On Monday, the World Health Organization announced that variants of the coronavirus will be named using Greek letters, stating this will help avoid stigmatizing the countries where these variants first appear. The World Health Organization mentioned that a number of experts it consulted recommended the new naming system, which "will be easier and more practical for discussion by non-scientific audiences." The organization noted that the current systems for naming and tracking the genetic lineages of the virus SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, will continue to be used by scientists and research endeavors.
So far, the World Health Organization has identified four distinct variants. The variant first discovered in the UK will be called "Alpha," the variant found in South Africa will be named "Beta," the variant discovered in Brazil will be termed "Gamma," and the variant discovered in India, which is the latest, will be called "Delta." The announcement regarding the naming of these variants came at a time when the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom, warned that the coronavirus pandemic is not over yet. He stated, "The truth is that we still have a lot of work to do to end this pandemic... We are very encouraged by the continued decline in cases and deaths globally, but it would be a huge mistake for any country to think the danger has passed."
