Kingdoms, Empires, and Domains: The History of High-Level Biological Classification

Before Socrates, the world's organisms were classified into three categories: plants, animals, and man. Aristotle recognized that some organisms, such as sponges and sea-fans, shared properties of both plants and animals. This became known as zoophytes. In Kingdoms, Empires, and Domains, Mark A. Ragan offers a history of the idea that there is more to the living world than plants and animals. He traces how transgressive creatures have been described, categorized, and understood throughout history, including in early Christian, Islamic, and Jewish traditions, myths, legends, and traveler's tales, occult literature, and more. The book also details how the concept of a third kingdom has evolved throughout the history of scientific botany and zoology and continues to evolve up to the present day.

Format: Hardback
Length: 816 pages
Publication date: 16 November 2023
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc

Before the time of Socrates, thinkers divided the world's organisms into three categories: plants, animals, and man. However, Aristotle recognized that certain organisms, such as sponges and sea fans, possessed characteristics of both plants and animals. These became known as zoophytes. Since then, scientists have explored the concept of a third kingdom. In his book, Kingdoms, Empires, and Domains, renowned molecular systematist Mark A. Ragan delves into the history of the idea that there is more to the living world than plants and animals. Spanning philosophical, religious, literary, and pre-scientific traditions, Ragan traces the description, categorization, and understanding of transgressive creatures like sponges, corals, algae, fungi, and diverse microscopic beings throughout history. The book explores their appearance in early Christian, Islamic, and Jewish traditions, myths, legends, and traveler's tales, occult literature, and more. Kingdoms, Empires, and Domains also details how the concept of a third kingdom has evolved in the history of scientific botany and zoology and continues to evolve to this day. The book features original translations of passages from key historical texts, many of which have never appeared in English before. It draws on the most recent and reliable scientific literature. A comprehensive and interdisciplinary study, Kingdoms, Empires, and Domains is a must-read for students and scholars of the history of biological classification and anyone interested in the history of ideas about the natural world.

Weight: 1652g
Dimension: 188 x 263 x 49 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780197643037