[WikiEN-l] Names of places in unrecognized countries

[Ray Saintonge]

Bogdan Giusca wrote:

>The current naming policy for less-known placenames (those with no
>name in English) is to use the spelling in the language of the country
>where the place is located.
>
>Now there's a problem with unrecognized countries: i.e. countries
>which declared their independence, but which are not recognized internationally.
>
>I have an example in Transnistria:
>
>The town of Malaiesti (population ~5000) is officially in Moldova, but
>practically, it is under Transnistrian control.
>
>Which spelling should be used for its article name? The Romanian/Moldovan spelling
>(Malaiesti) or the Russian speling (Malayeshty)?
>
The fact that Moldovan is already written with the Roman alphabet is a 
strong argument in its favour.  A Russian form still needs to be 
transliterated from the Cyrillic.  Legally, Transnistria is a part of 
Romania, and it should not be up to us to decide whether it should be an 
independent country.

Ec