomadic areas different language groups using different names for the same objects might be present at different times during the year.
  
  
• Time (3): During specific periods topographical features like towns might be called by different, for religious and cultural purposes, like carnival.
  
  
• Language groups: In multilingual areas different language groups would use different names for the same objects.
  
  
• Gender: In some areas men and women might use different sets of names for the same objects.