Even Latin must be left to be able to find the etymological origin of the word denomination that now concerns us. There we discovered that it is a term that comes from the word “denominatio”, which was the process by which a person was given a name in order to identify them. It was also applied to the action that was done, in the same way, with an object.
“Denominatio” is made up of three clearly defined parts: the prefix “de-“, which indicates a direction from top to bottom; the noun “nomen”, which can be translated as “name”, and finally the suffix that indicates action and effect.
There are products that have a Denomination of Origin as a guarantee of quality and origin. For example: Huelva ham.
Naming Concept
The denomination is the title, the name or the nickname that allows to distinguish a person or a thing. When naming an object, a term is attributed to it that makes it possible to identify it with others.
For example: “The German manufacturer has announced the name of its new car: Solertum”, “The name of the championship surprised the participating clubs”, “The new owners intend to change the name of the theater”.
Blue cheese is the generic name for the product popularly known as Roquefort.
Different levels and uses
Most things have a name so that people can identify and recognize them . It should be noted that the denomination can function on different levels. Gibson Les Paul is the name of a model of electric guitar manufactured by Gibson: however, a musician can give a more specific name to a guitar of this model and name it “Paulina”.
In some cases, the official name of something differs from the more commonly used name. Soccer fans refer to the most important tournament organized by the South American Soccer Confederation as the Copa Libertadores, although its official name varies according to the main sponsor. Thus, the cup has been called, at different times, as Copa Toyota Libertadores or Copa Santander Libertadores.
Appellation of origin
It is known as Designation of Origin or Protected Designation of Origin, on the other hand, an official name that is assigned to certain products as a guarantee of their origin and quality. Sherry wine, Huelva ham and Chilean pisco are some of the products with Denomination of Origin.
It is important to know that for a product to be framed within a specific appellation of origin, it must meet a series of fundamental requirements such as the following:
- It is vital that the process of production, transformation and elaboration of the same take place within what would be the geographical scope of the aforementioned quality standard.
- It is necessary that the producers of the article commit themselves, in the same way, to all the controls and certification processes that are established and determined by the regulatory councils.
- It is also essential that the product in question meets a series of characteristics in terms of properties or quality.
Common name confusion
That the consumer can clearly identify the product that he acquires or that he has all the certainty that the article in question has a degree of differentiation and of a higher quality than the rest is what is pursued, among other things, with the implementation of the appellations of origin.
In some cases, the Denomination of Origin is confused with the common name of the product. That happens with Roquefort cheese, whose generic name should be blue cheese.