The place-name alias table

Contents of a place-name alias table

A place-name alias is a common name of a location, such as the name of a school, hospital, or other landmark. For example, Memorial Hospital is the place name for the address 893 Memorial Drive. Searching for a location can be done either by the address or its place-name alias.

In a place-name alias table, each record represents one place-name and its associated address. When a place-name is entered as an input address, the address locator searches for the location based on the alias name's corresponding address.

Alias field

The place-name alias table must contain a field that stores the place-names. They are the names that will potentially be entered as the input address. For example, if the table contains a list of schools with their associated addresses, the field in the table that contains the actual school name is used as the Alias field. If the same address has multiple place-names, each name with the same corresponding address should be added to the table. If different addresses have the same place-name, additional zone information, such as City, State, or ZIP Code, should be provided in the table. For example, the table can have a record for Public Library with its address in Atlanta, GA, and another record for Public Library in Dallas, TX.

Address fields

Based on the address locator style you choose, the place-name alias table should contain the same set of address input fields used by the address locator. For example, if an address locator specifies Streets, City, State, and ZIP as the input fields for matching, the place-name alias table should have the same set of fields. These fields contain the actual addresses for the alias names.

Building an address locator for place-name aliases

Creating address locators that use place-name tables, an address locator can be created that includes place-names.

See Creating an address locator topic to learn how to create an address locator. The following steps describe how to add the place-name alias table and specify the fields in the Create Address Locator dialog box.

Steps:

1. After choosing an address locator style in the Create Address Locator dialog box, click the Browse button next to the Reference Data text box.
2. Browse for the primary feature class.
3. Click the drop-down arrow under the Role column and select Primary table.
4. Repeat step 1 and browse for the place-name alias table.
5. Click the drop-down arrow under the Role column and select Alias table.

   Fields in the Field Map section should be automatically mapped.
6. If the field map is not completed, select the appropriate field in the table for each field.

   In the Alias table section, the Alias table:Alias field is a required field. It is the field that contains the place-names.

7. Continue the steps for creating the address locator.

   Using this locator, a location can be searched either by the address or its place-name.

Modifying the locator's settings for a place-name alias table in ArcCatalog

After an address locator is created, you can modify the locator's setting by adding or changing the place-name alias table in the Address Locator Properties dialog box in ArcCatalog. The setting will be saved in the locator.

Learn more about modifying the place name alias table properties

Modifying the locator's settings for a place-name alias table in ArcMap

You can also add or change the place-name alias table in ArcMap. However, this setting will not be saved in the locator after the map is closed.

In ArcMap, you can access the Geocoding Options dialog box from one of the following dialog boxes:

• Address Locator Manager dialog box when you find an address using the Geocoding toolbar
• Find dialog box when you find an address in Find dialog box
• Geocode Addresses dialog box when you geocode a table of addresses
• Interactive Rematch dialog box when you rematch a geocoded feature class

Steps:

1. In one of the above mentioned dialog boxes, click the Geocoding Options button to open the Geocoding Options dialog box.
2. Click the Place Name Alias Table button to open the Alias Table dialog box.
3. In the Alias Table dialog box, click the Browse button next to the Alias Table drop-down menu.
4. Navigate to the table you want to use for your alias name data, and click Add.
5. Back on the Alias Table dialog box, click the Alias Field drop-down menu and click the field that corresponds to the location or alias name.
6. In the Address Fields section, click the drop-down box of each field and choose an appropriate field from the place-name alias table.

   Field names labeled in bold type are required.

7. Click OK to close the Alias Table dialog box.
8. Click OK to close the Geocoding Options dialog box.

Using this locator, place-names, such as Atlanta Market, can be searched for instead of searching for formal street addresses.