Revised 13 Sept. 2022
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Heptranchias Rafinesque 1810 heptá (Gr. ἑπτά), seven; ranchias, etymology unclear, possibly a variant spelling of ánchō (Gr. ἄγχω), choke or throttle, possibly with the addition of –ias, borrowed from karcharías (Gr. καρχαρίας), a kind of shark (cf. Carcharias Rafinesque 1810), referring to how the seven gill openings extend down onto the throat

Heptranchias perlo (Bonnaterre 1788) from the French vernacular “Le Perlon,” pearl, probably referring to its smooth and grayish (“lisse & grisâtre”) skin

Hexanchus Rafinesque 1810 héx (Gr. ἕξ), six; anchus, etymology unclear, perhaps ánchō (Gr. ἄγχω), choke or throttle, referring to how six gill openings of H. griseus extend down onto the throat

Hexanchus griseus (Bonnaterre 1788) Medieval Latin for gray, reflecting the French vernacular “Le Griset,” referring to its dark-gray coloration

Hexanchus nakamurai Teng 1962 in honor of Teng’s colleague Hiroshi Nakamura, Fisheries Experiment Station of the Government-General during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan, who illustrated this species as H. griseus in 1936

Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller 1969 Latin for calf or bullock, i.e., a small cowshark, smaller than its fellow Atlantic congener, H. griseus

Notorynchus Ayres 1855 etymology not explained, presumably nótos (Gr. νότος), back, possibly referring to posterior placement of single dorsal fin; rhynchus, from rhýnchos (Gr. ῥύγχος), snout, possibly referring to its broad, depressed snout

Notorynchus cepedianus (Péron 1807) -[i]anus (L.) belonging to: Bernard Germain Étienne de La Ville-sur-Illon, comte de [count of] La Cepède (also spelled as La Cépède, Lacépède and Lacepède, 1756–1825), author of Histoire Naturelle des Poissons (1798–1803) and Péron’s “illustrious master” (translation) in ichthyology