Correct name (botany) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

In botany, the correct name according to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN) is the one and only botanical name

Botanical name

A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...

that is to be used for a particular taxon

Taxon

|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...

, when that taxon has a particular circumscription

Circumscription (taxonomy)

In taxonomy, circumscription is the definition of the limits of a taxonomic group of organisms. One goal of taxonomy is to achieve a stable circumscription for every taxonomic group. Achieving stability can be simple or difficult....

, position and rank

Taxonomic rank

In biological classification, rank is the level in a taxonomic hierarchy. Examples of taxonomic ranks are species, genus, family, and class. Each rank subsumes under it a number of less general categories...

. Determining whether a name is correct is a complex procedure. The name must be 'validly published', a process which is defined in no less than 16 Articles of the ICBN. It must also be 'legitimate', which imposes some further requirements., Article 6.4 If there are two or more legitimate names for the same taxon (with the same circumscription, position and rank), then the correct name is the one which was published earliest, although names may be conserved

Conserved name

A conserved name or nomen conservandum is a scientific name that has specific nomenclatural protection. Nomen conservandum is a Latin term, meaning a "name which should be conserved"...

if they have been very widely used. Validly published names other than the correct name are called synonyms. Since taxonomists may disagree as to the circumscription, position or rank of a taxon, there can be more than one correct name for a particular plant. These may also be called synonyms.

The correct name has only one correct spelling, which will generally be the original spelling (although certain limited corrections are allowed). Other spellings are called orthographical variants

Orthographical variant (botany)

In botanical nomenclature, an orthographical variant is a variant spelling of the same name. For example, Hieronima and Hyeronima are orthographical variants of Hieronyma. One of the spellings is to be treated as the correct one.Priority starts with this date of publication, if not otherwise...

.

The zoological

International Code of Zoological Nomenclature

The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature is a widely accepted convention in zoology that rules the formal scientific naming of organisms treated as animals...

equivalent of "correct name" is "valid name

Valid name (zoology)

In zoological nomenclature, the valid name of a taxon is the zoological name that is to be used for that taxon following the rules in the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature . In other words: a valid name is the correct zoological name of a taxon.In contrast, an invalid name is a name...

Example

Different taxonomic placements may well lead to different correct names. For example, the earliest name for the fastest growing tree in the world is Adenanthera falcataria L. The "L." stands for "Linnaeus" who first validly published the name. Adenanthera falcataria is thus one of the correct names for this plant. There are other correct names, based on different taxonomic treatments.

It can be placed in the genus Albizia
Albizia
Albizia is a genus of about 150 species of mostly fast-growing subtropical and tropical trees and shrubs in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the legume family, Fabaceae. The genus is pantropical, occurring in Asia, Africa, Madagascar, Central, South, and southern North America and Australia, but mostly...

, as Fosberg first did. When placed in this genus, the first choice of correct name is the new genus name followed by the earlier species epithet, giving Albizia falcataria. This name cannot be used if there is already a species in the genus with this epithet, so that an illegitimate duplicate would be created. As this is not the case, the correct name for the plant in this genus is Albizia falcataria (L.) Fosberg. "Fosberg" is the authority for the transfer to the new genus; "L(innaeus)" the authority for the 'base name' (basionym
Basionym
Basionym is a term used in botany, regulated by the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature...

) from which the new name is derived.
It can also be placed in the genus Paraserianthes. Its correct name in that position is Paraserianthes falcataria (L.) I.C.Nielsen.
Within the genus Paraserianthes, it is placed in section Falcataria. If the section is raised in rank to become the genus Falcataria, the correct name cannot be Falcataria falcataria, as might be expected, since under the botanical code (but not the zoological code) names with the same word as both the genus and the specific epithet (tautonym
Tautonym
-In biology :In biology, tautonym is an informal term to indicate a scientific name of a species in which both parts of the name have the same spelling, for example Bison bison...

s) are forbidden. An alternative basionym must be sought or a new name created. The correct name is Falcataria moluccana (Miq.) Barneby and J.W.Grimes.

The four names Adenanthera falcataria, Albizia falcataria, Paraserianthes falcataria and Falcataria moluccana are each correct, given that the plant is placed in these four genera. Which is the 'right' genus is a problem for taxonomy, not nomenclature. Thus this tree species will have a different correct botanical name for different people.

Example

See also