7b MEDICAL MYCOLOGY 



corrected obvious lapsi calami and added examples of the application of the 

 rules based on names of fungi familiar to medical men which illustrate the 

 point as well as the examples given by Rendle. In this book, I have endeavored 

 to follow the spirit of the International Rules, although it has been impossible 

 to apply the letter of the law in some instances. 



INTERNATIONAL RULES OF BOTANICAL NOMENCLATURE* 



Chapter I. — General Considerations and Guiding Principles 



Art. 1. Botany cannot make satisfactory progress without a precise 

 system of nomenclature, which is used by the great majority of 

 botanists in all countries. 



Art. 2. The precepts on which this precise system of botanical 

 nomenclature is based are divided into principles, rules, and recom- 

 mendations. The principles (Art. 1-9, 10-14, 15-19 1) form the basis 

 of the rules and recommendations. The object of the rules (Art. 

 19-74) is to put the nomenclature of the past into order and to pro- 

 vide for that of the future. They are ahvays retroactive : names or 

 forms of nomenclature contrary to a rule (illegitimate names or 

 forms) cannot be maintained. The recommendations deal with sub- 

 sidiary points, their object being to bring about greater uniformity 

 and clearness in future nomenclature : names or forms contrary to a 

 recommendation cannot on that account be rejected, but they are not 

 examples to be followed. 



Art. 3. The rules of nomenclature should be simple and founded 

 on considerations sufficiently clear and forcible for everj^one to com- 

 prehend and be disposed to accept. 



Art. 4. The essential points in nomenclature are: (1) to aim at 

 fixity of names; (2) to avoid or to reject the use of forms and names 

 which may cause error or ambiguity or throw science into confusion. 



Next in importance is the avoidance of all useless creation of names. 



Other considerations, such as absolute grammatical correctness, 

 regularity or euphony of names, more or less prevailing custom, re- 

 gard for persons, etc., notwithstanding their undeniable importance, 

 are relatively accessory. 



Art. 5. In the absence of a relevant rule, or where the consequences 

 of rules are doubtful, established custom must be followed. 



Art. 6. Botanical nomenclature is independent of zoological no- 

 menclature in the sense that the name of a plant is not to be rejected 

 simplj' because it is identical with the name of an animal. If, how- 

 ever, an organism is transferred from the animal to the plant kingdom, 

 its validly published names are to be accepted as botanical nomen- 

 clature in the form prescribed by the rules of botanical nomenclature ; 

 and if an organism is transferred from the plant to the animal king- 

 dom its names retain their status in botanical nomenclature. 



Art. 7. Scientific names of all groups are usually taken from Latin 

 or Greek. When taken from any language other than Latin, or formed 



•This entire section set in narrow measure is reprinted from International Rules 

 of Botanical Nomenclature adopted by the Fifth International Botanical Congress, 

 Cambridge, 1930. Supplement to The Journal of Botany, June, 1934. Printed and 

 published by Taylor and Francis. 



t Art. 19 is both a principle and a rule. 



