A Primer of Botanical Latin with Vocabulary

355 Pages·2013·3.733 MB·English

by  Emma Short, Alex George

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A Primer of
Botanical Latin with
Vocabulary
Latin isone of two acceptable languages for describingnewplants,and
taxonomists must be able to translateearlier texts in Latin. Providing a
simple explanation of Latin grammar along with an in-depth vocabu-
lary, this is an indispensableguidefor systematic botanists worldwide.
All relevant parts of speech are discussed, with accompanying
examples, as well as worked exercises for translating diagnoses and
descriptions toandfromLatin. Guidelinesfor formingspecificepithets
arealsoincluded.Theauthorscross-referencetheirgrammartoStearn’s
Botanical Latin and to articles in the International Code of Nomenclat-
ure for Algae, Fungi and Plants. The comprehensive vocabulary is
enhanced with terms from recent glossaries for non-flowering plants –
lichens, mosses, algae, fungi and ferns – making this an ideal resource
for anyone looking to hone their understanding of Latin grammar and
to translate botanical texts from thepast 300 years.
EmmaShortworkedfor5yearsattheRoyalBotanicGardens,Kew,UK,
on the Index Kewensis database, before co-editing the Authors of Plant
Names database with R. K. Brummitt. She has regularly checked Latin
for Australian Systematic Botany, and has recently taught courses in
BotanicalLatin.
Alex George is an Adjunct Associate Professor at the School of
Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Murdoch University, Perth. He
wasabotanistwiththeWesternAustralianHerbariumfor21years,then
EditoroftheFloraofAustraliafor12years.HestudiedLatintoTertiary
level and has used it in describing some 400 new taxa, translating for
others and editing.
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A Primer of
Botanical Latin with
Vocabulary
Emma Short
Darwin,NorthernTerritory,Australia
Alex George (AM)
MurdochUniversity,Perth,WesternAustralia
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To myparentsTudorand Enid Powell, whoencouraged the Latin, and
Edward Mason whotaught thebotany: multae gratiae. (ES)
To ‘Foureyes’, myLatin teacher atschool(also known as Edward
J. Price): gratias reddo; sempermeminero. May the Roman gods be
smiling upon you.(AG)
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Contents
Preface page ix
Acknowledgments x
Introduction xi
Part I Grammar
1 Thenoun 3
2 Theadjective andthe participle 21
3 Theadverb 34
4 Thepreposition 36
5 Theconjunction 38
6 Thepronoun 40
7 Theverb 47
8 Numerals, measurements 50
9 Prefixesandsuffixes 57
10 Miscellany 59
Part II Exercises in translation
11 Exercises 67
12 Answers to the exercises 78
Part III Translating
13 Translating into Latin 91
14 Translating from Latin into English 103
Part IV Vocabulary
Referencesand further reading 335
Index 338
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Preface
ThisprimerisbasedonshortcoursesinbotanicalLatinruninAustraliaatthe
Northern Territory Herbarium, Darwin, and the Western Australian Herb-
arium, Perth. We presented these independently and, on discovering that we
had similar approaches, decided to combine them as a book.
Between1January1935and31December2011itwasmandatorythatnew
plantnamesbeaccompaniedbyadiagnosisordescriptioninLatin.Fornon-
fossil algae the period was 1 January 1958 to 31 December 2011, while for
fossilplantspublishedonorafter1January1996eitherLatinorEnglishcould
beused.From1January2012,descriptionsofallofthesewillbepermissiblein
either Latin or English. Besides this, there will always remain a need for
translatingfromLatininordertounderstandthemanybotanicaltextsinthis
language.
WilliamStearn’swonderfulBotanicalLatinappearedin1966andhasgone
throughmanynewimpressionsandeditions,aswellasaChinesetranslation.
ItprovidesalmostallonecouldrequirefortranslatingtoandfromLatin,buta
primer (in the sense of works such as Kennedy’s Shorter Latin Primer,
providing the basic needs) may be useful for those who need to translate the
morestraightforwarddiagnosesandshortdescriptionsnowwidelyusedwhen
describing new taxa. Besides its concise approach, our work also differs from
Stearn’s in including many more terms (especially from cryptogamic groups)
in the vocabulary, while excludingmanyterms not used in descriptions.
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Acknowledgements
Our gratitude goes to those who read and commented upon our manuscript,
especiallytoVivienneKent,whoworkedherwaythroughthebookandtaught
herself botanical Latin in the process, to Katherine Challis, who checked for
inconsistencies, Matthew Barrett who suggested some fruitful glossaries of
fungi, and William Powell, who gave advice. A number of colleagues assisted
with advice on terms to be included.
Tothosewhoattendedourcourses,whichprovidedtheinspirationforAlex
George’s course notes, and Emma Short’s Aide-mémoire, and who attended
our classes faithfully in spite of the seemingly indigestible nature of Latin
grammar,manythanks.
We are grateful to the Northern Territory Herbarium for providing desk
space for ourworkingbees (Apis mellifera).