Final answer:
Girolamo Fracastoro coined the term 'syphilis' for this new early modern disease in 1546.
Step-by-step explanation:
Girolamo Fracastoro, an Italian physician, coined the term 'syphilis' for the new early modern disease in 1546. He proposed the idea of transferable 'seed-like spores' that could be transmitted between individuals through direct contact, exposure to contaminated clothing, or through the air. Fracastoro's ideas were not widely accepted at the time but are now recognized as an early proponent of the germ theory of disease.