YOUR SAY

Featured Letter LATIN LESSON

solating in Canberra from my usual home in Melbourne, I have had the benefit of reading my father’s copies of AUSTRALIANGEOGRAPHIC. AG 159 was again full of fascinating articles, intriguing facts and beautiful pictures. The echidna story noted that “monotreme” was, means “fast tongue”. Again, both parts of this word are Greek, although “Latinised” to form a species name. I wonder if it would be fairer to the Greeks if we used the term “scientific name” rather than “Latin name” in such cases. While I can understand the mention of Latin in a reference to a scientific name, in explaining the word “monotreme” there appears to have been an error.