New Books in the History of Science Dominik Berrens, "Naming New Things and Concepts in Early Modern Science: The Case of Natural History" (Cambridge UP, 2026)
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Apr 6, 2026 Dominik Berrens, a classicist who studies Neo-Latin scientific texts, explores how early modern scientific terms were made. He traces multilingual sources, naming strategies like Greek compounds and loanwords, and debates over reusing ancient names. He also examines challenges from New World species, microscopic organisms, and the role of accident and chance in shaping technical vocabulary.
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Naming Establishes Scientific Objects
- Naming new things is fundamental to making them objects of scientific study.
- Dominik Berrens argues early modern naming practices established terms still used today by turning discoveries into study-worthy objects.
Neo-Latin Balanced Classicism And Innovation
- Neo-Latin was the Renaissance revival of classical Latin tailored for early modern scholarship.
- Berrens shows tensions: imitators sought Ciceronian style even as sciences required new technical coinages beyond Cicero's vocabulary.
Terminology Borrowed From Many Languages
- New technical terms came from many languages: Greek, Arabic, Hebrew, vernaculars and indigenous tongues.
- Example: Leonard Fuchs Latinized German Fingerhut into Digitalis, now the botanical genus name for foxglove.
