[meteorite-list] Names and synonyms (was ...Mali or Argelia...)

[Alan Rubin]

And, of course, if the name is mis-spelled originally, the mis-spelling 
persists as the official name:  Forrest 001, Dyarrl Island (which should be 
Dyaul or Djaul), etc.
Alan Rubin

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jeff Grossman" <jgrossman at usgs.gov>
To: <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Monday, October 22, 2007 3:25 PM
Subject: [meteorite-list] Names and synonyms (was ...Mali or Argelia...)


> Here is what I can tell everybody about official names and synonyms.
>
> Every meteorite is given one, and only one, official name.  This is the 
> name that must be used in publications.  There are no rules for how the 
> name is chosen, only guidelines.  Mainly the guidelines call for naming 
> the meteorite after a nearby geographic feature that can be found on maps. 
> If there are competing candidates for the name, weight may be given to 
> many factors in choosing which to bestow, including existing usage among 
> scientists and collectors, finder's privileges, distribution of specimens, 
> and a little politics now and then.
>
> There are no rules at all concerning synonyms, although nowadays these are 
> often vetted by the NomCom too.  In general, these are any other names by 
> which specimens of a meteorite may have been known throughout history. 
> Synonyms are NOT official names.  Sometimes you see "officially 
> recognized" synonyms, meaning the NomCom has published it, but it's still 
> not an official name.  The NomCom usually tries to recognize synonyms when 
> they have appeared in scientific publications, press reports, well-known 
> catalogs, or when the meteorite is widely sold or traded under another 
> name.
>
> One grayish area in all of this is "named masses,"  like the Ahnighito, 
> Agpalilik, Woman, Dog, and other masses of Cape York.  Some of these names 
> are so engrained that even scientists who have long studied them don't 
> realize they aren't the official names, like Filomena.  But these are also 
> unofficial names: the official name for Filomena is North Chile. 
> Nevertheless, the NomCom encourages the preservation of names of such 
> masses on specimen labels and in catalogs, as they convey potentially 
> important information about the provenance of a particular subsample.  A 
> good way of doing it would be to say "North Chile (Filomena mass)". 
> Conversely, there is little value in preserving archaic names that do not 
> carry specimen information, e.g., you would never refer to a Kirin mass of 
> Jilin.
>
> jeff
>
>
>
> Dr. Jeffrey N. Grossman       phone: (703) 648-6184
> US Geological Survey          fax:   (703) 648-6383
> 954 National Center
> Reston, VA 20192, USA
>
>
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