LIST OF LATIN AND GREEK WORDS COMMONLY USED IN SYSTEMATIC NAMES

This 'list of Latin and Greek words commonly used in systematic names' is intended to help those unfamiliar with classical languages understand and remember the scientific names of organisms. The binomial nomenclature used for animals and plants is largely derived from Latin and Greek, as are some of the names used for higher taxa such as orders and above. At the time when Carolus Linnaeus (1707–1778) published the books that are now accepted as the starting point of binomial nomenclature, Latin was used in Western Europe as the language of science, and scientific names were in Latin or Greek: Linnaeus continued this practice.
Although Latin is now largely unused except by classical scholars and for certain purposes by botanists and the Roman Catholic Church, Latin can still be found in scientific names. It is helpful to be able to understand the source of scientific names. While the 'Latin names' do not always correspond to the current English common names, they are often related, and if their meanings are understood they are easier to recall.
Often a genus name or specific descriptor is simply the Latin or Greek name for the animal (e.g. ''Canis'' is Latin for a dog). These words are not included in the table below, because they will only occur for one or two taxa. The words listed below are the common adjectives and other modifiers that repeatedly occur in the scientific names of many organisms.
The list also includes a collection of scientific words and common prefixes used in English. Words that are very similar to their English forms are not included.

Contents

Usage of Latin and Greek

See also

List of words

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

L

M

N

O

P

R

S

T

U

V

W, X, Y, Z

References

External links

Usage of Latin and Greek

The two languages used in the creation of scientific names, in accordance with the conventions established by Linnaeus, are Latin and Ancient Greek (also known as ''Classical Greek'' in some circles). The usage of ''Ancient Greek'' as opposed to ''Modern Greek'' (a living language that has evolved from, but is also distinct from, Ancient Greek) is of importance and should be noted to avoid confusion where the ancient and modern languages differ.
While Latin is mostly found in use with biological studies, the remaining sciences and arts depend on an almost exclusively Greek lexicon. Medicine, for example, has an 80% Greek lexicon, although when biological studies are included the rate drops to 65%.
Where a scientific name is derived from a Greek word, rules and conventions exist for transforming the original Greek spelling (which uses a different alphabet from Latin and modern European languages) into a 'Latinised' form. An excellent and detailed explanation of the rules for 'Latinising' Greek words for use in a scientific name can be found in ''The Scientific Names Of The British Lepidoptera : Their History And Meaning'' by A. Maitland Emmet (published by Harley Books, ISBN 0-946589-35-6).
Scientific names of more modern vintage may also integrate words from other languages: an example being that of the Siamese Fighting Fish, ''Betta splendens'': the generic name ''Betta'' is derived from a local native name for the fish, ''Ikan bettah'' (this and many other scientific name derivations for fishes can be found in ''Exotic Aquarium Fishes'' by Dr William T. Innes, published by TFH publications, ISBN 0-87666-090-1).
Additionally, a species may be named after a person of note, be that person a scientist who has worked with the organisms in question, or a person notable for some other reason. When a species is named thus in honour of a person, the person's name is converted in accordance with established rules into a 'Latinised' form, most typically by the appending of a Latin genitive ending. For a male person, the suffix ''-i'' is added (as in ''Spheniscus humboldti'', the scientific name for Humboldt's Penguin), while for a female person, the ending -ae is added (as in ''Labeotropheus trewavasae'', a species of Cichlid fish from Lake Malawi, named in honour of Dr Ethelwynn Trewavas, whose life work centred upon these fishes). Even though such species descriptors are derived from the proper names of persons, they are still written beginning with a small letter, in conformity with the conventions for naming species. Examples of organisms named after persons other than scientists working in the field are ''Mirolabrichthys imeldae'' (a species of Anthiid coral reef fish named after Imelda Marcos) and ''Tanichthys albonubes'' (another fish species, the generic name ''Tanichthys'' translating as "Tan's Fish", after the Chinese boy who brought the fish to the attention of collectors).
The list includes personal names only where their Latin form is markedly different from their English or other original language form. Words that are very similar to their English forms are not included.
Note that not all the attributions to languages in this table are authoritative.

See also

★ List of Greek words with English derivatives

★ List of Latin words with English derivatives

List of words

In this table L = Latin, G = Greek, and LG = similar in both languages.

A

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
albus	L	White	American White Ibis, ''Eudocimus albus''
anthropos	G	Man, Human Being	Philanthropist, Anthropic principle, Anthropoidea
archaeos, archaeo-	G	Ancient	''Archaeopteryx''
arctos	G	Bear	Grizzly Bear, ''Ursus arctos'', Arctic
astron, astro-	G	Star	Astronomy, Asteroidea
argentatus	L	Silvery	Herring Gull, ''Larus argentatus''
arvensis	L	From the field	Skylark, ''Alauda arvensis''
australis	L	Southern	Australia Kauri, ''Agathis australis''

B

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
baccata	L ''bacca'', berry	Berry-bearing	Common yew, ''Taxus baccata''
borealis	L	Northern	Northern Right Whale Dolphin, ''Lissodelphis borealis''
brachys, brachy-	G	Short	Smallhead Rush, ''Juncus brachycephalus''
bradys, brady-	G	Slow	Three-toed sloth, ''Bradypus''
brevis	L	Short	Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, ''Ceratogymna brevis''

C

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
canadensis	L	From Canada	Bighorn Sheep, ''Ovis canadensis''
cauda	L	Tail	Long-tailed Bush Warbler, ''Bradypterus caudatus''
caulos	G	Stem, stalk	Stemless Gentian, ''Gentiana acaulis''
cephale	G	Head	Mediterranean Gull, ''Larus melanocephalus''
chilensis	L	From Chile	Paradise Tanager, ''Tangara chilensis''
chlorοs	G	Green	Common Moorhen, ''Gallinula chloropus''
cola	L	Dweller	Eurasian Woodcock, ''Scolopax rusticola''
corax	G	Crow, raven	Common Raven, ''Corvus corax''
crass-	L	Thick	Creeping blueberry, ''Vaccinium crassifolium''
cristatus	L	Crested	Aardwolf, ''Proteles cristatus''
cyanos	G	Blue-green	Azure-winged Magpie, ''Cyanopica cyana''

D

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
dactylοs	G	Finger or toe	Black-legged Kittiwake, ''Rissa tridactyla''
deca	G	Ten	Lesser African threadfin, ''Galeoides decadactylus''
decem	L	Ten	Colorado potato beetle, ''Leptinotarsa decemlineata''
derma	G	Skin	Yellow Staining Mushroom, ''Agaricus xanthodermus''
di-	G	Two	Diptera
dino-, deino-	G	Terrible	dinosaur, ''Deinotherium''
diplo-	G	Double	''Diplodocus''
dodeca	G	Twelve	''Dodecahedron''
dolicho-	G	Elongated	Caribbean Anole, ''Anolis dolichocephalus''
domesticus	L	From the house, domestic	House Sparrow, ''Passer domesticus''
dorsum	L	Back	Black-striped Weasel, ''Mustela strigidorsa''
dulcis	L	Sweet	Almond, ''Prunus dulcis''
dynam-	G	Power, Force	Dynamics, Thermodynamics

E

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
echinus	G	Hedgehog, sea-urchin	Sea-urchin cactus, ''Echinopsis''
electr-	G	Amber	Electricity, Electron
enanti	G	Opposite	Enantiornithes
ennea	G	Nine	Scurvy-grass Sorrel, ''Oxalis enneaphylla''
erectus	L	Upright	extinct subspecies of humans: ''Homo erectus'' ("upright man")
erythros	G	Red	Spotted Redshank, ''Tringa erythropus''

F

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
familiaris	L	Common	Dog, ''Canis familiaris''
flor-	L ''flos'', ''floris''	Flower	Southern magnolia, ''Magnolia grandiflora''
folium	L	Leaf	American Beech, ''Fagus grandifolia''
fuscus	L	Dark brown	Sooty Tern, ''Sterna fuscata''
fulvus	L	Yellow	Pacific Golden Plover, ''Pluvialis fulva''

G

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
gaster	G	Belly	Common fruit fly, ''Drosophila melanogaster''
geo-	G	Earth	Geography, Geology
glabra		Smooth[1]	''Omphiscola glabra'' (a snail), ''Rhus glabra'' (a sumac)
glycys	G	Sweet	Soybean, ''Glycine max''
gyrinos	G	Tadpole	as "Labyrinthodont amphibian", e.g. ''Crassigyrinus'', ''Proterogyrinus''

H

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
h(a)ema-	G	Blood	Hemoglobin, Anemia
hedra-	G	facet	Polyhedron, Tetrahedron
helio-	G	Sun	Heliosphere, Heliophysics
hexa-	G	Six	Water Primrose, ''Ludwigia hexapetala''
hirsuta	L	Hairy	''Kiwa hirsuta''
homo	L	Man	genus ''Homo'' of recent and extinct humans: ''Homo sapiens'', ''Homo erectus''
hortensis	L	From the garden	Orphean Warbler, ''Sylvia hortensis''

I

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
indicus	L	Indian	Malaysian Tapir, ''Tapirus indicus''

L

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
lateralis	L	Side	Black-footed Rock Wallaby, ''Petrogale lateralis''
leucοs	G	White	White-winged Tern, ''Chlidonias leucopterus''
lineatus	L	Lined or striped	Colorado potato beetle, ''Leptinotarsa decemlineata''
lutea	L	Yellow	Red-billed Leiothrix, ''Leiothrix lutea''

M

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
maculatus	L	Spotted	Spotted Sandpiper, ''Actitis macularius''
major	L	Greater	Great Tit, ''Parus major''
malabaricus	L	From Malabar	Sturnus malabaricus, ''Chestnut-tailed Starling''
maximus	L	Largest	Royal Tern, ''Sterna maxima''
megas	G	Large, great	Megalodon shark, prefix Mega
melano-	G	Black	Black-browed Albatross, ''Thalassarche melanophris''
micro	G	small	Microscope, prefix micro with symbol μ
minimus	L	Smallest	Least Flycatcher, ''Empidonax minimus''
minor	L	Smaller	Great Frigatebird, ''Fregata minor''
mono-	G	Single	Swinhoe's Storm-petrel, ''Oceanodroma monorhis''
montanus	L	Mountains	Tree Sparrow, ''Passer montanus''
morpho-	G	Shape	Lagomorpha
mauro-	G	Dark, Black	Dark Shrew, ''Crocidura maurisca''
mys	G	Mouse	As rodent, e.g. ''Phoberomys'', ''Telicomys''.

N

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
nanοs	G	Dwarf	Brown-capped Woodpecker, ''Dendrocopos nanus''
nona	L	Nine
nothos	G	False, bastard	''Nothofagus''
notos	G	Southern	Hopping mouse, ''Notomys''
novaehollandiae	L	From New Holland (Australia)	Emu, ''Dromaius novaehollandiae''
novaeseelandiae	L	From New Zealand	Southern Boobook ''Ninox novaeseelandiae''
noveboracensis	L	From New York	Northern Waterthrush, ''Seiurus noveboracensis''

O

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
obscurus	L	Dark	Dusky Dolphin, ''Lagenorhynchus obscurus''
occidentalis	L	Western	Eastern Arborvitae, ''Thuja occidentalis''
octo-, octa-	G	Eight	Octopus
ocean	G	Ocean	Ocean
-odon, -odus	G ,	Tooth	''Dimetrodon'', ''Rhizodus''
oeos-	G	Tubular
officinalis	L	For the workshop; medicinal	Rosemary, ''Rosmarinus officinalis''
oleum	L	Oil	Jack O'Lantern, ''Omphalotus olearius''
opsis	G	Face, appearance	Carolina Parakeet, ''Conuropsis carolinensis''
orientalis	L	Eastern	Oriental cockroach, ''Blatta orientalis''
ortho-	G	Straight	Orthoptera

P

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
pachy-	G	Thick, stout	''Pachycephalosaurus''
palustris	L	Of the marsh	Mugger Crocodile, ''Crocodylus palustris''
pan- panto-	G	All	Pandemic, Panorama, Pantomime, Pantotheria
parvus	L	Small	Mountain Pygmy Possum, ''Burramys parvus''
pedi-	L ''pes'', ''pedis''	Foot	Showy lady slipper, ''Cypripedium reginae''
pelag-	G	Open sea	Pelagic Cormorant, ''Phalacrocorax pelagicus''
penn-	L ''penna''	Feather (specifically remex)	Great Auk, ''Pinguinus impennis''
pennatus	L	Winged	Booted Eagle, ''Aquila pennata''
penta-	G	Five	''Chalcides pentadactylus'', a type of skink
petra	G	Rock, stone
phobia	G	fear	Arachnophobia, Agoraphobia
phyllo-	G	Leaf	Garden Lupin, ''Lupinus polyphyllus''
physi-	G	Nature	Physics
phyto-	G	Plant	Phytoplankton
platy-	G	Flat or broad	Flathead trout, ''Salmo platycephalus''
poly-	G	Many	Polymer
pratensis	L	From the meadow	Meadow Foxtail, ''Alopecurus pratensis''
protos	G	First	Proton
pter-	G	Wing or remix	White-winged Tern, ''Chlidonias leucopterus''
pubescens	L	Downy	Downy oak, ''Quercus pubescens''
punctatus	L	Spotted	Thirteen-spotted lady beetle, ''Hippodamia tredecimpunctata''

R

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
rhiza	G	Root	Bushy seedbox, ''Ludwigia helminthorrhiza''
rhynchos	G	Beak or snout	Mallard, ''Anas platyrhynchos''
rhytis	G	Wrinkled
rubra	L	Red	Summer Tanager, ''Piranga rubra''
rostra	L	Beak	Common Crossbill, ''Loxia curvirostra''
rufus	L	Red	Red Wolf, ''Canis rufus''

S

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
sapiens	L	Wise	recent subspecies of humans: ''Homo sapiens sapiens'' ("very wise man")
sativus	L	Sown, cultivated	Pea, ''Pisum sativum''
saura	G	Lizard	Lancetfish, ''Alepisaurus'', dinosaur
sinensis	L	From China	Tea, ''Camellia sinensis''
specios-		showy	''Lagerstroemia speciosa'', ''Lilium speciosum''
sperma	G	Seed	African daisies, ''Osteospermum''
sphen-	G	Wedge	Tuatara, ''Sphenodon punctatus''
stoichion	G	Element	Stoichiometry
stoma	G	Mouth, opening	Stomate, Gnathostomata
striatus	L	Striped	Striated Heron, ''Butorides striatus''
silvestris	L	Of the wood; wild	Wild Cat, ''Felis silvestris''
suchοs	G	Crocodile (from Egyptian)	Eusuchia, Koolasuchus

T

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
tele-	G τηλε-	far	Telephone, Telescope
tetra-	G τετρα-	four times	''Tetrapanax''
tinctorius	L	For dyeing	Woad, ''Isatis tinctoria''
tomentosus	L	Furry	Fuzzy Mock-orange, ''Philadelphus tomentosus''
tres, tris, tri-	LG	Three	Black-legged Kittiwake, ''Rissa tridactyla''
trich-, thrix	G	Hair	Cloud ear fungus, ''Auricularia polytricha''

U

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
unus	L	One	''Monotropa uniflora''

V

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
variabilis	L	Variable	Grey Bunting, ''Emberiza variabilis''
variegatus	L	Variegated	Variegated Laughingthrush, ''Garrulax variegatus''
velocis	L	Swift	''Velociraptor''
ventrus	L	Belly
verrucosus	L	Rough skinned	Warty Pig, ''Sus verrucosus''
viridis	L	Green	Green Alder, ''Alnus viridis''
virosus	L	Poisonous	''Cicuta virosa''
volans	L	Flying	Southern flying squirrel, ''Glaucomys volans''
vulgaris	L	Common	Beet, ''Beta vulgaris''

W, X, Y, Z

'Latin/Greek'	'Language'	'English'	'Example'
xanthos	G	Yellow	Yellow Staining Mushroom, ''Agaricus xanthodermus''
zygos	G	Joined	Zygoptera

References

1. The Botanary

External links

★ "The Botanary" at "Dave's Garden".

★ Dictionary of botanical epithets

★ Classical word roots and combining forms

★ European Species Names in Linnaean, Czech, English, German and French