What Language Are Scientific Names

[tropic_john]

I'm just wondering as I have started to learn latin at school and I know that names of plants are latin so are animals scientific names in latin? If so I have a great start in the fishy names

 

[Curiosity101]

I'm pretty sure they're all latin.

 

[tropic_john]

yay

 

[JoolsA2]

yay

thay are definatly latin

 

[Truck]

an example:
mikrogeophagus ramirezi the 'mikro' standing for mini- and the 'geophagus' standing for earth eater

latin names are always spelt in lower case, in italics

 

[Yanks15]

I believe the first is always upper case and rest is lower case. Just going by my Latin 3 student son.

 

[Truck]

I believe the first is always upper case and rest is lower case. Just going by my Latin 3 student son.

its all lower case

 

[Yanks15]

Are you sure?

By first, I mean the first letter of the first word is upper case and the rest is lower case.

 

[Truck]

yep seen it numerous times on here and in PFK

 

[Yanks15]

Sorry, but check any of these for "binomial nomenclature"

New World Encyclopedia.org
Bioedonline.org
Infoplease.com

I can give more.....

 

[Truck]

sorry

ive just re-read the topic i found the info on to found i miss read it...my apologies

 

[Yanks15]

No problem, I misread stuff all the time.

 

[OohFeeshy]

It can thereoretically be any language. Latin is fairly common, as is Greek, but pretty much any language is possible.

 

[Buddyboy67]

Latin is the international language of science

 

[MBOU]

Latin is the more common name but more often than not, its made up to include the name of the person that discovered the fish. Thats why they get called Scientific Names rather than Latin Names.