Place names and identity Not only personal names are identity markers, so are place names. The issues of what kinds of names are given to which geographical objects, why and how places with established names are renamed, and what factors determine the choice among name variants are connected to the role of place names as identity shapers and markers. The fulfilment of this role is supported by the addi-tional social and affective functions of place names. To illustrate the interrelations of place names and identity, the author quotes slang place names, as the above-mentioned functions can easily be demonstrated on these. The paper first discusses the results of a survey on attitudes towards slang place names conducted among university students; then the appearances of affective and social functions are illustrated with the help of several examples of slang place names.