Common name

[2] Sometimes common names are created by authorities on one particular subject, in an attempt to make it possible for members of the general public (including such interested parties as fishermen, farmers, etc.)

[5] In contrast, scientific or biological nomenclature is a global system that attempts to denote particular organisms or taxa uniquely and definitively, on the assumption that such organisms or taxa are well-defined and generally also have well-defined interrelationships;[6] accordingly the ICZN has formal rules for biological nomenclature and convenes periodic international meetings to further that purpose.

For example, in Irish, there are many terms that are considered outdated but still well-known for their somewhat humorous and poetic descriptions of animals.

The practice of coining common names has long been discouraged; de Candolle's Laws of Botanical Nomenclature, 1868,[19] the non-binding recommendations that form the basis of the modern (now binding) International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants contains the following:Art.

The purpose typically is: Other attempts to reconcile differences between widely separated regions, traditions, and languages, by arbitrarily imposing nomenclature, often reflect narrow perspectives and have unfortunate outcomes.

For example, members of the genus Burhinus occur in Australia, Southern Africa, Eurasia, and South America.

A recent trend in field manuals and bird lists is to use the name "thick-knee" for members of the genus.

This, in spite of the fact that the majority of the species occur in non-English-speaking regions and have various common names, not always English.

[21][22] The thick joints in question are not even, in fact, the birds' knees, but the intertarsal joints—in lay terms the ankles.

[27] The dynamic nature of taxonomy necessitates periodical updates and changes in the nomenclature of both scientific and common names.

[33] It gave rise to Birds of the World: Recommended English Names and its Spanish and French companions.