species names
Latin life designations
Species names are the standardized Latin binomials used in biological taxonomy to identify organisms, consisting of a genus name followed by a specific epithet: Homo sapiens, Canis lupus, Escherichia coli.
The genus is capitalized while the species epithet is lowercase, and both are italicized in formal writing.
These names provide a universal system for scientists across languages and regions to refer unambiguously to the same organism, avoiding the confusion that common names can cause.
- organismsIndividual living entities
- systematicsScience of classifying organisms
- genusTaxonomic rank above species
- taxonomyScience of categorical arrangement
- subspeciesTaxonomic rank beneath species
classification · epithets · biology · Latinization · dead languages · biodiversity · synonymy · homonymy · identifiers · ICZN · etymology · natural history · field guides · genetic studies · family · class · order · phylum
- zoologymammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, insects
- taxonomygenus, taxon, kingdom, phylum, class
- italicized textemphasis, book titles, foreign words
- nomenclaturetaxonomy, taxa, genus, anatomical terms, medical terminology
- namingnomenclature, nicknames, aliases, monikers, surnames
- common namesJohn, Jane, Joe, Bob, Bill
species namescommon names
Frequently occurring given names
popular names · nicknames · trade names · pet names · slang terms
species, name, specific, specify, specified, specifies, specifying, specification, specimen