wˌaɪl ðə dɪzˈiːz wʌz kˈæɹɪktɚɹˌaɪzd ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd θˈɜːɾi fˈoːɹ, ðɪ ˈeɪdʒənt kˈɔːzɪŋ ðə dɪzˈiːz wʌz nˌɑːt aɪdˈɛntᵻfˌaɪd ʌntˈɪl nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti sˈɛvən wɛn ɹᵻsˈɜːtʃɚz, sˈɪŋ ænd sˈɪŋ, wɜːɹ ˈeɪbəl tʊ ˈaɪsəlˌeɪt ænd kˈæɹɪktɚɹˌaɪz ðə vˈaɪɹəs.
While the disease was characterized in 1934, the agent causing the disease was not identified until 1977 when researchers, Singh and Singh, were able to isolate and characterize the virus.