The deadly novel coronavirus has been christened a new official name: "Covid-19".
Whether it will roll off the tongue as easily as the unofficial but sticky "Wuhan virus" name is anyone's guess, but the the World Health Organisation has made the decision on Tuesday, Feb. 11 and it is final.
"We now have a name for the disease and it's Covid-19," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva.
He explained that "co" stood for "corona", "vi" for "virus" and "d" for "disease", which should be self-evident enough.
Covid-19 was first identified in China on Dec. 31, 2019.
Other names might be inappropriate
"Having a name matters to prevent the use of other names that can be inaccurate or stigmatising. It also gives us a standard format to use for any future coronavirus outbreaks,” said Tedros.
He also said: "Under agreed guidelines between WHO, the OIE Animal Health and FAO, we had to find a name that did not refer to a geographical location, an animal, an individual or group of people, and which is also pronounceable and related to the disease.”
The first vaccine targeting the coronavirus could be available in 18 months, “so we have to do everything today using available weapons”, Tedros also revealed on Tuesday.