Research on the Spatial Pattern and Formation Mechanism of Traditional Village Toponymic Cultural Heritage in Yunnan Province, China

Traditional village toponyms are proprietary designations assigned by humans to natural or cultural geographical entities, encapsulating diverse cultural information and serving as a crucial component of cultural heritage, as well as an important carrier of collective memory for local residents. Taking the toponyms of Yunnan traditional villages recorded in the List of Traditional Villages in China as an entry point, this study utilizes multi-source materials such as historical documents and electronic information to analyze the deeper meanings of toponyms and classify the accordingly. Through semantic analysis and kernel density analysis, the study categorizes and visualizes the findings, discussing the spatial distribution characteristics of these toponyms. The interpretation of traditional village toponym formation through a cultural heritage lens holds profound significance for preserving vernacular cultural heritage.The findings indicate that: (1) Natural toponymic cultural heritage slightly predominates over humanistic categories in Yunnan, with both exhibiting clustered distributions in northwestern and central regions. (2) Among the natural toponymic cultural heritage, traditional villages named after landscapes are the most common, reflecting a preference for selecting natural sites. (3) Compared to natural toponyms, humanistic toponyms demonstrate a higher proportion of emotionally connotative nomenclature, reflecting aspirations for improved living conditions. (4) A thorough analysis of the origins of toponymic reveals that residents shape different categories of toponymic cultural heritage due to various factors such as environmental referentiality, belief systems, ancestral lineage continuation, environmental modification, and administrative influences. These toponymic cultural heritage elements collectively reflect the cultural syncretism characteristic of Yunnan's multi-ethnic regions, with systematic research contributing to enhanced toponymic standardization, improved planning coordination, and scientifically grounded conservation strategies for intangible toponymic heritage diversity.