The name 新泽西 (Xīnzéxī) is formed through a direct phonetic and semantic translation of the English place name "New Jersey". The first character, 新 (xīn), means "new", providing a direct meaning match. The latter two characters, 泽西 (zéxī), were chosen primarily for their sound, closely approximating "Jersey", while also carrying vaguely appropriate connotations, 泽 (zé) means "marsh" or "swamp" and 西 (xī) means "west", possibly alluding to geographical features or directional location in a generalized, coincidental way. Thus, it is a coined term that borrows both the sound and a layer of meaning from its source.