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Terminological Variation and Climate Change

Abstract

This article explores terminological and cognitive variation within climate change discourse. Through the analysis of 80 concepts from environmental glossaries and terminological databases, it identifies how terms evolve and vary–graphically, morphosyntactically, lexically, or by reduction. The study highlights how variant terms, such as ozone layer, ozone shield or ozonosphere, denote the same concept but propose different approaches and activate different cognitive frames.

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Terminological Variation and Climate Change

Author: Judit Freixa
Year: 2025
DOI: 10.35321/term32-01
Source: https://journals.lki.lt/terminologija/article/download/2508/2471
Te minologija / Te minology
2025, ol. 32, pp. 1–19
Con en s link / Tu inio nuo oda
ISSN 2669-2198 (online / elek oninis)
Copy igh © 2025 Judi F eixa. Published by he Ins i u e o he Li huanian Language. This is an Open Access
a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion Licence, which pe mi s un es ic ed
use, dis ibu ion, and ep oduc ion in any medium, p o ided he o iginal au ho and sou ce a e c edi ed. //
Išleido Lie u ių kalbos ins i u as. Šis s aipsnis y a a i os p ieigos, pla inamas pagal „C ea i e
Commons‚ p isky imo licencijos sąlygas, leidžiančias ne ibo ai naudo i, pla in i i a ku i u inį be kokioje
laikmenoje, nu odan au o ių i šal inį.
Recei ed: / Gau a: 2025-07-22. Accep ed: / P iim a: 2025-11-06. 1
TERMINOLOGICAL VARIATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE
1
Te minų a ian iškumas i klima o kai a
JUDIT FREIXA
Uni e si a Pompeu Fab a
E-mail: [email p o ec ed]du
ORCID ID: h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0002-1440-5514
Fields o esea ch: neology, e minology, lexicog aphy, gende s udies.
h ps://doi.o g/10.35321/ e m32-01
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ABSTRACT
This a icle explo es e minological and cogni i e a ia ion wi hin clima e change discou se. Th ough
he analysis o 80 concep s om en i onmen al glossa ies and e minological da abases, i iden i ies how e ms
e ol e and a y–g aphically, mo phosyn ac ically, lexically, o by educ ion. The s udy highligh s how a ian
e ms, such as ozone laye , ozone shield o ozonosphe e, deno e he same concep bu p opose di e en ap-
p oaches and ac i a e di e en cogni i e ames.
KEYWORDS: e minological a ia ion, cogni i e a ia ion, clima e change.
ANOTACIJA
Šiame s aipsnyje nag inėjamas e minų i kogni y inis a ian iškumas klima o kai os disku se.
Išanaliza us 80 są okų iš aplinkos apsaugos specialiųjų žodynų i e minų duomenų bazių, nus a y a, kaip
e minai e oliucionuoja i kin a g a iniu, mo osin aksiniu, leksiniu lygmenimis a dėl edukcijos. Ty imas
a skleidžia, kaip e minų a ian ai, okie kaip ozone laye (ozono sluoksnis), ozone shield (ozono skydas) a
ozonosphe e (ozonos e a), žymi ą pačią są oką, ačiau pe eikia ski ingus požiū ius i ak y uoja ski ingus
kogni y inius modelius.
ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: e minų a ian iškumas, kogni y inis a ian iškumas, klima o kai a.
1
A p e ious e sion o his ex was p esen ed a he 6 h In e na ional Scien i ic Con e ence ‚Scien i ic, Ad-
minis a i e and Educa ional Dimensions o Te minology‛ ha ook place a he Ins i u e o he Li huanian
Language, Vilnius (Li huania) in 16-17 Oc obe 2025.
2
INTRODUCTION
F om he yea 2000 onwa d, he e m bio uel became one o he mos equen ly
used e ms in he ield o en i onmen al science. Bio uel can be used o gene a e elec ici y,
p oduce hea o mo ion, and se e o he domes ic, indus ial, o anspo - ela ed pu poses.
Bio uel is impo an because i is helping o a oid ossil uels.
Bio uels a e ob ained om o ganic ma e (biomass), which can be ans o med in o
liquid, solid, o gaseous uels h ough physical, chemical, o biological p ocesses. One such
p ocess is biogasi ica ion, a echnique based on he anae obic diges ion (i.e., in he absence
o oxygen) o o ganic was e in o biogas. The p ima y gas p oduced h ough biogasi ica ion
is me hane, which is why his p ocess is also known as biome hanisa ion (o biome haniza ion,
depending on he a ie y o English used). Howe e , o easons o linguis ic economy and
he seman ic neu alisa ion o he p e ix bio-, i is commonly e e ed o simply as
me hanisa ion (o me haniza ion).
These h ee e ms – biogasi ica ion, biome hanisa ion, and me hanisa ion – along wi h
hei o hog aphic a ian s, p o ide an illus a i e example ha in oduces he subjec o
his pape : e minological a ia ion in he ocabula y o clima e change. This ocabula y is a
pa icula ly e ile g ound o he s udy o e minological a ia ion and, mo e speci ically,
o he analysis o cogni i e a ia ion. In his pape we will explo e he connec ion be ween
denomina i e a ia ion– ha is, he use o di e en e ms o e e o he same concep –and
cogni i e a ia ion.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
Te minological Va ia ion
Te minological a ia ion
2
has ecei ed conside able a en ion om schola s in las 25
yea s, who ha e app oached i om a ange o heo e ical pe spec i es. Cab é (1999), in he
Communica i e Theo y o Te minology, p oposes an in eg a i e app oach ha connec s
linguis ic, cogni i e, and communica i e dimensions. F om his iewpoin , a ia ion is no
conside ed a e minological law bu a he a unc ional esponse o di e en usage con ex s.
Mo eo e , o Cab é, e ms do no belong o closed, uni o m sys ems; ins ead, hey exis
wi hin di e se communica i e se ings, which gi e ise o mul iple exp essions o he same
specialised con en . In his sense, e minological a ia ion e lec s no only linguis ic
di e ences in usage bu also di e ences in he pe cep ion and ep esen a ion o knowledge.
F eixa (2003; 2006; 2013; 2022) has add essed e minological a ia ion om a
mul idimensional pe spec i e, also in eg a ing linguis ic, cogni i e, and communica i e
aspec s. In line wi h Cab é, F eixa (2003) emphasises ha denomina i e a ia ion should
2
Te minological a ia ion is, s ic ly speaking, any a ia ion ha a ec s e ms, bu in his a icle we use i in i s
mo e common sense, as he a ia ion ha a ec s denomina ions, and hus we use i as a synonym o denom-
ina i e a ia ion.
3
no be seen as a ma ginal o inciden al phenomenon, bu as an inhe en ea u e o
specialised language. Th ough co pus s udies o ex s wi h a ying le els o specialisa ion in
he en i onmen al domain, she iden i ies mul iple ac o s ha in luence he eme gence o
a ian s: he communica i e pu pose o he ex , he knowledge le el o bo h he au ho and
he a ge audience, he communica ion channel, and he concep ual s uc u e o he
domain, among o he s. In he 2006 pape , F eixa p oposes a ypology o he causes o
e minological a ia ion ha allows us o unde s and a ia ion no simply as a mul iplici y o
o ms, bu as a unc ional and cogni i e s a egy ha mee s di e se communica i e needs. In
he mo e ecen esea ch (2022), she insis s on he dynamic na u e o specialised
knowledge, showing how his dynamism is e lec ed in he luc ua ing denomina ions ha
eme ge wi hin he discou ses in which knowledge is cons uc ed and communica ed. She
pa icula ly highligh s he oles o scien i ic popula isa ion and in e linguis ic and
in e cul u al ans e . In his ega d, she a gues ha a ia ion should be seen as a esou ce
ha enables he adap a ion o specialised discou se o di e en usage con ex s, wi hou
necessa ily esul ing in a loss o e minological p ecision. He wo k hus con ibu es o
consolida ing an in eg a i e and non-p esc ip i e iew o e minology.
F om a sociocogni i e pe spec i e, Temme man (2000) analyses e minology as a
phenomenon ancho ed in collec i e expe ience and sha ed knowledge. He model
challenges he igidi y o classical app oaches and acknowledges he dynamic, lexible, and
con ex ualised na u e o concep s, wi h pa icula a en ion o concep ual a ia ion. On he
o he hand, om he pe spec i e o F ame-Based Te minology (Fabe e al. 2009; Fabe
2022), a ia ion is examined a he in e sec ion o cogni ion, discou se, and language
echnologies. These app oaches demons a es ha e minological a ia ion is a complex and
p oduc i e phenomenon, one ha equi es in e disciplina y and dynamic app oaches o i s
ull unde s anding.
Cogni i e Va ia ion
Unlike denomina i e a ia ion, which conce ns he di e en denomina ions used o
a single concep , cogni i e o concep ual a ia ion
3
e e s o he a ious ways in which a
gi en concep can be cons uc ed, in e p e ed, and ep esen ed depending on con ex ual,
cul u al, ideological, o disciplina y ac o s. This ype o a ia ion is o en e lec ed in he
use o di e en e ms o app oach he concep om dis inc pe spec i es.
Fe nández-Sil a (2011; 2016; 2022) begins wi h he need o mo e beyond he
adi ional iew o he concep as a ixed, uni e sal en i y, p oposing ins ead a dynamic,
si ua ed, and discou se-cons uc ed concep ion. Acco ding o Fe nández-Sil a, concep ual
a ia ion is inhe en o he e olu ion o scien i ic and echnical knowledge, as well as o i s
3
In his a icle, we use hese wo e ms as synonyms, al hough concep ual a ia ion is mo e equen ly used o
e e o changes o di e ences in he concep i sel associa ed wi h a e m, while cogni i e a ia ion e e s o
how a speake concep ualizes o pe cei es a concep a a gi en momen o in a speci ic con ex .
4
ci cula ion among di e en communi ies. She a gues ha specialised concep s a e no
closed en i ies bu open s uc u es shaped h ough aming p ocesses and
econ ex ualisa ion. In his ega d, she d aws on Fillmo e’s F ame Seman ics (1977) o
emphasise ha concep s a e ac i a ed h ough complex cogni i e s uc u es ha de e mine
which aspec s o knowledge become salien in each communica i e si ua ion. F om his
pe spec i e, concep ual a ia ion eme ges as a na u al and necessa y phenomenon in
specialised communica ion, especially when knowledge ci cula es among communi ies wi h
di e en p io i ies, le els o expe ise, o ideological posi ions.
Wi hin he F ame-Based Te minology app oach, Fabe e al. (2009) and U eña
Gómez-Mo eno e al. (2013) ha e de eloped ools o ep esen concep ual a ia ion in
e minological knowledge bases. By combining seman ic ela ions, ame blending, and
cogni i e dynamics, hei app oach cap u es how a single e m may be concep ualised
di e en ly ac oss disciplines. Bení ez and León-A aúz (2023) u he explo e how
concep ual a ia ion can be acked h ough compu a ional me hods applied o mul ilingual
co po a, e ealing how he same concep may be amed di e en ly ac oss languages and
cul u es. Acco ding o he au ho s, his aises signi ican challenges o specialised
ansla ion, in e na ional communica ion, and global knowledge managemen . Simila ly,
Te cedo (2011) add esses he cogni i e dynamics o concep s, highligh ing he in luence o
social change on he econ igu a ion o specialised knowledge. She examines how concep s
e ol e o e ime, gene a ing ensions be ween olde and newe ep esen a ions, and how
hese ensions a e mani es ed in discou se. Concep ual a ia ion, hen, is also p esen ed as
he esul o an e olu iona y p ocess, no me ely a communica i e one–a iew sha ed by
schola s such as Du y and Le ad (2008), and mo e ecen ly, Du y (2022) and Du y and
Pic on (2024), who ocus on e minological a ia ion om a diach onic pe spec i e.
In conclusion, concep ual a ia ion is inhe en o he si ua ed and dynamic na u e o
specialised knowledge. I s s udy enhances ou unde s anding o how e ms–and hei
meanings–a e p oduced, ansmi ed, and nego ia ed ac oss discou ses ha embody di e se
wo ld iews.
Clima e Change Te minology
Clima e change is a complex phenomenon ha demands a p ecise e minology
capable o adap ing o he e e -e ol ing body o knowledge in his ield. In ecen decades,
he ocabula y associa ed wi h clima e change has de eloped apidly, in luenced by
scien i ic, poli ical, media, and educa ional ac o s. The e o e, i is no only impo an o
iden i y speci ic e ms, bu also o unde s and how hese e ms eme ge, a y, and a e
communica ed depending on he communica i e con ex , he le el o expe ise, and o he
a iables ha may a ec hei use.
5
Guslyako a, Valee a, and Va ko a (2020) analyse how new en i onmen al e ms
(g een neology) eme ge and sp ead in educa ion and he media. These neologisms e lec he
eme gence o new concep s (e.g. ga bology) and he need o ind e ec i e ways o name and
communica e hem. The au ho s a gue ha ideological and educa ional componen s a e key
o en i onmen al li e acy, and ha hese neologisms se e no only a denomina i e unc ion
bu also ac as pe suasi e ools ha shape educa ional and poli ical discou se. Consequen ly,
one o he de ining ea u es o clima e discou se is i s cons an p oduc ion o neologisms.
This dynamism is also ela ed o he in e disciplina y na u e o clima e knowledge. Moo e e
al. (2021), o example, analyse he e m ans o ma ion in he con ex o clima e change
mi iga ion. In hei sys ema ic e iew, hey obse e ha he e m is used ambiguously and
wi h mul iple meanings, anging om echnological change o deep social econ igu a ions.
This polysemy e lec s he complexi y o clima e phenomena and he di e si y o
disciplina y pe spec i es in ol ed. Thus, e ms such as ene gy ansi ion, sys emic
ans o ma ion, o clima e jus ice ca y no only echnical weigh , bu also poli ical and
e hical signi icance. Thus, Moo e e al. simila ly concludes ha e minology no only
desc ibes change bu ac i ely pa icipa es in cons uc ing i discu si ely.
F om a p agma ic pe spec i e, Ca ió-Pas o and Candel-Mo a (2012) also a gue
ha e minology should be unde s ood as a con ex ual and discu si e phenomenon, beyond
any p esumed no ma i e igidi y. Th ough co pus analysis, hey show ha he choice o
clima e- ela ed e ms depends on ac o s such as ex gen e (academic, media, educa ional),
a ge audience (expe s, s uden s o laypeople), as well as communica ion channel and
pu pose: echnical p ecision, simpli ied dissemina ion, o he o ical e ec . They a gue ha
communica i e speci ici y (who speaks, o whom, and o wha pu pose) is cen al in
e minological choice.
F om a mo e discou se-o ien ed pe spec i e, Bu eau (2024) demons a es ha
concep ual ep esen a ions o clima e change a y no only in e minology bu also in he
ames o e e ence ac i a ed in di e en discou ses. Compa ing expe and media co po a,
she inds signi ican di e ences in how causes, solu ions, and esponsibili ies ela ed o
clima e change a e concep ualised. These indings align wi h Roge s (2004), who no es ha
media discou se ends o simpli y and econ igu e scien i ic knowledge abou clima e,
p oducing hyb id and some imes imp ecise concep s, hough mo e accessible o he gene al
public.
Concep ual me apho s ha e also been shown o play a cen al ole in shaping
unde s anding o clima e change. Haddad Haddad and Mon e o-Ma ínez (2021) poin ou
ha exp essions like ca bon oo p in o ca bon cap u e unc ion as s uc u ing me apho s,
p ojec ing speci ic cogni i e ames on o abs ac phenomena. These me apho s no only aid
unde s anding bu also o ien ac ion, since each ame en ails a di e en way o pe cei ing
and add essing he p oblem. The ans e o such me apho s ac oss languages and cul u es
can gene a e seman ic ensions. In hei English–A abic con as i e s udy, he au ho s
highligh he di icul y o ansla ing concep ual implica u es accu a ely, which can a ec

6
communica i e e ec i eness in mul ilingual con ex s. Cabezas-Ga cía and León-A aúz
(2022) ein o ce his idea by demons a ing ha clima e change communica ion
accommoda es e minological a ian s ailo ed o di e en communica i e needs. Fo
example, he choice be ween global wa ming and clima e c isis is no neu al: i implies
di e ences in ideology, egis e , and communica i e in en . The way e ms a e used can
shape public pe cep ion.
Howe e , ecen s udies such as Goldwe e al. (2024) sugges ha changing
e minology does no necessa ily a ec beha iou al in en ions. In hei expe imen al
esea ch, hey ound ha eplacing e ms like global wa ming wi h clima e c isis had no
s a is ically signi ican impac on people’s willingness o ake clima e ac ion. This inding
in i es a mo e nuanced iew o he di ec in luence o language on en i onmen al
beha iou , al hough i does no ule ou i s ole in cogni i e aming.
DATA AND METHODOLOGY
Empi ical esea ch on e minological a ia ion is based on ex analysis, since ha is
he na u al en i onmen o e ms and whe e hei eal beha io can be obse ed. Fo his
s udy, we ha e decided o ely on glossa ies, assuming ha he a ia ion eco ded he e will
be smalle han he a ia ion ha ac ually exis s. In his way, we will base ou obse a ions
on he examples ha ha e passed h ough he il e s applied by he e minologis s o
specialis s who compiled he glossa ies, and which should be he mos s abilized in he
specialis s’ usage.
To compile a lis o he mos ep esen a i e e ms in he ocabula y ela ed o
clima e change, we consul ed se e al glossa ies e ie ed h ough Google sea ches. These
include Glossa y o Clima e Change Te ms (Uni ed S a es En i onmen al P o ec ion
Agency), The Clima e Dic iona y: An E e yday Guide o Clima e Change (Uni ed Na ions
De elopmen P og amme), Clima e Change Glossa y (BBC News), Clima e Change Glossa y:
De ini ion o Key Te ms (Sus ainable T a el In e na ional), and Glossa y (O ice o Clima e
Educa ion). A e selec ing he 100 e ms ha appea ed in he g ea es numbe o glossa ies,
we sea ched o hem in wo e minological da abases: IATE (In e ac i e Te minology o
Eu ope, om he Eu opean Union) and Ce ca e m (by Te mca , Ca alan go e nmen ,
Gene ali a de Ca alunya). The inal selec ion consis ed o 80 concep s, each ep esen ed by
one o mo e e ms, all o which we e documen ed in a leas one o he da abases (mos o
hem in bo h). The ull lis o 80 concep s and hei a ian s is a ailable in he appendix.
Fo he o mal classi ica ion o a ian s, we d ew on he ypology p oposed by F eixa
(2003), which g oups a ian s acco ding o whe he he change is g aphical,
mo phosyn ac ic, educ ion, o lexical. This classi ica ion also allows o analysis o he
deg ee o concep ual equi alence be ween a ian s (in cases wi h mo e han wo
denomina ions, we compa ed hose wi h he leas o mal di e gence). Finally, o analyse he
usage and e olu ion o e ms o e ime in specialized discou se, we used Google Ng am
7
Viewe , a ool ha allows o he compa ison o up o i e denomina ions simul aneously on
a single empo al axis, enabling us o ack he appea ance and ela i e equency o each
e m o e ime. To compa e he esul s wi h he usage and e olu ion o he e ms in
jou nalis ic discou se, we used Fac i a
4
, he wo ld’s la ges p ess da abase, by Dow Jones.
RESULTS AND ANALYSIS
In his sec ion, we i s analyse he denomina i e index o he concep s included in
ou sample o e ms. Nex , we o e an ini ial analysis o selec ed examples based on hei
o mal classi ica ion, highligh ing he dis inc i e ea u es o he denomina i e a ian s and
placing special emphasis on cases o cogni i e a ia ion. Finally, we examine selec ed e m
clus e s o obse e how di e en a ian s show di e en cogni i e pe spec i es and how
ha e hey e ol ed o e ime along he empo al axis.
Denomina i e Index
Mos o ou 80 concep s a e ep esen ed by one e m o wo. Bu 20% a e
ep esen ed by 3 e ms and, as can be seen in Table 1; one concep is ep esen ed by 6
e ms and ano he one by 7. So, he denomina i e index (i.e., he a e age numbe o
denomina ions pe concep , ollowing F eixa 2003) s ands a 2.37 denomina ions pe
concep .
Table 1. Dis ibu ion o Denomina i e G oups by Numbe o Denomina ions
Den
Quan i y
%
1
25
31,25
2
25
31,25
3
16
20,00
4
6
7,50
5
6
7,50
6
1
1,25
7
1
1,25
To al
80
100%
Index ----
2,37
Rep esen ed by one e m we ha e examples like dese i ica ion, g eenhouse e ec ,
ozone p ecu so , an h opocene, ewilding, and ci cula economy. In e es ingly, he i s h ee
a e olde e ms (none a e 1970), while he la e h ee a e mo e ecen (all appea ing
a ound 2010), so, he age o a e m does no appea o de e mine whe he o no i has
al e na e denomina ions. No does equency seem o be a decisi e ac o , as all a e among
he mos equen ly used concep s in clima e- ela ed discou se. Simila ly, no speci ic wo d
o ma ion p ocess appea s o go e n hei a iabili y. Thus, he ques ion o why some
4
Dow Jones. Fac i a. Da abase. A ailable a : h ps://www.dowjones.com/p oduc s/ ac i a.
8
concep s exhibi e minological a ia ion and o he s do no will need o be s udied in u u e
wo k. Ano he hi d (31.25%) o he concep s is ep esen ed by wo denomina ions, while
he emaining hi d (37.50%) a e ep esen ed by mo e han wo. The concep s ep esen ed
by he highes numbe o denomina ions a e: hyd o ac u ing (wi h hyd aulic acking,
hyd aulic ac u ing, hyd o acking, hyd o- ac and HF) and eco- iendly (en i onmen -
iendly, en i onmen ally iendly, g een, ea h iendly, ecological, en i onmen al).
Fo mal change dis ibu ion
We app oach he s udy o seman ic equi alence among denomina ions ha al e na e
o he same concep by analyzing he ype o o mal a ia ion obse ed. As shown in Table
2 and ollowing he classi ica ion p oposed by F eixa (2003), we ha e g ouped he examples
in o ou ca ego ies based on whe he he change is g aphical, mo phosyn ac ic, educ ion,
o lexical.
We can see ha mos o he examples clus e a he wo ex emes: he mino change,
which is simply g aphical, and he majo one, which in ol es a lexical change.
Table 2. Classi ica ion by Type o Fo mal Va ia ion
Type
Quan
i y
%
Examples
G aphical
29
29.89
paleoclima ology / palaeoclima ology
Mo phosyn ac ic
13
13.40
g eenwash / g eenwashing
Reduc ion
20
20.83
li ing biomass / biomass
Lexical
35
36.45
ca bon ma ke / ca bon ading
G aphical a ia ion
The examples o g aphical a ia ion ep esen he highes deg ee o seman ic
equi alence. These include al e na ions in ol ing hyphena ion (e.g., ag oecology / ag o-
ecology, bio uel / bio- uel, ne ze o / ne -ze o), spacing (hea wa e / hea wa e, was e wa e /
was ewa e , sal wa e in usion / sal wa e in usion), and o hog aphic di e ences be ween
B i ish and Ame ican English (paleoclima ology / palaeoclima ology, biome hanisa ion /
biome haniza ion, e o es a ion / ea o es a ion). All o hese examples a e seman ically
iden ical and do no ca y dis inc conno a ions beyond egional spelling con en ions.
This ca ego y also includes nume ous cases o ull o ms and abb e ia ions, such as
ac onyms (global wa ming po en ial / GWP, sea le el ise / SLR, g eenhouse gases / GHG),
chemical o mulas (ca bon dioxide / CO₂), o o he sho ened o ms ( edox po en ial /
oxida ion- educ ion po en ial, biological di e si y / biodi e si y, ecological anxie y / eco-
anxie y). In many o hese cases, abb e ia ed o ms (like SLR o GWP) end o appea mo e
equen ly in ex s wi h a highe deg ee o specializa ion.
9
Mo phosyn ac ic a ia ion
Mo phosyn ac ic a ia ion is less equen (13.40%) and is mos ly associa ed wi h
mo phological shi s, such as be ween nominal and e bal o ms (ca bon o se / ca bon
o se ing, g eenwashing / g eenwash), o a ia ion in ol ing su ixa ion (clima e change /
clima ic change, ni ogen e ilize / ni ogenous e ilize , en i onmen - iendly /
en i onmen ally iendly). Some examples show syn ac ic es uc u ing, as in loss o
biodi e si y / biodi e si y loss. Mos o hese cases display a high deg ee o equi alence, wi h
li le o no deno a i e o conno a i e di e ence.
The al e na ion be ween clima e change and clima ic change dese es pa icula
a en ion. As i can be seen in igu e 1, bo h e ms we e a ely used be o e he mid-1980s
and we e la gely es ic ed o scien i ic ex s. Howe e , wi h he ad ancemen o clima ology
and he de elopmen o mo e sophis ica ed clima e models, clima e change gained ac ion as
he gene al e m o desc ibing shi s in global wea he pa e ns. In 1988, he
In e go e nmen al Panel on Clima e Change (IPCC) was es ablished as he main body
assessing clima e science, consolida ing clima e change as he s anda d e m in in e na ional
poli ical and scien i ic discou se. This explains he s eep ise in usage (blue cu e) a e
1985, a end ha has con inued unin e up ed, while clima ic change has emained ma ginal
in equency.
Figu e 1. Tempo al e olu ion o clima e change and clima ic change
Reduc ion
One ype o e minological a ia ion ha is o en o e looked, despi e i s quan i a i e
ele ance (20.83%), is ha which esul s om he educ ion o syn agma ic o ms. These
a e o en anapho ic educ ions, whe e he elided pa is eco e ed om con ex , bu in o he
cases he educed o m is no anapho ic, ei he because i has become lexicalized, o because
he ex ended o m includes less ele an o edundan in o ma ion. The seman ic dis ance
be ween al e na ing o ms depends on whe he he educ ion is anapho ic (in which case he
equi alence is jus con ex -dependen ) o lexical ( ypically showing a high deg ee o
seman ic equi alence).
16
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APPENDIX 1: LIST OF TERMS
1. ag oecology, ag o-ecology
2. albedo, e lec ance
3. an h opocene
4. an h opogenic
5. a mosphe ic ae osol
6. a mosphe ic li e ime
7. biodi e si y, biological di e si y
8. biodi e si y loss, loss o biodi e si y, loss o
biological di e si y, biodi e si y e osion,
e osion o biodi e si y
9. bio uel, bio- uel
10. biogasi ica ion, biome hanisa ion,
biome haniza ion, me haniza ion,
me hanisa ion
11. biomass, li ing biomass
12. biosphe e
13. blue economy
14. ca bon cap u e, CO2 cap u e, ca bon
dioxide cap u e, cap u e o CO2
15. ca bon cycle, ci cula ion o ca bon
16. ca bon dioxide, CO2
17. ca bon dioxide emissions, ca bon emissions,
CO2 emissions
18. ca bon oo p in , CO2 oo p in , ca bon
dioxide oo p in
19. ca bon in ensi y, CO2 in ensi y, ca bon
dioxide in ensi y, CI
20. ca bon ma ke , ca bon ading, emissions
ading
21. ca bon neu al, ca bon-neu al, clima e
neu al, GHG emissions neu al,
g eenhouse gas emissions neu al
22. ca bon o se ing, ca bon o se
23. ca bon emo al, ca bon dioxide emo al,
CDR
24. ca bon seques a ion, CO2 seques a ion,
ca bon dioxide seques a ion, ca bon
dioxide s o age, s o age o ca bon
25. ca bon sink, ca bon dioxide sink, sink
26. ci cula economy
27. clima e change, clima ic change
28. clima e change adap a ion, adap a ion o
clima e change, clima e adap a ion,
adap a ion
29. clima e c isis, clima e eme gency, clima e
b eakdown
30. clima e jus ice
31. clima e esilience, esilience o clima e
change, clima e esiliency
32. clima e sensi i i y, sensi i i y
19
33. clima e s ike, F idays Fo Fu u e, FFF,
School S ike o Clima e, You h Fo
Clima e
34. clima e ipping poin , ipping poin , poin
o no e u n
35. clima e ansi ion
36. clima e a iabili y, clima ic a iabili y
37. compos able
38. c yosphe e
39. dese i ica ion
40. d inking wa e , po able wa e
41. eco-anxie y, ecological anxie y,
en i onmen al anxie y
42. eco- iendly, en i onmen - iendly,
en i onmen ally iendly, g een, ea h
iendly, ecological, en i onmen al
43. eco- e ugee, en i onmen al mig an ,
en i onmen al e ugee
44. ene gy e iciency
45. ene gy ansi ion
46. en i onmen al ce i ica ion
47. e apo anspi a ion
48. ex eme wea he e en
49. global wa ming, global hea ing
50. global wa ming po en ial, GWP
51. g eenhouse e ec
52. g eenhouse gases, GHG
53. g eenwashing, g eenwash, g een sheen
54. hea wa e, hea wa e, wa m spell, ho spell
55. hea y me al
56. hyd o luo oca bon, luo ohyd oca bon,
HFC
57. hyd o ac u ing, hyd aulic acking,
hyd aulic ac u ing, hyd o acking, hyd o-
ac, HF
58. indigenous knowledge, local knowledge,
adi ional knowledge
59. indi ec emissions
60. megaci y
61. na u e es o a ion
62. ne ze o, ne -ze o
63. ni ogen e ilize , ni ogenous e ilize
64. ozone laye , ozone shield, ozonosphe e
65. ozone p ecu so
66. paleoclima ology, palaeoclima ology
67. pe ma os , pe gelisol
68. pho ochemical smog, oxidan smog,
oxidizing
69. edox po en ial, oxida ion- educ ion
po en ial
70. e o es a ion, ea o es a ion, es ocking
71. egene a i e ag icul u e, egene a i e
a ming
72. enewable ene gy, ene gy om enewable
sou ces
73. ewilding
74. sal wa e in usion, sal wa e in usion,
saline in usion, sal wa e enc oachmen
75. sea le el ise, SLR
76. soil deg ada ion, soil de e io a ion
77. species ein oduc ion
78. suspended pa icula e ma e , SPM,
pa icula e ma e , PM, suspended
pa icula es
79. sus ainable de elopmen , SD
80. was ewa e , was e wa e , sewage e luen ,
sewage