COVID-19 is called that because it’s short for “coronavirus disease 2019,” the year the outbreak was first identified.

Name breakdown

  • CO = corona, referring to the crown-like spikes on the virus seen under a microscope.
  • VI = virus, because it is caused by a viral pathogen.
  • D = disease, indicating it is an illness, not the virus itself.
  • 19 = 2019, the year the new disease was first detected in Wuhan, China.

So the full name means coronavirus disease 2019.

Who chose the name?

  • On 11 February 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the official disease name “COVID-19.”
  • The virus that causes it was named “SARS‑CoV‑2” (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) the same day, because it is closely related to the original SARS virus.

Why not name it after places or people?

  • WHO now avoids names that include countries, regions, animal species, or groups of people, to reduce stigma and discrimination.
  • “COVID-19” was chosen because it is neutral, easy to pronounce, and clearly linked to the type of disease.

Extra context for “coronavirus”

  • “Coronavirus” is actually a whole family of viruses; some cause common colds, and others cause more severe illnesses like SARS and MERS.
  • COVID-19 is the disease, while SARS‑CoV‑2 is the specific coronavirus that causes it.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.