WHO asks public for help with monkeypox name change - Al Jazeera English

The World Health Organization has invited the public to find a new name for monkeypox, calling for help in coming up with a less stigmatising designation for the fast-spreading disease amid concerns about the name.

The disease was first discovered in humans in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the spread among humans since then mainly limited to certain West and Central African countries where it is endemic.

While the virus can jump from animals to humans, WHO experts insist the recent global spread is due to close-contact transmission between humans.

The UN health agency announced last week that a group of experts it had convened had already agreed on new names for monkeypox virus variants, or clades.