like the bony pelvis, the renal pelvis () gets its english name via new latin from the older latin word "pelvis", "basin", as in "wash basin". in both cases the name reflects the shape of the structure, and in the case of the renal pelvis, it also reflects the function. the name reflects that each renal pelvis collects urine from the calyces and funnels it into the ureter like a wash basin collects water and funnels it into a drain pipe. the renal pelvis is occasionally called the pyelum (from greek πύελος "pýelos", "trough", ‘anything hollow’), and the combining form "pyelo-" denotes the renal pelvis ("pyelo-" is not to be confused with "pyo-"). the words "infundibulum" and "choana" are other words for funnel-shaped cavities (which medical english got from the latin and greek words for "funnel", respectively), and the renal pelvis is sometimes called the renal infundibulum. the form "*renal choana" is logical but is not used.