The meaning behind scientific names

[MissHarlen]

As a former Latin student I am fascinated by the scientific naming scheme used for all life forms. Since I've gotten into the hobby I've noticed a lot of similarities between certain genera and specie. For example:

Aphonopelma, Brachypelma, Chromatopelma, and Haplopelma have the "-pelma" suffix. What does it mean? There's also Cyriopagopus and Cyriocosmus.

And then for different specie you have things like Grammostola pulchripes and Harpactira pulchripes. Brachypelma smithi and Poecilotheria smithi. Hysterocrates gigas and Tapinauchenius gigas.

I am very curious about the meaning behind scientific names for Tarantulas. Does anyone have any information about it?

 

[sdsnybny]

Some of the species are named after the arachnologist/enthusiast who discovered them and or did the taxonomy. I'm not certain on the Genus name origins.
IE; Brachypelma smithi was named to honor Dr Smith, Pterinopelma sazimai named after Dr Sazima. Others are named after geographical locations that may be spelled via the local language. Pamphobeteus sp "Machala" after the local. the last letter added to the species indicates if the genus is neutral, masculine, or feminine. I'm just learning this so if I missed something others may correct/add to it.

 

[boina]

As a former Latin student I am fascinated by the scientific naming scheme used for all life forms. Since I've gotten into the hobby I've noticed a lot of similarities between certain genera and specie. For example:

Aphonopelma, Brachypelma, Chromatopelma, and Haplopelma have the "-pelma" suffix. What does it mean? There's also Cyriopagopus and Cyriocosmus.

And then for different specie you have things like Grammostola pulchripes and Harpactira pulchripes. Brachypelma smithi and Poecilotheria smithi. Hysterocrates gigas and Tapinauchenius gigas.

I am very curious about the meaning behind scientific names for Tarantulas. Does anyone have any information about it?

-pelma is from Greek and means sole/bottom of the feet brachy- , also from Greek, means short. Aphono - a phono = without sound. Chromato = colorful
-pus is foot and -pes is feet. Pulchra means beautiful. Pulchripes - beautiful feet (I mean, just look at them, wouldn't you agree? )
gigas means big. That one's easy, right?

Grammostola - I'm not sure about this one, gramma (Greek) means letter or writing, but in this context?? It's also a weight unit (even in Greek), so...
stola means armor, so maybe weighty armor?

 

[spotropaicsav]

-pelma is from Greek and means sole/bottom of the feet brachy- , also from Greek, means short. Aphono - a phono = without sound. Chromato = colorful
-pus is foot and -pes is feet. Pulchra means beautiful. Pulchripes - beautiful feet (I mean, just look at them, wouldn't you agree? )
gigas means big. That one's easy, right?

Grammostola - I'm not sure about this one, gramma (Greek) means letter or writing, but in this context?? It's also a weight unit (even in Greek), so...
stola means armor, so maybe weighty armor?

I like figuring out the parts. As others have mentioned, it seems some names have historical context or reference, or refer to a feature of the species, which I like reading about.

 

[Formerphobe]

One of the documents on file on the ATS web page covers the scientific binomial meanings of many species.
As previously mentioned, they tend to be a combination of Greek, Latin, describer's name or locale, etc.

 

[Ungoliant]

As a former Latin student I am fascinated by the scientific naming scheme used for all life forms. Since I've gotten into the hobby I've noticed a lot of similarities between certain genera and specie.

I am very curious about the meaning behind scientific names for Tarantulas. Does anyone have any information about it?

FYI, "species" is both singular and plural. (The term "specie" refers to money in coin form.)

Common sources of scientific names:

• Latin
• ancient Greek
• other languages
• places (such as where the species was discovered)
• people (often naturalists and biologists)

Regardless of origin, these names will generally be Latinized. The genus name is treated as a noun. The species name may be an adjective describing the genus. It's sometimes also a noun (nominative or genitive).

Though not tarantula-specific, Spiders of North America: An Identification Manual has a great chapter on the etymology of many North America genera of spiders.

Some elements in tarantula names (you'll have to take Wiktionary's word for the ancient Greek):

• acantho: "thorn," from ancient Greek ἄκανθος (ákanthos)
• albo: "white," from Latin albus
• aphono: "silent," from ancient Greek ἄφωνος (áphōnos)
• auratum: "golden," from Latin
• Avicularia: "bird-catcher," from Latin aviculārius
• brachy: "short," from ancient Greek βρᾰχῠ́ς (brăkhŭ́s)
• centro: "spike," from ancient Greek κέντρον (kéntron)
• cephalus: "head," from ancient Greek κεφαλή (kephalḗ)
• cerato: "horn" or "horned," from ancient Greek κέρας (kéras)
• chalco: "copper" or "brass," from ancient Greek χαλκός (khalkόs)
• chilo/chilus: "lip," from ancient Greek χεῖλος (kheĩlos)
• chromato: "color," from ancient Greek χρῶμα (khrō̃ma)
• cyaneo: "deep blue," from Latin
• dolicho: "long," from ancient Greek δολῐχός (dolĭkhόs)
• ephebo: "youthful," from ancient Greek ἔφηβος (éphēbos)
• eu: "good," from ancient Greek εὖ (eũ)
• fasciata: "banded," from Latin
• grammo: "lined" or "striped," from ancient Greek γραμμοποίκιλος (grammopoíkilos)
• gyrus: "circle," from ancient Greek γῦρος (gũros)
• haplo: "simple" or "single," from ancient Greek ᾰ̔πλόος (ă̔plόos)
• hetero: "different" or "other," from ancient Greek ἕτερος (héteros)
• holo: "whole" or "complete," from ancient Greek ὅλος (hólos)
• idio: "distinct" or "peculiar," from ancient Greek ἴδιος (ídios)
• laeta: "happy," from Latin
• lividum: "blue or leaden in color," from Latin
• maculatus/maculata: "stained" or "spotted," from Latin
• metallica: "metallic," from Latin
• minax: "threatening" or "menacing," from Latin
• mira/miranda: "marvelous," from Latin
• mono: "one," from ancient Greek μόνος (mόnos)
• murinus: "mouselike" or "mouse-grey," from Latin
• neo: "new," from ancient Greek νέος (néos)
• ornata: "ornate," from Latin
• pelma: "sole (of the foot)," from ancient Greek πέλμᾰ (pélmă)
• pes/pus: "foot," from Latin
• pilosum: "hairy" or "haired," from Latin
• plumi: "feather," from Latin
• poda: "foot" or "leg," from ancient Greek πούς (poús)
• poecilo: "spotted" or "variegated," from ancient Greek ποικῐ́λος (poikĭ́los)
• psalmo: "psalm" or "song," from ancient Greek ψαλμός (psalmόs)
• ptero: "wing" or "feather," from ancient Greek πτερόν (pterόn)
• pubescens: "hairy," from Latin
• pulcher/pulchra: "beautiful," from Latin
• purpurea: "purple," from Latin
• regalis: "regal" or "kingly," from Latin
• rosea: "rose-colored," from Latin
• scurria: "clownish?" from Latin scurra
• stola: "clothing," from ancient Greek στολᾱ́ (stolā)
• striata/striatum: "striped" or "grooved," from Latin
• thele: "teat" or "nipple," from ancient Greek θηλή (thēlḗ)
• theria: "beast," from ancient Greek θηρίον (thēríon)
• thrixo: "hair," from ancient Greek θρῐ́ξ (thrĭ́x)
• urticans: "having nettles (urticating hairs)," from Latin
• vagans: "wandering," from Latin
• versicolor: "multicolored," from Latin

One of the documents on file on the ATS web page covers the scientific binomial meanings of many species.

The link: A Key to the Pronunciation and Meaning of Scientific Names of Popular Species.

 

[boina]

"I really do think that Ungoliant is on an unholy quest to just shut down the Questions subforum" --EulersK

Yep, that's it .

although some of those translations are debatable... especially because those Greek words can have more than one meaning, i.e. "stola" originally meant armor, and only later aquired the additional meaning of a specific kind of coat worn by women. It never meant "clothing". Wiki's not always right. But this is nitpicking, so I appologize. (And centro- is "middle", first and foremost... and that grammo-translation is questionable at best... ok,ok, I'll shut up )

 

[miss moxie]

acantho: "thorn," from ancient Greek ἄκανθος (ákanthos)
scurria: "clownish?" from Latin scurra

Thorny clown. I'll never be able to read Stephen King's 'it' without picturing an A. genic as the main antagonist ever again.

As @sdsnybny mentioned, there are a lot of species names that are in 'honor' of someone. Another example, Brachypelma klaasi, was named after Peter Klaas.

 

[Andrea82]

Thorny clown. I'll never be able to read Stephen King's 'it' without picturing an A. genic as the main antagonist ever again.

As @sdsnybny mentioned, there are a lot of species names that are in 'honor' of someone. Another example, Brachypelma klaasi, was named after Peter Klaas.

Well, the clown becomes a spider at one point....so you'd not be far off...

Thanks everyone for the input, I've been wondering this myself.
Thorny clown though...

Edit:
Just realized that common names are even more stupid than I thought. If people need a common name, why not use the English translation literally...
I mean, the 'feather legged baboon' doesn't even have 'plumipes' in its scientific name...

 

[MissHarlen]

Well, the clown becomes a spider at one point....so you'd not be far off...

Thanks everyone for the input, I've been wondering this myself.
Thorny clown though...

Edit:
Just realized that common names are even more stupid than I thought. If people need a common name, why not use the English translation literally...
I mean, the 'feather legged baboon' doesn't even have 'plumipes' in its scientific name...

I'm giggling bc Avicularia laeta means "happy birdeater" also I know it's now Caribbean

 

[aphono]

So I have two marvelously strange nipples.

And two pairs of beautiful feet(H and G).

@Ungoliant enjoyed reading your list so thanks for working on it and putting it up! One of the G. pulchripes slings molted last night and today I finally got to see sweet golden knees- pulchripes is so so fitting.

 

[Ungoliant]

So I have two marvelously strange nipples.

I have no idea what nipple/teat (thele) actually refers to in tarantulas.

"stola" originally meant armor, and only later aquired the additional meaning of a specific kind of coat worn by women. It never meant "clothing".

True, but I don't know that the person who originally devised the name Grammostola intended to refer to a specific garment worn only by women. (And armor doesn't make a lot of sense in the contest of tarantulas either.)

that grammo-translation is questionable at best...

That comes from Spiders of North America: An Identification Manual. One thing about trying to translate scientific names is that sometimes you can only speculate about what meaning the original author was going for unless he took the time to spell it out. This can be complicated by the author's lack of proficiency with Greek or Latin.

The meaning may depend on the context of the entire species binomial; I just posted some common components.

H. D. Cameron, who wrote the etymology chapter of Spiders of North America: An Identification Manual, apparently tried to divine what the original author of each genus name intended with its meaning, taking into consideration that some of the original authors did not appear to be very proficient with the classical languages.

Some of Cameron's commentary on his methodology:

Explaining the etymology of spider genus names takes more than looking up words in the Greek or Latin dictionaries. A professional knowledge of Greek and Latin is a sine qua non, to be sure, but it is only a beginning. It is essential to read carefully the original description of a genus, and often of the included species as well. The feature that inspired the name may be hidden, for example, in the description of the female genitalia of the type species (Acantholycosa).

Further, it is necessary to investigate all of the names originated by a given author to gain sufficient familiarity with the nomenclatural habits, preoccupations, quirks, and style of that author. It may be necessary to determine which reference books the author was using.

...

Occasionally some bold but disciplined guesswork is in order to deduce what was in the mind of an author (Zygoballus, Wadotes, Ero, Larinia).

My "Internet-understanding" is that γραμμο (grammo) by itself refers to writing or letters. However, there is, according to one dictionary I checked, an ancient Greek word for striped that begins with γραμμο (grammo): γραμμοποίκιλος (grammopoíkilos).

Grammonota EMERTON 1882:38 (Linyphiidae)
From the Greek combining form γραμμο- (as in γραμμοποίκιλος 'striped') from the neuter noun γάμμα (gen.) -ατος 'letter of the alphabet, drawing' and the Greek neuter or masculine noun νῶτον or νῶτος 'back.' The compound is made into a Latin feminine adjective. In Greek, such compounds, being two adjectives, never have a distinct feminine form. Hence 'with pictured or inscribed dorsum.' The type species, originally described in Ergione, is pictilis. O. PICKARD-CAMBRIDGE 1875c, which means embroidered.' So Emerton apparently was trying to maintain a reference to Cambridge's species in his new genus name. "The abdomen is gray, usually with conspicuous lighter areas in paired spots forming a distinct pattern" (Kaston 1948:198).

Well, the clown becomes a spider at one point....so you'd not be far off...

Beep beep, Richie.

 

[Leila]

I have no idea what nipple/teat (thele) actually refers to in tarantulas.

Good god, I'd love to know though, maybe? -because I can think of zero correlations....Like, frickin zero.

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

I have no idea what nipple/teat (thele) actually refers to in tarantulas.

I'm going to take a wild guess that the "thele" refers to the spinnerets in tarantulas or even spiders in general. The generic characteristic of the genus Heterothele is its long lateral spinnerets (which is unusual for Theraphosidae) and short median spinnerets. "Hetero" meaning different and "thele" meaning teat would be a reference to how different the spinnerets are either from other tarantulas. That or the name refers to how different the two pairs are for species of this genus so not comparing to other tarantulas but how different the two pairs of spinnerets are on the same spider. Something that would probably be emphasized considering the genus looks more like a diplurid than a theraphosid spider. I can see how spinnerets can look like "teats."

 

[boina]

I have no idea what nipple/teat (thele) actually refers to in tarantulas.

True, but I don't know that the person who originally devised the name Grammostola intended to refer to a specific garment worn only by women. (And armor doesn't make a lot of sense in the contest of tarantulas either.)

That comes from Spiders of North America: An Identification Manual. One thing about trying to translate scientific names is that sometimes you can only speculate about what meaning the original author was going for unless he took the time to spell it out. This can be complicated by the author's lack of proficiency with Greek or Latin.

The meaning may depend on the context of the entire species binomial; I just posted some common components.

H. D. Cameron, who wrote the etymology chapter of Spiders of North America: An Identification Manual, apparently tried to divine what the original author of genus name intended with its meaning, taking into consideration that some of the original authors did not appear to be very proficient with the classical languages.

Some of Cameron's commentary on his methodology:

My "Internet-understanding" is that γραμμο (grammo) by itself refers to writing or letters. However, there is, according to one dictionary I checked, an ancient Greek word for striped that begins with γραμμο (grammo): γραμμοποίκιλος (grammopoíkilos).

Beep beep, Richie.

I didn't mean to question your knowledge or sources . I had Latin and, to a lesser amount, Greek shoved down my throat and, against my intentions, some things stuck. All I'm saying it that some of those translations are not as clear cut as it seems, something you just agreed on. I've no idea what grammo means in this context, but a very shortened version of grammopoikilos seems a bit far fetched to me. And I took stola/armor to refer to the exosceleton, but I may be completely wrong here.

It doesn't matter really. Your translations may actually be what the name giver intended. It's just a guessing game to play that sometimes can be fun .

 

[Andrea82]

I'm going to take a wild guess that the "thele" refers to the spinnerets in tarantulas or even spiders in general. The generic characteristic of the genus Heterothele is its long lateral spinnerets (which is unusual for Theraphosidae) and short median spinnerets. "Hetero" meaning different and "thele" meaning teat would be a reference to how different the spinnerets are either from other tarantulas. That or the name refers to how different the two pairs are for species of this genus so not comparing to other tarantulas but how different the two pairs of spinnerets are on the same spider. Something that would probably be emphasized considering the genus looks more like a diplurid than a theraphosid spider. I can see how spinnerets can look like "teats."

That actually makes sense, because in Dutch, the word for spinnerets is 'spintepels', which literally means 'web nipples/teats'.
Mystery solved

 

[Ungoliant]

I didn't mean to question your knowledge or sources .

No worries. I just thought I would elaborate on some of the points you mentioned, since my original post was just a list with no further explanations or cited sources.

 

[aphono]

I'm going to take a wild guess that the "thele" refers to the spinnerets in tarantulas or even spiders in general. The generic characteristic of the genus Heterothele is its long lateral spinnerets (which is unusual for Theraphosidae) and short median spinnerets. "Hetero" meaning different and "thele" meaning teat would be a reference to how different the spinnerets are either from other tarantulas. That or the name refers to how different the two pairs are for species of this genus so not comparing to other tarantulas but how different the two pairs of spinnerets are on the same spider. Something that would probably be emphasized considering the genus looks more like a diplurid than a theraphosid spider. I can see how spinnerets can look like "teats."

That certainly is the best attempt at an explanation so far. "Beautiful with strange spinnerets" does seem like it would be a pretty good descriptor. Do they have "strange spinnerets" and could it be an adaption for their trapdoor lifestyle?

 

[MatisIsLoveMantisIsLyf]

Well I'm greek, and to be honest, i see the names as actual combined every-day words