International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry - Creation and History

Creation and History

The need for an international standard for chemistry was first addressed in 1860 by a committee headed by German scientist Friedrich August Kekulé von Stradonitz. This committee was the first international conference to create an international naming system for organic compounds. The ideas that were formulated in that conference evolved into the official IUPAC nomenclature of organic chemistry. The IUPAC stands as a legacy of this meeting, making it one of the most important historical international collaborations of chemistry societies.. Since this time, IUPAC has been the official organization held with the responsibility of updating and maintaining official organic nomenclature. One notable country excluded from the early IUPAC was Germany. Germany's exclusion was a result of prejudice towards Germans by the allied powers after World War I Germany was finally admitted into IUPAC during 1929. However, Nazi Germany was removed from IUPAC during World War II.

During World War II, IUPAC was affiliated with the allied powers, but had little involvement during the war effort itself. After the war, West Germany was allowed back into IUPAC. Since World War II, IUPAC has been focused on standardizing nomenclature and methods in science without interruption.

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