Date: Thu, 28 May 1998 13:32:00 From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg1831$foo@default> Subject: Re: A few thoughts about the sceletal revision of Nepenthes
Dear Richard,
> I don't understand Latin. I work with many other scientists and they
> don't understand Latin either.
I assume what Johannes meant was that all *plant taxonomists* should
know Latin. This is not only necessary because the International Code
of Botanical Nomenclature demands a Latin description of new taxa but
because all previous descriptions (which such a taxonomist must of
course know and understand very well in order to be able to judge if
the species to be described is really new!) are Latin.
> Why is it necessary to use a "dead" language which excludes so
> many people ?
Why change a standard that worked well for almost 250 years? Who would
like to learn Chinese rather than Latin just because no other language
is spoken by more native speakers on this planet, so the least number
of people, albeit a majority, was excluded by the language? And who
would translate *all* the hundreds of thousands of protologues that
were written in Latin since Linnaeus into Chinese? And who would check
if the translations are really accurate even in the smallest details,
which may be relevant for judging definitions and limits of taxa?
I think it is much easier to learn Latin than to do all the things
above.
Kind regards
Jan
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