Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society/Volume 85/A New Method of writing Trinomials
A New Method of Writing Trinomials.
By J. C. Moulton.
In my "Hand-List of the Birds of Borneo" published in this Society's Journal No. 67, 1914 (pp. 125-191) I introduced a slight innovation in the method of writing trinomials.
A trinomial is usually written thus:—
I criticized this method on two grounds:—
As an improvement I therefore wrote:—
shortened to:—
In this way due prominence is given to the specific entity. while the fact that the species is divisible into geographical races of relatively less importance is shewn by placing the subspecific name in less prominent type. The insertion of the author's name after the species obviates ambiguity, and is only a reasonable recognition of that author's work. At the same time it serves to mark off the subspecific name as a form apart.
It might be argued of course with justice that the name of the author of the genus should also be inserted. But the long- established custom of running generic and specific names together is sufficiently important to over-ride any such further innovation.
I referred the point to the British Association Committee on Zoological Bibliography and Publication, whose opinion thereon was published in the Committee's Report to the Association (Section D) at the Edinburgh meeting in 1921 as follows:—
"The Committee agrees that the alterations introduced by Mr. Moulton tend to increased clearness. If it be ever necessary to give the name of the author of the species, it is no less necessary when the form referred to is one of the subspecies into which the species has been divided, and Mr. Moulton's method of introducing it seems unexceptionable.
"The Committee does not wish by this expression of opinion to encourage the insertion of authors' names in general writing, except when they are needed to avoid ambiguity. Mr. Moulton's devices are best suited for such systematic lists as those in which he has employed them."
The type to be used is of some importance. In criticism of my method it has been suggested that capitals and small capitals would be better than small capitals and italies, because italics are so generally used to denote a synonym. The disadvantage of this is that capitals are so often required in systematic lists for subfamily names that it is desirable to reserve a less prominent type for the genus and species when written together in this way. Small capitals or clarendon would appear the most suitable for the genus and species with italics for the subspecies.
The inclusion of authors' names undoubtedly has a cumbersome effect and should only be employed in systematic lists or detailed monographs. In other works it is reasonable to omit them altogether; in fact for general purposes it should often suffice to give only the specific name and omit the subspecific name unless there is any point in drawing attention to the subspecific distinction of the particular form under discussion.
The usual method of abbreviation in writing Latin names for well-known genera and species, or for genera which have been discussed already in any particular paper, is to give the initial letter of the genus instead of the name in full; thus Elephas maximus, becomes E. maximus. This system can be extended with advantage in the case of subspecies: thus, in discussing the subspecies of the Asiatic Elephant. reference would be made to the Sumatran forn as E. m. sumatranus. In systematic lista, according to the method introduced by me and approved for such purposes by the British Association Committee on Zoological Bibliography and Publication, this would read: Elephas maximus Linn. sumatranus Temm., but for general purposes the abbreviated form as written above is regarded as more suitable.