Nomenclature

Abstract

Names for chemical substances have developed from primitive terms based on their source, properties, or effects into an elaborate system in which names encode precise information about chemical structures. Inorganic chemistry was elaborated first, and is strongly concerned with elemental composition and ionic and oxidation states. Organic nomenclature at first followed the inorganic pattern, but diverged from it because of the importance of connectivity and isomerism in organic compounds. The present system of organic nomenclature is based on the principles of the Geneva Conference of 1892, developed and expanded by international conferences and commissions into the nomenclature recommended by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). The nomenclatures of inorganic, organic, and macromolecular chemistry and of biochemistry are in a continuing state of development, and new recommendations from the international bodies are published in the appropriate journals, such as Pure and Applied Chemistry and Biochemistry. The rules are collected in book form at intervals.