Jocelyn Falconnet<j.falconnet@gmail.com> wrote:
This name refers not only to the name of Philip Currie, but also to its
Greek root 'philos', for 'beloved', 'dear', or 'friend'. This name
designates therefore either a dear/beloved/friend snatcher/thief/assassin
(ok, the latter is a bit disturbing...) or merely 'Phil's raptor'. I think
it is a nice tribute to Philip Currie to have named this genus after his
name.
The authors actually make it clear that the name also has an
additional meaning, in addition to honoring Phil Currie: "The genus
name also recalls the combing form of Greek philein, "to love", and
the Latin venator, "hunter", suggesting a lover of the hunt."
_Byronosaurus jaffei_ (a troodontid as well) also has the genus and
species named after the same individual (Byron Jaffe).
Besides, there is much worse - *Liliensternus liliensterni*, for instance.
Not very imaginative, don't you think ?
For 50 years it was _Halticosaurus liliensterni_, before being given
its own genus. _Lambeosaurus lambei_ was named so from the very
beginning.
<tyazbeck@comcast.net> wrote:
Remember that my post wasn't completely serious *wink*. On a somewhat related
note, why so many new fossil taxa named after Charles
Darwin? I
think there is too much Darwin-worship sometimes amongst paleontologists and
the like. It seems like in the last year or two there were all kinds
of 'missing links' described that got named after Darwin, like that one
pterosaur.
Is this message also not completely serious *wink*? I honestly can't tell.
Cheers
Tim