A CHAPTER IN THE HISTORY OF ZOOLOGICAL 

 NOMENCLATURE 



By LEONHARD STEJNEGER 



It seems unavoidable that questions, which during the progress of 

 science have caused controversies and then become settled by com- 

 promise or otherwise, should reappear from time to time and then 

 give rise to renewed agitation and a restatement of the old argu- 

 ments. Sometimes such resurrection of old issues is due to the growth 

 or development of science itself, but often it arises from lack of first- 

 hand knowledge of the previous history of the question and its dis- 

 posal. Much energy and time have been wasted in thus threshing 

 over old straws, simply because there was not at hand a comprehen- 

 sive historical account of the processes which led up to the final set- 

 tlement — or rather the settlement which it was intended should be 

 final. 



It is hoped that the following recount of the steps by which agree- 

 ment was secured with regard to certain phases of the International 

 Zoological Code of Nomenclature may prevent the recrudescence of 

 an old controversy which it took twenty years to settle when it was 

 up the last time. This is the more to be desired as the result then 

 achieved has stood the test of twenty years' experience. 



I. SPECIFIC NAMES BEFORE 1758 



Before proceeding, it may be well to clear up one common miscon- 

 ception, namely, that the zoological nomenclature, the origin of which 

 is usually credited to Linnaeus, did appear suddenly as something 

 entirely new. 



The genus concept, such as we recognize it even today, as well as 

 the generic name, such as w^e employ it today, are due to Tournefort 

 and other predecessors of Linnaeus. As an almost necessary corol- 

 IsLvy, so were the species concept and the species designation. But 

 Linnaeus was the first to give them universal application by his 

 " methodus nova," by which he outlined and defined logically a rigid 

 set of named categories, into which he fitted all the objects of nature 

 known to him. 



Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, Vol. 77, No. 1 



