page_title: Binomial nomenclature
section_title: Derivation of binomial names
hierarchical_section_title: Binomial nomenclature / Derivation of binomial names
caption_attribution_description: Magnolia hodgsonii (syn. Talauma hodgsonii). Original caption: "Flowering branch of Talauma Hodgsoni, with a full-grown leaf of a young tree behind, of the natural size. Fig. 1. Stamens and column of ovaria. 2. Stamen. 3. Transverse section of stamen. 4. Pollen. 5. Ovary. 6. Longitudinal section of ovary&#160;:—all magnified. 7. Ripe fruit. 8. The same with most of the carpels removed, showing the woody alveolate axis and insertion of seed. 9. Seeds&#160;:—all of the natural size. 10. Vertical, and 11, transverse sections of seeds. 12. Endopleura and albumen. 13. Portion of endopleura (very highly magnified). 14. Vertical section of albumen and embryo. 15, 16. Embryos&#160;:—all magnified.
context_page_description: Binomial nomenclature, also called binominal nomenclature or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, although they can be based on words from other languages. Such a name is called a binomial name, a binomen, binominal name or a scientific name; more informally it is also called a Latin name.
  The first part of the name – the generic name – identifies the genus to which the species belongs, while the second part – the specific name or specific epithet – identifies the species within the genus. For example, humans belong to the genus Homo and within this genus to the species Homo sapiens. Tyrannosaurus rex is probably the most widely known binomial. The formal introduction of this system of naming species is credited to Carl Linnaeus, effectively beginning with his work Species Plantarum in 1753. But Gaspard Bauhin, in as early as 1622, had introduced in his book Pinax theatri botanici many names of genera that were later adopted by Linnaeus.
context_section_description: A complete binomial name is always treated grammatically as if it were a phrase in the Latin language (hence the common use of the term "Latin name" for a binomial name). However, the two parts of a binomial name can each be derived from a number of sources, of which Latin is only one. These include:
  Latin, either classical or medieval. Thus, both parts of the binomial name Homo sapiens are Latin words, meaning "wise" (sapiens) "human/man" (Homo).
  Classical Greek. The genus Rhododendron was named by Linnaeus from the Greek word ῥοδόδενδρον, itself derived from rhodon, "rose", and dendron, "tree". Greek words are often converted to a Latinized form. Thus coca (the plant from which cocaine is obtained) has the name Erythroxylum coca. Erythroxylum is derived from the Greek words erythros, red, and xylon, wood. The Greek neuter ending -ον (-on) is often converted to the Latin neuter ending -um.
  Other languages. The second part of the name Erythroxylum coca is derived from kuka, the name of the plant in Aymara and Quechua. Since many dinosaur fossils were found in Mongolia, their names often use Mongolian words, e.g. Tarchia from tarkhi, meaning "brain", or Saichania meaning "beautiful one".
  Names of people (often naturalists or biologists). The name Magnolia campbellii commemorates two people: Pierre Magnol, a French botanist, and Archibald Campbell, a doctor in British India.
  Names of places. The lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum, is widespread in the United States.
  Other sources. Some binominal names have been constructed from taxonomic anagrams or other re-orderings of existing names. Thus the name of the genus Muilla is derived by reversing the name Allium. Names may also be derived from jokes or puns. For example, Ratcliffe described a number of species of rhinoceros beetle, including Cyclocephala nodanotherwon.
  The first part of the name, which identifies the genus, must be a word which can be treated as a Latin singular noun in the nominative case. It must be unique within each kingdom, but can be repeated between kingdoms. Thus Huia recurvata is an extinct species of plant, found as fossils in Yunnan, China, whereas Huia masonii is a species of frog found in Java, Indonesia.
  The second part of the name, which identifies the species within the genus, is also treated grammatically as a Latin word. It can have one of a number of forms:
  The second part of a binomial may be an adjective. The adjective must agree with the genus name in gender. Latin has three genders, masculine, feminine and neuter, shown by varying endings to nouns and adjectives. The house sparrow has the binomial name Passer domesticus. Here domesticus ("domestic") simply means "associated with the house". The sacred bamboo is Nandina domestica rather than Nandina domesticus, since Nandina is feminine whereas Passer is masculine. The tropical fruit langsat is a product of the plant Lansium parasiticum, since Lansium is neuter. Some common endings for Latin adjectives in the three genders (masculine, feminine, neuter) are -us, -a, -um (as in the previous example of domesticus); -is, -is, -e (e.g. tristis, meaning "sad"); and -or, -or, -us (e.g. minor, meaning "smaller"). For further information, see Latin declension: Adjectives.
  The second part of a binomial may be a noun in the nominative case. An example is the binomial name of the lion, which is Panthera leo. Grammatically the noun is said to be in apposition to the genus name and the two nouns do not have to agree in gender; in this case, Panthera is feminine and leo is masculine.
  The second part of a binomial may be a noun in the genitive (possessive) case. The genitive case is constructed in a number of ways in Latin, depending on the declension of the noun. Common endings for masculine and neuter nouns are -ii or -i in the singular and -orum in the plural, and for feminine nouns -ae in the singular and -arum in the plural. The noun may be part of a person's name, often the surname, as in the Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii), the shrub Magnolia hodgsonii, or the olive-backed pipit (Anthus
caption: Magnolia hodgsonii
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