Commemoration of Charles Darwin began while Darwin was still on the Beagle survey voyage, and continued with his increasing fame. Many geographical features, species and institutions bear his name. Interest in his work has led to scholarship and publications, nicknamed the Darwin Industry, and his life is remembered in fiction, film and TV productions as well as in numerous biographies. Darwin Day has become an annual event, and in 2009 there were worldwide celebrations to mark the bicentenary of Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species.
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During Darwin's lifetime, many geographical features were given his name. An expanse of water adjoining the Beagle Channel was named Darwin Sound by Robert FitzRoy after Darwin's prompt action, along with two or three of the men, saved them from being marooned on a nearby shore when a collapsing glacier caused a large wave that would have swept away their boats,[1] and the nearby Mount Darwin in the Andes was named in celebration of Darwin's 25th birthday.[2] Another Darwin Sound in British Columbia's Queen Charlotte Islands, between Moresby Island and Lyell Island, was named in 1878 by Canada's then-chief geographer George M. Dawson for Darwin.[3] When the Beagle was surveying Australia in 1839, Darwin's friend John Lort Stokes sighted a natural harbour which the ship's captain Wickham named Port Darwin.[4] The settlement of Palmerston founded there in 1869 was officially renamed Darwin in 1911. It became the capital city of Australia's Northern Territory.[4]
More than 120 species and nine genera have been named after Darwin.[5] In 2009, a remarkably complete fossil primate from 47 million years ago was announced as a significant transitional fossil, and named Darwinius to celebrate Darwin's bicentenary.[6] Although related to American Emberizidae or Tanagers rather than finches, the group of species related to those Darwin found in the Galápagos Islands became popularly known as "Darwin's finches" following publication of David Lack's book of that name in 1947, fostering inaccurate legends about their significance to his work.[7]
In 1992, Darwin was ranked #16 on Michael H. Hart's list of the most influential figures in history.[8] Darwin came fourth in the 100 Greatest Britons poll sponsored by the BBC and voted for by the public.[9][10] In 2000 Darwin's image appeared on the Bank of England ten pound note, replacing Charles Dickens. His impressive, luxuriant beard (which was reportedly difficult to forge) was said to be a contributory factor to the bank's choice.[11]
Darwin in Australia features Charles Darwin University[12] and Charles Darwin National Park.[13] However, Darwin College, Cambridge, founded in 1964, was named in honour of the Darwin family, in part because they owned some of the site.[14]
The Linnean Society of London has commemorated Darwin's achievements by the award of the Darwin-Wallace Medal since 1908.
In the Galápagos Islands, the Charles Darwin Foundation based at the Charles Darwin Research Station does research and conservation. To mark 2009 they are helping to reintroduce to Floreana Island (Charles Island) the specific mockingbird which first alerted Darwin to species being unique to islands. It was eradicated from the main island by European species, mainly rats and goats, but survived on two small islands nearby.[15]
As a humorous celebration of evolution, the annual Darwin Award is bestowed on individuals who "improve our gene pool by removing themselves from it."[16]
Darwin Day has become an annual celebration, and in 2009 the bicentenary of Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species were celebrated by events and publications around the world.[17] The Darwin exhibition, after opening at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City in 2006, was shown at the Museum of Science, Boston, the Field Museum in Chicago, the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto,[18] then from 14 November 2008 to 19 April 2009 in the Natural History Museum, London, as part of the Darwin200 programme of events across the United Kingdom.[19] It also appears at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome from 12 February to 3 May 2009.[20] The University of Cambridge featured a festival in July 2009.[21] His birthplace is celebrating with "Darwin's Shrewsbury 2009 Festival" events during the year.[22]
In the United Kingdom a special commemorative issue of the two pound coin shows a portrait of Darwin facing a chimpanzee surrounded by the inscription 1809 DARWIN 2009, with the edge inscription ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES 1859. Collector versions of the coin have been released at a premium, and during the year the coins will be available from banks and post offices at face value.[23] To celebrate Darwin's life and achievements, the BBC has commissioned numerous television and radio programmes known collectively as the BBC Darwin Season.
In September 2008, the Church of England issued an article saying that the 200th anniversary of his birth was a fitting time to apologise to Darwin "for misunderstanding you and, by getting our first reaction wrong, encouraging others to misunderstand you still".[24]
Since 2004, Universidad Francisco Marroquín (UFM) in Guatemala, has celebrated Darwin Day with a series of conferences that includes international speakers. To watch the UFM’s Darwin Day video collection click here.
Numerous biographies of Darwin have been written, and the 1980 biographical novel The Origin by Irving Stone gives a closely researched fictional account of Darwin's life from the age of 22 onwards.
A dramatic motion picture entitled Creation was released in 2009, joining a short list of film dramas about Darwin, including The Darwin Adventure, released in 1972.
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