On the Classification of Economic Terminology: Semantic and Word-Formation Aspects

The article addresses the challenges of classifying economic terminology, based on an analysis of the semantic and word-formation features of 500 economic terms found in print and online media texts from the 2010s–2020s. The classification criteria included thematic affiliation, word-formation characteristics, and the extent to which economic terms are used in real-life human activity. The classification made it possible to clearly identify the semantic and word-formation features of economic terminology as it evolves under the influence of social processes. The stability of economic terminology classification is affected by both linguistic (semantic potential and method of word formation) and social factors. Internal and external connections between economic subsystems — leading to blurred boundaries between different thematic groups of eco-nomic terms — are due to the heterogeneous and polysemous nature of the concept of “economy” itself.