International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants: on the history of the Russian translation

An urgent need to use a unified nomenclature for cultivated plants was indicated at the beginning of the 20th century by R.E. Regel, A.I. Malzev, K.A. Flyaksberger. Half a century later, an appendix to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (Stockholm, 1952) published the first formulated rules for naming cultivated plants, which provided a basis for the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants issued as a separate edition in 1953. The primary goal of the Code was to eliminate confusion, promote order and uniformity in the naming of new varieties and the use of accepted variety names, i.e. to establish unified nomenclature rules. The main categories of the nomenclature for cultivated plants (cultivar, group, grex) do not represent a hierarchical system. So far, nine editions of the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants had been published, of which four were translated into Russian (1953, 1958, 1961 and 1969). The prepared translation of the ninth edition is going to be published in the Vavilovia journal.

The current state of the plant nomenclature in crop production on the example of dissertation titles

Aim. The aim of this article is to analyze the current state of plant nomenclature in agricultural practice. Methods. The analysis of literary sources, mathematical analysis. Results. In the titles of 1760 analyzed dissertations for the scientific degrees in agricultural sciences (2000–2019), 90.3% of the plant names are presented in Ukrainian, 5.6% are a combination of Ukrainian and Latin names, and 4.1% are in Latin. In the titles of 680 dissertations for the scientific degrees in biological sciences, the main part is made up of the Latin names of taxa of a generic and species rank and below — 45.2%, names in Ukrainian are 35.1%, and combinations of Ukrainian and Latin names are 19.7%. Despite the fact that the same groups of organisms are studied in both groups agricultural and biological, there are significant differences in the use of names. The scientific style of the Ukrainian language is inherent in the direct word order when the adjective precedes the noun. This is how crop names were coined: miaka pshenytsia (common wheat), tverda pshenytsia (durum wheat), ozyma pshenytsia (winter wheat), yara pshenytsia (spring wheat), tsukrovi buriaky (sugar beet), etc., while in the names of botanical taxa the word order is opposite: pshenytsia miaka (common wheat), pshenytsia tverda (durum wheat), buriak zvychainyi (beet), etc. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, unmotivated inversion occurred in the catalogues of zoned cultivars of agricultural crops, when the word order in the crop names changed to the opposite. In the International Convention for the Protection of Rights of New Varieties of Plants, the term variety is associated with the term taxon, and not agricultural crop. Therefore, the concepts of agricultural crop and botanical taxon that are not identical are confused in the State Register of Plant Varieties of Ukraine. Agrarians have been in a state of ambiguity and uncertainty regarding the proper use of plant names. The attempts to assimilate the agrobiological nomenclature to the botanical one led to an unreasonable replacement of the names of cultons, which acquired a chaotic and mass character. At the beginning of the 20th century, in the vast majority of dissertations in the agricultural field, the spelling of the names of traditional crops corresponded to the scientific style, but gradually it changed and now in most dissertations the reverse word order dominates, mistakenly identifying the crop names with specific names. At the same time, in biological dissertation, the names of both cultons and taxa correspond to the scientific style. Conclusions. The titles of many dissertations for the scientific degrees in Agricultural and Biological Sciences use Ukrainian and Latin names of plants. Latin names are regulated by the ICN, but the Ukrainian ones belong to two unregulated terminological systems. The first botanical system reflects the scientific botanical nomenclature and manages the names of taxon, the second agrobiological system is based on the names of cultons. Generic names and crop names often coincide, while species names and crop names differ in word order. In the verbose crop names, the word order is direct with the adjective precedes the noun, in the species names the word order is reversed, a generic name followed by a specific epithet. The phenomenon of replacing crop names with names inheriting the species names has become rampant over the past twenty years. They destroy the system of agrobiological nomenclature and contradict the scientific standards of the literary Ukrainian language. The identification of this negative phenomenon will allow us to overcome it faster.

Świadomość językowa, troska o język polski i zainteresowania językoznawcze Elizy Orzeszkowej w świetle jej korespondencji

The raw material for this article came from the nine volume edition of letters written by Orzeszkowa to her friends, acquaintances, publishers etc. The authors reveal and review the authoress’ statements concerning her own literary works and the language used to translate them, while also discussing the meticulousness of proofreaders and Orzeszkowa’s mastery of foreign languages. Other issues include the writer’s attitude to the Russian language, Russian culture and Russification of Poles, her role in defending of the Polish spirit and promoting the Polish language, her opinions on other writers and their language, statements about the Linde dictionary, interests in botanical nomenclature, mentions of north Borderlands Polish dialect, reflections on the correctness of specific language facts, contacts with eminent philologists and linguists.

Bird Cherry (Prunus padus L.) in history and culture of Ukrainian and other ethnicities

Aim. Decorative and confectionery-pharmaceutical value of bird cherry (Prunus padus L.), the complex history of the phytonyms’ formation, the transcendent symbolism and poetics of its image, ideas about bird cherry in different ethnic groups, and the pragmatic need to modernize the traditions they have preserved led to the need for necessitated research. Methods. The authors conducted the retrospective analysis of the formation of the bird cherry’s folklore image; revealed the formation of its modern scientific terminology and botanical nomenclature, attempts to preserve the symbolism of the bird cherry’s folk names in different ethnic groups for future generations and the prospects for introducing P. padus representatives in horticulture. The commonly used methods of theoretical analysis, systematization, comparison, and generalization of specialized literature have been applied (Hurrell et al., 2019). Results. Polyphilia of the subgenus Prunus subg. Padus (Mill.) Peterm. (=Prunus subg. Padus (Moench) Focke), debatable rank and status of P. padus species and the incompleteness of its taxonomy are confirmed. The autochthonous nature of bird cherry in Ukraine is supported by the richness of its dialect folk names. However, the dialect names of bird cherry were not always really motivated. They symbolized the plant in colorful verbal and poetic images and connected it with the oldest sacred traditions. Folk names and symbols of bird cherry in Ukrainian, Russian and Belarusian dialects, variants of its nomenclature and symbolism in the traditions of English-speaking ethnic groups, and the Spanish language's onomastic field had been discussed. Works on the bird cherry’s use in folk medicine and modern pharmacy, and prospects for attracting materials from Prunus spp. Collections of NDP “Sofiyivka” of NAS of Ukraine and experimental farm “Novokahovske” of the Rice Institute of NAS of Ukraine for gardening, horticulture, and breeding are characterized. Conclusions. The ambiguity of the bird cherry’s folklore image in the ideas of close Slavic ethnic groups, the connection of these ideas with the composition of the local dendrological flora, and the traditional value of P. padus and other representatives of the subgenus Padus for traditional and scientific medicine, the prospects of their introduction into horticulture, and the need to involve ethnobotanical lexemes in enlightenment are proved.

A Study of the Plant Folk Nomenclature of the Yi People in Xiaoliangshan, Yunnan Province, China, and the Implications for Protecting Biodiversity

BackgroundFolk plant nomenclature is a part of knowledge of indigenous people often used to distinguish plant species. This study aimed to document the folk botanical nomenclature of the Yi people in Xiaoliangshan, north-west Yunnan Province, which has not been systematically investigated to date. The results of this study will assist in conserving biodiversity and the language of the Yi people and will promote the transmission of ethnobotanical knowledge. MethodsAn ethnobotanical survey of plants used by the Yi people in Xiaoliangshan, Yunnan Province, was conducted from September 2019 to August 2021. Semi-structured Interviews and Key Informant Interviews were conducted to collect and document ethnobotanical information, which was then used to analyse the folk botanical nomenclature of the Yi people. In addition, the folk names of plants used by the Xiaoliangshan Yi community were compared with those of the Yi people living in the Daliangshan, where the environment is considerably different.ResultsIn this study, 266 informants were interviewed, and the names of 228 indigenous plants were extracted from 3088 use reports. The nomenclature used by the local Yi people is based on plant characteristics, plant habitat, plant-use, and the local culture. The folk names and the plant species have three types of correspondence. Moreover, some plant names are related to animals or Chinese loanwords. The comparison between the folk botanical names used by the Yi people in Xiaoliangshan and those used by the Yi people in the Daliangshan shows that 55 names are identical and the Yi people in both locations use 41 identical plants.ConclusionsThere are certain similarities and differences between the folk nomenclature of the Yi people in Xiaoliangshan and those in the Daliangshan. The findings are an example of how language evolves when people from the same ethnic group live in different geographical environments for extensive periods. In addition, the numerous Chinese loanwords in the folk botanical names of the Yi people in both locations indicate that a loss of traditional knowledge may be one of the greatest challenges to preserving the cultural heritage of the Yi people and to the conservation of biodiversity.

Prinzipien der botanischen Nomenklatur in der Renaissance

The aim of this paper is to bring to light the pattern underlying botanical nomenclature in the Renaissance. The analysis shows that this nomenclature was conceived within the framework of the Renaissance episteme, i.e. within a logical and religious framework and that it is characterized by a threefold purpose: the appellations must give an essential definition of plants, reflect the classification of the botanists, and be easy to remember , that is, they must be short. Consequently, the nomenclature is structured by various principles: philosophical (logical division), linguistic (anaphora, polysemy) and cognitive (typicality). Finally, the analysis leads to a definition of the concept of ‘nomenclature’ in the Renaissance.

Remarks on the nomenclature of Anthurium ×macrolobum (Araceae)

The paper presents a detailed nomenclatural study of the name Anthurium ×macrolobum, an accepted artificial hybrid between A. leuconeurum and A. pedatoradiatum, which is a popular ornamental houseplant cultivated around the world. Nomenclatural confusion was found to be associated with the valid publication of A. ×macrolobum, and a binding decision of the General Committee for Botanical Nomenclature is required. Furthermore, since A. ×macrolobum was published six years later than the name A. ×dentatum by Devansaye (1883 vs. 1877) for the same hybrid, it has to be superseded by the latter name according to the priority principle. However, the name proposed in 1877 has never been used, and its later isonym (A. ×dentatum by André, published in 1884) has been traditionally treated as a taxonomic synonym of A. ×macrolobum. Therefore, for preserving the standing application of the name A. ×macrolobum, its conservation against of A. ×dentatum by Devansaye is desirable. Neotypes for both A. ×macrolobum and A. ×dentatum by Devansaye are designated in the present paper.