Editing Genus (section)

===Identical names (homonyms)===
Within the same kingdom, one generic name can apply to one genus only. However, many names have been assigned (usually unintentionally) to two or more different genera. For example, the [[platypus]] belongs to the genus ''Ornithorhynchus'' although [[George Shaw (biologist)|George Shaw]] named it ''Platypus'' in 1799 (these two names are thus '''''synonyms'')'''. However, the name ''Platypus'' had already been given to a group of [[ambrosia beetle]]s by [[Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Herbst]] in 1793. A name that means two different things is a '''''homonym'''''. Since beetles and platypuses are both members of the kingdom Animalia, the name could not be used for both. [[Johann Friedrich Blumenbach]] published the replacement name ''Ornithorhynchus'' in 1800.

However, a genus in one [[kingdom (biology)|kingdom]] is allowed to bear a scientific name that is in use as a generic name (or the name of a taxon in another rank) in a kingdom that is governed by a different nomenclature code. Names with the same form but applying to different taxa are called "homonyms". Although this is discouraged by both the [[International Code of Zoological Nomenclature]] and the [[International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants]], there are some five thousand such names in use in more than one kingdom. For instance,
* ''[[Anura (frog)|Anura]]'' is the name of the [[order (biology)|order]] of frogs but also is the name of a [[synonym (botany)|non-current]] genus of plants;
* ''Aotus'' is the generic name of both [[Aotus (plant)|golden peas]] and [[night monkey]]s;
* ''Oenanthe'' is the generic name of both [[wheatear]]s and [[Oenanthe (plant)|water dropwort]]s;
* ''Prunella'' is the generic name of both [[accentor]]s and [[self-heal]]; and
* ''Proboscidea'' is the order of [[elephant]]s and the genus of [[Proboscidea (plant)|devil's claws]].
* The name of the genus ''[[Paramecia (alga)|Paramecia]]'' (an extinct red alga) is also the plural of the name of the genus ''[[Paramecium]]'' (which is in the SAR supergroup), which can also lead to confusion.
A list of generic homonyms (with their authorities), including both available (validly published) and selected unavailable names, has been compiled by the [[Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera]] (IRMNG).<ref name ="IRMNG">{{Cite web|url=http://www.irmng.org/homonyms.php|title=IRMNG: Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera|website=www.irmng.org|access-date=2016-11-17|archive-date=2016-11-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161117212132/http://www.irmng.org/homonyms.php|url-status=live}}</ref>