Coronavirus latest: World Health Organisation officially names illness COVID-19

By Lauren Chadwick & Alessio Dell'Anna • last updated: 11/02/2020 - 17:02

The coronavirus that has killed more than 1,000 people has been named COVID-19, which is a revision on the former 2019-nCoV.

Its name was confirmed by the World Health Organisation's Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a daily briefing on the outbreak on Tuesday.

Discussing the reasons for the decision, he said: "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."

"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."

Link to tweet

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