UNGEGN Divisions
The Group of Experts is composed of experts from various linguistic/geographical divisions that have been established by the UN Conferences on the Standardization of Geographical Names. Countries decide for themselves the division(s) to which they wish to belong; some belong to more than one division. A division chair is selected within a division and he/she is encouraged to stimulate activities in the standardization of geographical names within the division, through technical meetings, correspondence, etc.
Currently, there are 24 divisions that guide the work of UNGEGN during and between its sessions. Individuals interested in initiating activities are encouraged to consult the UNGEGN Secretariat to find points of contact within their divisions.
Link to Meetings of the Bureau / Divisions
Linguistic/Geographical Divisions
The Group of Experts shall be composed of experts from linguistic/geographical divisions designated by Governments. The Group of Experts shall be supported in its activities by the following linguistic/geographical divisions:
Africa Central Division
- Angola
- Burundi
- Cameroon
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Congo
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Equatorial Guinea
- Gabon
- Rwanda
- Sao Tome and Principe
Michel Simeu Kamdem (Cameroon)
sodziwa@gmail.com
Pax Mbuyi Mucici (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
paxmbuyi@gmail.com
Africa East Division
- Botswana
- Burundi
- Djibouti
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Kenya
- Lesotho
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mauritius
- Mozambique
- Seychellese
- Sudan
- Uganda
- United Republic of Tanzania
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Nivo Ratovoarison (Madagascar)
nivoratovoarison@yahoo.com
Charles Mwangi (Kenya)
Getachew Worku (Ethiopia)
getu4556@yahoo.com
Africa South Division
- Botswana
- Eswatini
- Lesotho
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- South Africa
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Lucy Phalaagae (Botswana)
lphalaagae@gov.bw
Africa West Division
- Benin
- Burkina Faso
- Cape Verde
- Côte d'Ivoire
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Liberia
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Togo
Claude Obin Tapsoba (Burkina Faso)
institut.geog@fasonet.bf
Ebrima L. Ceesay (Gambia)
Mohamed Hassimiou Fofana (Guinea)
Arabic Division
- Algeria
- Bahrain
- Comoros
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- Iraq
- Jordan
- Kuwait
- Lebanon
- Libya
- Morocco
- Mauritania
- Oman
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- Sudan
- Syrian Arab Republic
- Somalia
- State of Palestine
- Tunisia
- United Arab Emirates
- Yemen
These countries can be connected through the League of Arab Countries
Muammar Kamel Haddadin (Jordan)
m.haddadin@rjgc.gov.jo
Yousef Al Nabhani (Oman)
ynabhani@hotmail.com
Eman Ahmed Oriby (Egypt)
eman_o@capmas.gov.eg; Emanorieby@gmail.com
Nabila Licer (Morocco)
n.licer@ancfcc.gov.ma
Ibrahim Al-Zoqrti (Jordan)
zoqurti@yahoo.com
Contact@adegn.info
Website
- Resolutions of the Ninth Arab Conference of Arab Experts on Geographical Names
- List of participants
- Report
- Agenda
Asia East Division (other than China)
- Democratic People's Republic of Korea
- Japan
- Republic of Korea
Chair
Akihiko Takagi (Japan)
takagi.akihiko.736@m.kyushu-u.ac.jp
Asia South-East Division
- Bhutan
- Brunei Darussalam
- Cambodia
- Indonesia
- Lao People's Democratic Republic
- Malaysia
- Myanmar
- Philippines
- Singapore
- Sri Lanka
- Thailand
- Vietnam
Chair
Nor Zetty Akhtar Haji Abdul Hamid (Brunei Darussalam)zetty.hamid@survey.gov.bn
Asia South-West Division (other than Arabic)
- Afghanistan
- Azerbaijan
- Cyprus
- Iran (Islamic Republic of)
- Pakistan
- Tajikistan
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
Masoud Shafiei (Iran (Islamic Republic of))
shafieimasoud@ncc.org.ir
Baltic Division
- Estonia
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Poland
- Russian Federation
Maciej Zych (Poland)
mzych@poczta.onet.pl
Saulius Urbanas (Lithuania)
saulius.urbanas@am.lt
http://www.eki.ee/knn/ungegn/index.htm
Celtic Division
- France
- Ireland
Dutch- and German-speaking Division
- Austria
- Belgium
- Germany
- Netherlands
- South Africa
- Suriname
- Switzerland
Palesa Kadi (South Africa)
palesakadi@gmail.com
Website
https://www.stagn.de/DE/3_DGSD/Aufgaben_DGSD_ENG/aufgaben_node.html
East Central and South-East Europe Division
- Albania
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czechia
- Georgia
- Greece
- Hungary
- Montenegro
- Poland
- Romania
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- North Macedonia
- Turkey
- Ukraine
Eastern Europe, Northern and Central Asia Division
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Belarus
- Bulgaria
- Georgia
- Kazakhstan
- Kyrgyzstan
- Russian Federation
- Tajikistan
- Ukraine
- Uzbekistan
Diana Ismailova (Russian Federation)
inter-dep@rosreestr.ru
East Mediterranean Division (other than Arabic)
French-speaking Division
- Algeria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Burkina Faso
- Cameroun
- Canada
- Chad
- Congo
- Côte d'Ivoire
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Djibouti
- France
- Guinea
- Lebanon
- Madagascar
- Mali
- Morocco
- Niger
- Romania
- Senegal
- Spain
- Switzerland
- Togo
- Tunisia
Pierre Jaillard (France)
pierre@jaillard.net
Hervé Bohbot (France)
herve.bohbot@cnrs.fr
Jeanne Henrion (Belgium)
jeanne.henrion@ngi.be
Marie-Ève Bisson (Canada)
mebisson@toponymie.gouv.qc.ca
India Division
Latin America Division
- Argentina
- Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
- Brazil
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Cuba
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Haiti
- Honduras
- Mexico
- Nicaragua
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Spain
- Suriname
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
- Bolivarian Republic of
Francisco Javier Medina Parra (Mexico)
Francisco.Medina@inegi.org.mx
Mario Jahuey (Mexico)
mario.jahuey@inegi.org.mx
Norden Division
- Denmark (including Greenland and Faroe Islands)
- Finland
- Iceland
- Norway
- Sweden
Ingvil Nordland (Norway)
ingvil.nordland@nmbu.no
emily.lethbridge@arnastofnun.is
Peder Gammeltoft (Norway)
Peder.Gammeltoft@uib.no
http://nordendivision.nfi.ku.dk/
Pacific South-West Division
- Australia
- Fiji
- Nauru
- New Zealand
- Papua New Guinea
- Samoa
- Solomon Islands
- Timor-Leste (East Timor)
- Tonga
- Vanuatu
Susan Birtles (Australia)
Susan.Birtles@dnrme.qld.gov.au
wshaw@linz.govt.nz
Portuguese-Speaking Division
- Angola
- Brazil
- Cabo Verde
- Equatorial Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Mozambique
- Portugal
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Timor-Leste
José Mahumane (Mozambique)
jmahumane@gmail.com
Ana Cristina Resende (Brazil)
ana.resende@ibge.gov.br
https://dplpng.ibge.gov.br/
Romano-Hellenic Division
- Andorra
- Belgium
- Canada
- Cyprus
- France
- Greece
- Holy See
- Italy
- Luxembourg
- Republic of Moldova
- Monaco
- Portugal
- Romania
- Spain
- Switzerland
- Turkey
Andrea Cantile (Italia)
andrea.cantile@unifi.it
Monica Dumitrascu (Romania)
stefania_dumitrascu@yahoo.com
https://www.igmi.org/en/toponomastica?set_language=en
United Kingdom Division
- Guyana
- Jamaica
- South Africa
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- New Zealand
Catherine Cheetham (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)
ccheetham@pcgn.org.uk
USA/Canada Division
- Canada
- United States
Glenn A Guempel (United States of America)
gguempel@usgs.gov
Steve Westley (Canada)
steve.westley@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca
RULES1
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The number of linguistic/geographical divisions and their composition may be revised, if necessary.
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A country shall decide for itself the division to which it wishes to belong. A country may be a member of another division provided the nature of its participation does not change the linguistic/geographical character of the division(s) concerned. An experts may be invited to attend meetings of other divisions in the capacity of observer or consultant.
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Each division, if composed of more than one sovereign State, shall select, by methods of its own choosing, an experts to represent the division (Division Chairman) as a whole at the meetings of the Group of Experts.
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In order to guarantee the continuity of work, each division having more than one sovereign State shall select an alternative representative; the divisional representative shall act in close contact with his alternate.
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The divisional representative shall stimulate activities in the standardization of geographical names within his division by all appropriate means (correspondence with national bodies on the standardization of geographical names and national surveying and mapping agencies; organization of meetings of the divisional experts)
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The divisional representative shall be responsible for ensuring that the work of the Group of Experts and its potential for technical assistance are brought to the attention of the individual countries in his division and for reporting to the United Nations any special problems in his division.
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To discuss technical and procedural matters, a division may organize regional meetings during United Nations conferences on the standardization of geographical names and meetings of the Group of Experts, or at any other appropriate time.
1 Excerpt from the Statute and Rules of Procedure of the UN Group of Experts on Geographical Names.