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The
Daily Gyro March 25, 2008 New Macedonia vs. Macedonia Classic The next couple of weeks could bring an end to the name dispute between FYROM and Greece as to any incorporation of the name Macedonia in the country’s name as it attempts to join NATO at the beginning of April. (Greece could veto such a move if the name dispute is not solved. According to at least one Greek news source, To Vima, the front-running name seems to be New Macedonia as the most neutral sounding of all the proposed names. As Americans we’re used to seeing “New” as the designation for place names: New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, and New Mexico. The first three of these are seemingly harmless as they refer to place names back in the old country, and there’s no possible claim to any territorial ties to these regions separated by an entire ocean. New Mexico is actually on the US border with Mexico but no one fears that there will ever be a movement to unite Mexico with New Mexico. But mostly the reason that no one is upset with these names is that these are names of states and not entire countries, just as when FYROM was a part of Yugoslavia. New Macedonia is probably a better name than North Macedonia, or Upper Macedonia, a couple of other names that have been suggested. In the U.S. we’ve done well with making sure that when there’s a North of something that there’s a South of something as well. (See Carolinas, Dakotas.) The only anomaly is West Virginia, because there’s no East Virginia, and as much as people talk about it, Northern Virginia isn’t its own state, at least officially. Internationally, we’re also used to seeing North Korea/South Korea, which also makes a North Macedonia name seem wrong because it would connote that FYROM and Macedonia in Greece were once united. But Upper Macedonia seems even worse because no Greeks ego would allow them to admit that they were from Lower anything. So let them have New Macedonia because in some cases new isn’t always necessarily better. (Anyone remember New Coke?)
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