There are two different notions of seed (sperma) at work in the Generation of Animals: seed as the spermatic residue (perittoma), which concerns only the male and the female generative contributions, and seed as the kuema and first mixture of the two generative contributions. The latter is a notion of seed common to plants and animals. The passage in GA I.18, 724b12–22 where Aristotle distinguishes between these two notions of seed has been mistakenly discredited as inauthentic or simply as irrelevant for understanding the seeds of animals. On the other hand, recent studies have rather focused on the seed as spermatic residue (in particular, the female contribution as seed), paying little attention to the notion of seed as kuema. In this paper I defend the authenticity and relevance of this passage and show how understanding the notion of seed as kuema is essential to have a complete picture of Aristotle’s account of seed. This common notion of seed makes sense of Aristotle’s otherwise puzzling use of the word “sperma” to designate the seeds of plants, the kuema, the fertilized eggs, and the first mixture of the two generative contributions. It also proves helpful in determining what the word ‘sperma’ stands for in key passages, such as Metaph. IX.7.

中文翻译：

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亚里士多德《动物世代》中的种子（精子）和 Kuêma

在动物世代中，有两种不同的种子（精子）概念：种子作为精索残留物（perittoma），只涉及男性和女性的生殖贡献，种子作为 kuema 和两种生殖的第一个混合物贡献。后者是植物和动物共有的种子概念。GA I.18, 724b12-22 中亚里士多德区分这两种种子概念的段落被错误地认为是不真实的，或者只是认为与理解动物的种子无关。另一方面，最近的研究更多地关注种子作为精索残留物（特别是女性作为种子的贡献），很少关注种子作为 kuema 的概念。在这篇论文中，我捍卫了这段话的真实性和相关性，并展示了将种子的概念理解为 kuema 是如何获得亚里士多德关于种子的完整描述的必要条件。这种常见的种子概念使亚里士多德在其他方面令人费解地使用“精子”一词来指定植物的种子、kuema、受精卵以及这两种生成贡献的第一个混合物是有意义的。它还证明有助于确定“sperma”一词在关键段落（例如 Metaph）中的含义。IX.7. 它还证明有助于确定“sperma”一词在关键段落（例如 Metaph）中的含义。IX.7. 它还证明有助于确定“sperma”一词在关键段落（例如 Metaph）中的含义。IX.7.