Antoine Gouan (15 November 1733 – 1 September 1821) was a French naturalist who was a native of

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

. Gouan was a pioneer of

Linnaean taxonomy Linnaean taxonomy can mean either of two related concepts: # The particular form of biological classification (taxonomy) set up by Carl Linnaeus, as set forth in his ''Systema Naturae'' (1735) and subsequent works. In the taxonomy of Linnaeus t ...

in France. He began his studies in

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

, later returning to Montpellier, where he studied medicine at the

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

. Here he was a student of

François Boissier de Sauvages de Lacroix François Boissier de Sauvages de Lacroix (May 12, 1706 – February 19, 1767) was a French physician and botanist who was a native of Alès. He was the brother of naturalist Pierre Augustin Boissier de Sauvages (1710—1795). He received his edu ...

(1706–1767), an ardent supporter of

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

. In August 1752, Gouan received his doctorate under the chairmanship of Antoine Magnol (1676–1759), and subsequently practiced medicine at Saint-Éloi Hospital in Montpellier. Soon afterwards his interest turned to natural history. In 1762 Gouan published a plant catalog of the

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

at Montpellier titled ''Hortus regius monspeliensis''. This publication was the first French botanical work that followed the

binomial nomenclature In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

of Linnaeus. In 1765 he penned ''Flora Monspeliaca'', and became ''titulaire'' at the Montpellier Academy. During this time period he attained a position at the botanical garden, and was in charge of collection and classification of plant species. In 1770 he published an important ichthyological treatise called ''Historia Piscicum'', a work that expanded the number of fish genera that existed in the Linnaean system. Bust d'Antoine Gouan al Jardí Botànic de Montpeller

Bust d'Antoine Gouan al Jardí Botànic de Montpeller

In 1766 he succeeded Sauvages de Lacroix at the Faculty of Medicine, and in 1793 became a foreign member of the

Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...

. During his career he maintained correspondence with several learned scientists and thinkers, which included in addition to Linnaeus;

Albrecht von Haller Albrecht von Haller (also known as Albertus de Haller; 16 October 170812 December 1777) was a Swiss anatomist, physiologist, naturalist, encyclopedist, bibliographer and poet. A pupil of Herman Boerhaave, he is often referred to as "the fa ...

(1708–1777),

Jean Guillaume Bruguière Jean Guillaume Bruguière (19 July 1749 – 3 October 1798) was a French physician, zoologist and diplomat. Biography Bruguière was born in Montpellier on 19 July 1749.Comptes rendus du Congrès national des sociétés savantes: Section des s ...

(1750–1798),

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

(1712–1778),

Carl Peter Thunberg Carl Peter Thunberg, also known as Karl Peter von Thunberg, Carl Pehr Thunberg, or Carl Per Thunberg (11 November 1743 – 8 August 1828), was a Swedish naturalist and an "apostle" of Carl Linnaeus. After studying under Linnaeus at Uppsala Un ...

(1743–1828), et al. One of his students in Montpellier was

Jacques Anselme Dorthès Jacques Anselme Dorthès, born in Vauvert ( Gard) on 19 July 1759 and died during the 1794 campaign of the Army of the Eastern Pyrenees, was a French physician, entomologist and naturalist. Biography Destined to enter the orders, he abandoned ...

. In 1790, he was elected a foreign member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien) is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special ...

. Gouan is credited with planting the first

ginkgo biloba ''Ginkgo biloba'', commonly known as ginkgo or gingko ( ), also known as the maidenhair tree, is a species of tree native to China. It is the last living species in the order Ginkgoales, which first appeared over 290 million years ago. Fossils ...

in France, a tree that was given to him by naturalist

Pierre Marie Auguste Broussonet Pierre Marie Auguste Broussonet (28 February 1761 – 17 January 1807) was a French naturalist who contributed primarily to botany. He was born in Montpellier, where he was educated, and travelled to Morocco, Spain, the Canary Islands, and South ...

(1761–1807). Today this tree is reportedly still standing in the botanical garden of Montpellier. During his career he amassed a large collection of

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...

that was harvested around

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

. Taxa with the specific epithet of ''gouanii'' commemorate his name, an example being ''Ranunculus gouanii'' (Gouan's Buttercup).UK Wildflowers
Ranunculus gouanii, Gouan's Buttercup

References

* "This article is based on a translation of an equivalent article at the

French Wikipedia The French Wikipedia (french: Wikipédia en français) is the French-language edition of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. This edition was started on 23 March 2001, two months after the official creation of Wikipedia. It has article ...

External links

IPNI
List of taxa described & co-described by Gouan. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gouan, Antoine 18th-century French botanists French naturalists French ichthyologists Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Scientists from Montpellier 1733 births 1821 deaths University of Montpellier faculty