What is a "path name component"?

I am not sure I correctly understood what is a *path name component* (or perhaps better written; *path name-component*) which I understand to be commonly abbreviated simply as "component" in the Unix & Linux literature. > **My understanding so far** > > A *directory* file or an *archive* file for that > matter are both *aggregated files* ("container files"), which can > contain one file or two or more files, in *depth* 1 and possibly in > deeper depths as well. > > Any possible file (say, an aggregated file > or its sub-directory or its sub-archive or even its > sub-file of whatever other kind) can have either of these path name-component *kinds*: > > * Singular (forwardslash**less**) > * Plural: Two sub-path-components separated by one forward slash or three or more sub-path-components separated by two or more forward slashes > > If a file has a *singular* or *plural*, or not, path name component, > is relatively depends on depth. What is a "path name component"?