The Learning Company, the publisher that owns the rights to the famous The Oregon Trail game, is suing Facebook gaming behemoth Zynga for using the phrase "the oregon trail" in an upcoming expansion for the social game FrontierVille.

The complaint [PDF] claims that TLC has had an exclusive trademark on the phrase and puts forth that Zynga's use represents "deliberate theft of the goodwill associated with the iconic The Oregon Trail." To make matters worse, TLC also claims to have approached Zynga back in 2010 about partnering up on a Facebook version of the game. That deal ultimately fell through and TLC ended up working with developer Blue Fang to bring the game to Facebook, which was released earlier this year.

"Zynga’s use of 'OREGON TRAIL' is likely to cause confusion among consumers, to dilute and tarnish the distinctive quality of The Oregon Trail Mark, and to cause irreparable harm to The Learning Company’s valuable goodwill," reads the complaint.

The FrontierVille update is set to launch on May 30. TLC is seeking both an injunction to stop Zynga from using the trademarked term, as well as associated monetary damages.