Jane Goodall broke convention by naming study chimpanzees instead of assigning them numbers.
In mid-20th-century animal research, investigators commonly identified subjects numerically. The practice was intended to preserve scientific detachment and reduce the risk that researchers would form emotional attachments or project human qualities onto animals. Goodall rejected that convention during her observations at Gombe.
She gave individual chimpanzees names such as David Greybeard, Flo, Fifi, Goliath and Mike. These names reflected recognizable differences in appearance, temperament, relationships and life history. Treating chimpanzees as individuals helped her document enduring family bonds, rivalries, personalities and social roles within the Kasakela community.
Her approach was controversial because critics regarded descriptions such as “personality,” “mood” and “motivation” as anthropomorphic. Yet Goodall’s observations helped demonstrate that chimpanzees use tools, hunt, cooperate, communicate and form complex social relationships. The point was not that chimpanzees are human, but that individuality and sophisticated behaviour are not uniquely human traits.