Early scientific names of Amphibia Anura I. Introduction

This paper opens a series of publications meant at ascertaining and stabilizing the status of early scientific names of Amphibia Anura. Before starting the analysis of the status of these names, we present a rather detailed discussion of several important rules and problems of zoological nomenclature, which will be the basis for proposals and decisions presented in the forthcoming series of papers. We examine here the following general questions: the status of <>nomina oblita and of nomina dubia; the "suppression" of names by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature; the nomenclatural role and importance of name-bearing types (onomatophores) and type-localities (type-populations); the availability of scientific names; the distinction between different kinds of names and spellings; the distinction between three categories of syntypes; the criteria and conditions for lectotype designations; the status of type-locality restrictions and the relative priority between names published simultaneously.