Coronavirus variants have been renamed after the letters of the Greek alphabet so that no misrepresenting occurs in regard to the matter and marking out nations where they were first identified, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.
The new classifications are for the variants of concern, the most troubling of which four are in constant transmission, and the variants of concern after them being trailed
“While they have their advantages, these scientific names can be difficult to say and recall, and are prone to misreporting,” the WHO mentioned in a statement.
“As a result, people often resort to calling variants by the places where they are detected, which is stigmatising and discriminatory.
Currently the variants of covid-19 go by as the UK, South Africa, Brazil and India variants whereas now they have officially been given the name after the letters Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta according to the order of their discovery.
“The labels don’t replace existing scientific names, which convey important scientific information and will continue to be used in research,” WHO’s technical head Maria Van Kerkhove said in a tweet.
“These labels will help with public discussion about VOC/VOI as the numbering system can be difficult to follow.”
