Abstract:

Background & Aim: Domestic animals and their wild relatives are important biological resources crucial to the creation of new breeds, germplasm innovation and wildlife protection. China has abundant and unique domestic breeds and is one of the distributions of many wild relatives and the origin centers of animal domestication. The confusion in the usage of Chinese and Latin names for domestic animals and their wild relatives hinders the accurate identification of biological resources, impairs effective scientific research communication and science popularization, and contributes to the loss of vital biological resources. 

Methods: We search online resources and official documents such as the List of State Key Protected Wild Animals (2021), threatened species listed on China’s Red List (2021), Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (2023) among others. This information is used to investigate the history and origin of domesticating animals and the sources and use of names for domestic animals and their wild relatives in Chinese, English, and Latin languages. 

Conclusion & Suggestions: We find four key principles: (1) The Latin names of domestic animals and wild relatives must consider their origin and domestication history. (2) The Chinese names of domestic animals and wild relatives should conform to the rules of taxonomy, using the names of official documents or related monographs is recommended. (3) The Latin name of offspring produced by the hybridization of species should be expressed by the Latin scientific name of the parent, and the order of the Latin name should be distinguished from the orthogonal or inverse cross. (4) International conventions, national laws and regulations, scientific reports, and other official documents shall be used first according to context.

Key words: domesticated animal, wild relatives, Chinese name, Latin name, name determination