Syriac Christians of the Near-Eastern (Semitic) origin use several terms for their self-designation. In alphabetical order, main terms are: "Arameans", "Assyrians", "Chaldeans", "Phoenicians" and "Syriacs". Each of those polysemic terms has a complex semantic history. First four of those names are expressing and implying direct connections with distinctive Semitic peoples of the Ancient Near East (ancient Arameans, ancient Assyrians, ancient Chaldeans, and ancient Phoenicians), while the fifth term ("Syriacs") stems from a very complex etymology of the term Syria, and thus has a wide range of onomastic meanings, both historical and modern.