Whilst nobody seems to have a problem with software that pretends to be an Amiga being called an emulator, there is a distinct denial by many that FPGA solutions are still emulation.
Emulation, in respect to computers, is defined as (from the Oxford English Dictionary):
"emulate something (computing) (of a computer program, etc.) to work in the same way as another computer, etc. and perform the same tasks "
Whilst they may be operating physically at a lower level than their pure software counterparts, FPGA based offerings are still trying to copy the original functions performed by the respective components (CPU, chipset etc.) and are therefore, by definition, emulation.