[Taxacom] Example of PRINCIPLE VI in ICNafp

[John McNeill]

You ask for examples of Principle VI (“The rules of nomenclature are retroactive unless expressly limited.”) of the ICN. There are so many it it hard to know where to begin.

Probably the best place is with “IMPORTANT DATES IN THE CODE: DATES UPON WHICH PARTICULAR PROVISIONS OF THE CODE BECOME OR CEASE TO BE EFFECTIVE” on p. xxxvii of the hardcopy version. Amongst the entries for “1 January 1958” is Art. 40.1 that reads: “Publication on or after 1 January 1958 of the name of a new taxon at the rank of genus or below is valid only when the type of the name is indicated ...”

So the Code requires that a type be indicated in order for a name to be validly published but this rule is “expressly limited” to publication of names after 1957.

An example of retroactivity without limitation is Art. 36.1 (“A name is not validly published when it is not accepted by its author in the original publication, for example (a) when it is merely proposed in anticipation of the future acceptance of the taxon concerned, or of a particular circumscription, position, or rank of the taxon (so-called provisional name) or (b) when it is merely cited as a synonym. ...”). So a name appearing only in synonymy is not validly published, i.e. is not even a “name” as that word is defined in the Code (Art. 6.3). However the origins of this provision only go back to the Vienna Rules of 1906 and it was common practice for names published as synonyms to be adopted by writers in the 19th century. This explains why such names are included in Index Kewensis and hence in IPNI (https://www.ipni.org/), although the latter notes these as not validly published when they come to the attention of the compilers and editors.

Keep well,

John McNeill

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John McNeill, Honorary Associate, Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh
      Director Emeritus, Royal Ontario Museum;
Mailing address:  Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, EH3 5LR, Scotland, U.K.
Telephone:    +44-131-248-2848;  fax: +44-131-248-2901
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e-mail: jmcneill at rbge.org.uk (mail to johnm at rom.on.ca is also read)
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________________________________
From: Taxacom <taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu> on behalf of Pudji Widodo via Taxacom <taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu>
Sent: April 16, 2020 12:03 AM
To: Taxacom <taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu>
Subject: [Taxacom] Example of PRINCIPLE VI in ICNafp

Dear Sirs and Madams,

Could you give me some examples of PRINCIPLE VI in ICNafp: The rules of nomenclature are retroactive unless expressly limited.  Thank you.

Yours Sincerely,
Pudji Widodo
Fakultas Biologi, Universitas Jenderal Soedirman
Purwokerto 53122, INDONESIA
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