本文研究的重點，在瞭解地區特色的型塑過程中，人類如何就生態環境中的自然環境，以及人文環境：在其生活空間上註記地名以形成記憶。研究目的如下：① 了解自然環境、產業活動的特色與地名的關係。② 了解聚落內部結構發展與角頭地名的形成。③ 釐清地區生活空間的形塑與指認過程。擬以朴子市地名的研究，透過歷史地理的研究途徑，探討地名的生成與生態環境的關係，進一步討論聚落內部結構與角頭地名和空間認同的關係。結論如下： 1. 早期的地名，絕大多數以自然景觀命名，地點和位置條件均佳；後期的地名，則多與人文環境有關，區位條件差。 2. 大型集村，姓氏較雜異，內部也多小地名；規模較小者，無小地名，不但多單姓血緣村，且多為老村落分化而成。 3. 鄉村聚落的庄廟和營頭，是居民認同鄉土的中心性地標和邊緣性地標；因辨識生活空間而形成的小地名，由於聚落內的分工或共工活動，被組織成具有實質空間的角頭地名。朴子市街地區，由於經濟活動的多樣性，衍生出一些新地名；隨市街的擴展，郊區的村落名漸成街內的小地名，於是街內寺廟林立的結果，公共設施乃成街民認同此一地域名稱的新地標。 4. 原本對聚落名的認同，因生活空間重組的結果，漸衍生行政區名的認同；由點的地名認同，轉為面地名的認同：對內互以大字、里名區別，對外均通稱朴子人。

This study investigated how residents in Pu-tsu area used physical environment and human environment to mark place names to form memory of their living space. The following purposes were pursued in this study: 1) to understand the relationship between features of physical environment, industrial activity with place names. 2) to explore the innards development and formation of local names. 3) to recreate the processes of living space shaping and recognition. The area studied was Pu-tsu city, a major township of Chiayi County in southern Taiwan. The study employed a historical geography approach to explore the relationship between the place names and the environment. The findings of the study are as follows: 1) Earlier place names were mostly coined from natural landscape, and had a better location, while later place names were more frequently related with human environment and had a bad location. 2) Larger villages had more diverse surnames and had some local place names in themselves, while smaller ones tended to have one single surname and had no local place names. 3) In rural settlements, temples and camps were the centricity landmark and edge landmark for native soil's spatial identification. Recognition of living space by the locals led to the formation of local names, while labor division or collaboration in many internal activities would lead to corner names with a real space. In downtown area of Pu-tsu city, the diverse economic activities generated some new place names. Following the expansion of downtown area, the names of villages in suburban areas gradually became an internal local names. As a result, a forest of temples were built, which became the public facilities and the new landmarks of the area accepted by the street people as part of the area. 4) Identification with the original village names was gradually transformed into identification with names of political area due to reorganization of living spaces. People's identification with a particular space name gradually extend into one with a larger area; residents of Pu-tsu used dah-tzyh (大字) or community to distinguish themselves from each other internally, and generally called themselves Pu-tsu people to outsiders.