ABSTRACT
The process of classification is transient in nature and is subject to continuous alterations and enhancements. The taxonomists have therefore proposed different systems of classification over time, which can be grouped into three categories: Artificial System, Natural or Phenetic System and Phylogenetic System. Theophrastus was a Greek naturalist and a pupil of Aristotle. Pedanius Dioscorides, born in first century A.D., was a Greek physician. His most significant contribution is the book De Materia Medica. John Ray authored the book Historia Plantarum where he proposed a classification for nearly 18000 species. Joseph Pitton de Tournefort treated genus as the smallest practical unit of classification and considered species as the variant of the genus. He classified nearly 9000 plants in 700 genera and emphasized on the characters of the corolla. Carolus Linnaeus’ system of classification was artificial in nature. George Bentham and Sir J. D. Hooker proposed a natural system of classification and classified 97205 species in 202 families.
