The first step in naming an ionic compound is to identify the cation and the anion present in the compound.
When dealing with ionic compounds, which are formed from the electrostatic attraction between positively charged ions (cations) and negatively charged ions (anions), it’s crucial to start with the correct identification of these ions. The cation is typically a metal or a positively charged polyatomic ion, while the anion is usually a non-metal or a negatively charged polyatomic ion.
For example, in the compound sodium chloride (NaCl), sodium (Na+) is the cation, and chloride (Cl–) is the anion. Once you have identified both the cation and anion, you can proceed to name them according to conventional naming rules, leading to the complete name of the ionic compound.