Question

Nomenclature is governed by certain universal rules. Which one of the following is contrary to the rules of binomial nomenclature?

• A. When written by hand, the names are to be underlined.
• B. Biological names can be written in any language.
• C. The first word in a biological name represents the genus name and the second is a specific epithet.
• D. The names are written in Latin and are italicised.

Answer 1

Answer: (B)

Biological names can be written in any language.

The system of binomial nomenclature was developed by Linnaeus. There were certain rules which were made for writing the scientific names. They are as follows:

1. Each organism is given only one name consisting of two words - generic and specific.

2. The scientific name is printed in italics. It is underlined in a hand-written description.

3. The generic name is written first. It is followed by a specific name and the name of the discoverer in full or abbreviation.

4. The name of the author is written in Roman script.

5. The original names were taken from Latin and Greek languages. New names are derived from the Latin language as Latin is a dead language and therefore it will not change in form or spelling with time.

Thus, the correct answer is option B.