To George Howard Darwin 27 May [1867]1
Down
May 27
My dear George
I have got to think that perhaps a better name cd be made for my hypothesis than Pangenesis.2 Cell-genesis wd be perfect if it cd be put into Greek. Atom-genesis or particle-gen—or tissue-gen—might do.
Now do you know any really good Classic who cd suggest any Greek word expressing cell, & which cd be united with genesis? The cells referred to are such as form the tissue of plants. I shd be sorry for a very long word, yet Partheno-gen. & Agamo-gen—have been extensively used. Perhaps I shall have to stick to Pan—
yours affectly | Ch Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
Variation: The variation of animals and plants under domestication. By Charles Darwin. 2 vols. London: John Murray. 1868.
Summary
CD has come to think a name better than "Pangenesis" is needed. Asks GHD to get a suggestion from a classics scholar. "Cell-genesis wd be perfect if it cd be put into Greek."
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-5553
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- George Howard Darwin
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- DAR 210.1: 2
- Physical description
- L(S) 2pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 5553,” accessed on 3 June 2023, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-5553.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 15
