Lajisanasta

Lajisanasta is a term used in Finnish taxonomy to denote the second element of a binomial scientific name, the species epithet. In binomial nomenclature the genus name and the lajisanasta together uniquely identify a species within a genus. The lajisanasta helps distinguish species within a genus that share a common lineage.

Formation and meaning: Lajisanasta is typically Latin or latinized. It may describe a feature (for example, albus for white), indicate a geographic origin (such as madagascariensis), or honor a person (such as darwinii). It is usually written in lowercase and is not capitalized, even if it derives from a proper name; the genus name is capitalized.

Rules and usage: In formal writing the two parts of the name are often set in italics. The lajisanasta follows the rules of the relevant nomenclature code (for animals, the ICZN; for plants, algae and fungi, the ICN). If a species is moved to a different genus, the lajisanasta may remain the same while the genus part changes. In Latin grammar, adjectives in the lajisanasta may agree in gender with the genus, affecting endings in some cases.

Examples: Homo sapiens (sapiens is the lajisanasta), Escherichia coli, Panthera tigris. These epithet forms illustrate the descriptive, geographic, and honorific origins that lajisanasta commonly adopts.

Relation to subspecies: When a subspecies is named, a third element is added to the full name, but the lajisanasta remains the species epithet associated with the species level rather than the subspecies.

See also: binomial nomenclature, taxonomic nomenclature, species epithet.