Zoology is the biological discipline which involves the study of animals. The study of animal life is, of course, ancient: but as 'zoology' it is relatively modern, for what we call biology was known as 'natural history' at the start of the nineteenth century. During the lifetime of Charles Darwin natural history turned from a gentlemanly pursuit to a modern scientific activity. Zoology as we know it was first established in German and British universities. Originally quite closely connected to medical training, it gradually gained its own identity as Darwin started to answer those fundamental historical questions which had been asked before him without much success.