I N£W« SECOND -HAND
3, BRIDGE STRtET,

BOTANICAL NAMES

FOR

ENGLISH EEADEES,

LONDON :

E. NEWMAN, PRINTER. 32, BOTOLPH LANE,

EASTCHEAP, E.C.

BOTANICAL NAMES

ENGLISH HEADERS.

BY i^

RANDAL H/\iLCOCK,

" There may be a difference of opinion as to the advantage of spending much
time upon the study of Botany ; but there is one opinion only as to the importance
of knowing the names of the plants of which man has to make use, or which he is
continually meeting with." — Lindley.

"library

NEW YdfeK

LONDON:
L. KEEVE & CO.. 5, HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN.

1876.

M^

TO

THE REV. JOHN ^VRIGHT, B.A.,
m §ath,

AS A SMALL TOKEN OF PERSONAL ESTEEM,

AND or

ADMIRATION FOR HIS PRACTICAL ENCOURAGEMENT OF RATIONAL THOUGHT

AND EXTENDED EDUCATION

AMONG ALL CLASSES DURING A NUMBER OF YEARS,
AND AS TO A

DEAR FEIENl),
"Chis Dolumc is pciiicaki) h])

E. H. ALCOCK.

PREFACE.

It is a common complaint among those who wish
to know something of Botany that they can make no
progress because the scientific names of plants are
so hard to learn, and it has occurred to me that
something might be done to lessen the difficulty.
It is much easier to remember names when they
convey some meaning than when they are not
understood, and the more information they convey
the less liable are they to be forgotten. I have
attempted in the following pages to explain the
scientific names of British plants in a popular
manner, so as to be useful to those who have no
knowledge of any foreign language. I have . also
attached, so far as I could, the oldest authority
for each name, in order to give an idea of
its history ; and, as this required some account
of the authorities themselves, I have divided the
work into two parts, the first of which is an

VUl PREFACE.

account of most of the namers of plants up to the
time of Linneus, so arranged as to give, at the same
time, a general sketch of the History of Botany in
that period ; the second part deals with the meanings
of the names only.

It gives me great pleasure to acknowledge my
obligation, and express my best thanks, to the Eev.
John Wright, of Bath, and to Mr. James Britten, of
the British Museum, for their assistance in giving
me many valuable suggestions and references, and
much general information.

HuDCAR House, Bury, Lancashire.
January 31st, 1876.

INTRODUCTION.

It is impossible to gain any but a very superficial
knowledge of Botany without learning the scientific
names of plants. Even such a small section of the
Vegetable Kingdom — less than a fiftieth part of the
whole — as are inhabitants of Britain could not be
distinguished by any English names that they have.
There are, indeed, very few really old English
names, for, as we shall see. Botany has only been
studied in this country for about three hundred
years, and the study commenced by importing both
information and names from abroad. This may
probably be accounted for by the comparatively small
variety of our native plants, and their little use as
human food. In the Bible we read of olives, dates,
oil, wine, and numerous other vegetable productions ;
but our native edible fruits are few, and could never
be of much service in the way of supplying the
people with food. Our natural sustenance would
seem to be chiefly milk and the flesh of cattle for
^Q the inhabitants of the interior, and fish, shell-fish,
^ and sea- weed in the maritime parts. Notwith-
c\i standing the great changes that have taken place
"^ during the last two thousand years, roast beef is

INTEODUCTION.

still considered our national dish, and our cheese is
celebrated, but oysters are not so abundant as they
used to be.

Many names that we consider English are simply
Latin or Greek, — as Angelica, Crocus, Asparagus;
sometimes the terminations are slightly altered, — as
in Agrimony (Agrimonia), Saxifrage (Saxifraga),
Gentian (Gentiana) ; others are translations of con-
tinental names, — as Devil' s-bit (Morsus diaboli),
Hound's-tongue (Cynogiossum), Loose-strife (Lysi-
machia). We might suppose, however, when we
meet with a name like ^* Jack of the Buttery" (Sedum
acre), that such a one, at any rate, is English ; but
this is not always the case, for Dr. Prior, who is our
best authority on these matters, tells us of this
absurd appellation in his ' Popular Names of British
Plants,' that it '^ seems to be a corruption of Bot-
thcriacque to Buttery Jack, the plant having been used
as a theriac or anthelmintic."

The popular names of our plants are well worth
study, and are of great interest ; but they are more
for the student of philology than for the systematic
botanist, as they are of little use to the latter.

Mr. Bentham ('Handbook of the British Flora')
has invented a number of names, by prefixing an
English specific name to the Latin or Greek generic
one, altering the termination of the latter where
necessary, in accordance with our usual practice, so
as to give the appearance of a systematic arrange-
ment in our own language. He gives us such names

INTRODUCTION. XI

as Common Sisymbrium, Cabbage Brassica, Common
Cerast (Cerastium), Purple Astragal (Astragalus),
Yellow Oxytrope (Oxytropis), &c. It is difficult to
see any advantage in this plan, for, even if we could
overcome our repugnance to such a wholesale inno-
vation, these spurious names are as difficult to
remember as the proper scientific ones, and are not
nearly so serviceable.

I have no doubt that names are more readily
remembered when there is some meaning attached
to them, but with a little perseverance they may be
learnt even without the advantages of a classical
education or the assistance of this book; indeed,
many foreign plants are called by their native
names, with a Greek or Latin termination. These
may or may not have known meanings, but, when they
have, these meanings are known only to very few.

We have an illustration of the ease with which
botanical names may be acquired, in the success
that has followed the labours of the working-men
botanists of Lancashire and the adjoining counties.
Mr. Grindon* has given an interesting account of
them ; and he tells us that *^ the study of botany by
the operatives about Manchester, at least in a precise
and methodical manner, appears to date from the
establishment of the Linnean system." ****«« The
business of the meetings was to compare the floras
of the several neighbourhoods, and to exchange
plants and information in general on subjects

* ♦ Mancliester Walks and Wild Flowers.'

Xll INTRODUCTION.

connected with botanical science." They were held
monthly in the several villages and towns in rotation ;
and annually, in the summer, there was a general
meeting of all the societies, at a different place each
year.

This organisation still exists, and an annual
meeting was held in July last, at which I was
present. A large number of people assembled, pro-
bably over fifteen hundred. The weather was
unfavourable, or, I was told, there would have been
more; and that last year there were over two
thousand. A great number of specimens were
exhibited and named by the president, Mr. Percival.
The members are informed that *^as specific discri-
mination and accuracy in botanical nomenclature
are the chief objects sought to be obtained by the aid
of the meetings, all persons who attend are hereby
respectfully solicited to bring with them such speci-
mens of plants — either indigenous or exotic, but
particularly the former — as they can conveniently
procure." These were arranged on a long table, in
the tent in which the meeting was held, in the order
of the Linnean classes, all of which were represented.
Mr. Percival named them in succession, giving first
the scientific, and then an English, name. Many of
the British plants were either generally rare or
locally so, among which may be mentioned Sea
Holly, Henbane, Deadly Nightshade, Asarabacca,
Pied Bryony, and Sea Beet. Besides their names,
and whether they were British or exotic, occasional

INTRODUCTION. XIU

mention was made of local habitats. It was provided
that the specimens ^^ shall become the property of
the President, who shall dispose of them in such a
manner as he may think will give general satis-
faction;" and it was noticeable that all plants of
special interest or rarity were eagerly applied for. I
have no doubt that much useful information was
carried away from the meeting, and much good
feeling was manifested.

It does not appear that the Greek and Latin
names have been found of great difficulty to these
botanists. It is no easy task for anyone to name
rapidly and correctly a number of plants brought
indiscriminately from fields, gardens, and hothouses,
and some with a mischievous intention to puzzle the
President, — such as deformities or sports ; but Mr.
Percival was seldom at fault ; and though his facility
is extraordinary, there are numerous other members
of these societies who can undertake the same task
with credit and success. These societies have always
had members of great zeal, industry, and botanical
knowledge ; and their labours have been of consider-
able service to the science. Among them may be
mentioned the late Mr. John Nowell, of Todmorden,
an operative cotton- spinner, whose contributions to
our knowledge of cryptogamic botany are well
known. These working-men botanists always begin
to learn by having the names of plants told them,
and I believe this is both an expeditious and a good
plan.

Xiv INTRODUCTION.

To ascertain the names of plants from books,
which requires careful study, is always the best
when it can be clone ; but this is sometimes a matter
of great difficulty, and even expert botanists frequently
make mistakes. Some species require to be examined
at different seasons of the year, and it does not
always happen that a single person can obtain the
necessary specimens. He may gather a plant far
from home in flower, which will not enable him to
determine its species, and he may not have an
opportunity of collecting the same plant in fruit.
Hence it happens that in many instances, though
there are most-carefully arranged artificial keys to
help the student to the name of a plant that he may
find, as in Bentham's 'Handbook of the British
Flora' and Grindon's 'British and Garden Botany,'
he is unable to trace it. In such a case I know no
better plan than to get some one to give the informa-
tion. It is better, I think, to obtain the name of a
plant by any means, than to lay it on one side with
the idea of finding it out oneself at some future
time, which may never come.

I have not attempted to include all the names
that have been given for British plants in my list,
but have endeavoured to select those which are now
in general use, and which may be met with in the
most recent standard works. I know of no acknow-
ledged standard to which we might refer in order to
ascertain which out of two, three, or four, is the
proper name of a British plant, as though there are

INTRODUCTION. XV

rules to determine which is correct, they are not
adhered to. The 'London Catalogue of British
Plants ' may be taken as our standard list of plants,
but its compiler, Mr. H. C. Watson, does not profess
to have named them according to strict rule. He
says in his explanation of the * Catalogue:' — ''No
rule has been strictly adhered to in the selection
of specific or varietal names. The nearest approach
to a fixed rule has been to that of using the name
deemed likely to be familiar or intelligible to the
majority of English botanists. Wilfully to impose a
new name on a plant, already sufficiently named,
should be treated as an impertinence. On pretence
of priority, to rake up and restore an old name which
had fallen out of use, should be scouted as mischief.
The personal vanity which impels authors into
these practices should be denounced as a nuisance.
Notwithstanding this expression of opinion, how-
ever, the Editor has found himself obliged to adopt
some needlessly imposed names, and also some
imwisely restored names. Moreover, it may truly be
said that the selection of one name, among several
bestowed upon the same plant, is often purely
optional or conventional, and the selection is not
seldom made by botanists, even in breach or disre-
gard of their own rules about priority, &c. A name
once published for any plant is, and remains, one of
its names, and may be employed as such, whatever
the number of other names which have been subse-
quently bestowed upon the same plant. Often the

XVI INTRODUCTION.

lirst name remains the really correct name according
to strict rule, althoiigii its use is gradually given up
by general consent for some newer name. Thus, in
these four couplets of names — Erica vulgaris and
Calluna vulgaris, Azalea procumhens and Loiseleuria
pwcumhens, Elodea canadensis and Anacharis Alsinas-
tnmi, Epipactis atroruhens and Epipactis ovalis — the
former of the two is the true and correct name, by
rule, while the latter is the name now conventionally
adopted among English botanists. In other instances,
the choice between two names is purely optional,
independently of rules, as between Fijrola uniflora and
Monesis grandijiora, Gna2:)halium dioicum and Anteimaria
dioica, Hyacinthus nonscriptus and Endtjmion nutans,
Polypodium alpestre and Pseiidathyrium Alpestre."

According to this system the common blue hell
may be called indifferently and correctly Hyacinthus,
Scilla, Agraphis, or Endymion. In this and similar
cases it has been necessary for me to explain all the
names. The study of Botany would be simpler if
these were not unnecessarily multiplied, and incorrect
ones were discountenanced.

In preparing my list I have consulted the standard
works that have been published on the British Flora
on the modern system of classification, viz., ' The
British Flora,' by Sir W. J. Hooker and Dr. Arnott;
' Manual of British Botany,' by Professor Babington ;

* Handbook of the British Flora,' by Mr. Bentham ;

* Sowerby's English Botany,' 3rd ed., by Dr. Syme ;
and * The Student's Flora of the British Islands,' by

INTRODUCTION. XVll

Dr. J. D. Hooker. I have also introduced those
names of British ferns which are in general use with
fern cultivators, being guided chiefly by Mr. Moore's
* Nature-printed Ferns,' but have not gone into the
many synonyms.

Our botanists of to-day find it necessary to reject
from the British Flora several plants that were
formerly admitted by mistake. Some have only
been recorded once several years ago, and the record
has not been verified by a specimen : such instances
may be fairly judged to be mere blunders. Other
plants that have been called British are escapes
from cultivation, and some are casual weeds that
have sprung from seeds or plants accidentally
imported with other foreign produce. Of these, a
few have established themselves to such an extent
that they may be considered permanent residents or
colonists ; as for instance the American plants Clay-
tonia perfoliata and Anacharis Alsinastrum. The
'London Catalogue of British Plants,' 6th ed.,
excludes 269 species that have been formerly
admitted, viz. — of '' Aliens, Casuals, Waifs of Culti-
vation," &c., 115 ; and '*' Ambiguities, Errors,
Impositions, Extinctions," 154. I have not pur-
posely omitted the names of any well-known plants,
such as Datura Stramonium (Thorn-aj)ple), Poly-
gonum Fagopyrum (Buck-wiieat), Narcissus poeti-
cus, &c., though they are not indigenous British
plants.

The present generic names are explained at

XVIU INTRODUCTION.

greater or less length by Hooker and Arnott;
Mrs. Lankester, in Syme's ed. of ' English Botany ; '
and Dr. Hooker, in ' The Student's Flora ; ' but the
old substantive names, that are now used as specific
ones, are not, so far as I am aware, explained in any
modern English book. M. Theis, in his ' Glossaire
de Botanique ou Dictionnaire Etymologique ' (Paris,
1810), gives great store of information, which has
much of it been often reproduced. I have given the
names of authorities as the necessity occurs, in pre-
ference to giving a list of authors quoted.

PAET I.

A Sketch of the History of Botany, in reference
TO Botanical Nomenclature, up to the Time of

LiNNEUS.

HISTOHY OF BOTANY,

CHAPTEK I.

FEOM THE EARLIEST TIMES TO THE CHRISTIAN

ERA.

§ 1. Early Eastern Botany.

We know very little about the early history of Botany
in the east, beyond the fact that in the most ancient writings
plants are frequently alluded to, and as they are necessary
to man's existence we must suppose that he had always
some knowledge of those which happened to grow in his
neighbourhood.

A great number of plants are mentioned throughout the
Bible, many of which can still be determined with tolerable
certainty, but there are many others about which there is
great doubt. We may be sure that at a very early period
there was considerable knowledge of plants and their uses
among the Hebrews, for we are given to understand that
Solomon wrote a comprehensive treatise on them, "from
the cedar tree that is in Lebanon, even unto the hyssop
that springeth out of the wall."* Josephus adds "for he
was not unacquainted with any of their natures, nor omitted

'•'- 1 Kings iv,

2 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

inquiries about tliem, but described them all like a philo-
soplier, and demonstrated his exquisite knowledge of their
several properties."* Whether Josephus had any further
authority than is to be found in the Bible is doubtful. We
are told that the wisdom of Solomon " excelled the wisdom
of the children of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt,"
from which we may infer that similar knowledge was widely
spread. This period was about b. c. 1000. Besides the use
of plants as timber, food, and medicine, they probably also
played a considerable part in the composition of philters
and charms, and in other mysteries of sorcery.

§ 2. Early Greeks.

The traditional history of the science of medicine among
the Greeks, if we could accept it as of much value, extends
further back than the time of Solomon, for ^sculapius, the
celebrated, though mythical, physician of antiquity, accom-
panied, we are told, the Argonautic expedition (b. c. 1263),
and was considered so skilled in the medicinal power of
plants, that he was called the inventor as well as the god of
medicine.

The most ancient writings on plants that have come down
to us are those of Hippocrates, who mentions the uses of
two hundred and forty. He was born at Cos, a small island
in the Grecian archipelago, b. c. 459. He studied physic
diligently and attentively, improving himself by reading the
tablets in the temples of the gods, where each individual
had written down the diseases under which he had laboured,
and the means by which he had recovered. He delivered
Athens from a dreadful pestilence, and was publicly rewarded
with a golden crown, and the privileges of a citizen of
Athens. Hippocrates openly declared the measures he had

" Antiquities, Book viii., chap. ii.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 3

taken to cure a disease, and candidly confessed that of
forty-two patients entrusted to his care only seventeen had
recovered. He is said to have lived in the greatest
popularity, but was continually employed in careful study
of the symptoms and course of diseases, and in applying
certain scientific principles, which he had deduced from his
observations, to effect their cure. He has been called the
father of medicine, for not only is he the earliest scientific
writer on the subject, but being a careful observer, and also
a sound thinker, many of his teachings have remained as
guides to this da3\ He died B.C. J]61, in his 99th year,
revered by all, and after his death he received, with the
name of Great, the same honours that were paid to
Hercules.*

Theophrastus was a native of Eresus, in Lesbos, and was
born about b.c. 390. He studied under Plato, and after-
w^ards under Aristotle, and during a long life wrote 200
treatises on different subjects : about twenty of these are
still in existence, two of them being on plants. Not being
a physician, his ' History of Plants ' embraces a larger
view of the vegetable kingdom than the work of Hippocrates.
He treats first on physiology, and then goes on to observa-
tions on trees, different kinds of timber, and the choice of
it; afterwards there is a book on shrubs, thorny plants,
roses, and other ornamental plants usually cultivated in
gardens, and then follow kitchen garden plants, and those
that grow wild, and grain of different kinds : his last book
is upon gums and exudations, and the means of obtaining

^' As is nearly always the case with respect to very old authors,
neither all the incidents that are generally set down of the life of
Hippocrates, nor the authenticity of all the works that have been
attributed to him, can be implicitly relied on. It has been said that
out of seventy-two that at one time or another have been called his,
only about one-fourth are really so,

b2

4 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

tliem. We are indebted to Theophrastus for the preserva-
tion of the works of Aristotle, who entrusted them to him
on his death-bed; he succeeded that philosopher in the
Lyceum, where he became so celebrated that his auditors
increased to the number of 2000. He died, according to
some, in his 87th, according to others in his 107th j^ear,
lamenting the shortness of life, and complaining of the
partiality of Nature, in granting longevity to the crow and
to the stag, but not to man.

There is a little uncertainty as to the exact time of
Dioscorides. He is said by some to have been physician to
Antony and Cleopatra, who killed themselves b. c. 30 ; by
others he is reported, with perhaps more probability, to
have lived in the time of Nero, who killed himself A. d. 68.
He was a native of Cilicia, and was first a soldier, but after-
wards applied himself to the study of physic ; being a
physician, Dioscorides treats on plants in respect to their
medicinal uses, and his work resembles a modern ' Materia
Medica.' It is not confined to plants, but includes
mammals, fishes, and insects, with the products derived
from them, as milk, butter, cheese, wool, honey, &c. ;
minerals are also included. By far the greater part of the
work, however, refers to plants, and these are divided in a
general way, though not very strictly, into the aromatic,
alimentary, and medicinal. Dioscorides is the authority
for a great number of our old Greek names of plants, and he
has been much read, commented on, and quoted. His
' Materia Medica ' was the first of the Greek botanical
works which, on the invention of printing, was introduced
to western Europe in a Latin translation by Barbarus, a
Venetian nobleman ; it was printed in 1478, but a translation
of Theophrastus soon followed in 1483. In 1548 another
translation of Dioscorides was published by Matthiolus, an
Italian physician : it ran through seventeen editions, though

HISTORY OF BOTANY. O

a bulky work, and it is said that 32,000 copies were sold
before the year 1561. Another and much esteemed edition
of Dioscorides, by Caspar Bauhin, was published in 1598.

These three Greek writers, Hippocrates, Theophrastus,
and Dioscorides, are the authorities for all the Greek names
of plants up to the Christian Era.*

§ 3. Latin Writers before the Christian Era.

There were a number of Latin authors who took great
interest in plants, and wrote of them incidentally, and some
of them wrote treatises on husbandry. Horticulture was
also a favourite amusement of several of the Latin poets ;
hence it frequently happens, that though these wi'iters can
scarcely be quoted as botanical authorities, names of plants
which are still in use are to be found first in their works.

Among these the following may be named : — Plautus, a
writer of comedy, who died b.c. 184. Cato, an orator and
historian, who died b.c. 150. He wrote a treatise on hus-
bandry, and it is of him that the well-known story is told,
that he repented of only three things in his life : — to have
gone by sea, when he could have gone by land; to have
passed a day inactive ; and to have told a secret to his wife.
Varro, died b.c. 26 ; he was a learned writer of 500 different
works, all of which are lost excepting one on agTiculture.
Virgil, the well known Roman poet, died b. c. 19 ; his famous
* Georgics/ a poem on agriculture in four books, was
written at the particular request of Maecenas, a Eoman
nobleman, who was a great patron of letters. The first

^' There were other Greek writers of less note, or who, though of
gi'eat note (for instance Aristotle), did not contribute veiy much to
Botany, though they wrote something on the subject. Not a few of
theii' works are lost, therefore I confine myseK to these three. A full
list is given by Gesner, in a preface to the Herbal of Hieronymus
Tragus.

6 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

book treats of ploughing, and preparing the ground; the
second of sowing and planting ; the third of the manage-
ment of cattle ; and the fourth gives an account of bees, and
the manner of keeping them. Macer, a poet, who died
B.C. 16, was much admired for his genius and learning, and
the elegance of his verse ; he wrote a poem on Plants. He
was intimate with Ovid, who mentions him, but all his
works are lost. Columella flourished about the middle of
the first century, and wrote a work on husbandry.

CHAPTER II.

BOTANY FEOM THE FIKST CENTUKY TO THE
TIME OF THE ARAB PHYSICIANS.

§ 1. FiKST Century. Pliny.

The first century of the Christian era is signalized in the
history of Botany hy the work of Pliny, who set himself the
task of recording all that was known or accepted concerning
every branch of Natural History, and what we might now
call Social Science ; a work which he completed two years
before his death, and which will ever remain a monument of
his intellectual power, his untiring perseverance, and his
enormous erudition.

This remarkable man, Caius Plinius secundus, called
Pliny the elder, was born either at Verona or Como, a.d. 23.
A considerable part of his life was spent in the army, and
after he had been made one of the augurs at Rome, he was
appointed Governor of Spain ; but though much occupied
with public work, he was such an enthusiastic student as to
devote every moment of his spare time to literature. Even
during his meals some book was generally read to him ; he
always moved about at Rome in a litter, so that the time
might not be lost from study, and he disapproved of walking
as a waste of time. We are told by his nephew (Pliny the
younger) that when in retirement in the country, the time
spent in the bath was the only portion that was not allotted

8 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

by him to study, and explains that in speaking of the bath
he means the time when he was actually in the water,
for while he was being scrajDed with the strigil* he either
had some book read to him, or dictated himself. A friend
once interrupting a person who was reading to him, on
account of the mispronunciation of some word, and making
him read the passage over again, "You understood him,
didn't you?" said Pliny. "Yes," said the other. "Why
then did you make him go over it again ? Through this
interruption of yours we have lost more than ten lines."
It was a maxim of his that no book is so bad but that some
good may be got out of it. The number of authors quoted
by Pliny has been counted, and found to be between four
and five hundred. Buffon writes thus of his ' History of
the World ':t—" It is, so to say, a compilation from all that
had been written before his time : a record of all that was
excellent or useful; but his record has in it features so
grand, this compilation contains matter grouped in a manner
so novel, that it is preferable to most of the original works
that treat upon similar subjects." Cuvier also places it

•'- The stiigil was an instrument used both by the Greeks and
Romans in theii- elaborate system of bathing, to scrape perspii-ation
and other impurities from tlie skin after the bath, as our grooms
scrape horses, or as the skin is dressed in modern " Turkish Baths."
It was a one-handed instrument with a straight handle and a cui-ved
blade, and, as it was not blunt, its edge was softened by the appHcation
of oil fi'om a small dropping bottle.

t Generally called ' PHny's Natm-al History.' Can this be called a
proper translation of ' Historia Mundi ' ?— or is it so good a title for a
work that includes not only various crowns, and chaplets, and plants
used m rehgious observances, but the price of dining tables, and a
quantity of other matter which the freest stretch of a very elastic
subject could scarcely Iring within any comprehensible hmit of
" Natm-al History " ? Humboldt adopts the happy term * Cosmos ' for
his similar work.

HISTOEY OF BOTANY. 9

amongst the most valuable productions of antiquity: — *' The
work of Pliny," says he, " is one of the most precious monu-
ments that have come down to us from ancient times, and
affords proof of an astonishing amount of erudition in one
who was a warrior and a statesman."

To a modern reader the first impression on taking up the
* History of the World ' would probably be one of surprise
at the astounding superstition of the time and the credulity
of the writer, but further study would cause him to feel that
these blemishes are quite lost in the general grandeur of the
work. Pliny died a martyr to the cause of science. On the
occasion of that great eruption of Mount Vesuvius which
destroyed Herculaneum and Pompeii, he was at Misenum,
where he commanded the fleet, and being surprised at the
sudden appearance of a cloud of dust and ashes, of which
he did not know the reason, he immediately set sail in a
small vessel for the mountain, which he found to be in a
state of eruption. The inhabitants had fled, but Pliny's
curiosity induced him to remain all night to make observa-
tions, amidst the tremendous and horrible confusion of
earthquake, fire, and continual showers of pumice stones
and ashes. On the following day, when endeavouring to
escape, he sunk down suffocated by the thick sulphurous
vapours that surrounded him, a.d. 78. His attendants
escaped, and his body was found three days afterwards.

Pliny was first printed in 1468, since which time there
have been several editions. An English translation by
Philemon Holland was published in the latter part of the
reign of Elizabeth, and we have a more recent one by Dr.
Bostock and Mr. Kiley, B.A., in Bohn's Classical Library
(6 vols., 1855), which is copiously illustrated by notes,
references, and comments.

10 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

§ 2. Second Century. — Apuleius and Galen.
Apuleius was born at Madura, a Roman colonj^ in Africa,
some time in the second century. He studied at Carthage,
Rome, and Athens, and being of a very inquiring mind,
travelled about a good deal in different countries, — indeed to
such an extent as to spend all his fortune, so that when he
would become a priest of Osiris* he had to pawn his clothes
to raise the necessary money for the expenses of the cere-
monies of his reception. Afterwards Apuleius maintained
himself by pleading causes, in which he soon became famous.
Lodging some time in the house of a rich widow, called
Pudentilla, who was much taken with his youth, vivacity,
agreeable conversation, and other attractive quahties,
Apuleius married her, not only as we are told to the
satisfaction of the widow's eldest son, who was much
attached to him, but also at his soHcitation. Others of his
wife's relations were dissatisfied with the match, and he was
involved in a lawsuit, being accused of sorcer3^ Apuleius
defended himself with great ability, pointing out that it did
not require the arts of a magician to induce a w^oman, who
had been thirteen years a widow, to marry a person like
himself. He also said that his wife was neither young nor
beautiful, and stated generally the disadvantages of marrjdng
widows. After this he turned his attention to the study of
philosophy and medicine. He wrote a work " concerning
the names and virtues of herbs," which gives the names of
130 in Greek, Latin, Egyptian, Punic, Keltic, Dacian, and
of some in the Oriental languages which he had acquired in
his travels.f

'■■' Osuis was a great deity of the Egyptians, of whose origin parti-
cular accounts have been given, but tliey cannot be said to rest on any
siu-e autbority.

f Though it has no connection with Botany, it may be well to
mention tliat, of Apuleius' writings, the most celebrated is an amusing

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 11

Galen (or L. Claudius Galenus) is styled b}^ a high
authority " one of the most eminent physicians of any age
or country."* He was born at Pergamus, in Asia Minor*
A.D. 130. His father was an architect and geometrician,
and appears to have been in good circumstances and to have
spared no expense in the education of his son, who often
mentions him in terms of great affection and respect. At
first he was intended for a philosopher, but changed his
profession before his father's death (which happened when
he was 20 years old) to that of medicine, which he studied
for some years with great assiduity in various cities and
under the most eminent professors. On his return to his
own country in 158 he was appointed physician to a school
of gladiators, and in his thirty-fourth year he went to Kome,
where he remained about four years, and then left ; it has
been asserted by some, to avoid the pestilence which broke
out there in 167. There is no reason to believe that this
was the cause of his departure, though it happened at the
same time. Galen could not have led a very pleasant life in
Kome, on account of his disputes with the other members of
his profession, for which there might be at least two
reasons, — first, he was without doubt altogether superior to
his contemporaries, then he was himself at times violent and
bitter in his language. He had hardly reached his own
country when he was summoned by the emperors M.
AureHus and L. Verus to attend them in one of their
northern campaigns, and after the death of Verus he
remained in Home some time as phj^sician to the imperial

allegorical piece called the " Golden Ass," one of the few works that
have come down to us from the ancients having the character of what
we call light reading. It has been commented on by several critics,
and translated into different languages.

•■'• Dr. W. A. Greenliill, in ' The Imperial Dictionary of Universal
Biography.'

12 HISTORY Oi' BOTANY.

family. Of the remainder of his life, which lasted thirty or
forty years longer, little is known, nor can it be stated with
certainty when or where he died. " His personal character
may be gathered from his works ; and notwithstanding his
excessive laudation of himself, and his controversial bitter-
ness, there appears to have been much in him that was truly
admirable. The extent and variety of his intellectual
acquirements were very great ; and he was not only beyond
all comparison the most eminent physician of his age, but
also a learned and accomplished man, well acquainted with
various branches of philosophy."*

Galen's writings were very numerous, it is said 500 or
more, including short treatises. Many of them are lost,
being burnt in the Temple of Peace at Kome, where they
had been deposited, and it is supposed that several are now
lying unknown or unnoticed in different European libraries.
About 150 are known to be extant.

Galen had a great admiration for Hippocrates, and
acknowledges that he was greatly indebted to his writings
for his knowledge of medicine. It is chiefly in his works on
anatomy, physiology, dietetics, and hygiene, and the
physicians' art generally, that Galen excels. His great
work on plants is considered the least important, con-
taining but little original matter, and being in some respects
inferior to the work of Dioscorides.

§ 3. From the Second to the Eighth Centuey. — Paulus.

The great renown of Galen and his numerous writings
bore absolute sway for many centuries ; indeed it is not too
much to say that his teachings ruled supreme for 1000 years,
and that some of what was erroneous or useless in his system
was not superseded before the eighteenth century. I there-

-•- Dr. W. A. Greenliill.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 13

fore mention only one physician as having any importance
to our subject for six centuries after Galen. This is Paulus,
who is not only frequently quoted by the more recent
herbalists, but whose works are reckoned amongst the most
valuable relics of ancient science by those of our own time,
and were considered worthy of translation by Mr. Francis
Adams, and were published by the Sydenham Society in
1844.

Paulus ^gineta, or Paul of ^gina, because he is said to
have been born in that island, was a celebrated Greek
physician, about whose life little is known, or precisely the
time when he lived, though it is supposed by the best
authorities to have been at the end of the sixth or the
beginning of the seventh century. His great work, in seven
books, which is at once a compilation of pre-existing know-
ledge and a record of his own observations, — which seem to
have been gathered in wide travels through different
countries, — preserves his memory in respect, and as he may
•be hereafter quoted it is necessary to take this brief notice
of him ; otherwise there would be nothing of any importance
to mention between Galen and the Arab physicians.

CHAPTER III.

AEAB PHYSICIANS.

The distitrbed state of Europe, caused hy the incursions
of barbarous invaders, entirely put a stop to the progress of
Greek and Koman learning, and Science took up its abode
in more settled lands. The period of the history of Science
on which we are entering, is entirel}^ occupied for several
centuries by those celebrated philosophers generally known
as *' Arab Phj^sicians," because they wrote in Arabic, though
under this head are classed the writers of different oriental
countries, as India, Persia, Mesopotamia, SjTia, Arabia,
Egypt, Morocco, and latterly their learning was conveyed by
the Moors into Spain. They included philosoj)hers of the
school of Aristotle, Jews, Christians, and Mohammedans, and
their known writers may be counted by hundreds. Most of
them studied medicine, though their writings on poetr}^
religion, mathematics, astronomy, astrology, and chemistry,
are not less remarkable. They extended the use of mineral
remedies into medicine, and made man}^ additions to the
Materia Medica, among which are to be especially noticed
several aromatics and mild purgatives, as senna and
rhubarb, in place of the more drastic medicines which were,
before them, the only ones used. The following substances
have been mentioned as additions to medicine made by the
Arabs : — " Berberries, camphire, cloves, wallflower. Cassia
fistula, galangals, hyssop, kermes, lavender, mace, manna.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 15

Persian manna, mezereon, mjTobalans, nutmegs, nymphsea,
rhubarb, opium, sugar,* gum sandarach, red sanders, sebes-
tens, senna, tamarinds, hops, and zeodar3^"

It would occupy too much space to enter minutely into
this branch of our history, and moreover it is not an easy
chapter to write, because of our scant, and sometimes con-
tradictory, information on the subject. There still exist,
however, several Arabic manuscripts which give an account
of these physicians, and it has been stated that not a few of
the mistakes that have been made may be traced to an
imperfect knowledge of this language. Edward Pocock,
professor of Hebrew and Arabic at Oxford, celebrated for
his profound knowledge of Oriental languages, published, in
1672, the text, with a translation, of the Oriental history of
Gregorius Abul-Pharadsh, a native of Melitene, in Lesser
Armenia, who was born 1226 and died 1286. Another great
fountain head of information is a manuscript of Ebn Abu
Oseibia, a native of Damascus, who died 1269. This was
translated by Eeiske, of Leipsic (who died 1774), which
work is in the Eoyal Library of Copenhagen. It has also
been treated on by the late Professor Nicol and others.
Professor Wiirstenfeld, of Gottingen, published in 1810 a
' History of the Arab Physicians and Naturalists ' : it is in a
great measure from this very concise work that I have
drawn the following information about a few of the most
celebrated of those physicians whose writings, through
medicine, have a bearing on Botany.

But first it may be as well to give a few words of explana-
tion as to their names, which in the original have very slight
resemblance to those that they are best known b}^ and as I

* Sugar is certainly mentioned and described by Dioscorides and
Pliny, but does not seem to have been then in extensive use in medi-
cine, or employed, as by the Arabs, in the preparation of syrups, for
which pui-pose honey was first used.

16 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

do not understand the language I quote Wiirstenfeld : —
" The Arabs have no precise hereditary names, but each
joins to his own that of his father, to distinguish himself
from others who are called by the same ; e. g., Mohammed
Ben Abdallah, i. e., Mohammed, son of Abdallah, for Ben
signifies son. Now on account of the small number of
names, it frequently happens that the fathers of two who are
named alike have the same names ; then, the name of the
grandfather is also attached for distinction, e.g., Mohammed
Ben Abdallah Ben Omar. If the grandfathers also have the
same names they must go still a step further back."*

It appears that another form used by the Arabs, in place
of Ben, was Ebn, also signifying son, as Ebn Omar, the son
of Omar, which leaves his individuality uncertain. But
Ebn is very often used in a wider signification, as
" descendant," thus Ebn Zohr, the descendant of Zohr.
Such may be looked upon as a kind of family name, and
the different members of the family have to be distinguished,
either by a personal name, or some distinctive epithet, — for
example, Mohammed Ebn Zohr, Ebn Zohr al-Fakih, that
is to say learned in the law.

Another peculiarity in their method of specifying a man
was to join to his own name that of one whose father he
was; Abu signifies father, — for example, Mohammed Abu
Abdallah, Mohammed the father of Abdallah ; commonly the
position of the names is this, that the one to which Abu is
coupled is placed first to avoid mistakes, e. g., Abu Abdallah
Mohammed Ben Omar; here Mohammed is the personal
name, Omar that of his father, and Abdallah that of his son.

■^ This is in fact pretty universal as the primitive system of nomen-
clature, and still obtains in some parts of Lancashire, as illustrated by
Collier (Tim Bobbin), when a boy is made to give his name as " Jone's
o' Lall's o' Simmy's, o' Marriom's o' Dicks o' Nethon's o' LaU's o'Simmy's
itli' Hooms."

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 17

But it is not always the case that the word set beside Abu
signifies a son, for there are also allegorical names formed
in this way, as, Abu I-Berakat, which means Father of
Blessings. These names formed with Abu are often placed
alone for the designation of a person, the personal name
being omitted, as Abu Merwan, and should such a man

have another son he can also be indicated in this wa}^, — Ebn

*

Abu Merwan, who must be the brother of Merwan. The
Arabic article is al, and is always better retained than
omitted in those names of which it forms a constituent part,
as, for example, al-Casim: with the word Abu it coalesces,
and becomes Abul, instead of Abu-al, — for example, Abul-
Casim. In pronunciation the /- of the article assimilates
itself to any of the following sounds, r, I, n, s, and i,— thus
al-Razi, say ar-Razi, and it is the same in the middle of a word,
as Abd al-Rahman say Abd ar-Rahman, or Abdorrahman.

Not to pursue this subject to too great a length, a few
examples will sufficiently illustrate other methods of forming
names : —

From birthplace, al-Bagdadi, the native of Bagdad.
From country, al-Misri, the Egyptian.
From tribe, al-Kinani, of the tribe of Kinana.
From personal peculiarities, al-Dschahidh, he with the
prominent eyes.

From an occupation, Ebn al- Attar, the son of the apothecary.

From religious sects, al-Schafei, of the sect of Schafei.

Names of honour, Dschemal ad-Din, ornament of religion.

The original names have become considerably altered, m

appearance at least, by people of different countries, though

there may be no great difference in sound, as one example

will be sufficient to show. What the Germans wrote

Dschaber, or Dschabir, the English wrote Jaber, the French

Djaber, the Italians Giaber, others Gaber; and thus Geber has

become the universal appellation of the celebrated alchemist.

c

18 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

I have ventured on this digression because I have found
myself that this short description of the A^rahic names removes
their entire incomprehensibility, and helps to bring these
physicians before my mind more really and more distinctly.
The names in full are, however, very long, and as they are
of no particular interest to us, fully expressed, I shall use
only the contracted forms by which the authors of whom I
write are most generally known. A single illustration will
show the advisabilit}^ of this course. The complete name
of Avicenna (I quote from Pocock) was " Abu Ali Al Hosain
Ebn Abdollahi Ebn Sina Al Shaich Al Rails (as you might
say chief doctor; hence he is commonty distinguished as
Princeps)." The contracted form is simply Ebn Sina,
which is sufficient, for, though titles of distinction are
interesting, if understood, they are not so if one does not
know what they mean.

As early as 718, or thereabouts, Ahmed Ben Ibrahim, a
physician, wrote a work on herbs and plants used in medi-
cine ; and a botanist, who travelled far in his researches,
called Ebn Abu Zaher, also wrote a book on plants about
712, but it was in the following century that Arab learning
acquired a great impetus.

About the year 820 the Caliph al-Mamum sent for all the
best books out of Chaldea, Greece, Egypt, and Persia,
relating to physic, astronomy, cosmography, chronology,
music, &c., and pensioned a number of learned men skilled
in the several languages and sciences, to translate them into
Arabic, by which means the foundation of modern Arabic
learning was laid. Also several of these works, the originals
of which are lost, have been preserved to us in these Arabic
translations.*

•■' It is interesting to note the coincidence that wliile, or nearly at
the same time that, al-Mammn was encom-aging learning by the
means mentioned, and fomiding a seat of learning at Bagdad, om* own

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 19

Great among these pliilosopliers was al-Kiiidi, called
Alchindi, or Alkindus. He was born at Bassora, and was
of noble blood, reckoning among his ancestors princes of
Jemama and Bahrein. He stayed some time at Bagdad,
induced by the Caliphs al-Mamum and al-Motasim, who
reigned from 813 to 841. He seems to have lived mitil about
the year 873. His writings, which have been set down at
over two hundred, are on various subjects, many on medi-
cines and the treatment of diseases.

Yahya Ben Mdseweih, called Mesne the elder, came from
Dschondeifabm*, where his father was an apothecary. He
became director of the hospital at Bagdad, and was for half
a century physician to the Cahphs from Harun,* who parti-
cularly employed him in the collection and translation of
Greek works, to al-Motewekkil, and he died 857 at
Samara.

To this period also belongs Abu Zeid Honein al-Ibad,
*. c, of the Christian- Arabian family lb ad, which dwelt in
and about al-Hira; he is known by the Latinised name
Johannitius, or simply as Honein. He was born at al-Hira,
where his father was an apothecary, in the year 809, and
when he was grown up, and had received a good education,
he went to Bagdad, where he attended the lectures of Mesne
(just mentioned), whose amanuensis he became. In a while
he was led by his thirst for knowledge to visit the Greek
towns, where he perfected himself in their language. After-
wards he went to Bassora, in order to perfectly master the
Arabian language, and then returned to Bagdad as his per-
manent residence. Here he began to give medical lectures,

noble King AKred the Great was liiinself translating works into
Anglo-Saxon (among wliieli were '^Esop's Fables' and ' Bede's History
of the Saxon Chui-ch'), and founding the University of Oxford.

"^^ Harun al-Eashid is well known to all readers of that inimitable
work ' The Ai-abian Nights' Entertainments.'

c2

20 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

and even old and celebrated physicians felt no shame to
attend them and learn from him. Shortly he attracted the
attention of the Caliph al-Motewekkil, who, after he had
clearly convinced himself, by a strict inquiry, that he was
not secretly in the service of the Greek kings, appointed him
his physician, with a handsome pension. In a while one
Abu-al-Teifuri, incited by jealousy, found a device to ruin him.
At that time reverence for images had already crept into
the Christian church ; Honein, who was a deacon, strenu-
ously opposed it, and Abu al-Teifuri knew that he had once
said at a meeting that he spat on the image of Christ or of
Mary. So he lodged a complaint, first to the Caliph al-
Motamid and afterwards to Bishop Theodosius, who then
pronounced excommunication on Honein ; he died shortly
afterwards of grief, or by taking poison, 873. Honein was
of great service in his translations from the Greek, in which
language he also gave instruction to the youth of his time,
especially to his sons and nephews; he also wrote many
original treatises on various subjects. His sons followed in
the steps of their father, as physicians and translators, and
one at least as an original writer. Mention is also made of
a son of Honein' s sister, who was an author.

Hitherto but few born Arabs or Mohammedans had turned
their attention to the study of medicine, by far the greater
number of Arabic writers being Christians, but now we not only
find independent inquiry among the Mohammedans proper,
headed by the illustrious al-Eazi, but also a great spread of
learning in the west, in Mauritania and in Spain.

Easis, Khases, Rhazes, or Razi, was born and brought up
at Rai, in Chorasan, from which place he took his name.
He showed from his youth a great inclination to Science,
and acquired considerable philological and philosophical
knowledge ; but music charmed him most, and he was
known only as a good singer and performer on the cithern

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 21

till his thirtieth 5''ear, until which time, also, he was engaged
in commerce. Getting tired of this manner of life he turned
with all his zeal to the study of medicine and philosoph}-,
and went to Bagdad to stud3\

After he had gained a thorough knowledge of these suh-
jects, he returned to Eai, and became director of its hospital.
Later, the chief direction of the hospital of Bagdad was
assigned to him. Al-Razi has been called the Galen of the
time, and was held in high esteem by the rulers of his day ;
he made extensive journej'-s abroad, not only visiting Jeru-
salem, but proceeding also to Africa, where he entered the
court of Zijadetallah.

He would present his ' Confirmation of the Chemical Art *
to a prince of Chorasan, al-Mansur (to whom he had already
dedicated the medical work *al-Mansuri'), and went over
to him from Bagdad for that purpose. The prince was
much pleased, and ordered that 1000 pieces should be given
to him ; but he desired also to see a test of the discoveries
that were set forth in the book, and he granted a considerable
sum to provide the necessary apparatus, — but the experi-
ments would not act ! Gentle readers, have we not all seen
similar cases ? But then we are not all eastern potentates :
al-Mansur was angry, and said : — " I could not have
believed that a scholar would find satisfaction in confirming
lies by means of books, giving them a philosophical colour-
ing, in consequence of which men may waste their time
without profit ; I have rewarded you handsomely for your
pains with 1000 pieces, I must now punish you for your
confirmation of these lies," — with which words he raised his
staff and hit him on the head ; then he bade him pack up
his traps quickly, and sent him back to Bagdad. From this
blow hydrophthalmia (or watery eyes) set in,* and by degrees

'•' According to other accounts this disease of tlie eyes was brought
on by his inordinate consmnption of beans \

22 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

he became blind. At first he thought to have submitted to
an operation, but when he asked how many membranes the
eye had? and could not obtain an answer, al-Eazi said,
" Whoever does not know that shall bring no instrument
near my eyes," and when they still made representations to
him that the operation might be successful, he rejoined, " I
have seen so much of the world that you only bore me."

Al-Eazi was very charitable, and often gave money to the
sick poor while he lived in poverty himself. He died at
Bagdad, or in Rai, either in 923, or more probably in 932, in
extreme old age. We have the titles of over two hundred of
his works, on food, on medicine, anatomy, astronomy, mathe-
matics, logic, religion : treatises and commentaries without
end. Nothing seems to have been too great or too small
for his comprehensive genius, from the most abstruse
subjects to " the eating of fruits before or after meals." He
wrote many treatises on food and medicine, a work on
aromatic seeds and roots, another on edible fruits, wine, &c.

Yahya Ebn Serapion, usually called Serapion the elder,
was a Sj^ian physician, and a contemporary of al-Razi, who
often quotes him. Nothing is known of his personal
history.

In this period the study of Science attained the summit
of its perfection throughout the whole of the Mohammedan
world, in the East, in Egypt, Mauritania, and Spain,
many eminent physicians adorning all the various seats of
learning. Mesne, the younger, a Jacobite Christian,* was
born at Maridin, on the Euphrates, and studied medicine
and philosophy at Bagdad. He afterwards went to Cairo,

'''■ These Jacobites were so called after Jacob Baradaeus, a Sjaian,
wlio in the sixth century vigorously defended the doctrine of Eutyches,
an abbot of Constantinople, in the fifth century. This doctrine is, that
there was but one nature in Christ, the human having been absorbed
in the divine.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 23

where he obtained a very good situation under the Caliph
al-Hakim. He died 1015. His works do not seem to be
now in existence in the original Arabic, but there are Latin
translations of three of them on medicines.

We next come to Ebn Sina, or Avicenna. Avicenna was
the most renowned of all the Arab physicians. He was
born in the province of Bochara, 980. Being naturally
precocious, and receiving early a good education, he soon
became a miracle of erudition, insomuch that in his tenth
year he knew the Koran, and several philological works, b}"
heart. He next studied politics and arithmetic, under
competent teachers. About this time a philosopher called
Abu Abdallah al-Nathili went to Bochara, and was employed
as Avicenna's tutor by his father ; but the pupil was soon in
advance of his teacher, and answered his questions better
than he himself knew how, and when they turned to logic
Avicenna found that his teacher knew nothing at all about
its niceties : Al-Nathali did not long continue his tutor.
Avicenna's studies proceeded in mathematics, physics, meta-
physics, and medicine, until he was sixteen years old, when
his ardour is represented to have become something
altogether extraordinary. He scarcely slept at all, working
day and night, and when he came across a difficulty that
baffled him he frequently betook himself to the Mosque, and
sought assistance in prayer. He had the good fortune to be
appointed physician to the Sultan Null Ben Mansur, and
obtained permission to make use of his si)lendid library,
where he found books of which most men had never heard
even the titles, which he had never before seen himself, and
which he never saw after. We may imagine the assiduous
study that he would give to this library. As unfortunately
it afterwards happened that this invaluable treasure of
learning was destroyed by fire, the enviers and enemies of
Avicenna asserted that he had himself burnt it, so that he

24 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

might be sole possessor of the knowledge which he had
drawn from it, and could give it out afterwards for
his own.

At the age of 18 he is said to have gained a perfect know-
ledge of the whole circle of the Sciences, — to have known in
fact all that could be known in his day from books. Pity-
that such a gigantic intellect, and such untiring industry,
should not have been more devoted to independent
research.

It is not necessary for us to trace all the vicissitudes of
Avicenna's eventful life ; at one time a Kadi held in great
esteem, at another in disgrace, and concealed to preserve his
life ; but, through it all, doctoring, lecturing, and writing,
first at one court and then at another, until his death at
Ramadhan, 1037. Though naturally of a strong constitution
Avicenna gave way to excesses which damaged his health,
and probably led to his death at the comparatively early
age of 57.

Dr. Nichol (in the * Imperial Dictionary of Universal
Biography ') speaks thus of his writings : — " Of his gigantic
works — numbering more than a hundred — any one was suffi-
cient to establish a reputation; nor was any Science known
in his time which in some manner he did not advance."
Wiirstenfeld gives a list of one hundred and five of his works,
and remarks that some of them are very voluminous, while
others are only short treatises of one or two sheets.

Serapion, or as he is usually called Serapion the younger, to
distinguish him from the Syrian physician of the same name
already mentioned, cannot have flourished earlier than the
end of the eleventh century, for he quotes Ebn Wafid
(Abenguefit), a physician of Toledo, who was living 10G8.
The Arab biographers and historians give no account of
him. He wrote a work which has been translated into
Latin under the title ' De Medicamentis Simplicibus,' or

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 25

concerning " simple medicines," or shorter " simples," or
as we should say a 'Herhal.'* I quote this Latin title
because it is a very common one, and a great number of
these physicians wrote ' de Medicamentis Simplicibus ' under
its Arabic equivalent. The writing of Herbals continued for
some hundreds of years after the decadence of Arab learning,
in different countries — in fact into the eighteenth century, all
of them marvellously alike.! The writings of the eider Sera-
pion and those of the younger have been frequently bound
up together, as though they were the work of one author.

There were several physicians of the twelfth century who
among other subjects treated on simples ; the most celebrated
of them being Ebn Roschd, or Averroes. He was born
about 1120 at Cordova, where he was also brought up. But
little is known of his personal history ; he was learned in
mathematics, philosoph}^ and medicine, and, as well as his
father and grandfather, held important offices of State. At
one time he was Kadi of Seville, at another of Morocco, and
was universally much respected ; but he suffered the penalty
common to court favourites, — he had enemies, and they

[ one who has skill in simples, or a gatherer of herbs.

'■' "Simples; Physical herbs, probably so called as being the chief
ingredients of which compoimd medicines are made.

Si77i2:)ler

Simplist

Smipling ; gathering of simples or physical herbs in the field." —
Bailey's Eng. Diet., 1731.

f The old form of " Herbals " has now gone out of fashion, to
give place to " Floras," which, while they enter minutely into the most
trifling differences in various organs of insignificant weeds, take no
note whatever of the uses of plants to man in the way of food, medi-
cine, or anything else. Of com-se it may be said that Botany is now
recognised as a Science, of which there are many divisions, which is
no doubt true ; still it is a fact that Economic Botany, which one would
think the most important branch, has latterly received but little
attention in England, while we have been deluged with "Floras," all
excellent but most of them substantially alike.

26 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

made it out that throiigli his studies of the old philosophers
his judgment had become warped, and he was no longer a
good Mussulman : and so he with some others, narrowly
escaping death, was banished from Cordova, but he was
shortly recalled. He died at Morocco, 1198.

Thieteenth Century.

This is a period of copying, when there were very few
original writers. Having reached its climax in the foregoing
century, Arab learning now began to decline, and continued
to do so until its extinction.

Mansur Ben Abul-Fadhl Ben Ali, a learned Syrian
physician, who died 1241, wrote for the Sultan al-Malik
al-Muaddhem ' De Medicamentis Simplicibus,' in which he
introduced much that was new or had not been noticed by
his predecessors.

We now come to the most eminent of Arab botanists, Ebn
al-Beitar, who was born at Malaga. He went to Egypt,
where he was received with much honour, and travelled
afterwards in Greece and Asia Minor, for the increase of
his botanical knowledge. Ebn Abu Oseibia (the biographer
already mentioned and to be shortly noticed) was acquainted
with him in 1235, and often made botanical excursions with
him in the neighbourhood of Damascus, receiving great
benefit from his instructions. After other travels Ebn al-
Beitar returned to Damascus, where he died suddenl}^ 1248.

I have at the outset mentioned Ahmed Ben Ibrahim and
Ebn Abu Zaher, as botanists who wrote on plants as dis-
tinguished from the study of physic. Since that time
(eighth century) Botany should rather be called simpling ;
but in Ebn al-Beitar we seem to have more of what we
should now call a botanist. Probably he stands thus
prominently before us because the historian, Ebn Abu
Oseibia, was intimately acquainted with him ; and it is

HISTOKY OF BOTANY. 27

likely that many others were true botanists also, but
embodied all the results of their botanical explorations in
their works " de medicamentis simplicibus."

Ebn Abu Oseibia was born at Damascus, where his father
was an oculist, and his uncle director of the eye hospital.
We have just noticed his botanical studies under Ebn
al-Beitar; he also studied philosophy and medicine. In
1236 he was employed in the hospital at Cairo, but went
the following year to Sarched, in Syria, in the service of the
Emir, and died there 1269, over seventy years of age. His
most remarkable work is a history of medicine : to show the
importance of this work I quote from Wiirstenfeld an
abridged account of its contents, taken from the writings of
Keiske and Nicol, with the remark that some names are
mentioned by Nicol that are omitted by Eeiske, and vice
versa. I omit the names altogether, as unnecessary to our
subject, recording only the number of authors.

Chapter I. — Origin of medicine.

,, II. — The first physicians and discoverers of medicine.

„ III. — The Greek physicians after iEsculapius.

,, IV. — Hippocrates and his disciples : Empedocles, Pythagoras,

Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Theophrastus, Alexander

Aplu'odisiensis.
,, V. — Galen and his contemporaries.

„ VI. — The Alexandrian and contemporary Christian physicians.
„ VII. — Ai'ab physicians to the time of Mohammed. . 10

,, VIII. — Syrian physicians under the family of Abbasides. . 34
„ IX. — Translators and their patrons. . . .48

,, X. — Physicians of Irac, Mesopotamia and Dijarbekr. . 77
,, XI. — Persian physicians. . . . . .23

,, XII. — Indian physicians. .... .7

,, XIII. — ^Western physicians.

Of Mauritania ..... 3

Of Spain. ...... 89

„ XIV. — Egj^tian physicians. . . . .53

„ XV. — Later Syrian physicians . . . .58

In all 402

28 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

Living at the same time as Ebn Abu Oseibia was Abul
Faradsch Dschordschis (rather a roundabout way of spelling
George), or Gregorius Bar Hebriius. He was born at
Melitene, in Lesser Armenia, 1226. From his j^outh up he
was practised in the Syrian, Arabic, and Greek languages,
and studied theology, philosophy, and especially medicine,
under the best masters. When the Tartars penetrated into
Armenia, he removed with his parents to Antioch in 1244,
where he led for some time the life of an anchorite, in a
cavern near the town. Li the following year he went to
Tripoli, and was ordained bishop of Guba by the patriarch
Ignatius, the next jestr bishop of Lacaba, and in 1252, by
Dionysius, bishop of Aleppo. The patriarch Joshua raised
him in 1264 to the dignity of primate of the Jacobites, and
after obtaining considerable relief by his efforts for the
Christians, who were then much oppressed by the Moguls, he
died at Meraga, 1286. Besides his oriental history Gregorius
wrote theological, grammatical, mathematical, astronomical,
medical and other works, as well as commentaries on
Hippocrates, Dioscorides, Galen, Honein and Avicenna.

After the middle of the fourteenth century there was a
great falling off in Arabic literature, though we have the
writings of several physicians more or less celebrated up to
the sixteenth century, when, however, learning had become
much more widely disseminated, and the Latin language
became universal, or nearly so, among the scientific writers
of all countries, being much more generally understood than
Arabic. Extending as they do over such a length of time,
and treating on such a number of subjects, it is difficult to
estimate the value of the labours of these great philosophers.
Besides being voluminous writers of commentaries on the
Greek and Eoman authors, they did much to advance every
known Science. We are told* they measured the circum-

-■■ Dr. Draper, " Conflict between Eeligion and Science," Chap. iv.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 29

ference of the earth, making it ahout 24,000 of our miles;
ascertained the length of a degree right within one-third of
a mile ; translated the chief Greek philosophers into Arabic ;
produced numerous writings on mechanics, hydrostatics and
optics ; invented apparatus for distilling, fusing, &c. ; pro-
duced great improvements in geometry; invented algebra;
and especially improved chemistry, preferring experiment
to speculation. They first established medical colleges,
introduced the Indian numbers, made catalogues and maps
of the stars, fixed the length of the year, and verified the
precession of the equinoxes. They first used the pendulum
as a time measurer, discovered sulphuric acid, nitric acid,
and alcohol, first published pharmacopoiias, and included in
them minerals. In agriculture they improved irrigation,
the method of employing manures, and the breeding of
cattle. In manufactures they made Cordova and Morocco
leather and paper, and Toledo blades, and improved mining.
They taught Europe chess, and gave it its taste for romances
and music of a high order.

With regard to Botany there were, as we have seen, many
writers, and we also find several important additions to our
knowledge ; still, taking into account the information they
obtained from Galen and others, and the long period of
time, the progress made was not so great as might have
been expected, especially w^hen compared with their great
achievements in other Sciences.

CHAPTER IV.

REVIVAL OF BOTANY, AND ITS HISTORY TO THE
SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.

§ 1. From the Arab Physicians to the Sixteenth Century.

There is nothiDg worth notice in the history of Botany
from the time of the Arab ph3'sicians until the invention of
printing. It seems necessary, however, to mention a work
called ' Macer's Herbal,' which appeared in England in the
fourteenth century. It is supposed to have been the work
of a French physician, and was written in Latin. It was
translated into English by Mr. John Lelamer, Master of
Hertford School, who lived about 1373, and on the
invention of printing two editions of it w^ere published. It
was commented on by the celebrated Liu acre, physician to
Henry VIIL, and founder of the CoUege of Physicians ; he
was also a friend of Wolsey, Erasmus, and Melancthon.
Though this Herbal received so much notice, and was for
some time popular in England, it was of little merit or
consequence, and contained accounts of only eighty-eight
l^lants.

The invention of printing soon gave rise to fresh activity ;
the best works of the ancients, which had become almost
forgotten, were speedily printed, eagerly studied, and called
forth a number of commentaries. Pliny first appeared in
1468, and Dioscorides (translated into Latin) in 1478 ; a
Latin translation of Theophrastus was published in 1483.

HISTOKY OF BOTANY. 31

I cannot help attributing the great botanical activity of
the sixteenth and succeeding centuries also to the discovery
of the New World. The vast accession of fresh plants, far
exceeding in number all that were known before, many of
them supplying articles of food or luxurj^ and some of them
flowers of fresh form or rare beauty, caused people of wealth
and refinement to take an increased pleasure in the cultiva-
tion of gardens, and patrons of learning to employ those
who were learned in Botany to su^oerintend their manage-
ment : many of these gardens were more specially devoted
to the cultivation and study of plants useful in medicine,
and were called physic gardens. In England we had also a
greatly increased attention paid to the cultivation of kitchen
garden plants and orchards, stimulated in no small degree
by Anne of Cleves, who, after her separation from Henry
VIII., amused herself much with gardening, and imported
many choice plants from Flanders, where the art was well
understood.

§ 2. The Sixteenth Century.

It is not within the scope of this little work to enter upon
the history of modern classification. Such an undertaking
would far exceed the limits I have appointed for myself in
regard to space. With the abundance of material at hand
from this time, it is somewhat perplexing to make a judicious
selection, for on the one hand to attempt too much would be
to make a mere list which would be neither interesting nor
instructive, on the other to omit particular mention of some
great names would be justly complained of. I therefore
propose to confine our history from this point as much as
possible to Botany in reference to the nomenclature of the
British Flora, and with a few exceptions not to extend it
beyond the time of Linneus. I take this course the more
readily because it does not substantially interfere with the

32 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

intention of this article as a popular sketch, having no pre-
tension to be exhaustive, but aiming at being suggestive
only. In Gray's ' Arrangement of British Plants' (1821),
there is a list of botanical publications from the first printed
edition of Pliny, UG8, to 1820, which, though by no means
complete, will sufficiently illustrate my meaning. In the
fifteenth century I find 8 botanical works ; in the sixteenth,
24 ; in the seventeenth, 08 ; in the eighteenth, 235 ; and in
the nineteenth, up to 1820, 92.

We may conveniently commence the sixteenth century by
the notice of a curious, but not botanically important work,
called the ' Grete Herbal,' which appeared in England 1516.
It was very popular, and passed through several editions.
We know nothing about it beyond what we are told in the
book itself, viz., that it was translated from the French, and
printed in London by John Kynge. It is printed in black
letter, and the earlier editions are illustrated with rude
woodcuts, which are less numerous in later impressions;
man}^ of these pictures resemble nothing in Nature, and in
some instances the same is made to do service for different
plants. Though possessing so little merit as a botanical
work, the ' Grete Herbal ' is of interest, if only on account
of its being the first (excepting Macer's ' Herbal,' which is
worth no further notice than we have already taken of it),
and for half a century the only botanical work in the
English language.

The chapters are arranged alphabetically, according
to the Latin names, and this is notified at the end of
each division thus :— " Thus endeth the chapiters of herbes
beginning with A. And here begynneth the chapitres
named with B."

*' De Balsamo. Bawme tre."

Following the heading of each chapter there is a para-
graph briefiy describing the plant, and telling us of its

HISTORY OF BOTANY. ;33

liabitiit and its temperature,^- with a general statement of its
uses in medicine ; but the greater part of the work is made
up of the various complaints that each plant was used for.
These are set down separate^, after the description of the
plant, with the manner of application. Many of these
remedies are rather amusing, and an illustration or two
will not be out of place. It is the idea at the present day
that if one would avoid drunkenness the best plan is to
avoid drink ; but it appears that in the days of Henry YIII.
the same object was attained in another way: —

" For dronkennesse.
'' To eschewe dronkennesse, drink ye iuce of bryony with
as moche vyneygre and he shall not be dronke of all that
weke.-'

'•■ It seems necessary to explain what is meant by the " temperature "
of a plant, for it is a term that is used in all the " Herbals." It originated
from a maxun of Hippocrates, who laid it down that our bodies are
governed by a principle that he called Nature, and when he comes
to explain more particularly what this Nature is, he resolves it into
heat, which he looked upon as ha\-ing something immortal about it.
Then he held that contraries or opposites are the remedies for each other ;
thus heat was destroyed by cold, and cold by heat, &c. In the treat-
ment of diseases he did not depend greatly on physic, but much on
diet ; still either in the one case or the other he followed out this
principle ; to oppose the hot to the cold, the moist to the dry, and vice
versa. The idea of ascribing a certain degree of " temperature " to a
plant remained until quite recently. It refers to the effect which a
plant has on the temperature of the human body, and it was measured
in four degrees. 1st. The same heat as the body, and useful to restore
heat when it is wanting. 2nd. Hotter, and causing a gentle perspira-
tion, and, as the expression used to be, "removing obstructions, and
cutting thick humours." 3rd. Causing violent perspii-ation, and having
the repute of resisting poison. 4th. Such plants as bhster tlie skin
when outwardly applied.

1)

34 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

Then for the bite of a mad clog (surely there is no com-
plaint for which there are more remedies) this I think has
fallen into neglect, and ma}^ be new to some of my readers : —

" For bytynge of a wood* dogge.
"And if they" (walnuts) "be stamped with salte and an
onyon they be good for bytig of a wood dogge yf it be layde
thereto."

This is a remedy which is certainly as well worth trying as
most that we have heard of since.

Though the ' Grete Herbal ' is now, and has for some
time, been little thought of, three centuries and a half ago
it was different. The book ends with the pious flourish
which will be found on the following page.

On the Continent of Europe there was at this time a great
amount of scientific botanical investigation. Otho Brunfels
published his 'Herbarium' in 1530, and this was followed
by a work of Valerius Cordus in 158G, called ' Dispensatory^
or Pharmacopeia'; the learned Gesner also published a
* History of Plants ' in 1541.

" " W6d," pronounced wood, is Anglo-Saxon for mad, and is fre-
quently to be met with in old English writings, as the early EngHsh
metrical romances. For instance we have in ' Eichard Cceur-de-
Lion': —

" The swarte vis when the king seeth,
His black beard and white teeth,
How his lippes grinned wide,
* What devil is this ? ' the king cried,
And gan to laugh as he were ivode:'
" What ? is Saracen's flesh thus good ? " &c.

Ellis's ' Early English Metrical Eomances.'
Collier, in his illustration of the Lancashire dialect (Tummas and
Meary) has this word, and I have little doubt that it is still in use in
out of the way places. It is interesting to note that it was falling out
of general use about this time. I have two editions of the * Grete
Herbal,' the earHer one (from which the above quotation is taken) has
" wood " the other " mad " dogge.

HISTORY OF BOTANt. 35

4* 4f ♦♦4* («

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„ .If ou tafie mtclWgencc, ?

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of almigstp €) ©, 1oii)k^t gat^e
en&ei»eD Orjs fj'mple ctmtmz man*
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:^C) HISTORY OF BOTANY.

Otho Brunfels was born about the year 1464, in the
neighbourhood of Mayence, and died at Berne, 1534. He
was a physician, who restored the study of practical Botany
in Europe by his direct investigations in the fiekls.

Valerius Cordus was born at Simtshausen, in Hesse,
1515, and received the rudiments of his education at Erfurt,
and afterwards studied at the University of Marburg, where
he took the degree of bachelor of medicine. In 1531 he
went to Wittemburg, and studied under Melancthon. He
travelled in Prussia, Saxony, Switzerland, and Italy, and it
was while journeying to Eome that he was seized with fever
and died, 1544, at the age of 29. His early death was con-
sidered a great loss to Science. Of his numerous works * A
Pharmaceutical Dispensatory,' 'Annotations on Dioscorides,'
and a ' History of Plants ' may be particularly mentioned.

Conrad Gesner was an eminent physician and philosopher
of Zurich. He studied at different seats of learning in
France, but returned to Zurich, where he was made professor
of philosophy; he was a voluminous author, and from
the great extent of his attainments has been called the
German Pliny.

I next notice Fuchs, taking these contemporary authors
in the order of the publication of their works, rather than
the date of their birth. Leonard Fuchs, a celebrated
physician and botanist, was born at Wemdigen, in Swabia,
1501, and died at Tubingen, 1565. His ' History of Plants '
was published in 1542 ; it is illustrated by outline plates,
which have been much admired for their faithfulness. The
object of the work is to describe exactly the plants used in
medicine. The chapters are arranged in sections, as was
usual at that time ; the first treating on the names in
different languages, with their derivations and meanings ;
then follow the different kinds, and descriptions of them,
and afterwards the habitat, time of flowering, and temperature ;

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 37

and last, the virtues, according to Dioscorides, Plinj^,
Galen, and others. The Fuchsia was so named by Plumier
in honour of Fuchs.

Pietro Andrea Mattioli, or Matthiolus as he is called in
Latin, published his ' Commentaries on the Materia Medica
of Dioscorides ' in 1548, as was previously mentioned. He
was an Italian botanist of great repute, born at Siena, 1500,
and died at Trente in 1577. His 'Commentaries' form a
very fine work, and the illustrations are beautifully executed.
He freely attacks the opinions of both older and contem-
poraneous writers, perhaps especially Fuchs. The genus
Matthiola is named in honour of him.

We have next a writer of our own country of w^hom we
may be justly proud — William Turner. During the time
when, as we have just seen, the study of Botany was making
great strides abroad, England was remaining in a state of
comparatively abject and lamentable ignorance, unrelieved
by any intelligent work on the subject, excepting a treatise
by Judge Fitzherbert, 15'J4, on husbandry. Turner says,
" Being then a student of Pembroke Hall, where I could
learn never one Greke, neither Latin, nor English name,
even among the physicians, of any herbe or tree, such was
the ignorance at that time ; and as yet there was no English
Herbal, but one, all full of unlearned cacographies, and
falsely naming of herbs." William Turner was a divine,
physician, and naturalist, and was born at Morpeth, in
Northumberland, about the beginning of the sixteenth
century. He studied both in England and abroad, spending
some time in Germany and Italy. He was imprisoned by
Bishop Gardiner for advocating the principles of the Kefor-
mation, and afterwards suffered persecution in Queen Mary's
reign, which caused him to leave England ; but on the
accession of Queen Elizabeth he returned, and was restored
to those preferments of which he had been deprived. The

88 JllSTORY OF BOTANY.

first part of his 'Herbal' was published in 1551, and the
complete work, which he dedicated to the Queen, in 1568.
The scientific acquirements of Turner were extensive and
various, and his imblications numerous. Turner's is
generally called the first English Herbal, but mention is
made of a small one written previously by Anthony Ascham,
vicar of Burniston, in Yorkshire. This, however, must have
been a work of but little consequence, for it is generally
overlooked, and I have not met with even a description of it.
After Turner the study of Botany spread rapidly with us.*

Jacques Dalechamp, or Dalechamps, the authority for
several of the names of our British Flora, must be
mentioned here. He was a French physician and botanist,
and was born at Caen in 1513. He made a collection of
plants in the neighbourhood of Lyons, and published a
' General History of Plants,' giving descriptions of over a
thousand. Dalechamp also published an edition of Pliny.
He died at Lyons about 1588.

Adam Lonicer (in Latin Lonicerus) was another botanical
writer of this time. He lived at Frankfort, and published
there a work on " Natural Flistory," which is a similar
Herbal to otlit^rs of the same period. In respect to type
and illustrations it is rather uncouth ; it was published at

■'' A writer m ' The Garden ' (1874) notices the plants that are
incidentally mentioned by Shakespeare, who wrote a little after
Turner's time, being born 1564 : — " Of our English wild flowers
Shakespeare mentions about 15, alluding to some only once or twice.
Of exotic flowers, or such as were cultivated in the scanty gardens of
his period, more than 300 years ago, lie mentions nine or ten. Of
trees and shrubs, exotics included, there are notices of about 25. Of
fruits, whether ripened in England or imported from foreign countries,
I find the names — sometimes often recurrent — of about 30. Vegetables
are spoken of in about equal proportion. Products of the nature of
spices and medicines are mentioned to the extent of about a score ; and
the same is about the number of what are contemptuously called
' weeds,' — or about 150 in all."

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 39

Frankfort in 1551. Lonicer was born 1528, and died
1586; the genus Lonicera was named in his honour.

About the same time, and until the end of the sixteenth
century, there were a number of celebrated botanists, who
aided m the advancement of the Science. Though they
followed for the most part in the footsteps of their pre-
decessors, they published some fresh ideas and described
some fresh plants, and, though they did not establish an
epoch in our history, they introduced improvements in classi-
fication, and added greatly to botanical knowledge by the
cultivation of physic gardens. We notice the following
well-known and frequently quoted authors: — Tragus,
Dodonseus, Lobelius, CiEsalpinus, Columna, Camerarius,
Prosper Alpinus, Gerard, and Clusius.

Hieronymus Tragus* was a German botanist of this
period. He published in 1532 his 'History of Plants,'
arranging them under three classes, founded on their
qualities, figure, habit, and size, which plan was followed by
most other botanists of about that time. This work was
first published in German ; but a Latin edition of it, by
David Kyber, was published at Strasburg in 1552, with a
preface by Gesner attached.

Reinbert Dodoens, or in Latin Dodonaeus, a Flemish
physician, was born at Mechlin, 1518, and died at Leyden,
1585. He published different botanical works, the principal
being his ' History of Plants,' a Herbal very similar to others
of the same time in most respects, but a fine work and well
illustrated ; it appeared complete, with 1305 figures, in 1583.
There is also another edition, revised by the author shortly

^' A Latin travesty of his real name, Jerome Bock, or Bouc, these
words signifying " goat," which in Latin is " Tragus," as though
" Fuchs" should be called in Latin " Vulpes," instead of " Fuchsius,'
or an EngHsliman called "Woodcock" should be latinised into
*' Scolopax."

40 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

before his death ; it was published 1616. DodoeDS departed
from the common plan of arranging the plants in alpha-
betical order, and attempted the bringing together of those
which seemed in some way allied ; and though his groups are
sufficiently incongruous, he must be credited with having
brought about some improvement in classification. This
Herbal of Dodoens was a very popular one in England, as
well as abroad, at the end of the sixteenth and the beginning
of the seventeenth centmy. A translation of it into English
by Henrj' I^yte, came out in 1578. There were dijfferent
editions of it, one called 'Ram's Little Dodeon.'* Gerard's
' Herbal ' is also founded on that of Dodoens.

Matthias Lobelius, or Lobel, or L'Obel, a Fleming,
born at Lisle, in 1538, was a ver}^ celebrated botanist*. At
the age of sixteen he evinced a great love for j)lants. He
studied at Montpellier, and afterwards travelled over the south
of France, Switzerland, the T3T0I, and parts of Germany
and Italy; then he settled at Antwerp, and afterwards
at Delft, practising as a phj^sician. Subsequently he came
to England, over which he made many explorations, and
added many plants to our Flora; he superintended a physic
garden at Hackne}", and became physician to James I.
After publishing several learned botanical works, the chief
being his ' Notes of Plants,' published first in 1570, he died
in London, 1610.

Andreas Cissalpinus, an Italian naturalist, was born at
Arezzo in 1519, and died lOOo. He studied medicine, and
took the degree of doctor. The botanical ideas of Cassalpinus
were more scientific than any of his time, and their intro-

■-'- " Eain's Little Dodeon, out of the most exquisite new Herball, or
History of Plants, first set forth in the Dutch Tongue by D. Keinbert
Dodeon, and translated into English by Henry Lyte, Esquhe, and
abridged by Wilhani Ham, Gentleman."' This is from a book cata-
logue ; I Jiave not seen it.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 4l

duction in his work on plants did much for the advancement
of a rational s^'stem of classification. He proposed a system
of classification according to the nature of the flower, fruit,
and seeds, thus initiating a new era in the Science. His
herbarium is preserved in the Museum of Florence. The
genus Csesalpinia was named in his honour by Plumier.

Fabius Columna, or Fabio Collonna, a learned Italian,
was born at Naples about the year 1567, and died there
1650 ; he belonged to the ancient Roman family of the same
name. Columna's accomplishments were very extensive ;
he was skilled in languages, mathematics, music, designing,
painting, botany, &c., and wrote treatises on many subjects.
His 'History of Plants'* was published at Naples in 159:2 ;
and his ' Ecphrasis ' (full account) was first published at
Rome, 1606. and another edition appeared in 1616.

Joachim Camerarius was born at Nuremburg, 1534, and
died there 1598. He was a physician and botanist who in
many ways forwarded his favourite Science. He founded a
botanical garden at Nuremberg, for which he obtained many
rare plants, and published a Herbal in German, at Frank-
fort, 1590. This really fine volume professes to be a
translation of Matthiolus, but has all the merit of an original
work; the illustrations are for the most part new, and
though artistically they are scarcely equal to the beautiful
prints in Matthiolus, the}^ have some advantages of their
own. Thus separate pictures are given of the various
flowers and fruits, both entire and dissected, which are
absent from Matthiolus. Much of Matthiolus is also
omitted in this work that has no connection with a Herbal,
as, for instance, all the minerals and animals, with the
solitary exception of the Civet, and why that is retained it is
difficult to understand : much letterpress foreign to his object
is also omitted by Camerarius, and fresh matter is introduced.

•= ' Phytobasanos, sive Plantarum aliquot Historia.'

42 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

Our author treats of the medicmal uses of plants under two
sections in each case : inwardly applied, and outwardly.

Prospero Alpini, or Prosper Alpinus, a physician of
Padua, did good service to Botany by describing several
fresh plants that he discovered in his travels. He was born
at Marostica, in the north of Italy, 1553. As physician to
the Venetian consul, Alpini visited Egypt, where he spent
three years. He published works on exotic plants, on the
balsam plant, and on rhubarb, and died 1617 at Padua,
where he was at that time professor of Botany. Alpini's
book on 'Exotic Plants' appeared in 1614, and a second
edition by his son Alpini was published 1629.* A number
of the plants described are from the island of Candia, and
the original author tells us that he had not only collected
many plants himself, but had grown m_any from seed that
had been supplied to him by friends in different countries,
including France and England. The genus Alpinia was
named in his honour by Linneus.

We may now turn to our own country, and consider the
work of a very genial and quaint — if not very erudite —
Englishman, John Gerard, and I hope to be excused if I
dwell rather longer on him than I have on some much more
learned men ; not only because he was our countryman, but
also because he was an excellent botanist, and wrote the
most amusing and popular ' Herbal' that we have.

John Gerard, or as he is frequently called Gerarde,f was
born at Nantwich, in Cheshire, in 1545, and died in London,

-'' The edition by Alpini Alpini (also a physician) has the date 1627
appended to his " Address to tlie kind reader," but on the title page we
find " MDCXXVIIII."

i I know not why this essentially English writer should have a
foreign ajDX^earance, and a false accent, given to his name by the addi-
tion of a final e. It is spelt so in Johnson's edition (1633), on the title
page, but in the original (or Gerard's own) he subscribes himself plain
"John Gerard" to his dedication to his patron, Lord Burleigh, and
this is correctly adhered to in Johnson's edition.

HISTORY OF BOfANY. 43

1G07. He was educated as a surgeon, and practised in
London, but is best known as a botanist. He superintended
the management of Lord Burleigh's garden for twenty years,
and had also a large physic garden* of his own, which he
frequently alludes to in his ' Herbal,' and of which he
published a catalogue. He became Master of the Apothe-
caries' Company. Gerard's 'Herbal' or 'General Historic
of Plants' was published in 1597; it is a folio volume of
nearly 1400 pages, exclusive of introductory matter and
indexes. It is founded on the work of Dodoens, of which
indeed to a considerable extent it is a verbatim translation.
Gra}^ in his ' British Plants'! writes as follows: — "Gerarde,
although the Master of the Chirurgeons' Company, was not
sufficiently versed in Latin to make this translation himself,
and thereof altered a manuscript translation of one Dr.
Priest, which the latter had intended to publish, but died
before he had accomplished his purpose ; and his papers
falling into the hands of Gerarde, they were transposed
from Dodonseus's arrangement of his subject into that of
Lobell, and published by Gerarde without an acknowledg-
ment of Dr. Priest's labour in the translation ; indeed he
speaks in his preface of Dr. Priest's translation having
perished, although both Lobell and Johnson af&rm that he
used it himself with no other alteration than the above
mentioned change of order in disposing the chapters, and
some additions. * * * Lobell was extremely angry at
Gerarde having adopted his method, at which we may be
surprised, since it undoubtedly may be considered at this
time of day as an acknowledgment of his superiority over
the order, if order it can be called, of Dodon^eus ; perhaps

'■' Gerard's was tlie first English physic garden.

f ' A Natural Ai-rangement of British Plants,' by Samuel Frederick
Graj'', lecturer on Botany, the Materia Medica, and Pharmaceutic
Chemistry. Loudon, 1821.

44 HISTORY O^ BOTANY.

Lobell's anger was that Gerarcle's work, being in English,
had a preferable sale to that of his own works in Latin, and
might thus injure his i^urse, however the complaisance of
Gerarde might flatter his self love." There would seem to
be either some mistake in this account or Lobel was a great
hypocrite, else how can we account for finding amoiigst the
introductory matter of the ' General Historic of Plants ' a
highly commendatory article by " Matthias de L'Obel to
John Gerard greeting,"* in which our author is addressed
as "Dearest friend Gerard." f To consider Gerard's
'Herbal' a mere translation of Dodoens, with Lobel's
arrangement, would be a great mistake ; as our author would
probably express it * They are no more alike than things that
are most unlike.'

" There is a good and pleasant foode or bread made of the
rootes of Parsneps as my friend master Plat hath set foortli
in his booke of experimenes, which I have made no triall of,
nor meane to do." That is Gerard's st3de of writing, a
quaint, quiet humour, with abundance of local allusions ; at
one time to plants in his physic garden, at another to the
remarkable effects he had found to be produced by some
plant, then again how some of his friends at different times
had found particular benefit from some remedy, or pointing
out particular habitats for plants, gossiping, entertaining,
and I think instructive throughout. As Gerard will be fre-
quently quoted in the second part of this work, one other
illustration shall suffice in this j)lace. It is in relation to
the "Yertues" of "Panax Coloni," or Clown's Woundwort
[Stachys iialiistTis of Linneus). " The leaues heerof stamped
with Axungia, or Hogs grease, and applied vnto green
wounds in maner of a pultis, doth heale them in such short
time and in such absolute maner, that it is hard for any that

■■ " Matthias de L'Obel Joliaiiiii Gerardo ielicilatem."
i ''Gerarde amicissime."

HISTORY OF BOTANY. J;)

hath not had the experience thereof to beleeue : for bemg in
Kent about a Pacient, it chanced that a very poore man in
mowing of Peason did cut his leg with the Sieth, wdierein he
made a wound to the bones, and withal verj^ large and wide,
and also with great effusion of bloud, the poore man crept
vnto this herbe which he brused in his hands, and tied a
great quantitie of it vnto the wound with a peece of his shirt,
which presently stanched the bleeding and ceased the pain,
insomuch that the poore man presently went to his dales
work againe and so did from dale to dale, without resting
one day vntill he was perfectly hole, w^iich w^as accomplished
in a fewe dales by this herbe stamped with a little Hogs
grease, and so laid upon in maner of a pultis, wdiich did as
it were glewe or soder the lips of the wounde togither, and
heale it according to the first intention (as we tearme it) that
is without drawing or bringing the wounde to suppuration
or matter, which w^as fully performed in seauen dales, that
woulde haue required fortie dales with Balsam itselfe. I sawe
the wounde, and offered to heale the same for charitie,
which he refused, saying, that I could not heale it so well as
himselfe ; a clownish answer I confesse without thankes for my
good will, w^hereupon I haue named it Clounes Woundwoort
as aforesaide," — a name it bears to this day. Gerard's
' Herbal ' is divided into three books, the first " Containing
Grasses, Rushes, Corne, Flags, Bulbose, or Onion-rooted
Plants." The second book contains *' the description, place,
time, names, nature, and vertues of all sorts of herbs for
meate, medicine, or sweete smelling vse, &c. ; " and the third
" the description, place, time, names, nature and vertues of
Trees, Shrubs, Bushes, Fruit-bearing plants, and other rare
plants not remembered in the Proeme to the first booke.
Also Mushroms, Corall, and their several kinds, &c."

The w^ork concludes with an extraordinary chapter on the
" Goose tree," from which I make the following extract : —

40 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

" Of the Goose tree, Barnakle tree, or the tree bearing
Geese. Chap. 167,"

" The Description.

*'Hauing trauelled from the Grasses growing in the
bottome of the fenny waters, the woods, and mountaines,
euen vnto Libanus it selfe ; and also the sea, and bow^els of
the same : we are arriued to the end of our Historie, thinking
it not impertinent to the conclusion of the same, to end with
one of the maruels of this land (we may sa}^ of the world).
The Historie whereof to set foorth according to the
woorthines and raritie thereof, woulde not onely require a
large and peculiar volume, but also a deeper search into the
bowels of nature,' then my intended purpose wil suffer me
to wade into, my insufficiencie also considered ; leaning the
historie thereof rough hewen, vnto some excellent men,
learned in the secrets of nature, to be both fined and refined :
in the meane space take it as it falleth out, the naked and
bare truth, though vnpolished. There are founde in the
north parts of Scotland and the Hands adiacent, called
Orchades certaine trees, whereon doe growe certaine shell
fishes, of a white colour tending to russet; wherein are
conteined little lining creatures ; which shels in time . of
maturitie doe open, and out of them grow those little liuing
things; which falling into the water, doe become foules,
whom we call Barnakles, in the north of England Brant
Geese, and in Lancashire tree Geese ; but the other that do
fall vpon the land, perish, and come to nothing : thus much
by the writings of others, and also from the mouths of people
of those parts, which may very well accord w4th truth.

" But what our eies haue scene, and hands haue touched,
we shall declare. There is a small Ilande in Lancashire
called the Pile of Foulders, wherein are found the broken
peeces of old and brused ships, some whereof haue beene
cast thither by shipwracke, and also the trunks or bodies

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 47

with the branches of old and rotten trees, cast vp there
likewise : whereon is found a certaine spume or froth, that
in time breedeth vnto certaine shels, in shape like those of
the muskle, but sharper pointed, and of a whitish colour ;
wherein is conteined a thing in forme like a lace of silke
finel}" wouen as- it were togither, of a whitish colour ; one
ende whereof is fastend vnto the inside of the shell, euen
as the fish of Oisters and Huskies are; the other ende is
made fast vnto the belly of a rude masse or lumpe, which in
time commeth to the shape and forme of a Bird : when it is
perfectl}^ formed, the shel gapeth open, and the first thing
that appeereth is the foresaid lace or string; next come the
legs of the Birde hanging out ; and as it groweth greater, it
openeth the shell by degrees till at length it is all come
foorth, and hangeth ouely by the bill ; in short space after it
commeth to full maturitie, and falleth into the sea, where it
gathereth feathers, and groweth to a foule bigger than a
Mallard, and lesser than a Goose ; hauing black legs and
bill or beake, and feathers black and white, spotted in such
maner as is our Magge-Pie, called in some places a Pie-Annet,
which the people of Lancashire call by no other name then
a tree Goose ; which place aforesaide, and all those parts
adioning, do so much abound therewith, that one of the
best is bought for three pence ; for the truth heerof, if an}^
doubt, may it please them to repaire vnto me, and I shall
satisfie them b}- the testimonie of good witnesses."

We are afterwards told of these remarkable Barnakle
trees that "They spawne as it were in March and Aprill;
the Geese are formed in Maie and lune, and come to fulnesse
of feathers in the moneth after.'**

t
■■' Jolinson, in liis edition of Gerard, remarks: — " Tlie Barnakle

whose fabulous breed my Author here sets downe, and diners others

haue also deliuered, were found by some Hollanders to haue another

criginall, and that by egs as other birds haue : for they in then- thii'd

48 IIISTOKY OF BOTANY.

Clusius or Charles cVEcluse was a Dutch botanist who
was born at Arras, 1526, and died at Leyden, 1609. He
travelled over various parts of Europe, and was for some
time director of the Botanical Garden of Vienna. In 1593
he was professor of Botany at Leyden, and he was the author
of several works. His 'History of Pvare Plants' appeared
in 1601.

Yoiage to find out the North-East passage to China & the Molucco's,
about the 80 degree and eleuen minutes of Northerly latitude, found
two little Islands, in one of which they found aboundanee of these geese
sitting vpon their e^gf^, of which they got one Goose, and tooke away
sixt}'' eggs &c." .

CHAPTER V.

SEVENTEENTH CENTUBY.

The seventeenth century saw a further advance in bota-
nical knowledge, and produced many illustrious writers on
the Science. Among these the brothers John and Caspar
Bauhin are pre-eminent at the commencement : they were
natives of Basle.

John, a phj^sician, was born 1541, and died 1613. He
studied Botany at Tubingen, under Fuchs, and afterwards
made the acquaintance of Gesner, with whom he travelled
in Switzerland. He also collected plants in France and
Italy. He was appointed professor of rhetoric in Basle in
15G6, and in 1570 he was invited to be physician to the
Duke of Wurtemberg, in which situation he continued until
his death. He published several medical and botanical
works ; the most important did not appear during his life,
but was published in 1650. This is his ' History of Plants,'
which contains descriptions of about 5000 and is illustrated
with 3577 figures.

Caspar Bauhin was born 1560, and died 1624. He studied
first at the University of Basle, and afterwards at Padua,
Montpellier, and Paris. In 1581 he took the degree of
doctor of medicine, in 1582 he was appointed professor of
Greek, and in 1588 professor of Anatomy and Botany in
the University of Basle, where he afterwards also occupied

50 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

the cliair of practice of plij^sic, and was made rector of the
University and dean of the faculty. Of the several works
that he wrote on medicine and Botanj^ the most celebrated
is his 'Table of the Theatre of Botany,'* which was
published in 1623. It is an index to the works of the
earlier botanists, in which are described nearly 6000 plants,
with the various names given to them : it was the labour of
forty years, and remains until now an invaluable collection
of S3^nonyms. Another large work planned by C. Bauhiri
he did not live to complete ; it was called ' Botanical
Theatre,'! and was to have been a history of all known
plants, completed in twelve folio parts : three of these he
finished, but one only was published. Plumier named the
genus Bauhinia in honour of Caspar Bauhin; or perhaps
after the two illustrious brothers, as the twin lobed leaves
might suggest.

Though they may have little direct bearing on botanical
nomenclature, we must not omit notice of two English
botanists of this time, Johnson and Parkinson.

Thomas Johnson was born at Selby, in Yorkshire, and
was brought up as an apothecary in London, where he kept
a shop. In 1629 he published a 'Journey into Kent in
Search of Plants," and in 1632 an account of the plants
growing on Hampstead Heath, which is the first of our
' Local Floras.' But his most important, or largest work,
was a new edition of Gerard's 'Herbal,' published in 1633.
Johnson became a soldier during the civil wars, having the
rank of lieutenant- colonel on the ro3'alist side, and he died
of a gun-shot wound received in a sally from Basinghouse,
Hampshire.

John Parkinson, another apothecar}^, and contemporaiy
with Johnson, published in 1629 an account of garden
plants. In 1643 appeared his ' Theatre of Botanj^'

"^ * Pinax Tlieatri Botanici.' f ' Tlieatrum Botanicum.'

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 61

describing 3800 plants. He died about 1G50, over 80 years
of age.

I should not think it necessary to notice Culpeper, were
it not that the * English Physician' or ' Culpeper's Herbal '
is, or was until quite recently, the most popular of hand-
books with botanists of the operative class ; therefore I feel
bound not to pass him over.

Nicholas Culpeper was born in London, 1616, and was an
astrologer, who referred the medicinal properties of all
plants to planetary and stellar influences. ' The English
Physician ' was published 1652, and is, of the sort, a medical
work. Like the * Grete Herbal ' it has passed through
several editions, but certainly we cannot account for this as
in the other case, by its being the only English work on the
subject, and therefore of necessity the best. Culpeper's
superstition is equalled by his wonderful self-conceit, which
might only raise a smile, were it not that it frequently leads
him to reflect offensively on the works of other and clearer-
headed phj^sicians. He thus addressed his wife, to whom
he left his manuscripts : — " The works that I have published
to the world (though envied by some illiterate physicians)
have merited such just applause, that thou maj^est be
confident in proceeding to publish anything I leave thee,
especially this master-piece ; assuring my friends and
countrymen, that they will receive as much benefit by this,
as by my Dispensatorj^, and that incomparable piece, called
Semiotica Uranica enlarged, and English Physician," —
which is highly probable. Perhaps this self- exaltation is
rather to be pitied than blamed, being a natural result of
superstition, which may often be noticed in var3dng degree,
when an easy faith oversteps reasonable bounds.* It

-'' Su- Walter Scott says in 'Guy Mannering': — "The behef in
astrology was almost universal in the middle of the seventeenth

E 2

63 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

cannot be said that Culpeper did anything to advance the
science of Botany. He died in London, 1654.

About this time botanists were endeavouring to improve
the hitherto very imperfect methods of classification, and
greatest among these was our countrjanan John Ray,
formerly spelt Wra}^, but altered by himself. A rather
particular notice of Ray will not be irrelevant, for he was a
careful student of the British Flora, and it is a pleasure to
dwell upon the memory of this truly great and good man,
who must ever be revered as one of England's greatest
worthies, not only on account of his learning and the excel-
lence of his writings, but also by reason of his uprightness
and independence. As a botanist Haller terms him " the
greatest in the memory of man," a commendation, consider-
ing him that applied it, which could in no way be exceeded
in force. Ray was of humble origin, his father being a
blacksmith, and during a long life he was never in what we

century ; it began to waver and became doubtful towards the close of
that period, and- in the beginning of the eighteenth the art fell into
general disrepute, and even under general ridicule. Yet it stiU
retained many partisans, even in the seats of learning. Grave and
studious men were loth to relinquish the calculations which had early
become the principal objects of theu' studies, and felt reluctant to
descend fi'om the predominating height to which a supposed insight
into futm'ity, by the power of consulting abstract influences and con-
junctions, had exalted them over the rest of mankind." It is curious,
but I have an edition of Culpeper by one Dr. Parldns, of so late a date
as 1810, in which is abundance of such rubbish as this respecting
the Bay Tree : — " It is a tree of the sun, and under the celestial sign
Leo, and resisteth witchcraft very potently, as also all the evils old
Satan can do to the body of man, and they are not a few ; for it is the
speech of one, and I am mistaken if it were not Mizaldus, that neither
witch nor devil, thunder nor lightening, will hm't a man in a place
where a bay-tree is." I have planted bays ; they will do no harm, and
answer better in cookery than Aucuba, Laurel, or Pihododendron, which
some cooks suppose to be all one thing.

ttlSTOBY OF BOTANY. 53

should call " good circumstances," though if he could have
sacrificed something of his high sense of duty, his history will
show that his ability might have led him to high preferment.
He was born at Black Notley, near Braintree, in Essex,
1628, and was sent when young to the Grammar School at
Braintree, and when about sixteen to Cambridge. At
twenty-one he was chosen junior fellow of Trinity, after
acquiring the degree of B.A., and when he took the master's
degree he became major senior fellow; at twenty-three he
w^as chosen Greek lecturer of the college, at twenty-five
mathematical lecturer, at twenty-seven humanity reader, at
twenty-nine he was made prselector primarius, and at thirty
junior dean. In 1660 he took orders in the English church ;
but refusing to subscribe the Act of Uniformity,* in 1662, he
was deprived of his fellowship, and lost all chance of
preferment in the church. In 1667 he was elected a Fellow
of the Royal Society.

'•- The Act of Unifonnity "provided that every minister should,
before the feast of St. Bartholomew (Aug. 24), pubhcly declare his
assent and consent to everything contained in the book of Common
Prayer, or lose his benefice. The appointed day came, and about two
thousand ministers, the far greater part of them men of extensive
learning, sincere piety, and nTeproachable life, laid down then- prefer-
ments, and, rather than do violence to thek conscience, faced poverty
and persecution."— Zcif/Zi^^'s History of England.

"Among some miscellaneous observations of Mr. Eay's one is as
follows : — September 18th, 1662. The names of such fellows of Colleges
in the University of Cambridge, as were deprived for not subscribmg
according to the new Act for Uniformity, 1661 : St. John's College, Mr.
Wood and Mr. Tuckney; Trmity College, Mr. Wray; Emanuel
College, Mr. Illingworth, Mr. Hulse and Mr. Brmsley; Pembroke
Hall, Mr. Chfford and Mr. Green; Bennett College, Mr. Chapman;
Jesus College, Mr. Huffe ; Magdalen College, Mr. Hill and Mr. More ;
King's College, Mr. Duncombe ; besides these, Dr. Dillingham,
master of Emanuel College." — Note from the original edition of Dr.
Derham's life of Ptay, published by Mr. Scott.

54 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

Early in life Eay took great interest in Natural Science,
especially in Botany, and after travelling over a great part
of England, Scotland and Wales, he extended his herborisa-
tions to the continent of Europe. His itineraries, or
accounts of his journeys in England, are most interesting.*
His works — chiefly in Latin, which he wrote with the same
facility as English — were numerous and on different subjects.
Of those on plants may be mentioned ' A Catalogue of Plants
growing about Cambridge," 1660, and *A Catalogue of
English Plants,' 1670. After these followed 'A Catalogue
of Plants ' observed in his travels ; ' A new Method of
Plants'; a 'History of Plants,' in three large folio volumes,
enumerating and describing over 17,000 species; a 'Metho-
dical Synopsis of British Plants'; 'An emended Method of
Plants.' Besides these he wrote on quadrupeds and
serpents, birds, fishes and insects, and also several religious
works. Kay died 1706, at his native place, in the same
humble condition as that in which he commenced life,
leaving three daughters out of a family of four. Dr.
Derham, who wrote a memorial of Kay, says : — "In a word,
in his dealings no man more strictly just; in his conver-
sation no man more humble, courteous, and affable ; towards
God no man more devout ; and towards the poor and
distressed no man more compassionate and charitable,
according to his abilities."

As a systematic botanist Kay was in advance of his time,
and though his method was not duly appreciated in his life
time, he must be looked upon as the founder of the modern
or " natural " system of classification, as it is called.

Magnol and Tournefort in France, andKivinus in Germany,
each had his system of classification and his followers.

Pierre Magnol was born at Montpellier, 1638, and died there

-^ See ' Memorials of John Eay,' by the late Dr. Lankester, published
by the Eay Society, 1816, or ' Eemains of John Eay,' by Dr. Derham,
1760.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 55

1715. He was a botanist of great repute, and deservedly. It
is after him that Plumier has named the genus Magnolia.

Joseph Pitton de Tournefort was born at Aix, in Provence,
1656, and died at Paris, 1708. He was of a noble family,
and was destined for the church, but his tastes leading him in
the direction of Science, he became a botanist of considerable
authority. He travelled over a great part of Europe, and also
in Asia Minor, Armenia, the Caucasus, the neighbourhood of
the Black Sea, &c., and made large collections of plants.

Augustus Quirinus Rivinus was born at Leipsic, 1652,
and died 1725. He was a physician, and a professor of
Anatomy and Botany. As I have before stated, it is not
my purpose to explain the prmciples on which different
botanists have founded their systems of classification, or to
trace minutely the steps by which a universal system has at
last been reached. Though the three last learned botanists
each invented a system, these were all eclipsed by that of
Linneus, which in its turn has been superseded by one
founded on the principles first enunciated by Ray.

Plumier, whose name has already been frequently mentioned,
was born 1646, at Marseilles, and died near Cadiz, 1704. He
was appointed to explore the French settlements in the West
Indies, and was afterwards sent to the Antilles ; he resided
some time in St. Domingo. Plumier's principal work, * New
Genera of Plants,' was published the year before his death.

Before taking leave of the seventeenth century a word
may be said in honour of our "merry" but scapegrace*

'•= Eochester, at the request of the king, wrote his epitaph, which
from its extreme pungency gave great offence : —

" Here hes our sovereign lord the King,
^Vliose word no man relies on ;
Who never said a foolish thing,
And never did a wise one."
Perhaps the foundation of the Koyal Society may be taken as that
exception which is said to be necessary to prove a rule.

56 HISTORY Ot' BOTANY.

monarch Charles II. He established the Eoyal Society,
which, from his time to the present, has included amongst
its fellows the most eminent scientific men of the Kingdom,
and has been the means of great increase of knowledge.
Kay has just been mentioned as a fellow, and one of the
earliest was the gentle Evelyn, who contributed to its
Transactions his celebrated " Silva," or "Discourse on
Forest Trees."

CHAPTEK VI.
EIGHTEENTH CENTUEY.

§ 1. BOERHAAVE, HaLLEE, DiLLENIUS.

There is very great variety in the botanical Hterature of
the eighteenth century, and a great number of fresh plants
from all parts of the world v/ere discovered and described.
It would occupy too much space to give more than a passing
notice of a few of these writers, reserving the greater part of
this chapter for Linneus, because, without instituting any
comparison between him and other botanists who were his
contemporaries, it is without doubt he who has the chief
merit of inventing our present system of nomenclature, which
is the subject we have principally in hand. I select these
contemporaries of Linneus for previous mention : Boerhaave,
Haller, and Dillenius.

Hermann Boerhaave, born at Voorhout, about two miles
from Leyden, 1668, was one of the most celebrated physicians
of the eighteenth century. He was carefully educated by
his father, who intended him for the clerical profession, and
he made such rapid progress in his studies that at eleven
years of age he understood Greek and Latin. When sixteen
years old Boerhaave lost his father, who left a family of nine
children, in but poor circumstances. After much study, in
which he greatly distinguished himself, in mathematics,
philosophy and theology, he finally devoted himself to

58 HISTOEY OF BOTANY.

medicine, taking as his models Hippocrates and Sydenham.
In 1693 he took the degree of doctor of medicine, at the
University of Harderwyck, in Guelderland. In 1701 he
was chosen lecturer on the institutes of medicine at Leyden ;
and he commenced his duties by a discourse in favour of
the study of Hippocrates. In 1714 he became Eector of the
University. He was elected a member of the Academy of
Sciences of Paris in 1728, and of the Eoyal Society of
London in 1730.

He had great zeal for Botany, extended the botanical
gardens at Leyden, and published many botanical memoirs.
He acquired a considerable fortune, and resigned the chair
of Botany and Chemistry in 1729. In his final address to
his pupils he reverted to the doctrines of Hippocrates, and
declared that man to be the first physician w4io knew how to
wait for, and second, the efi'orts of Nature. Boerhaave died
1738, at the age of sixty-nine. With all his learning he
seems to have been a humble christian; Haller speaks of
his venerable simplicity and his power of persuasion, and
states that he has often heard him say, when speaking of the
gospel precepts, that the Divine Teacher had shown in the
Bible far more knowledge of the human heart than Socrates
with all his wisdom.

Among his numerous works may be noticed the botanical
ones — * Catalogue of Plants in the Leyden Garden,' and
* History of Plants.'

It would be impossible, in a short notice, to do justice to
such a phenomenon as Haller. One of his biographers
(Dr. Willis) describes him as " one of the most learned and
indefatigable men the world has ever seen." We find in
him an early erudition like that of Avicenna, combined with
enormous intellectual power, diligently applied to original
research.

Albrecht von Haller was born at Berne, in Switzerland,

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 59

1708. From his earliest years his great talents became
apparent, for with little or no effort he mastered the Latin,
Greek, and Hebrew languages between his sixth and ninth
year.* Even then he had assumed the habit of noting all
the information that he considered interesting or valuable ;
so that while yet a lad he had the particulars of the lives of
some thousand eminent persons written in his common-place
book. In studying for the medical profession Haller went
first to Tubingen, and afterwards to Leyden, where, among
others, he had Boerhaave for a teacher. Among numerous
other studies, Haller occupied some time with Botany, and
in the Transactions of the Eoyal Society of Gottingen (under
the patronage of our George II.) may be found some
interesting and beautifully illustrated articles on some plants
in their garden. As a physician, anatomist, physiologist,
botanist, and poet, Haller will always be held in esteem.
His biograj)her, already quoted, says : " It is impossible to
deny that by his learning and assiduity, by the example of
his life, and his teaching, and by the quickening influence
of his theoretical views, he set his seal not only on his age,
but has left it imprinted on all time." Haller died 1777.

Johann Jacob Dillen, or Dillenius, the first Professor of
Botany at the University of Oxford, was born at Darmstadt,
1687, and studied at the University of Giessen. He became
a very celebrated botanist; indeed, he wished to be con-
sidered the greatest of his time. In 1727 he published a
Flora of Giessen ; he adopted the system of Ray, in prefer-
ence to those of Tournefort and Rivinus. Dillenius did
good service to Botany by his study of the Cryptogamia,
leading the way to a knowledge of their manner of

*'* It is open to anyone to doubt, or qualify according to his judgment
such extraordinary statements ; but it is not at all unusual to meet
with instances where children acquhe, as it were by intuition, what
many could not gain in a lifetime.

60 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

reproduction and development. Sherard was struck with the
botanical merits of Dillenius, and invited him to England,
where he remained for the rest of his life, supported by the
patronage of the two Sherards.* He had the superintendence
of Sherard's celebrated garden at Eltham, in Kent, and
wrote a large folio catalogue, with illustrations and descrip-
tions of the rare plants growing in it, called *Hortus
Elthamensis' (Eltham Garden). Dr. Sherard, dying 1728,
bequeathed to the Oxford University a sum of money to
endow a professorship of Botany, providing, at the same
time that Dillenius should be the first occupant of the chair,
thus placing him in a position of considerable eminence : he
died at Oxford, 1747. Though without doubt an excellent
botanist, the temper of Dillenius was not pleasant; it is
generally called " peculiar," which may be freely rendered,
somewhat jealous and unamiable. It is to be regretted that
this infirmity should have led him to treat Linneus with
little respect when the latter came to England, and should
have caused our illustrious visitor to return home with a
feeling of disappointment from our usually frank and
hospitable country.

§ 2. Linneus.

Carolus Linneus, or Carl von Linne, was born 1707, at
Raslmlt, in Smaland, a province of Sweden. His father
was a clergyman of small means, who was unable to assist
him much in the prosecution of those studies to which he
devoted himself. First he was intended for the church, and
afterwards his father inclined to put him to some handicraft
business, but was dissuaded from this by Kothman, the
principal physician at Wexio, who took him into his house,
and under whom he studied medicine for three years.

-'' See under " Slierardia," 2nd part.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 61

Afterwards he matriculated at the University of Lund ; and
in 1728 he went to the University of Upsal, where, ohtaining
a royal scholarship, he was enabled to pursue his studies
without difficulty.

In 1731 Linneus was appointed to travel in Lapland
under the royal authority, and at the expense of the
University of Upsal. In this remarkable journey, which
was one both of hardship and danger, Linneus travelled,
mostly on foot, over about 3800 English miles. After this he
was employed in various scientific work, his fame continually
increasing. In 1736 he came over to England, but w^as
disappointed with his visit, not gaining so much information
as he expected ; Dillenius too, professor of Botany at
Oxford, though a very able man, was of a curious temper,
and aspired to be thought the first botanist of his time, and
he did not give Linneus a cordial reception. In 1738 Linneus
settled in Stockholm as a physician, and from that time
his fame and fortunes prospered apace. He was appointed
successively botanist to the king, president of the Academy
of Sciences of Stockholm, professor of medicine and then of
Botany at Upsal; until, in 1757, he was raised to the
nobility, assuming the title of Von Linne, by which he
preferred to be known, and some writers * use this name in
preference to Linnaeus, which is of the two still more usual.

-•' Thus Wilklenow, in his enlarged edition of ' Species of Plants,'
and Jeffreys, in his beautiful work in ' British Conchology.' The latter
writes : — " It was originally Linnaeus ; but on receiving the patent of
nobihty, he assumed the name of Linne. The latter name is given in
the twelfth (and most perfect) edition of the ' Systema Naturc"e ; ' and
in all his subsequent works and correspondence he always used this
title of distinction. The learned Society which bears his name in this
country is Linnean, and not Linnaean, as appears fi'om their Charter and
Transactions. Under these circumstances I have adopted the name
which he himself preferred." Newman also (' British Ferns ') writes
Linneus instead of Linnaeus. I have followed in the same course.

62 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

When raised to the nobility Linneus had become sufficiently
wealthy to purchase an estate in the neighbourhood of Upsal.
He was elected a member of all the learned societies of
Europe, and many honours were conferred upon him for his
scientific acquirements.

He died in 1777, and his remains were deposited in a
vault in the cathedral of Upsal. His obsequies were
performed in the most respectful manner by the whole
university, the pall being supported by sixteen doctors of
medicine, all of whom had been his pupils. There was a
general mourning at Upsal, and the king of Sweden caused
a medal to be struck expressive of the public loss, and
alluded to the subject in a speech from the throne. The
system of classification invented by Linneus, together with
the great improvement he made in botanical nomenclature,
have served to greatly popularize the study of Botany; what
was before chaos he brought into order, and what was before
difficult he made easy. His system of classification, based
on the number or position of the stamens and pistils, serves
admirably to guide the learner to the name of a plant that
he may wish to determine ; though as a scientific arrange-
ment of the vegetable kingdom it is worth nothing, plants
being arranged side by side that have nothing in common
beyond this trivial coincidence of two sets of organs. Thus
in the class and order Triandria Monogynia (three stamens
and one pistil) we find Valerian, Bryonj^, Butcher's Broom,
Iris, Sedges ; and these incongruities follow the system in a
great measure throughout, though in a few instances— as
for example the class Tedradynamia, which is equivalent to
the natural order Crucifer£e — this objection is not met with.
But no general system of Botany could be permanently
established, or be even temporarily satisfactory, which
depends for its distinctions on one or two organs, or sets of
organs only ; and Linneus would seem to have been aware

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 63

of it. Buffon saj^s on this subject : — " This pretension of
botanists to establish general sj^stems, perfect and methodi-
cal, has then little foundation ; and their labours have only
availed to give us defective methods, which have been
successively demolished the one by the other, and have
suffered the usual fate of all systems founded on arbitrary
principles; and that which has most contributed to the
substituting of one of such methods for another, is the
liberty that botanists have given themselves, to choose
arbitrarily a single part of plants and to make of it a specific
character : some establish their method on the shape of the
leaves, others on their position, others on the form of the
flowers, others on the number of their petals, and still
others on the number of their stamens. If I should
recal in detail all the methods that have been thought of
I should never finish, but I shall only treat of those that
have been received with favour, and have followed, each
in its turn, without sufficient attention being paid to that
error in principle which is common to them all, and which
consists in trying to judge of a whole, or the combination
of several wholes, by a single part, and by the comparison
of the differences in this single part."

But notwithstanding the Linnean system has been super-
seded by a more scientific one, its study must be recom-
mended to botanical tyros as a great assistance towards the
mastery of the larger, and more perfect plan in many ways.
The latter in its bare simplicity is so abstruse as to be
quite incomprehensible to the beginner, and in order to
guide him to the name of a plant which he may have found,
artificial keys are made, which frequently turn out to be far
more bewildering than the Linnean arrangement.

It is not, however, so much botanical classification that we
are concerned with, as nomenclature, and this Linneus may
be said to have based on such sound principles that in

64 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

all essential particulars his canons still remain a law to
botanists. Nothing will better illustrate the principles of
modern botanical nomenclature than these canons. They
are as follow : —

I. The names of plants are of two kinds : those of the
class and order, which are understood; and those of the
genus and species, which are expressed. The name of the
class and order never enter into the denominations of a plant.

3. All plants agreeing in genus are to have the same
generic name.

3. All i)lants differing in genus are to have a distinct
generic name.

4. Each generic name must be single.

5. Two different genera cannot be designated by the
same name.

6. It is the business of those who distinguish new genera
to name them.

7. Generic names derived from barbarous languages
ought on no account to be admitted.

8. Generic names compounded of two entire words are
improper, and ought to be excluded. Thus Vitis-Idsea
must give way to Vaccinium, and Crista- Galli to Khi-
nanthus.

9. Generic names formed of two Latin words are scarcely
tolerable. Some of them have been admitted, such as
Cornuco^i<^, 'Rosmarinus, Sempert'w?t??i, &c., but these
examples are not to be imitated.

10. Generic names formed half of Latin and half of
Greek are hybrid, and on no account to be admitted ; such as
Cardamm^2(^?72, ChrysanthemincZzt??i, &c.

II. Generic names compounded of the entire generic
name of one plant, and a portion of that of another, are
unworth}" of Botany; Cannacorz6S, lAMonarcissus^ Lauro-
cerasiis.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 65

12. A generic name, to which is prefixed one or more
syllables, so as to alter its signification, and render it
applicable to other plants is not admissible; as Bulho-
castanum, Cynocrsimbe, ChamcBnenum.

13. Generic names ending in " oides " are to be rejected ;
as kgrimonoides, Asteroides, &c.

14. Generic names formed of other generic names, with
the addition of some final syllable, are disagreeable, as
Aceiosella, Balsamic, 'R2i]}istrum, &c.

15. Generic names sounding alike lead to confusion.

16. No generic names can be admitted except such as are
derived from either the Greek or Latin languages.

17. Generic names appertaining previously to Zoology,
or other Sciences, are to be cancelled, if subsequently
applied in Botany.

18. Generic names at variance with the characters of any
of the species are bad.

19. Generic names the same as those of the class or order
cannot be tolerated.

20. Adjective generic names are not so good as substantive
ones, but may be admitted.

21. Generic names ought not to be misapplied to gaining
the goodwill or favour of saints or persons celebrated in
other Sciences ; they are the only reward that the botanist
can expect, and are intended for him alone.

22. Nevertheless, ancient poetical names of deities or of
great promoters of the Science are worthy of being retained.

23. Generic names that express the essential character or
habit of a plant are the best of all.

24. The ancient names of the classics are to be respected.

25. We have no right to alter an ancient generic
name to one more modern, even though it may be for the
better : this would in the first place be an endless labour,
and in the next place would tend to inextricable confusion.

G6 HISTORY OP BOTANY.

26. If new generic names are wanted it must first be
ascertained whether no one among the existing synonyms is
applicable.

27. If an old genus is divided into several new ones the
old name will remain with the species that is best known.

28. The termination and euphony of generic names are to
be consulted as far as practicable.

29. Long, awkward, disagreeable names are to be avoided,
as Calophyllodendron of Vaillant, Coriotragematodendros
of Plukenet, and the like.

30. The names of classes and orders are subject to the
same rules as those of genera. They ought always to
express some essential and characteristic marks.

31. The names of both classes and orders must always
consist of a single word, and not of sentences.

Lindley remarks of these canons* that they are undoubt-
edly excellent in many respects, that we must attribute
much of the greater perfection of Natural History, since the
time of Linneus, to the adoption of them, and that they are
constantly appealed to by the school of Linneus as a
standard of language from which no departure whatever
is allowable. He continues : — " It is, however, necessary to
remark, that notwithstanding the undoubted excellence of
many of these rules, yet there are others adherence to which
is often out of the question, and which have indeed fallen
wholly into disuse. It seems to be an admitted principle
that it is of little real importance what name an object
bears, provided it serves to distinguish that object from
everything else. This being so it will follow that Nos. 7, 9,
11, 12, 14 and 16 of the Linnsean canons are either
frivolous or unimportant, or at least that no person is
bound, either in reason or by custom, to observe them.
This is particularly apparent in considering the practice

^' * Introduction to Botany.'

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 67

now universally adopted, altliongh condemned by Linnaeus,
of converting the names by which plants are known in
countries called barbarous into scientific generic names, by
adding a Latin termination to them ; " and he comes to this
conclusion — "I agree with those who think a good well-
sounding unmeaning name as good as any that can be
contrived."

I shall not be alone in dissenting from this opinion, but
its being held by such a high authority as Lindley will serve
as a reason why many scientific names are mere gibberish?
as far as lies in their possessing in themselves any compre-
hensible meaning. This does not apply so much to the
nomenclature of the British Flora as to the Botany of the
world.

The great excellence of Linneus' plan will perhaps appear
more plainly by a comparison of his names with those of the
most eminent botanists of his time. If we take up the
' Hortus Elthamensis,' of Dillenius, we find that the name
generally consisted of three words, and these were fre-
quently followed by about three more, of less importance,
but still part of the name, thus : — " Bidens latifolia hirsiitior
semine angustiore radiato." This is the " Bidens pilosa " of
Linneus ; " Bidens Succissefolio, radio amplo laciniato " of
Dillenius, is "Coreopsis lanceolata" of Linneus. Again, if
we refer to the sjmonyms in Willdenow's ' Species Plantarum '
we find that Haller called " Helleborus foetidus," of Linneus,
"Helleborus ramosus multiflorus, foliis multipartitis, serratis,
stipulis ovato-lanceolatis, coloratis."

This was the Idnd of nomenclature which Rivinus did
much to amend, but which Linneus put in its present form.
Names without any meaning cannot generally be held as
good as those which convey at least some smattering of
information to impress them on the memory, if for no other
reason. It might be said that the names of people applied

f2- •

08 HISTOEY OF BOTANY.

to plants give us no information, but this is not exact!}' the
case: "Sherardia" could not have received its name before
the time of the Sherards, nor "Linn?ea" before the time
of Linneus ; so that these names ■ at least give us a scrap
of information in botanical history.

Sir J. E. Smith took an entirely different view from
Professor Lindley. He says: — "Botanists of the Linnean
school, however, admit no such generic names from any
other language than the Greek or Latin, all others being
esteemed barbarous. Without this rule we should be over-
whelmed, not only with a torrent of uncouth and unmanage-
able words, but we should be puzzled where to fix our
choice, as the same plant may have fifty different original
denominations in different parts of the world, and we might
happen to choose one by which it is least known." But
even Smith, though a strong supporter of Linnean rule,
admits some exceptions : — " Perhaps the barbarous name of
some very local plants, when they cannot possibly have been
known previously by any other, and when that name is
harmonious and easily reconcilable to the Latin tongue,
may be admitted, as that of the Japan shrub, Aucuba ; but
such a word as Ginkgo is intolerable."

As is usual in other cases, so it has happened in this;
custom does not settle down to extreme views, but takes a
middle course. It would seem that where convenience, or
some other very good reason, justifies a deviation from the
Linnean system, it would be least likely to lead to confusion
if such cases were considered exceptions, and not fresh
principles which should abrogate any of the Linnean canons.
For after all naturalists universally concur in adopting this
system of our authority, nothing better having been
invented. And these canons are the rules by which
Linneus guided himself:* they comprehend, in fact, the

- Being evidently very methodical, Linneus was apparently in the

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 69

system; and it would seem doubtful if there is anything
more to be said in favour of these so-called barbarous names,
than that from want of that lively and fanciful imagination
which Linneus possessed so largely ; or from the difficulty,
if not impossibility, of finding some special botanical differ-
ence which should distinguish a genus from all others, and
could be commodiously expressed by a Greek or Latin
name, botanists have been forced to take the best course
they knew.

I just mentioned the lively imagination of Linneus ; Smith
thus draws attention to some of his quaint fancies : — " Lin-
nscus in his entertaining book ' Critica Botanica ' has in
several instances drawn a fanciful analogy between botanists
and their appropriate plants — thus, Bauhinia, after the two
distinguished brothers John and Caspar Bauhin, has a
two-lobed or twin leaf. Scheuchzeria, a grassy alpine plant,
commemorates the two Scheuchzers, one of whom excelled
in the knowledge of alpine plants, the other in that of grasses.

" Dorstenia, with its obsolete flowers devoid of all beauty,
alludes to the antiquated and uncouth book of Dorstenius.

"Hernandia, an American plant, the most beautiful of
all trees in its foliage, but furnished with trifling blossoms,
bears the name of a botanist highly favoured by fortune,
and allowed an ample salary for the purpose of investigating
the Natural History of the western world, but whose labours
have not answered the expense," Sec.

This may be called scientific trifling, and Smith chuckles
over instances where, coupled with a trivial name, such
a plan has become offensive. " Buffonia tenuifolia," he
says, " is well known to be a satire on the slender botanical
pretensions of the great French zoologist, as the Hillia

liabit of first laying down the principles and rules by which he guided
himself in his writings. We find a set of similar canons in the intro-
duction to different works of his.

70 HISTORY OF BOTA^-Y.

parasitica of Jacquin, though perhaps not meant, is an
equally just one upon our pompous Sir John Hill." Then
he becomes severely Tirtuous, and exceeding fierce : — " I
mean not to approve of such satires. They stain the puiity
of our lovely Science. If a botanist does not deser^'e com-
memoration, let him sink peacefully into oblivion. It
savours of malignity to make his crown a crown of thorns,
and if the application be unjust it is truly diaboHcal."

As to the naming of classes and orders there are no fixed
rules that have been attended to in the modern systepi,
though Canons 30 and 31 might weU apply; consequently
there is no absolute uniformity. Lindley, in his great
work ' The Vegetable Kingdom' (1846) adopts the uniform
system of selecting one plant as the type of an order and
adding accce to its name, but this plan has not been generally
followed, and, however we may desii'e uniformity, it is open
to some objection. If we apply the principles of Linnean
rule, Canon 23 would lead us to think that Lindley has not
improved upon the naming of Jussieu and others in many
cases. Thus Cruciferae (bearing cross-shaped flowers or
crucifers) would seem better than Brassicacese* (the Cabbage
family), because it exjpresses better the character of the
order. Compositas (compound flowers) is superior to
Asteracese (the Aster family); for in the case of common
gi-oundsel, and many other plants of the order, the ray which
gives the star-Kke appearance is usually wanting. In the
same way Leguminosse (pod-bearing plants) is preferable
to Fabacege (the Bean family), for though neither is perfect
(as some Legumiuosae bear drupes and not pods), the
Bean only represents one sub-order of this extensive tribe
(the Papilionacete, or butterfly-shaped flowers) out of three-
Again, for similar reasons, I prefer StellataB (star plants, in
reference to the whorls of leaves) to GaHaceae (Bedstraw

■■'• Lindley lias Brassicaceae, Cmcifers, Asteracea^, Composites !

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 71

family), and Gramina (grasses) is more convenient and
euphonious than Graminacese (grass family : see Canon 28).

We will consider now the second name which is given to
plants. The first is called the substantive, or generic name,
and the second the trivial, or specific name. It serves to
point out the particular species of each genus, as generic
names make separate divisions of an order, and they are
governed to a great extent by the rules already cited, but
being of less consequence greater latitude is tolerated. As
might be expected there is every shade of merit to be found
in these names ; they are good, bad, and indifi'erent. First,
we apply the four comers of heaven — north, south, east and
west, or borealis, australis, orientalis, and occidentalis ; or
the names of countries — as European, Asian, African,
American, europaeus, asiaticus, africanus, americanus; or
the names of countries— as English, Welsh, Scotch, Irish,
French, German, auglicus, cambricus, scoticus, hibernicus,
gallicus, germanicus, &c. ; or still again in reference to pai'-
ticular places — as monensis, belonging to the Isle of Man ;
lancastriensis, to Lancaster; tunbridgensis, to Tunbridge
Wells ; cornubiensis, to Cornwall, &c. As this class of names
becomes more particular it becomes of less value, for it rarely
happens that a plant is confined to one particular habitat.

Those names that point out a decided specific character
are the best; as Arenaria trinervis (with three-nerved
leaves), Chlora perfohata (stems perfoliate), Epipactis
ensifolia (leaves sword- shaped), grandiflora (large flowers),
latifolia (broad leaves), &c. Then there are comparative
names that are also good ; as Sagittaria sagittifolia (arrow-
shaped leaves), Ranunculus hederaceus (ivy-like), Rubus
corylifolius (hazel-leaved). Next we have names that indi-
cate some particular habit of a plant; as Scilla nutans
(nodding, in allusion to the flowers), Potamogeton natans

72 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

(floating, alluding to the leaves). Tliere are other names,
referring to the duration of the species; as Mercurialis
perennis (perennial), M. annua (annual) : and to the situa-
tions in which they grow ; as Myosotis palustris (swamp),
Vicia sepium (of hedges) : or the time of flowering ; as Scilla
verna (spring), Leucoium jestivum (summer) ; and in fact
anything will serve for a good trivial name provided that it
is correct, but generally those founded on the colour; of the
flowers are not good, because it is a variable feature, thus
Digitalis purpurea (purple foxglove) has very commonly
white flowers, and the gardeners' name of "Digitalis
purpurea alba" shows the absurdities such names would
lead us into. There are many similar cases : I will instance,
in the British Flora, Viola lutea (yellow violet). Now, accord-
ing to high authority,* this species is not necessarily yellow.f
Then again Milkwort (Polygala vulgaris), though generally
blue, we frequently find red, white, and blue, in the compass
of a few yards, and to have called it ceerulea would have
been to give it a bad specific name.

The same may be said of Poor-man's Weatherglass
(Anagallis arvensis), which is met both with pink and blue
flowers, the two sorts being formerly called mas ^nd fcemina
(male and female) ; we have also Greek Valerian (Polmonium
cseruleum), both white and blue; and the same with our
common Blue-bell. So the colour of flowers must be taken
as a bad specific distinction, and if, as in the case of
Anagallis, specific distinctions are believed to exist, they
should be founded on other characters than colour.

'•■ Bentham.

f Though I have seen this plant growing in such profusion as to
attract the attention of ahnost every passer by, as, for instance,
between Chapel en-le-Frith and Castleton in the High Peak, and
between Aberystwith and the Devil's Bridge, all yellow, I have fre-
quently met with parti-coloured flowers that I could not refer to any
other species.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 73

It is not imusual to apply the name of the first describer
of a species as a specific name (spelt of course with a capital
letter) in the possessive case, as Lepidium Smithii (Smith's
Cress) ; while a personal name with an adjective termination
is properly used as a specific name w^hen it is complimentary
only, as Carex Boenninghauseniana, which is one of the longest
botanical names I know. Such names are to be deprecated
(see Canon 29) as uncouth and inconvenient, " and it is
allowable to model them into grace as much as possible.
Thus the elegant Tournefort made Gundelia from Gundel-
scheimer, which induced me to choose Goodenia for my
much honoured and valued friend Dr. Goodenough, now
bishop of Carlisle, though it has when too late been
suggested that Goodenovia might have been preferable "
(Smith). This is in reference to generic names, but the
same principle applies to specific ones.

The method of naming plants remains as it was
left by Linneus, with the exception of such few and
trifling variations from his rules as have been already
pointed out. It will therefore not be necessary to
pursue this sketch of the history of nomenclature
further. Most of our British ' Floras ' give the authority
for every new generic and specific name since Linneus.
An improved system of classification, on scientific and
comprehensive principles, occupied for a long time the
attention of botanists, and their labours have resulted in the
now universally adopted "Natural System"* as it is called.
Ray has been already mentioned as propounding the prin-
ciples on which it is based. The most important Natural

••' Though a convenient and usual tenn this is a misnomer, as is
universally admitted, for aU the systems of classification are artificial.
It is not given to us to measure out creation, — we can but index it in an
imperfect manner.

74 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

Systems afterwards published are those of Jussieu, 1789 ;
De Candolle, 1819; Endlicher, 1836; and Lindley, 1846.*

'■^' A full account of these may be found in Lindley's 'Vegetable
Kingdom.' The most approved method of learning the modern system
is by means of schedules to be filled in by tlie student, invented by the
late Professor Henslow, wliich is fully and clearly explained in
Professor Oliver's ' Lessons in Elementary Botany.'

CHAPTEE VII.

SUPPLEMENTARY.

Though I have thought it best not to prolong the fore-
gomg sketch beyond Linneus, I hesitate to omit a short
account of three illustrious botanists of our own country, who
were contemporaries, were of world-wide repute, and who
have not long since passed from us. I allude to Smith,
Lindley, and Brown, placing them in that order because the
two first have been so often mentioned in conjunction, or
02)position, in the last chapter, as representatives of two
systems, though chronologically Lindley should be placed
last. A brief notice of these authorities is not impertinent
to our subject, for they were all plant-namers of great
experience, but as they are exceptions to my general plan I
introduce them in a supplementary chapter.

James Edward Smith was born at Norwich, 1759, and
received his first education at home. At eighteen years of
age he turned his attention earnestly to Botany, and wishing
to devote his life to medicine and natural science he went
in 1781 to Edinburgh, to prosecute his studies. While
there he was instrumental in forming a Society for the Study
of Natural History, and was elected first president. In 1783
he went to London to study under John Hunter and Dr^
Pitcairn, and was introduced to most of the best scientific

76 HISTORY or botany.

society of that time. By the advice of Sir Joseph
Banks,* the well-known patron of naturalists, and with the
assistance of his father, Smith purchased the collections of
Linneus, which were then on sale, for nine hundred guineas.
It was, however, only by a lucky chance that this valuable
property was not lost to our country, for though, with the
intention of combining the profession of medicine with
lecturing on Natural History, Smith prevailed on his father to
advance the purchase money, when Gustavus III. of Sweden,
who had been absent in France, heard of the transaction,
he sent a vessel to the Somid to intercept the ship
which was conveying it; fortunately he was too late. In

1785 Smith was elected a Fellow of the Koyal Society. In

1786 he travelled through Holland, France, Italy, and
Switzerland, and in Holland obtained the degree of M.D. at
Leyden. On returning to England, Botany soon occupied
nearly the whole of his time. In conjunction with Sir
Joseph Banks, Dr. Goodenough, and a few others, he
founded the Linnean Society in 1788, of which he was first
president, and retained the post for forty years. He
delivered lectures on Zoology and Botany at his own house,
and on Botany at Guy's Hospital. In 1814 he received the
honour of knighthood from George lY., and died 1828.

-'' Sir Joseph Banks must he briefly noticed as the Maecenas of
liis time (see Virgil, p. 5). He was of ancient family, and a
great jjatron of natm-alists. He was also a great traveller ; he went
with Captain Cook to observe the transit of Venus in 1768, and in
1771 brought home numerous specimens of plants from Otaheite,
Terra del Fuego, New Zealand, and Australia. He was for some time
President of the Eoyal Society, and died 1820, at the age of 77. He
was not a writer of any great work, but contributed many valuable
papers to several learned societies. As a patron of Botany, in which
he especially took dehglit. Sir Joseph Banks must be credited with
having done a great deal to forward the Science. He was exceedingly
liberal, and his treasures were open to men of science at all times.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 77

The works of Sir James Edward Smith on Botany are
very numerous and valuable. Among them may be mentioned
his ' Introduction to Botany,' Grammar of Botany,' ' English
Flora,' 'English Botan}^' illustrated by Sowerby ("flip-
pantly" as he complains, called 'Sowerby's Botany'), the
botanical articles in Kees' ' Cj'clopsedia,' and a translation
of Linneus' Lapland journal.

Smith was not only a learned and excellent botanist, but
his writings are at the same time very interesting and
amusing ; they are not dry. Judging from his works one
would say that he was naturally quick of apprehension, a
close observer, and a man of great industry, but highly
critical and combative, and sometimes rather peppery in his
temper. Of course we might expect that Smith would be a
great upholder of Linnean rule, as he became in youth the
possessor of Linneus' treasures, and, as it were, continued
his work, so that he was apt to hold too cheap the principles
of a new and not yet fully accepted system for which he did
not see the necessit}^ It must not, therefore, be judged
that Sir J. E. Smith was not a good vegetable physiologist
or systematic botanist; his works prove the contrary. I am
inclined to think that we cannot yet with advantage put the
Linnean sexual system completely on one side.*

John Lindley was an admirable botanist, who attempted
an extension of the natural system of De Candolle, which,
though it seems to possess great merit, has not taken much
hold on the botanical world so far. He was born at Cotton,
near Norwich, where his father had a nursery garden, and
was educated at the Norwich Grammar School. We may
say of this painstaking, accomplished, and industrious
botanist, that his life was a pretty even-running career, and

'^' The Eev. Mr. Henslow's plant scliediiles include a statement of
tlie Linnean class and order, and tliey are generally approved.

78 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

leaves little for the pen of the biographer in the way of
striking incident. The amount of work that he did was
prodigious, and we shall be best enabled to appreciate the
man by reference to his publications. Chief among them is
* The Vegetable Kingdom ; or the Structure, Classification,
and Uses of Plants, illustrated upon the Natural System,'
1846. It is a large work of over 900 pages, and is illustrated
by upwards of 500 pictures, which are not only beautifully
executed, but so well selected as to show the student almost
at a glance the method of classification, by dissections which
exhibit the peculiarities of particular parts or organs, as
fruits, seeds, stamens, pistils, ovaries, or the arrangement
of the floral whorls. Lindley divides the vegetable kingdom
into seven classes ; these again into fifty-six alliances, as he
calls them ; and these into 303 natural orders, which proceed
from the simplest forms (Diatoms) to the most complex.
Each order is described as to structure, an account is given
of its distribution, and some of the most important and
striking genera with their uses; and at the end of each
chapter a list of the recorded genera, and the number, as
near as may be, of species. Lindley is much to be admired
for the clearness of his style, and for his excellent illustra-
tions. He was not only a profound botanist, but a popular
writer also ; and yet my experience of some of his professedly
elementary works is that they do not completely answer
their purpose ; for I remember in a school of about thirty
boys, which would give a fair average of intellect and enthu-
siasm, not one made any progress in Botany, though the
class book was Lindley's ' School Botany,' an admirable
work and very light reading to those who understand the
subject beforehand.

We have just noticed the strong predilection of Smith for
the Linnean system. Lindley was equally bigoted, or I
will say enthusiastic, in favour of the natural system, and

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 79

occasionally his enthusiasm carried him beyond all sustain-
able grounds, thus laying him open to much hostile criticism.
For instance, it is not a proposition that can be maintained
that plants falling into a certain natural order have in all
cases the same or similar effects, if taken into the human
stomach. Such a statement as the following in praise of
the natural 'system is not only exaggerated but absurd : —
"Its advantage in applying Botany to useful purposes
is immense, especially to medical men,* who depend
so much upon the vegetable kingdom for their remedial
agents. A knowledge of the properties of one plant
enables the practitioner to judge scientifically of the
qualities of other plants naturally allied to it, and there-
fore the physician acquainted with the natural system of
Botany may direct his inquiries, when on foreign station,
not empirically, but upon fixed principles, into the qualities
of the medical plants, which have been provided in every
region for the alleviation of the maladies peculiar to it.t . . .
Every one of these bears inscribed upon it the uses to which
it may be applied, the dangers to be apprehended from it, or
the virtues with which it has been endowed." Now sup-
posing for a moment we glance over the order Leguminosse

^- Though formerly medical men were always botanists, this is not
now even generally the case, beyond the knowledge necessary to an
apothecary, nor excepting in rare circumstances would Botany be of
any special service to them in their profession. I do not write as a
medical man, neither did Lindley.

f This is a cmious fancy, which would lead us to curious conclu-
sions. Thus we might infer from it that the most sterile lands had
the fewest diseases, and vice versa, in regular gradation ; or, that it is
an error in principle for us in England to use such medicines as opium
or quinine. If the statement is not a fact we might fancy another
provision of Providence : that medicines, as well as many other things
that we find of great use, are so distributed over the world as to oblige,
or induce, the different members of the human family to help one
another.

80 HISTORY OF BOTANY.

(pod-bearing plants), which numbers at least 6500 species,
we find the greatest diversity in qualities and effects. There
is scarcely a purpose for which we use vegetation to which
this order does not contribute : — for fodder we have clover
and vetches ; for human food peas and beans in great
variety; for ornament we tolerate in our gardens the
laburnum, a deadly poison; among dye-stuffs we have
indigo, red saunders, &c. ; tanning materials, divi-divi, &c. ;
gums, Arabic, tragacanth, &c. ; medicine, senna, — and so on
we might go for pages ; for such differences may be found
in most of the larger orders, and where there is great
uniformity, as in the Crucifers and Mallows, it is rather a
curious exception than a general rule. Of Lindley's other
works may be mentioned the following : — ' Monograph on
Roses,' 1820, with drawings executed by himself, followed by
works on several other special subjects. His ' Introduction
to the Natural System' appeared in 1830, and afterwards

* Elements of Botany,' 'Figures of Plants,' 'Introduction to the
Study and Physiology of Plants,' ' School Botany,' ' Medical
Flora,' &c. He devoted much attention to Orchids, and
also made a study of fossil Botany, on which he wrote a
work. Besides all this he was for many years editor of the

* Botanical Register,' and from its commencement edited the
horticultural part of the ' Gardeners' Chronicle.' Further
he was Professor of Botany in University College, London,
from 1829 to 1860, when he resigned; he was also lecturer
on Botany at the Royal Institution, and at the Apothecaries'
Garden, at Chelsea, was secretary of the Horticultural
Society, and edited their ' Transactions ' and ' Proceedings.'
He was a Fellow of the Royal, Linnean, and Geological
Societies.* He died in 1865.

" In his ' Introduction to Botany,' 3rd ed., 1839, Lindley incident-
ally mentions his herbarium as containing 30,000 species ; those who
have collections of dried plants will understand how much labour this

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 81

In Robert Brown we have a botanist with whom it is a
satisfaction to bring to a close the first part of this work.
He was not only a great botanist, but a great traveller ; he
was not only of world-wide fame, but was one of that kind
of men whose life seems to have a mysterious influence on
the heart. Scratchy pens cease to spirt, and acrid ink
becomes more kindly in writing of them, and so their
memory is handed down from one to another ; we cannot
tell exactly how this is, though we might recall several
instances. Such a one was Robert Brown.

To quote one of his biograiohers* he was " one of the
most distinguished botanists that Britain ever produced."
He was the son of a Scotch Episcopalian clergyman, and was
bom at Montrose, in 1778, was educated at Marischal
College, Aberdeen, and afterwards studied at Edinburgh,
attending the lectures of Dr. Rutherford, Professor of
Botany, in the University. After passing his examination
at the College of Surgeons, he was appointed assistant
surgeon and ensign to a regiment of Scotch fencibles,

implies. Many would think 1000 specimens in all was a fair collection ;
hear Lindley as to keeping specimens well an-anged : — " We constantly
find botanists emban-assed by multitudes of unarranged specimens. As
this is a great evil, I trust that a few hints may not be without their
use ; especially as by attending to them myself I have probably not
500 unaiTanged specimens in a herbarium of more than 30,000 species."
So 500 specimens was to him a mere bagatelle,— practically the same
as having his di-awer empty !

■■' Professor Balfom* in 'Imperial Dictionaiy of Universal Bio-
gi-aphy.' This short sketch of the life and works of Eobert Brown is
chiefly taken from that som-ce. There is a Gei*man translation of his
works fi'om 1825 to 1834, in five volumes, by Dr. C. G. Nees von
Esenbeck, in conjunction with some friends, the two first published
in Leipsic, and the others at Niirnberg. These include an account of
his Aush-aUan discoveries, a Flora of New Holland and Van Dieman's
Land, and numerous other works.

G

88 HISTOEY OF BOTANY.

stationed in the north of Ireland, where he remained until
1800, prosecuting his botanical studies with great zeal and
success. About this time he became acquainted with Sir
Joseph Banks, by whom Brown was recommended as
naturalist to the expedition sent out by the Government to
explore the coasts of Australia, under Captain Matthew
Flinders, in the ship 'Investigator,' 1801. . The vessel
reached King George's Sound, on the south-west of Aus-
tralia, 1802. Remaining there three weeks, he next visited
Port Jackson, and in July, 1802, the survey was continued
to the northern and north-eastern shores, the gulf of Carpen-
taria, and the Pellew, Wellesley, and Wessel's islands.
Then the ship went wrong, and the crew became sick, which
caused an alteration of the plans, and the expedition
returned to Port Jackson, arriving there June, 1803.

There had been great mortality among the crew, and the
ship was condemned as unseaworthy, so Captain Flinders
would return home. Brown and some others remained, and
Captain Flinders intended to have returned, but suffering
the double misfortune of shipwreck and imprisonment by
the French governor of Mauritius, his plans became some-
what disarranged. Brown and the rest of the party
remained until 1805, exploring the Blue Mountains, and
other parts of New South Wales, as well as Tasmania and
the islands in Bass' Straits.

As Captain Flinders did not arrive. Brown returned home,
bringing with him a collection of 4000 species of plants.
Shortly afterwards he became librarian to Sir Joseph Banks,
and was subsequently appointed librarian of the Linnean
Society. He was now in a position to give careful attention
to his collection of plants, and published accounts both of
them and of his journeyings; he also contributed a number
of valuable papers to the ' Transactions ' of the Linnean
Society.

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 83

In 1823 Brown came into possession of the library and
herbarium of Sir Joseph Banks, who bequeathed them to
him for his life. The collection of plants he offered to the
British Museum, and he was appointed keeper of the
botanical department in 1827, which post he occupied until
his death.

In 1811 Brown became a Fellow of the Koyal Society ; in
1832 he received the degree of D.C.L. from the University
of Oxford, and in 1833 he was elected one of the foreign
associates of the French Academy of Sciences. In 1839
the Copley medal was awarded to him by the Eoyal Society
for his researches on vegetable impregnation. In 1849 he
was elected president of the Linnean Society, which office
he resigned in 1853. He received from Sir Robert Peel a
pension of £200 a year for his scientific merits, and died in
London, 1858.

*' Brown was a botanist of the highest stamp. He
possessed singular acumen, and was denominated by
Humboldt ' botanicorum facile princeps ' " (which may be
freely rendered, the acknowledged chief of botanists).
"All his writings display a wonderful power of botanical
analysis, and an enlarged view of vegetable affinities. His
name is known wherever Botany is cultivated as a Science,
and his researches have promoted the advancement of
Botany during the long period of nearly half a century. As
a private friend he was loved, and respected. He was
admired by a large circle of attached friends for the sound-
ness of his judgment, the simplicity of his habits, and the
kindness of his disposition."

So we may say in conclusion that though Great Britain
was a laggard in Botany three hundred years ago, she has
since amply made amends in all branches of its stud}^ I
only wish that space would permit me to make this still
more apparent.

g2

PART II,

The Derivations and Meanings of the Scientific
Names of Plants generally admitted into the
British Flora as Natives or Colonists.

§ 1. SUBSTANTIVE NAMES.
§2. ADJECTIVE NAMES.

INTKODUCTION.

In the earlier part of this work it has been explained how
the present system of nomenclature came about. Eivinus
first hit upon the idea of having two names only, and
Linneus brought this plan into complete order. We have
now only two names for a plant ; still in limited works, as
local Floras and Monographs on particular genera, we
frequently meet with a third name, as Athyrium Filix-
foemina, var. plumosum, a form of Lady-fern, and such
additions require a word of explanation.

It has been found impossible to fix precise limits for
species, and so very careful study by different botanists
has given rise to differences of opinion as to whether certain
plants are distinct species from each other or not. It was
long ago observed that under a specific name of Linneus
were ranged a number of forms, which were often greatl}*"
different in some respects, and these forms were generally
recorded under the Greek letters, a, ^, y, 3; &c. Some
botanists have a tendency to see great importance in these
differences of form, and would make several distinct species,
while others think them of little consequence as specific
distinctions, and reunite groups that have been separated.
Thus Bentham (' Handbook of the British Flora ') treats
as forms, or varieties only of Primula veris, those three

88 NAMES OF PLANTS.

which have been separated as species, P. veris, P. vulgaris,
and P. elatior. Again some would divide Viola canina into
V. sjdvatica, V. flavicornis, V. lactea, &c., while others
would write under V. canina: — These forms have been dis-
tinguished, a. sylvatica, h. flavicornis, c. lactea. These two
schools have been jocularly called "lumpers" and
" splitters " respectively. In most cases it has to be con-
ceded to the painstaking " splitter" that he has distinguished
what to all appearance are permanently distinct forms,
though many distinguished theorists do not believe there is
such a thing as a permanently distinct form in all creation.
Without reference to these difi'erences of opinion there
remains the question whether it is expedient to multiply
species beyond certain limits. If the same plan were
adopted throughout the vegetable kingdom that has been
worked out, or is still progressing, with the British Flora,
in the course of a few hundred years — probably much
sooner — Botany would become a mere ocean of words, and
we should relapse into that chaos from which Linneus
rescued us.

It frequently hai)pens that on labels in gardens, conser-
vatories, &c., the word variety is omitted for convenience,
but this need not mislead ; thus w^e may see in a fern-house,
Gymnogramma peruviana argyrophylla, where the last word
is not a part of the name or of much botanical importance.
The same applies to all cases where we find three names.

As generic distinctions are more important than specific
ones, because they include the latter, so a generic name is
considered more important than a specific one. We have
seen from his canons how careful Linneus was to preserve
old generic names, so far as was practicable. In order to
do this to the greatest extent possible, he used an old single
name given to the plant, when there was one, as a second or
trivial name, where he found it necessary to place a plant

NAMES OF PLANTS. 89

under a newly distinguislied genus. Of this we have many
instances : thus Yellow-rattle was formerly called Crista-
galli, but Linneus requiring a generic name for this and
other si^ecies, and rejecting Crista-galli as unfit for his
purpose (see Canon 8, p. 64) called the genus Rhinanthus,
and this particular species Crista-galli. The same is the
case with Achillea Millefolium, Aconitum Napellus, Adian-
tum Capillus-Veneris, Eanunculus Flammula, Spiraea Ul-
maria, Teucrium Botrys, (fee.

In all these cases the second name is an old substantive
name. It is commemorative, and not adjectival; we have
two substantive names together, and in order to preserve
the old name the more distinctly it is spelt with a capital
letter, and retains its original termination irrespective of the
other name with which it is joined; thus we say Galium
Cruciata, Anthriscus Cerefolium, Polygonum Bistorta, &c.,
in which the terminations do not agree as to gender. All
these names are included in my first list, or that of sub-
stantive names.

Trivial names taken from the names of people (as
explained p. 73) are spelt with a capital letter, while those
derived from the names of continents, countries, or places,
are generally spelt with a small letter, though by some with
a capital. According to English usage we might think it
the more correct plan to spell such like names with a capital
letter, but as affecting the clearness of botanical nomencla-
ture the small letter is preferable, and it was always used by
Linneus. A capital letter to a trivial name loses something
of its significance if it is applied in too many ways. In
most cases when a plant is specified by the name of its
habitat, this is expressed in the form of an adjective, as
Euphorbia portlandica (Linneus), Portland Spurge ; but
sometimes the same object is attained by using a substantive
in the possessive case, as Saccharum Teneriffse (Willdenow),

90 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Sugar-cane of Teneriflfe. In this case the second name is
si^elt with a capital letter. It is rather a nice distinction,
for Willdenow has close beside the last-mentioned plant
Saccharum benghalense, or Bengal Sugar-cane. The same
principle applies to the names of plants. We do not write
Tanacetifolium, Tansy-leaved, or Corylifolius, Hazel-leaved,
as the form is adjectival, but we write Cuscuta Trifolii
(Babington), Dodder of Clover, because Trifolii is a proper
name in the possessive case.

After the explanations given as to the use of a capital
letter for the second names of plants I do not think it is
necessary to notice them further. If we meet with an old
substantive name it should be found in my first list, and if
it is the name of a person or a country it may be judged of
by the termination. Where a trivial name is the same as
an ordinary botanical term, I have pointed it out by repeat-
ing the word in its English form and explaining it.

It is unnecessary to encumber the text with the accidence
of Greek and Latin, for it would be equally useless to
anyone, whether he understood these languages or not. I
have therefore taken no notice at all of the terminations. A
few words of explanation will be sufficient.

The terminations of Latin adjectives may be taken gene-
rally to be governed in this way : masculine, us; feminine, a ;
neuter, um ; — as Sicui-us, acut-a, Sicnt-um, according to the
substantive name with which it may happen to be joined.
In other cases where the termination is is, it serves for the
masculine and feminine genders, being changed to e for the
neuter, as gracilis, gracile. We have masculine niger
(black), feminine, nigra, neuter, nigrum, but such instances
are not common. Where they occur I have written them
out in full.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 91

Pbonunciation of Scientific Names.
It would be impossible to lay clown absolute rules for the
correct pronunciation of scientific names, and absurd to
insist upon the accuracy of a certain pronunciation when
another may be more usual. The Greek and Latin are dead
languages, and each nation pronounces them according to
the usage of its own language. We have good reason to
suppose that the purest Latin spoken in our English fashion
would have sounded exceedingly strange to an ancient Roman,
and we are told by those who have studied the subject that we
have no certain knowledge as to how these languages were
pronounced. Their poets yield us valuable information as to
the accentuation of words and the number of syllables, but
even in this they are not certain guides. The Greek language
guides us phonetically better than the Latin, because its
alphabet contains a letter representing our short e (as in
pet), and another representing the long sound (as in peat);
also it has a short o (as in on), and a long o (as in hone).
It was also the custom to write Greek with marked accents.
Rules have been laid down' in schools of learning, deduced
from the critical examination of classical writings, but it is
foreign to my purpose to dwell on them ;— further, critical
opinion on these subjects continually changes.

We must then fall back on usage, but even then we have
this perplexity— What kind of usage? Suppose we examine
the English language as spoken in Great Britain; the
EngHshman, the Scotchman, the Irishman, the Welshman,
has each his own way of speaking it, and we may generally
at once distinguish his province by his accent. And what
is true of the greater divisions applies (though in a less
degree) to nearly every county : thus the Lancashire dialect
is all but incomprehensible to a native of the south of
England, and can be even readily distinguished from that of

92 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Cheshire, Derbj^shire, or Yorkshire. These differences are
not confined to the working classes, for though they might
be all equally learned, and use precisely the same terms and
phrases, the pronunciation of an Englishman, Scotchman,
or Irishman, each a graduate of a university of his own
country, is very different, especially in the sound of the
vowels. Such peculiarities of pronunciation need not, how-
ever, lead us into any confusion, for in the case of educated
men the same method is followed uniformly in their whole
discourse. I think, therefore, that we may safely adopt the
usage of our universities, as exemplified by their graduates
in all parts of the country, especially in our pulpits and law
courts. It is true these learned men may know nothing of
Botany, or have no occasion to pronounce botanical names*
but, as I just stated, we in England pronounce Latin and
Greek generally in the same way as we pronounce English,
so that a correct pronunciation of the latter leads to, and is
necessary for, the correct or usual pronunciation of scientific
names. As to accentuation, it is usually marked in our
British Floras as decided by botanists who are also classical
scholars, and frequently university professors; if any one
desires to pronounce these names in what w^ould be
considered the most correct manner by competent judges, it
will have to be accomplished by observation of the usage of
competent men, and study of the accents as set down in the
books. There are still a few difficulties remaining, but they
are not of great importance. Though in most cases our
authorities agree, they sometimes differ, so that it is hard to
see how we could by any means arrive at absolute uniformity :
the difference of opinion to which I allude is met with, how-
ever, only in a few words, so few that they can easily be
pointed out.

In many cases the discrepancies arise from a yielding up
of what would appear to be the correct to the usual pronun-

NAMES OF PLANTS. 93

elation. On the other hand, we often hear words pronounced
in a manner which not only sounds odd, but for which there
is no authority of any kind to be found, and which would be
universally called incorrect by those qualified to judge.
For instance, cot3d'edon instead of cotyle'don; umbil'icus
instead of umbili'cus ; Hydrocot'eel instead of Hydrocot'y-le ;
maritee'mum instead of marit'imum ; ach'er instead of a'cre.
A few illustrations may be given of the uncertain names :
Cle'matis is correct, as being spelt in Greek with the
long ^, but Clem'atis is far more common, and has long been
used, — it is therefore not incorrect ; Clema'tis there is no
authority for. Gladiolus is correct; Gladi'olus is not
uncommon, and (by usage) may be said to be not incorrect ;
Gladiolus is a very common pronunciation, but I know of
no book authority for it, and I should call it incorrect.
Veroni'ca I believe to be correct, and it is the accent usually
given in the books, but Veron'ica is much more common,
and is adopted in the last edition of English Botany.
Ar'butus is not uncommonly called Arbu'tus ; Eri'ca, Er'ica;
(Enothe'ra, CEnoth'era, and so we might go on. The
reasons why we may in such like cases prefer a pronuncia-
tion as the most correct, are easily illustrated. Thus in the
case of Gladiolus the word is Latin, and a diminutive of
gladius (a sword) in which the a is short, and this with other
diminutives, as Radiola, Corrigiola, is pronounced as first
set down, according to undoubted rules of the language.
In a word like Veronica I prefer the pronunciation Veroni'ca,
— first, because it is that given by the older authorities ; and
secondly, because I accept the derivation Hiera Eicon (Holy
image), which, if correct, decides the question of pronuncia-
tion at once. In placing the accents to the names I have
in doubtful cases consulted several authorities, and set down
the different pronunciations that have any claim for notice,
putting that which seemed to me best first, on the principles
just explained.

94 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Passing by these doubtful instances, there are a few
general rules that may be laid down to govern the great
majority of cases.

It is well to keep continually in mind that we pronounce
Latin in the same way as we should English, in giving the
same value to the vowels. True, we are not at all consistent
in our own language, talking as we do about iodine and
chloreen, instead of chlorine ; then we have maritime pov/ers
and a mercantile mareen, not marine. But anyone is most
likely to be correct who uniformly pronounces the vowels of
scientific words according to their ordinary English value :
thus, vulga'ris, not vulgah'ris ; marit'imum, not maritee'mum.
If you must place the accent wrong, say mariti'mum. If this
course is taken the pronunciation will be uniform, and not
incorrect; and though the tendency at present is towards
the continental system of pronunciation, any person who
undertakes that method must be prepared to study the
whole matter, that is to say, three or four languages, —
otherwise, to use a familar expression, he will "make a
mess of it." The Greek u is ahvays changed into y ; as
'polu, many, into 'poly. Then the Greeks had a letter called
chij which represented cli ; and it has been disputed whether
it should be pronounced gutturally, as in our word loch, or
hard like loch. Some cannot pronounce the guttural if they
try, and it is a matter of no great consequence.

As to the pronunciation of the two consonants c and g,
there is rather more difficulty. First, in respect to our
letter c, which may be called a useless letter, possessing the
sounds of others without having any peculiar to itself.* It
has the sound of s, as in celery, and of k, as in cabbage ;
and it is often mute, as in science. In Keltic it is equivalent
to k) the Cimri (AVelsh) are Kimrl, not Simri. In Greek

* The general rule is that in English or Latin c has the sound of k,
before a, o,u; and of s, before e, ?, y.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 95

there is no sucli letter ; but in passing through the Latin
the Greek k (kappa) is alwaj's changed into c : kephalos,
Greek, becomes cephalus, Latin. There is difference of
opinion whether in such words c should be pronounced soft,
as sephaluSy or hard, as kephalus ; but I think the s sound is
most usual. In Greek words the k (c) was always hard. I
have always, in the following pages, changed the Greek k
into c. The difficulties of the letter g are very similar.
Those Greek words that come to us through the Latin, and
have been long in use with us, generally follow English
usage, and are pronounced soft, though not always: for
instance, both gymnastic and jymnastic may be heard. In
words direct from the Greek, especially modern scientific
terms, as parthenogenesis, the g is prounounced hard.

The following useful hints are taken from Withering's
' Systematic Arrangement of British Plants :'* —

" 1. The English reader is desired to observe that the
accent, or force of the voice, is be thrown on that syllable or
letter which precedes the mark. Thus, in Arbutus, the Ar
is to be the accented or strongly -sounded syllable, and not
the hu, as is commonly, though erroneously, the case ; and
in Veroni'ca the ni is to be the accented syllable, and not
the TO, which is also a common error.

"2. That the letter e at the end of a name is always to
be sounded: thus the word Elat'ine is to be pronounced
E-laf-ti-ne, with four syllables, and not E-la-tine.

*' 3. That in words ending in ides the i is always to be
pronounced long.

" 4. That ch is to be pronounced hard, like the letter k.

" 5. That in words beginning with sc^ and sci, the c is to
be i^ronounced soft; though it is allowed that some few
words, derived from the Greek, are exceptions to this rule.

" 6. That in such words as have sch, the c is to be

" Foiu'tli edition, in four volumes, 1801.

96 NAMES OF PLANTS.

pronounced hard : thus Schoenus is to be pronounced as if it
were Skenus.

" 7. That c and g before e and i, and before ce and oe, are
to be pronounced soft, but before the other diphthongs
hard."

I take this exception to the last canon, that in Greek
words the g is always hard, as Geum, Potamogeton; not
pronounced Jeum, Potamojeton.

A very slight attention to the marks and directions to be
found in many botany books would lead anyone to a correct
pronunciation of scientific names, yet it is not at all
uncommon to hear good botanists pronouncing them
incorrectly.

In the following list the generic names are arranged
alphabetically, and old substantive names, now used to
indicate particular species, are placed in an inner margin
after the genus to which they are attached. The authorities
for the names are given, so far as they have been noticed, in
the former part of the book, but the others are omitted.
The names of the authorities, since Linneus, are to be
found in most Floras ; and unless I gave an account of them
they would be of no interest here. There are about fifty of
these authorities who are namers of plants, which are
included in the British Flora, that I have omitted, some of
whom are still living. This, however, does not give a full
idea of the extent to which an account of these authorities
would stretch my proposed limits. I will give an illustration.
If we turn to Epipogium in * English Botany,' or other
standard works, we find that the authority for the name is
Gmelin. Now there were at least four Gmelins living
about the same time. They died respectively — 1755, 17G8,
1774, and 180d. They were all of Tubingen, all travellers,
all botanists, all authors; and it would be necessary in

HISTORY OF BOTANY. 97

such cases, of which there are several, either to give some
account of all of them, or to give such information as might
mislead, on account of its incompleteness. Neither course
would fall in with my intention.

List of Abbeeviations.

I have made use of the following abbreviations onl}^ : —
G. for Greek; L. for Latin; E. B. for ' English Botany '
(3rd Ed., 18G3— 1872).

§1-

LIST OF TUK

SUBSTANTIVE NAMES OF BKITISII PLANTS,

Including those Specific ones which are old Substantive
Names, and are spelt v/ith a Capital Letter ; with
their Derivation and Meaning.

A^CER, Pliny. L. for the maple tree ; meaning sharp or

hard. Ac, Keltic, in reference to the natm-e of the

wood.
Pseu'do-iolat'anus, Linneus.* G., loseucl, false, and platanos,

a plane tree.
Ac'eras, Pt. Brown. G., a without, and ceras, horn ; because

it is without nectary.
Achille'a, Theophrastus ; after Achilles, who is said to have

first discovered that it healed wounds.
Millefo'lium, Tragus. L., mille, a thousand, and folium,

a leaf; from the minute divisions of the leaf.
Ptar'mica, Fuchs. G., causing to sneeze (sneezewort).
Acoxi'tum, Dioscorides ; derivation doubtful. Some suj^pose

from the town Acone, in Bithynia, near to which it

was said to grow in great abundance ; others because

it was said to grow upon naked rocks, called aconce ;

and others from akon, a dart, because used to poison

such weapons.
KapeVlus, Dodon^eus. Diminutive of L., najnis, a turnip ;

referring to the form of its roots.

'■' Tlie sycamore was called Platunus Ly Tragus.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 99

Ac'oRUS, Dioscorides. G., a, without, and core, the pupil of

the eye ; the diseases of which it was supposed to

cure.
CaVamus, Dioscorides. G. and L., a reed.
Act.e'a, Pliny. G., acte. A name originally assigned to

the Elder, which the leaves of this plant resemble.
Actinocar'pus, E. Brown. G., actin, ray; and carpoSf

fruit, from its radiated fruit.
Damaso^nium, Pliny. Pliny says that the Alisma was

known to some persons as the Damasonion. It has

also been applied to other plants : thus Gerard tells

us that the names Alisma and Damasonium have

both been used for Saponaria officinalis. The meaning

is uncertain.
Adian'tum, Theophrastus. G., adiantos, dry ; because water

will not adhere to the fronds, so says Pliny ; applied

to Maiden-hair Ferns.
CapiVlus Veneris, Apuleius. L., capilliis, hair, Veneris,

of Venus. The Maiden-hair Fern.
Ado'nis, Matthiolus. After Adonis, wdio, according to

heathen mythology, was the favourite of the goddess

Venus. He was fond of hunting, and received a

mortal bite from a wdld boar which he had wounded ;

he was then changed into a flower.
Adox'a, Linneus. G., a, without, and cloxa, glory ; from its

humble appearance.
Moschatellina, Cordus. Late L., musciis, musk; on

account of its smell.
iEGOPOD'iuM, or ^Egopo'dium, Linneus. From G., aig, goat,

and pod, foot ; its leaves being cleft something lite a

goat's foot.
Podagra via, Lobel. G., podagra, gout in the feet; because

it was formerly supposed to cure gout. Goutweed,

Herb-Gerard, or Goatweed,

100 NAMES OF PLANTS.

/Etiiu'sa, Linneus. G., aitho, I burn ; on account of its
acrid propert}'.
Cynainiim, Rivinus ; from G., cyn, dog, and apiony
parsley ; dog's parsley. Fool's Parsley we call it.

Ag'raphis. G., a, not, and graph, write. The youth Hj^a-
cj^ithus was accidentally killed by Apollo, and was
by him changed into a flower — the Hyacinth — the
leaves of which bore in dark streaks the initials of
his name; so runs the story. This similar plant
(agraphis) having no such marks, has been also
called Hyacinthus non-scriptus (L., non, not, and
scriptiis, written).

Agrimo'nia, Brunfels. Doubtful, said to be derived from
G., argema, cataract of the eye, which this or some
other plant was supposed to cure.
Eupato'rium, Dioscorides. From Eupator, king of Pontus.
The name has been given to a number of plants, of
which he has been supposed to have discovered the
uses.

Agrostem'ma, Linneus. G., agrou stemma, crown of the
field ; from its being an ornament to cornfields.
GitUa'go, Tragus. From Gith of Pliny and the older
botanists. Githago is mentioned by the botanists of
the 16th century, and was applied as the specific
name of this plant by Linneus.

Agros'tis, Theophrastus. G., agros, a field ; a name given
by the Greeks to different grasses.
Spi'ca-ven'ti, Lobel. L., spica, a spike, or ear (of corn),
and venti, of wind ; " by reason of his feather top,
w^iich is easily shaken wdth the wind." — Gerard.

Ai'ra, Theophrastus. G., airo, I destroy ; anciently applied
to Lolium temulentum (Darnel), on account of its
injurious efi'ects, and now to this genus.

Aj'uga, Pliny. Derivation uncertain ; said by Pliny to be

NAMES OF PLANTS. 101

corrupted from abiga (ahigo, to expel), of the Latins,
a medicinal plant allied to this.
Chamce'intys. G., cliaiiue, on the ground, and pitys, pine ;
Ground-pine. " Chamaepitys, called in Latin Abiga,"
Pliny.

Alchemil'la, Tragus ; from Arabic alkemelyeh, alchemy ;
on account of its pretended alchemical virtues.
Theis.

Alis'ma, Pliny; a name that has been applied to different
plants. Its derivation is said to be from the Keltic
alls, water. It seems to have been most generally
applied to species of Water Plantain.
Flanta'go, Pliny ; the L. name for plantain. The water
plantain was formerly called Plantago aquatica ; and
next to it Gerard places land plantain, sea plantain,
and " sea buckthorne plantaines." In modern classi-
fication these plants are widely separated, Alisma
being monocotyledonous, and Plantago dicoty-
ledonous.

Allia'ria, Fuchs. L., ^ZZm??i, Garlic ; on account of the
scent of the bruised leaves.

Al'lium, Plautus. L., Garlic.

Ampelopra'sum^ Dioscorides. G., ampelo, vine, and prason,
a leek. Dodonseus tells us that it grows spon-
taneously in vineyards, and hence its name.
Schoenopra'sum, Dodonseus. G., schoenos, a rush, and
prason, a leek; from the rush-like form of the
leaves.
Scoroclopra'sum, Dioscorides. Name applied by Dios-
corides to a kind of leek, and given by Linneus to
this species.

Alloso'rus. From G., alios, various, and sorus, a heap ;
"the intention being no doubt to indicate the varia-
tion in the arrangement of the sori, occurring among

102 NAMES OF PLANTS.

the plants originally thought to belong to this
family." — Moore.

Al'nus, Pliny. L., the Alder tree. The etymology has
been referred to the Keltic and the Hebrew, but is
uncertain.

Alopecu'rus, Theophrastus. G., aloj^ec, a fox, and oura, a
tail, Foxtail.

Alsi'ne, Dioscorides. G., alsos, a grove ; from its kind of
habitat, according to Pliny. This name has been
given to several quite different plants, but is now
confined to a genus of the Pink famil}^, and the name
of a sub -order Alsinese is formed from it.

ALTHiE'A, Dioscorides. L., Marsh Mallow, from G., althein,
to heal ; from its healing properties.

Alys'sum, Dioscorides. G., a, not, and lyssa, canine mad-
ness ; a reputed remedy for this disease.

Amaran'tus, Pliny. From G., amarantos, unfading. Ama-
ranth, Everlasting Flower.
Bli'tum, Dioscorides ; old name for the wild Amaranth,
or Elite. Pliny describes it as being " without
flavour, or any pungency whatever ; hence it is that
in Menander we find husbands giving this name to
their wives by way of reproach." In G., hletton, in
L., blitiwi, from which is formed the adjective hliteus,
signifj-'ing tasteless, insipid, silly, foolish, or stupid.

Ammoph'ila. From G., aminos (the same as psammos),
sand, and xthilos, loving. See Psamma.

Anach'aris. G., ana, without, and cliaris, elegance.

Alsinas'triim. Alsine-like, or like Chickweed, a name
given by Professor Babington to a plant imported by
some unknown means from America, first observed in
1842, and now^ a very troublesome water weed.

Anagal'lis, Dioscorides. The meaning is doubtful. The
name has been used for several plants, as Pimpernel,

NAMES OF PLANTS. 103

or Poor Man's Weather Glass, Devil's Bit, and
Brooklime.
Anchu'sa, Hippocrates. G., anchousa, alkanet, from ancho,
I tie together, or constrict ; on account of the medi-
cinal powers attributed to it. It was considered good
for ulcers, ringworm, lepra, measles, smallpox, and
(properly compounded) was " most singular in deep
punctures, or wounds made with thrusts," according
to Gerard.

Androm'eda, Linneus. The name of a fabled daughter
of Cepheus, king of Ethiopia; she was chained
on a rock, that she might be devoured by a sea
monster. Some resemblance of conditions was sup-
posed by Linneus in the habitats of the Andro-
medas, which grew on "turfy hillocks in the midst
of swamps frequented by toads, and other rep-
tiles." This is rather fanciful, and characteristic of
Linneus.

Anem'one, or Anemo'ne, Dioscorides. From G., anemo,
wind ; because it was supposed that the flowers did
not expand until beaten by the wind.
Pulsatilla, Dodonseus. From L., imlso, I beat ; apparently
having reference to the same idea as that mentioned
under Anemone.

Angel'ica, Brunfels. ChwYohlj., angelic ; from its cordial
and medicinal properties.

Antenna'ria. L., antenna, literally an extended thing;
from the hairs of the pappus of the sterile florets
resembling the antennse of some insects.

An'themis, Turner. G., anthemis, a flower; from the profu-
sion of its blossoms.
Cot'ida, Brunfels. Old ofiicinal name Cotula foetida.

Anthoxan^thum, Linneus. From G., antho, flower, and
xanthos, yellow.

104 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Anthris'cus, Pliny. Derivation of the name unknown, but
given by Pliny to a plant probably allied to this
genus.
Cerefolium, Dodon^eus. Old officinal name for Chervil.
It is mentioned by Lonicerus, Camerarius, and other
writers of that time. Linneus (Materia medica)
gives it as the officinal equivalent for Scandix, and
calls this plant (Sp. pi.) Scandix Cerefolium. It is a
Latinised form of Cheer oijhylliim, which see.

Anthyl'lis, Dioscorides. From G., antli, flower, and
ioiilos, down ; from the downy calyces.

Antirkhi'num, Theophrastus. G. name referring to rhin,
a nose ; because of the shape of the flowers. One of
the English names is Calf's-snout.
Oi'oiitlum, Dodon?eus. An old name for Snap-
dragon.

Apar'gia. G. name for some uncertain Aveed which sprung
up ci'po, from, argia, idleness (of the cultivator) ! —
Hooker and Arnott.

A'piuM, Pliny. L. for celery; from G., (qnon, parsley,
water-parsley, &c.

Ac^uile'gia, Tragus. From L., aquila, an eagle ; whose
claws the nectaries have been supposed to re-
semble.

Ar'abis, Dioscorides. The Arabis of Dioscorides was not
one of our British Cresses.
Tiirri'ta, Clusius ; who called this plant Turrita major.
The name Turritis, which was also formerly used for
this plant, was applied by Linneus to Turritis glabra,
which see.

Ar'butus, Pliny. L. name for the Strawberry-tree.

Une'do, Pliny. Another L. name given to the same
plant; because, according to Pliny, the fruit is so
bad that an, one (onl}-), edo, 1 eat.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 105

Arc'tium, Dioscorides. From G. arctos, a bear, on account
of the coarse texture of the involucres.
Lap'pa, Yirgil. L., the rendmg or tearing thing, hence a
bur. Burdock.

Arctostaph'ylos, Adanson (see Cicendia). From G, arctos,
a bear, and staphyle, a bunch of grapes. Bear-berry.
U'va-ur'si, Clusius. L., uva, a berr}^ ursi, bear's. Bear-
berry.

Arena'ria, Linneus. From L. arena, sand; the species
growing most abundantly on sandy soils.

Aristoloch'ia, Dioscorides. G., Birthwort.
Clemati'tis. See Clematis, later.

Armeria. Said to be Latinised from French, armoires,
and originally applied to various species of Dianthus.
Gerard says, " The Sweet John, and also the Sweet
William, are both comprehended under one title,
that is to say Armeria, in French armoires; here-
upon Euellius nameth it Armerii flores." Thrift was
called Statice Armeria by Linneus, and Armeria
vulgaris by Willdenow.

Armora'cia. a name formerly given to the Wild Eadish
(Kaphanus Raphanistrum), and also to some of the
Catchflies (Silene). Armoracia, Armoraria and Ar-
meria appear to have been used indifferently in the
last case. The origin of the name is not clear.

Arnos'eris. G., arnos, a lamb, and seris, chicory. Lamb's
Chicory.

Arrhenath'erum. G., arrhen, male, and ather, an awn;
alluding to the structure of its florets, distinguishing
it from Avena, which it otherwise much resembles.

Artemi'sia, Hippocrates. From Artemis, the Diana of the
Greeks, or from Artemisia, the wife of king Mausolus,
who according to Pliny adopted this plant, formerly
called " Parthenis," and gave it her name.

I

106 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Absinth'iuvi, Dioscorides. G., apsinthion, L., ahsintJnum.
Name for Wormwood.
Arthrolo'bium. G., from arthro, joint, and lob, pod; from

the jointed seed-vessel.
A'rum, Dioscorides. G., aron ; the meaning is uncertain.
As'arum, Dioscorides. G., a, not, and sairo, I adorn;
because it was rejected from the garlands used by
the ancients.
Asrar'agus, Dioscorides. L., from G. asparagos, from
sparasso, I tear; some of the species being armed
with spines ; or perhaps more probably from aspairOy
I tremble, from the tremulous foliage.
Asperu'go, Pliny. From L., asper, rough.
Asper'ula, Dodonaeus. From L., asper, rough.

Cynan'chica. G., cynanche, quinsy, a reputed remedy
for this complaint. Squinancywort.
Aspid'ium. G., aspidion, a small shield ; which its indusia
resemble.
Fi'lix-mas, Fuchs. L., filix^ a fern, and mas^ male ; the

male fern.
LonchVtis, Dioscorides. From G., louche, a lance ; name
given by Dioscorides both to the Holly Fern and the
Hard Fern.
Oreopteris. From G., oreo, mountain, and pteris, fern ;

the Mountain Fern.
Thelyp/teris. From G., tliely, female, and pteris, a fern.
The name Lady Fern is now applied to a different
species. See Athyrium.
Asple'kium, Dioscorides. G., asplenon ; the name was given
by Dioscorides to Ceterach, which he sets fortli to
be a remedy for diseases of the spleen (a, privative,
and sylen, the spleen). See Ceterach.
Adian'tum-nVgrum, Lobel ; the Black Maiden-hair
(Spleenwort). See Adiantum,

NAMES OF PLANTS. 107

Fillx-foc'mina, Fuclis. Jj., filix, a fern, Siud. fcemina, female ;
the Lady Fern. Formerly applied to Bracken (Pteris
aquilina).
Ru'ta-mura'ria, Dodonseus. L., ruta, rue, and muraria,

pertaining to walls ; Wall Rue.
Trichom^anes. See Teichomanes, later.

As'ter, Linneus. G., aster, a star; from the form of the
flowers. Dodon?eus suggests the name of Aster
marinus, but himself calls the plant Tripolium, after
Dioscorides.
Tripo^lium, Dioscorides. G. name for the plant. Dios-
corides said that this name was given because the
colour of the flowers changes three times in a day ;
but this is not the case. Gerard argues that, though
it is a fable that one flower changes three times in a
day, three colours may be found in different flowers
at once, according to their state of development.

Asteag'alus, Dioscorides. G., astragalos, a cervical ver-
tebra, or neck-bone. The exact application of this
name is doubtful. It has been used for several plants,
but for some time for the Milk Vetch.

Astkan'tia, Linneus. From G., astron, a star; on account
of the star-like umbels.

Athyr'ium. " The name of the genus was derived by Roth
from the G., athyros, opened, or having an open
entrance, alluding to the repressed indusium." —
Moore. The Lady Fern, which is also called Asple-
nium.

At'eiplex, Pliny. G., a, not, and tre2)hein, to nourish.
The reason for the name is not clear.

At'ropa, Linneus. G., Atro])os, one of the Fates, whose
duty it was to cut the thread of life without any
regard to sex, age, or quality; in allusion to the
deadly qualities of the x^lant.

108 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Belladon'na, Matthiolus ; beautiful lad}^ — a common name
he says with the Venetians. It has been affirmed
that the name was given because the Italian ladies
were said to have emploj'ed it to give brilliancy to
their ej^es. It is a property of the plant to cause
dilatation of the pupil of the eye. According to
Theis, a water distilled from it was used in Italy to
remove freckles from the skin.

Ave'na, Pliny. L., the oat ; the derivation is unknown.

Aza'lea, Linneus. G., azaleos, parched, arid ; because it is
in such places that the plant grows.

Ballota, Dioscorides. G., hallote, from hallo, 1 reject; on
account of its disagreeable smell.

Barbare'a, Dodonseus. Dedicated to St. Barbara.

Bart'sia, Linneus. Named in honour of John Bartsch, a
Dutch botanist and friend of Linneus. He died at
the age of twenty-nine, at Surinam, in 1738, where
he had been sent by Boerhaave and Linneus to
examine the products of the country.
Odonti'tes, Pliny, who says that " a handful of the stems,
boiled in astringent wine, is used for the cure of
toothache." Hence probably the name (G., odont,
tooth). This i)lant is supposed to be the same as
the one mentioned by Pliny.

Bel'lis, Fuchs. L., hellus, pretty.

Bep/beris, Brunfels. Berbery s is the Arabic name of the
fruit.

Be'ta, Pliny. L., beet; according to Fuchs, from the
resemblance of the seed to the second letter {beta) of
the Greek alphabet.

Beton'ica, Pliny. Derivation uncertain. Pliny wrote:—
" The Vettones, a people of , Spain, were the original
discoverers of the plant known as the * Vettonica' in

NAMES OF PLANTS. 109

Gaul" (the Betonica Alopecuros of Linneus, Foxtail
Betony, a European species). Theis says that the
name is altered from Beiitonic, in Keltic ; hen,
meaning head, and ton, good, or tonic.

Bet'ula, Pliny. L., a birch tree.

Bi'dens, Linneus. L., hi, double, and dens, a tooth; from
the two teeth which crown the fruit.

Blech'num, Dioscorides. G., a fern.

Sin'cant. A name formerly given to the Hard Fern, but
we have no satisfactory explanation of it. Bauhin
attributes it to the Germans, and suggests that per-
haps it is from Spica indica (Spikenard), on account
of some resemblance. Linneus treated it as an old
substantive name in writing Osmunda Spicant ; but
in his ' Species of Plants,' he gives the name Blech-
num boreale. The name Spicant was re -applied by
Koth, and, notwithstanding the unusual termination,
it is generally accepted by botanists as correct, on the
score of priority.

Blys'mus. From G., hlysmos, a spring ; because they grow
in wet places.

Boea'go, or Borra'go,* Apuleius. From L., cor, the heart,
and ago, I move. "Pliny calleth it Euphrosinum,
because it maketh a man merrie and joyfull: which
thing also the olde verse concerning Borago doth
testifie : —

* Ego Borago gaudia semper ago.'
In English —

' I Borage bring alwaies courage.' "—

Gerard.

'■' A spelling used by many writers, and adopted by Dr. Hooker in
* The Student's Flora of the British Islands.'

110 NAMES OF PLANTS.

BoKKHAu'siA. Named in honour of Moritz Balthasar Bork-

hausen, a German botanist, who died at Darmstadt

in 1806.
Botrych'ium. From G., botri/s, a bunch of grapes; from

the appearance of the branches of the fertile fronds.
Luna'ria, Fuchs. From L., luna, the moon; on account

of the crescent- shaped pinnae of the barren fronds.
Brachypod'ium, or po'dium. From G., hrachy, short, and

Ijodion, little foot ; from the nearly sessile spikelets.
Bras'sica, Pliny. L. for cabbage.
Na'pus, Columella. L. for turnip.
Ra'pa, Plin}^ L., Rapum, a turnip.
Bm'zA. From G., hrizo, I nod, or hang the head as in

sleeping ; name given in ancient times to some kind

of corn.
Bro'mus, Theophrastus. G.^ hromos ; the name given by

the Greeks to the oat.
Bryo'nia, Dioscorides. From G., hryo, to shoot, or grow

rapidly ; on account of its quick growth.
Bu'nium, Dioscorides. From G., hounos, a hill; referring

to its favourite habitats.
Bupleu'rum, Hippocrates. From G., boii, an ox, smd pleuj^on^

a rib ; in allusion to the ribbed leaves of some

species.
Bu'tomus, Theophrastus. From G., hou, ox, and temnOi

I cut ; because the sharp leaves injure the mouths of

cattle that browse upon them.
Bux'us, Pliny. L. for the Box Tree, from G., pyxos, name

for the same plant ; L., pyxis, a (box-wood) box, from

the same root.

Caki'le, Serapion. An old Arabic name applied probably

to this or some allied genus.
Calamagros'tis, Adanson (see Cicendia). G., calam, reed,

NAMES OF PLANTS.

Ill

and agrostis, which see. Smith speaks of this as a
" very faulty appellation," compounded as it is of two
established names, contrary to Linnean rule (see.
canon 11, p. 64).
Calamix'tha, Dioscorides. G., calaminthe ; from cala,
beautiful, or useful, and minthe, mint ; on account of
the great repute in which it was held as a remedy for
many diseases.
Ac'inos, Dioscorides. G. name for Basil.
Clinopod 'ium, or po'dium, Dioscorides. G., meaning bed-
foot ; " the tufts of which are like the knobs at the
feet of a bed."
Nep'eta, Ne'peta, or Nepe'ta, Pliny. L., cat-mint ; used for
this species of Calamint by Linneus.
Callit'eiche, Pliny. G., cali, beautiful, and trlche, hair;

its stems being very long and slender, like hairs.
Callu'na. From G., calluno, I cleanse or adorn. Smith
says that "this name is doubly suitable, whether we
take it to express a cleansing property, brooms being
made of Ling, or whether we adopt the more common
sense of the word, to ornament or adorn, which is
very applicable to the flowers." Bentham does not
separate this genus from Erica.
Cal'tha, Pliny. From G., calathos, a cup, which its flowers

resemble.
Calyste'gia, K. Brown. Calos, beautiful, and stege, a
covering ; referring to the bracteas.
Soldanel'la, Dodonseus. Gerard called this plant Sol-
danella marina. Soldana and Soldanella were both
common names for it with the apothecaries; but
some writers called it Brassica marina, though, as
Gerard remarks, "what reason hath mooued them
so to do I cannot conceiue ; * * * of this I am
sure, that this plant and Brassica are no more alike

112 NAMES OF PLANTS.

then tilings which are most unlike." Linneus called
the plant Convolvulus Soldanella. The origin of the
name Soldanella is by Pfeiffer referred to the Italian
coin '' soldo" by reason of its round leaves.

Cameli'na. From G., chamai, on the ground, and linoiif
flax. This does not seem a suitable name for the
plant.

Campan'ula, Dodonseus. A little bell ; diminutive of late
L., campana, a church bell ; from the shape of the
flowers.
Bapun cuius, Lonicerus. A little turnip ; diminutive of
L., rapimi, a turnip ; on account of the shape of the
root. Matthiolus arranges turnips thus : — Rapum
rotundum (or round turnip), R. sylvestre (or wild
turnip), R. longum (or long turnip), and Rapunculus
(this plant, which we call Rampion) ; but the first
three are Crucifers, and this last a Campanula.
Traclie'lium, Gerard. Throatwort; from G., trachelos,
a neck or throat ; so called on account of the repute
which it had as a remedy for inflammations of the
throat.

Can'nabis, Dioscorides. G. name for Hemp.

Capsel'la. a little box or capsule ; diminutive of L., capsa,
a box ; alluding to the seed-vessels.
Bursa-pasto'ris, Gerard; or Pera-pastoris of some old
authors, as Lonicerus. From L., pera, a pouch, or
purse, loastoris, of a shepherd; Shepherd's-purse.
The word bursa would seem to be a Latinised form
of French bourse, a purse or pouch. The French
name is Bourse cle Pasteur, or Shepherd's-purse.

Cardami'ne, Dioscorides. From G., cardia, the heart,
and damao, I overpower; from its supposed
qualities.

Car'duus, Pliny. L., a thistle. Said to be from Keltic

NAMES OF PLANTS. 113

card, for combing wool; and this again from Keltic
ard, a point : this is not certain.

Maria'nus, Linneus. The CarcUms Marine of Fuchs, &c.,
after the Virgin Marj^ "In the clays of monkish
superstition the milky veins were said to have ori-
ginated in the milk of the Virgin Mary having fallen
on them as she nursed the infant Jesus ; hence it was
called the ' Holy Thistle ' and ' Our Lady's Thistle.' "
— E. B.
Ca'rex, Virgil. L. for sedge. The etymology of this word
is uncertain.

Pseu' do -cy' penis, Dodoncneus. G., iDseiid, false, and Cy-
perus (which see).
Caeli'na, Dodoncneus. Same as Carolina {Carolus L. for
Charles). " From a tradition that the root was shown
by an angel to Charlemagne as a remedy for the
plague which prevailed m his army." — Theis.
Carpi'nus, Pliny. Named from car, wood, and pin, a head
in Keltic ; the wood having been employed to make
yokes for oxen. The English " Hornbeam" has the
same signification.— Theis.

Bet'idus, Gerard. L., Betula, a Birch tree. "It is also
called Betulus, as if it were a kind of Birch." —
Gerard. The Hornbeam was formerly called either
Betulus or Carpinus.
Ca'eum, Dioscorides. L. for caraway, from G. caros of
Dioscorides, from Caria, where it grew. It was
called Caros, Caron, Carum, Careum and Carui in
the shops, according to the writers of the sixteenth
centurj^

Bulhocas'tanum, Tournefort. From L., hidho, bulb, and
castanea, chestnut ; the root having the flavour of a
Chestnut.

Carai, or Carvi. See Cahum.

K

114

NAMES OF PLANTS.

Castan'i:a, or Casta'nea, Pliny. L. for Cliestniit; from
Castania, a town in Thessaly that was famous for its
Chestnut trees.

CatabPcO'sa. From G., catahrosis, a gnawing; from the
erose extremities of the glumes.

Cau'calis, Hippocrates. G., from ceo, I lie down, and caulos,
a stem.

Centau'hea, Pliny. From centaur, of heathen mythology,
a being half man and half horse. " Centaury, it is
said, effected a cure for Chiron, on the occasion
when, while handling the arms of Hercules, his
guest, he let one of the arrows fall upon his foot ;
hence it is that by some it is called ' Chironion.' " —
Plin}^ This centaur Chiron was reported in Greek
mj'thology to be famous for his knowledge of medi-
cine, and to have taught mankind the uses of plants,
especially medicinal herbs.
CalcWrapa. "Name due to the resemblance of the calyx
to the caltrojjs, or iron ball covered with spikes for-
merly used for throwing under the horses' feet to
lame them on a field of battle." — E. B.
Cy^anus, Pliny. G. name for this plant (which we call

Blue-bottle), cijanos, meaning of a blue colour.
Ja'cea, Clusius. The meaning is uncertain. The name
was originally given to Heart's-ease ; Centaurea
Jacea was called Jacea nigra, to distinguish it.
Scahio'sa, Brunfels. L., rough, scurf}^ scabby; but
whether on account of the roughness of most of the
plants to which the name was given, or of some sup-
posed medicinal virtue, I know not. Gerard tells us,
"It is reported that it cureth scabs." The name was
former^ given to several thistle -heads.

Centeanth'us. From G. centi^ a spur, and antlios, flower;
Spur Valerian.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 115

Centun'culus, Vlinj. According to Tlieis, from cento, a
patchwork; from the way in which it covers the
ground.

Cephalanth'era. From G., cej^hale, a head, and anthera,
anther.

Ceras TiUM, Linneus. From G., ceras, a horn ; on account
of the rather long and curved capsules of some
species.

Ceratophyl'lum, Linneus. From G., cerato, horn, and
lihyllon, a leaf ; from its forked leaves.

Ce'terach, Cordus. Scale Fern or rusty back. It has
had many names, but was formerly generally called
Asplenium (which see). It is said that Ceterach is
derived from an Arabic name of this or some similar
plant, but this is uncertain.

Ch^rophyl'lum, Dioscorides. From G., chairo, I rejoice,
and lolujllon, a leaf. *' It is thought to be called so
because it delighteth to grow with many leaves ; or
rather in that it causeth joy and gladness." — Gerard
from Dodonseus.

Chamagros'tis. From G., chamai, on the ground, and
agrostis, grass.

Cheiranth'us, Linneus. ^'Kheyry. Arabic name of a plant
with red and very sweet-scented flowers. It was
embellished with the termination anthos to give it a
Greek appearance. Then this Arabic word has a
meaning in Greek from which Linne draws the ety-
mology, cheir, hand, anthos, flower — hand-flower; that
is to say, one which we carry in the hand on account
of its fragrance." — Theis.
Chei'ri. See Cheiranthus, above. The usual name for
the Wallflower with the sixteenth-century botanists
was Leucoium luteum ; and Gerard (1597) calls it
also Viola lutea. These names are given in Ray's

11-0 NAMES OF PLANTS.

'Synopsis' (1690), as also Keiri, and he gives as
Enirlisli names " Wall-flower or Wild Cheir.''

Chelido'nium, Dioscorides. From G. chelidon, a swallow.
The reason why this name was given to the plant is
not very clear. Pliny says, " The brute animals have
also been the discoverers of certain plants ; among
them we will name Chelidonia first of all. It is by
the aid of this plant that the swallow restores the
sight of the young birds in the nest, and even, as
some people will have it, when the eyes have been
plucked out;" and again, "These plants" (the
greater and lesser Celandine) " blossom both of
them at the arrival of the swallow and wither at the
time of its departure." So far as I am aware, no
other reason has been suggested for the application
of this name.

Chenopod'ium, or to'diu^i, Pliny. G., from chen, goose, and
2Jod, foot — Goosefoot; from the shape of the leaves
of some species.
Bo'niLS Henricus, Fuchs. L. for good Hemy. It appears
to be a translation of the German name giiter Hein-
rich. Fuchs includes Good Hemy in his chapter on
Lapathum, or Dock, of which he gives four kinds,
this being the third. He praises it greatly as a vul-
nerary. The Germans have also the name hose
Heinrich (wicked Henry) for Dog's Mercury.

Cherle'ria, Haller. In honour of John Henry Cherler, a
friend and coadjutor of John Bauhin. He died at
Montbeliard in 1610.

Chlo'pa. From G. chloros, 3'ellow^ish, or pale green; in
reference probably to the flowers, which are yellow,
or to \he general appearance of the plant, which is
remarkabl}^ glaucous, and produces a curious effect
on the eye amongst the more dark green herbage.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 117

Chrysanth'emum, Dioscoricles. G. from chrys, gold, and
anthevion, a flower ; from the golden colour of the
flowers of some of the species.
Leucanth'einum, Dioscorides. From G. leuc, white, and
anthevion, a flower.

Chrysosple'nium, Tournefort. From G. chrysos, gold, and
splen, the spleen ; on account of its reputed medicinal
virtues.

Cicen'dia, Adanson. " A name of Adanson's, the etymology
of which is nowhere explained ; perhaps derived from
(G.) kikinnos, curled hair, on account of the slender,
entangled stems and branches." — Hooker and Arnott.
" We find the derivation of this genus of plants
given from L. cis, and candeo, to burn within ; thus
we have cicindela, a glowworm." — E. B. (which, how-
ever, burns or glows on the outside). Adanson, a
celebrated French botanist, published his work on
the families of plants in 1763. It seems strange that
so able a man should give a name to a plant which,
to all appearance, conveys no sense or meaning
whatever. The meanings of many of his names are
equally obscure.

CiCHo'niuM, Theophrastus. "G., cichorion; 1j., cichorium;
chikouryeh in Arabic." ' "We do not know the meaning
of the name.
In'tyhus, Pliny. Intuhus, L. name for Endive or Suc-
cory.

Cicu'ta, Pliny. L. for Hemlock; given by Linneus to this
genus.

Ciec.e'a, Dioscorides. Named from the enchantress Circe,
a goddess of antiquity, who, it was said, by her
knowledge of herbs and skill in their use, could
procure love. The reason why the name was given
to this plant is not clear. It was confounded with

118 NAMES OF PLANTS.

the Mandrake, which has long had such vh'tues
attributed to it as those just alluded to, and the
Circsea is said to have been formerly used in the
compounding of love philters. Gerard remarks of
Circsea lutetiana : " There is no use of this herbe
either in phisicke or chirurgerie that I can read of,
which hath happened by the corruption of time, and
the errour of some who have taken Mandragoras for
Circea, in w^hich errour they have still persisted unto
this dale, attributing unto Circea the vertues of
Mandragoras."

Cla'dium. From G., dados, a branch; perhaps from its
many branches bearing spikelets.
Maris'cus. A name that has been given to different plants.
Marisca, L. for a kind of Fig : a kind of Onion has
also been called by this name, and Haller used it for
the genus Schoenus.

Clayto'nia, Linneus. Named in honour of John Clayton,
one of the earliest American botanists, and a corre-
spondent of Gronovius, to w^iom he contributed the
specimens for the 'Flora Virginica,' which are now
in the British Museum. He died in 1773.

Cle'iniatis, or Clem'atis, Dioscorides. From G. clema, a
shoot of a vine ; from its manner of growth.
VitaVba, Dodonseus. From L. vit, vine, and alba, white.
The name Yitis alba was formerly also used for
Bryony (Bryonia dioica), hence called white or wild
vine in some places.

Cni'cus, Tournefort. From G., cnizo, I prick or
wound.

Cochlea'ria, Gesner. From L., cochlear, a spoon ; on
account of the shape of the leaves; in German,
Loffelkraut. One of its old English names was
Spoonwort.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 119

CoLCII'IcUx^[, Dioscorides. From Colchis, where it was said
to be first found and its virtues discovered.

Com'arum, Tlieophrastus. G., comaros, a term applied
by Theophrastus to some plants of the Arbutus
tribe.

Co'nium, Theophrastus. G. for Hemlock. See Cicuta.

Convalla'ria, Linneus. L., from convallis, a valley; re-
ferring to its usual locality.

Convolvulus, Pliny. From L., convolvo, I entwine ; just
as we call the plant Bindweed
SoldaneVla. See under Calystegia.

CoEALLORHi'zA, Haller. From G., corallion, coral, and
rhiza, a root; from the form of the roots.

Corian'drum, Theophrastus. From G., coris, a bug; on
account of the foetid odour of the bruised leaves.

Coii'nus, Pliny. L. name for the Cornel tree, and also for
a javelin made of its wood.

Coekig'iola, or Corrigi'ola, Cordus. Diminutive of L.,
corrigia, a strap or thong ; Strapwort.

Coryda'lis, Galen. G. for the Fumitory. Dodonseus quotes
Galen as the authority for the name.

Cor'ylus, Pliny. G. and L. name for the Hazel tree.
Avella'na, Pliny. According to Pliny from " AhelUnumy"
in Campania, the district in which it was first pro-
duced. The place is now called Avellino, and Hazel
nuts of a particular variety still abound there.

Cotoneas'ter, Bauhin. From L., cotoneum, the Quince.

Cotyle'don, Dioscorides. From G., cotyle, a cup ; from
the form of the leaves. Besides our Navelwort, the
name Cotyledon was formerly given to the Ivyleaved
Toadflax (Linaria cj^mbalaria), the Marsh Pennywort
Hydrocotyle vulgaris), and some other plants. See
Cymhalaria, under Linaria.

Crai^i'be, Hippocrates. G. for Kale.

120 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Crat^'gus, Theoplirastus. From G., cratos, strengtli ; on
account of the hardness of its wood.
Oxyacan'tlia, Dioscorides. G. name which has been given
to the Barberry, the Sweetbriar, and the Hawthorn
by the older writers. The meaning of the word is
oxy, sharp, and acantJia, a thorn.

Cre'pis, Pliny. G., a name given by Pliny to some plant,
from crepis, a sandal, which the leaves were supposed
to resemble.

Crith'mum, Dioscorides. G., crithmon, it is said from crithe,
barley ; because the fruit of this plant is like a grain
of barley.

Cro'cus, Theoplirastus. From G., croce, a thread or fila-
ment ; from the appearance of the saffron of shops,
which consists of the dried stigmas of Crocus
sativus.

Crypto gram'ma, R. Brown. From G., crypto, hidden, and
gramme, a line ; on account of the lines of fructifi-
cation being hidden.

CucuBAL us, Pliny. The derivation has been given as an
altered form of G., cacaholus, from caco, bad, and
hole, a shoot, or sprig, meaning a noxious weed.
Pliny's plant seems to have been the Black Night-
shade.

Cuscu'ta, Matthiolus. Derived probably from its Arabic
name Chasuth.,
Epili'num. Growing on Flax. Not an old substantive

name, though having the apj^earance of one.
Eplth/mum, Dioscorides. Growing on Thyme.

Cyc'lamex, Theophrastus. G., cyclamenos, from cyclos, a
circle ; probably on account of the spiral turns of the
peduncles.

Cyn'odon. From G., cyn, dog, and odon, tooth.

Dactylon. G., a finger ; on account of the fingered spikes.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 121

Cynoglos'sum, Dioscoricles. From G. c\jn, dog, and glossa,
a tongue ; from the form of the leaf.

Cynosu'rus, Linneus. From G. cyn, dog, and oara, tail;
from the shape of the spike.

Cype'rus, Theophrastus. G., cyj)eiros, a reed.

Cypripe'dium, Linneus. From G. cyiwis, a surname of the
goddess Venus, and ijoclion, a sock, or slipper;
Venus' slipper ; as we say Lady's Slipper.
CaVceolus, Dodonseus. L., a slipper. Calceolus Marianus
is the name given by Dodonaeus. In mediaeval times
many plants originally dedicated to Venus were trans-
ferred to '' Our Lady," or the Virgin Mary — e. g, (our)
Lady's Mantle, (our) Lady's Slipper, &c.

Cystop'teris. From G. cysto, bladder, and 2^teris, fern;
on account of the hood-shaped cover of the sori.

Dac'tylis, Linneus. G., dactylos, a finger ; from the form

of the panicle.
Daph'ne, Dioscorides. The name of a nymph who was

changed by the gods into a Laurel or Bay-tree to

save her from the pursuit of Apollo. Some of these

plants have a resemblance to Laurels.
Lau'reola, Dodonseus. Diminutive of L., laurus, a laurel;

and given by the later Latin writers to this plant.

The older name was Daplmoides — Daphne-like.
Meze'reum, Linneus. Madzaryoun, its Persian name.

Linneus, in his ' Materia Medica,' gives Mezereum

as the officinal name for Daphne. Dodonseus quotes

Avicenna and Serapion as using this name, but not

for this plant.
Datu'ra, Linneus. Altered from its Arabic name tatorah

(Forskal).* Paimphius says that in some parts of the

'^ A Swedish naturalist of the last centuiy, who was employed by
the king of Denmark on a scientific expedition to Egypt and Ai'abia.

L

133 NAMES OF PLANTS.

East Indies it is called daturo. Linneus gives
Datura as both the officinal and the botanical name
of Thorn-apple ('Materia Medica'). Camerarius
gives Tatula as the name of his second species of
" Stramonia."
Stramo'nmm, Lobel. The name Stramonia was generally
given to the Thorn-apple by the botanists of the
sixteenth century, and Lonicerus says that it was so
named by the Italians. The derivation is obscure.
Dau'cus, Dioscorides. G. name for the plant. "From
claio, I burn; on account of its effect in medicine.
All the ancient authors speak of daucus, as a heating
plant."— Theis.
Carol' a, Linneus. Carrot is the English name, and carotte
the French. Carotte is also used in German, but is
not the usual name. It has been supposed to be
of Keltic origin, and to refer to the colour of the
root ; car, red.
Delphin'ium, Dioscorides. From G. delpliin, a dolphin;
on account of the form of the flower. The Del-
phinium of Dioscorides was not the Delphinium of
Linneus, but the name was used by him.
ConsoVida, Fuchs. A name given formerly to Larkspur,
and also to Comfrey, Self-heal, Daisy and other
plants, in reference to some real or supposed virtue in
the healing of wounds. The L. verb consolido means
I make solid, firm or compact. See Solidago.
Denta'kia, Linneus. From L. dens, a tooth; from the

tooth-like scales of the root.
Dianth'us, Linneus. From G. Di, Jove's, and anthos,
flower.
Arme'ria, Linneus. A name formerly given to the Sweet

William pinks. See earlier under Armeria.
CaryophyVluSf Linneus. From G. CaryophylloUf the spice

XAIMES OF PLANTS. 123

which we call clove. The above tree was formerly
called Caryophyllus ; the clove gilliflower, or pink,
Caryophyllus multiplex; and Avens, or Herb Bennet,
was called Caryophillata ; the last on account of the
smell of the roots, and this plant from the smell of
the flowers being like cloves.

Digita'lis, Gesner. From L. digitale, a glove ; as we say
Fox-glove, from the flower being like the finger of a
glove.

Digita'eia, Haller. From L. digitus, a finger.

Di'geaphis or Dig'raphis. From G. di, two, and graphis,
a style.

Dio'tis. G., di, two, .and otis, eared; from the ear-like
appendages to the fruit.

DiPLOTAx'is. From G. di2?lo, double, and taxis, order or
arrangement ; in allusion to the two rows of seeds.

Dip'SACus, Dioscorides. From G. dipsao, I am thirsty; the
connate leaves forming a kind of cistern in which
water is retained.

Doron'icum, Brunfels. *' Named from (G.) doron, a gift,
and nice, victory; because it is said to have been
formerly used to destroy wild beasts, whence the
English name of Leopard's-bane ; or some say from
doronigi, or durungi, the Arabic name of the
Leopard's-bane, Latinised by earlier botanists into
doronicum, and enumerated by Linneus among bar-
barous names which ought to be rejected. He,
however, retained it, perhaps because its sound, if
not its sense, is Greek." — Hooker and Arnott.
Pardalianch'es, Linneus. G., loardali, panther, and anch,
strangle ; or Leopard's-bane.

Dros'era, Cordus. G., dros, dew. This plant is not men-
tioned by the ancients, but it was called L., Ros
(dew) solis (of the sun) by the apothecaries of the

124 NAMES OF PLANTS.

middle ages ; referring to the viscid drops wliich
exude from the leaves, and present an appearance
resembling dew.
Dry'as, Linneus. From G. clrys, oak ; on account of some
resemblance in the leaves. Clusius calls it Cha-
msedrj^s montana.

Echinochlo'a. G., echino, hedgehog, and cliloe, grass.

Echinoph'ora, Columna. G., ecJiino, hedgehog, and ])liora,
bearing — as one wears clothes ; referring to the
prickly nature of the plant.

E'CHIUM, Dioscorides. G., eclii, viper; because it was
supposed to be a protection , from, and a cure for,
the bite of a viper. Gerard says of this plant : —
*' The roote drunke with wine is good for those that be
bitten with serpents, and it keepeth such from being
stung as haue drunke of it before; the leaues and
seedes do the same, as Dioscorides writeth: Nicander,
in his booke of Treacles, maketh viper's Buglosse to
be one of those plants, which cure the biting of
serpents, and especially of the viper, and that driue
serpents away."

Elat'ine, Dioscorides. G, name applied to some plant
growing among corn. It is not known with certainty
to which, and we have no satisfactory explanation of
the reason for its application. Matthiolus represents
it to be the sharp-pointed Fluellen (Linaria Elatine).
Hydrojn'per, Dioscorides. G., hydro, water, and iKperi,
pepper; Hydropeperi. The slightly altered form
Hydropiper is given by Fuchs, Matthiolus, &c.

Eleoch'aeis, R. Brown. G., lieleo, marsh, and chair, to
delight in ; from the situations in which it grows.
It would be more correctly spelt Heleocharis.

Elo'dea. G., helo, a marsh. See ELEOCHAPtis.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 135

El'ymus, Dioscorides. Name given by the Greeks to Panic-
grass.

Em'petrum, Dioscorides. G., en, in, and jpeiro, rock; growing
in rocky places.

Epilo'bium, Gesner. G., epi, upon, and lob, pod ; from the
flower growing upon the pod-like ovary.

Epi]me'dium, Dioscorides. " Analogous to medium, a plant
which was supposed to grow only in Media, from
which it obtained its name. See Dios. b. 4, c. 18. He
speaks of Epimedium next after Medium." — Theis.

Epipac'tis, Dioscorides. A name given by the Greeks to
some sort of Hellebore. It was applied by Haller to
this genus of Orchids. Derivation doubtful.

Epipo'gium, or Epipo'gum. *' From G. epi, upon (or upper-
most), and pogon, a beard ; an appellation given by
Gmelin,* because the lip (called by him the beard) is
uppermost." — Hooker and Arnott.

Equise'tum, Pliny. L., equi, horse, and setum, hair ; horse-
tail, as we say.
TelmateVa. G., pertaining to a marsh or swamp.

Eran'this. G., er, spring, and anthis, flower.

Eri'ca, Dioscorides. G., ereice. The derivation is said
to be from ereico, I break; because it was for-
merly supposed to have the ]30w^er of destroying
calculi of the bladder. Yet the old botanists give
but little prominence to this supposed property.
Matthiolus mentions it, but from Dioscorides down-
wards the chief virtue ascribed to the genus is as an
application to the bites of snakes. It puzzles me
where the}^ got so many snakes in Europe, especially
in England, for we have only one venomous kind,
and its bite is seldom a very serious affair.

Erig'eron, Theophrastus. From G., eri, early, and geron, an
" A German botanist of the last century.

120 NAMES OF PLANTS.

old man, or grey-head ; in allusion to the receptacle,
which soon becomes like a grey head.

Eeiocau'lox, Gronovius. G., erio, wool, and caulon, stem ;
in allusion to the downy stems of the species first
known.

Erioph'orum, Theophrastus. G., erio, wool, and 2>^ior, bear ;
bearing wool, cotton-sedge.

Ero'dium. G., erod, heron ; from the beaked fruit, as we
say Heron's-bill.

Eryxg'ium, Dioscorides. " Eryngion in Greek; derived
from erygein, sl word which means the act of eructa-
tion. Dioscorides states positively that Eryngium
dissipates all windiness." — Theis.

Erys'imum, Theophrastus. G., derived from eryo, to draw
(blisters) .

Erythr^'a. G., erythr, red ; the colour of the flower.
C entail' reum, Dioscorides. See earlier, under Centaurea.
This plant is the Centaureum minus of Fuchs,
Centaureum parvum of Gerard. In Lancashire and
Cheshire it is not uncommonly called Sanctuary,
which is a corruption of the name Centaury.

Euon'ymus, Theophrastus. G. name for the plant ; from
Eiionyme, mother of the Furies, the berries being
poisonous.

Eupato'rium, Dioscorides. See earlier, under Agrimonia,
which was Eupatorium of Matthiolus; this plant
(Hemp Agrimony) being his Eupatorium vulgare.

Euphop/eia, Dioscorides. This word means, literally, plenty
of food, and seems a strange name to apply to a genus
of plants which are, for the most part, poisonous;
unless indeed on the principle that a little of it goes
a long way. The derivation, we are told, is from
Euphorbus, physician to Juba, king of Mauritania,
who is said to have brought the plant into use.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 127

Cyparis'sias, Dioscorides. From G., cyjxirissos, the
cj'press; on account of its similar foliage. This
plant was called by Matthiolus, &c., Tithymalus
C37Darissias.

E'siila, Dodonseus, who gives this ingenious conjecture as
the explanation of the word: — " The name Esula may
be derived from (G.) intyusa,'' — like the Pine-tree
ipitys) in foliage ; a name then usually given by
scientific men to the plant, — " for, lay aside the first
two S3ilables (!) and usa remains, of which the dimi-
nutive is usula ; change the first vowel, and you
have Esula." This looks at first rather a far-fetched
derivation; but Esula was the officinal name of the
plant, and the apothecaries before and about this
time performed such remarkable feats in the way
of corrupting names that it is quite possible that
Dodonseus is right.

Heliosco'ina, Dioscorides. G., lielio, sun, and scop,
watcher ; because the flowers face the sun.

Latli'yris, Dioscorides. G. name for the plant.

Para'Uas, Dioscorides. G.,2:)aralias, gi'owing on the coast.

PepTis, Dioscorides (see later). So called on account of
the foliage somewhat resembling that of Purslane.

Pep'lus, Dioscorides. G., peplos ; name for a kind of
Spurge.

We may remark the unusual number of substantive
names for Spurges, which shows the estimation in
which they were held. Gerard describes twenty-one
kinds.
EuPHEA'siA, Fuchs. G. for gladness. The plant was for-
merly called Euphrosyne, meaning also gladness.
The plant was so called on account of its reputation
for clearing the eyes. Fuchs complains that the
name is corrupted by "ignorant druggists" from

128 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Euphrosyne. Other names whicli were, and some of
them still are, used for this plant, refer to this
remedial property as Ophthalmica and Ocularia; in
French, Euphraise ; in German, Augentrost ; and in
English, Eyebright.

Fa'gus, Pliny. L. for the Beech-tree, from G. 'phegos ;
though the G. ijliegos was not the Beech, but a kind
of Oak ; so there has been some confusion. " But
here I may not omit a note of the accurate critic
Palmerius, upon a passage in Theophrastus, where
he animadverts upon his interpreter, and shows that
the ancient loliegos was by no means the Beech, but
a kind of Oak."— Evelyn's ' Silva.' White, in his
'Latin Dictionary,' gives Fagus (a Beech-tree) as
equivalent to G. phegos ; but Liddell and Scott
(Greek Dictionary) give us — Phegos, " a kind of Oak
bearing an esculent acorn, not the Latin Fagus
(Beech)." The name is evidently the same, but
some confusion has arisen in its application.

Fe'dia, Adanson (see Cicendia). A name without any
known or probable meaning.
Auricula. L., an ear.

Festu'ca, DodonsEus. L., " from fest, Celtic, food or pas-
turage." — Hooker and Arnott. L. festuca means a
stalk, stem, or straw.

Fila'go, Dodonseus. lj.,fil, thread ; the plant being covered
with thread-like hairs.

FcENic'uLUM, Pliny. Fa^n, hay; the smell of the plant
being likened to that of hay.

Fraga'ria, Pliny. L. for the Strawberry. " Fraga (akin to
Sanscrit root ghra, odorari), the fragrant things;
hence Strawberries." — White's Lat. Diet. 1869.

Franken'ia, Linneus. Named from John Franken, a

NAMES OF PLANTS. 139

Swedish botanist and professor of medicine at Upsal,
who died in 1661.

Frax'inus, Virgil. L. for the Ash tree. The derivation of
the name is uncertain ; some have supposed it to be
from G. phraxis, a separation, because the wood may-
be easily split ; others from G. phrasso, to enclose or
hedge round ; and some from L. frango, I break,
from its brittleness ; but the wood of the Ash is
remarkably tough.

Fritilla'eia, Lobel. L., fritillus, a dice-box ; alluding to
the form of the flowers.
Melea'gris, Dodonjeus. G., a guinea-fowl; in allusion to
the markings of the flower.

Fuma'ria, Gesner. L., fumus, smoke ; Pliny says because
it makes the eyes water when applied to them, as
smoke does. The old name was fumus terrce, smoke
of the earth.

Ga'gea. Named in honour of Sir Thomas Gage, Bart., a
British botanist, who died at Kome in 1820.

Galan'thus, Linneus. G., gal, milk, and anthus, flower; on
account of its milk-white flowers.

Galeob'dolon, Dioscorides. G., gale, a weasel, and hclolon,
fetid smell.

Galeop'sis, Dioscorides. G., gale, a weasel, and opsis,
appearance ; because the tip of the flower is like the
snout of the weasel.
LacVanum, Dalechamps. G., ledanon, a gummy substance,
which is still gathered from the Cistus creticus of
Linneus. The G. names for the plant were ledon
or laclon, ledanon or ladanon. It was applied by
Dodon^eus and the writers of his time to several
kinds of Cistus, and by Dalechamps (1587) to this
plant. By Linneus it was used as a specific name,
according to his rules.

180 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Tet'rakit, Dillenius. " Derived from G. tetras, four. Its
stem has four very decided corners." — Tlieis. Name
formerly given to some of the Hemp -nettles.

Ga'lium, Dioscorides. G., gal, milk ; from the plant having
been used to curdle milk. This plant of Dioscorides
was Galium verum of Linneus. An English name
for it is Cheese-rennet, and the French call it Gaille-
lait, in allusion to its former use.
Crucia'ta. L., literally, crucified, but intended to signify
cross-shaped (crux, crucis, a cross) ; Crosswort, as we
call it, from the leaves, which are four in a whorl.
Formerly used as a substantive name, but now more
usually spelt with a small letter, erroneously according
to Linnean practice. Bentham, in his ' British Flora,'
retains Cruciata. It was named Galium cruciatum
by Withering. Camerarius gives the name Cruciata
to a Gentian, " Gentiana minor," or " Cruciata." It
is still called Gentiana Cruciata.
AparVne, Dioscorides. G. name for the plant; from

ajKiiro, I take, or lay hold of.
Mollu'go, Dodonseus. According to him, from the softness
of its leaves (L., moll, soft), compared with Aparine.
These two species were formerly classed together under
the name Lappa, now used as a synonym of Arctium.

Gastrid'ium. G., diminutive of gaster, the belly; a ventricle,
or little swelling, as is seen at the base of the spikelet.

Genis'ta, Pliny. L. name for the Broom. It has been
given to several leguminous plants, as Broom, Gorse
and Dyers' Green-weed. It is said by some to be
derived from Keltic gen, a shrub, and by others from
L. gefiu, a knee ; but these conjectures seem fanciful,
and of no particular value.

Gentia'na, Pliny. " Gentian was first discovered by Gen-
tius, king of Illyria" (Pliny) ; hence the name. The

NAMES OF PLANTS. 131

species alluded to is G. lutea, of Linneus, the roots

of which are the Gentian of our shops.
AmareVla, Linneus. Diminutive of L., amarus, bitter;

i. e., a little bitter.
Pneumoiian'the, Cordus. From G. imeumon, lung, and

antli, flower.
Gera'nium, Dioscorides. G. name, from geran, crane ; in

allusion to the beaked fruit ; as we say, Crane's Bill.
Rohertia'num, Fuchs, who refers it "without doubt" to

some old superstition. "According to Adelung so

called from its being used to cure a disease known in

Germany as the Ruprechts-Plage, from Robert, duke

of Normandy." — Prior.
Ge'um, Pliny. From G., geuo, I yield an agreeable flavour.
Githa'go. See under Agrostemma.
Glad'iolus, or Gladi'olus, Dodonaeus. L. for a little

sword, referring to the form of the leaves. The name

is often incorrectly pronounced Gladiolus.
Glau'cium, Tournefort. G., glauc, bluish green ; in aUusion

to the bloom of the leaves.
Glaux, Tournefort. G., from the colour of its leaves, see

Glaucium. The name was used by Dioscorides for

an entirely different plant.
Glyce'ria, R. Brown. G., glyce, sweet ; in allusion to the

sweet juices of some of the species.
Gnapha'lium, Dioscorides. G., soft down or wool; the

species are covered with it.
Good'yera, R. Brown. Named after John Goodyer, a

Hampshire botanist of the time of Gerard.
Gymnade'nia, R. Brown. G., gymn, naked, and aden, a gland;

because the glands are not contained in a pouch.
Gyi^inogram'me, or Gymnogram'ma. G., gymn, naked, and

gramme, a line; because the lines of sori are un-
covered, or without indusium.

133 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Habena'ria, R. Brown. From L., hahena, a thong, or strap ;
which the lip of the flower somewhat resembles.

Hed'era, Pliny. L. for Ivy.

He'lix, Pliny, L., wound about, or twisted; another
name for Ivy.

Heleoch'aris. See Eleocharis.

Helian'themum, Cordus. G., hell, sun, anthemum, flower.
The reason for the name is uncertain. It has been
erroneously supposed by poets, and others, that
flowers called sun-flowers continually turn towards
the sun. A more likely explanation of the name is
that their blooming depends much upon the bright-
ness of the sun. Some flowers, as Anagallis, Montia,
Nymphsea, and this Helianthemum, our English Rock
Rose, expand the best in bright sunshine, while others
have a difl'erent habit, as Tragopogon: — *'for it
shutteth it selfe at twelue of the clocke, and sheweth
not his face open vntill the next dales sunne do make
it flower anew, whereupon it was called Go to bed at
noone." — Gerard. Then again some plants come
into bloom in the evening.

Helleb'orus, Dioscorides. G., hele {helein), take away, or
remove, and hor, food. The name was originally
given more especially to White Hellebore (Veratrum
album, of Linneus), and Fuchs gives this as its mean-
ing. Gerard tells us : " The root of the White Hel-
lebore procureth vomit mightily, wherein consisteth
his chief vertue."

Helmin'thia. G., helminth, a small kind of worm ; refer-
ring to the form of the fruit.

Heloscia'dium. From G., helos, a marsh, and sciadion, an
umbel.

Herac'leum, Pliny, Named from the hero Hercules. Pliny
mixes up a number of plants under this name in
hopeless confusion.

NAMES OF PLANTS.

188

SphonchjVhm, Dioscorides. G., diminutive of sphonchjle,
a stinking insect ; old name for the plant.
HERmN'iUM, E. Brown. Derivedfrom /lermm, the knob or foot
of a bed-post ; in allusion to the shape of the tubers.
Mono/chis. G., mon, single; in allusion to the single
tuber. *' Eoot of several thick vfoollj fibres, and one
globular hairy knob, the size of a large pea, which is
the source of the plant of the present year. One of
these apparent fibres, rarely more, bears at its extre-
mity a small young knob, destined to enlarge after-
wards, and to flower in the following summer."—
Smith Eng. Fl.
Hernia'ria, Gesner. L,, a reputed remedy for hernia, or

rupture.
Hes'peris, Pliny. G., hesper, the evening; when the flower

is particularly fragrant.
Hiera'cium, Dioscorides. G., so called from hierac, a hawk;
because birds of prey were supposed to strengthen
their vision with the juice of these plants.
PiloseVla, Matthiolus. Diminutive of L., pilosus, hairy,
i. e., a little hairy.
Hierochlo'e. G., hiero, sacred, and chloe, grass. Holy
Grass; because it was formerly used to strew in
churches.
Hippocre'pis, Linneus. G., hippo, horse, and crepis, shoe ;

from the form of the fruit.
Hippopha'e, Dioscorides. G., apparently from hippo, horse,
and phao, I shine ; but the exact meaning and appli-
cation are not clear. The ancient name Hippophaes
was not confined to the Sea Buckthorn, and doubts
have been expressed whether it was applied to that
plant at all. Pliny says: "These plants would
appear too, to be remarkably well adapted to the
constitution of the horse, as it can be for no other

134 NAMES OF PLANTS.

reason than this that they have received their name.
Hardoin, however, thinks that the names liip])0][»liaes
and hippophceston have another origin, and that they
are compounds of phaos, lustre, from the hrilliancy
which they were said to impart to cloths, and hippos,
in an augmentative sense, meaning * great lustre.' " —
Note in Bohn's Ed. of Pliny's Nat. Hist. The meaning
must be considered doubtful.

Hippu'eis, Linneus. G., liipp, horse, and our, tail. A name
given by Dodonseus to Equisetum.

Hol'cus, Linneus. G., holcos, from helco, I extract; because
it was supposed to have the property of drawing out
thorns from the flesh.

Holos'teum, Dioseorides. From G., hoi, all, and osteon,
bone ; "by antiphrasis, the texture being the verj''
reverse, soft and delicate." — Theis.

Honcken'ya. Named after G. A. Honckeny, a German
botanist, who died in 1805.

Hor'deum, Virgil. L. for barley. Its origin is dubious.

Hotto'nia, Boerhaave. Named after Pierre Hotton, a pro-
fessor at Leyden, who died there in 1709.

Hu'mulus, Linneus. From L., humus, soil, the ground;
figuratively low, or mean. It has been suggested
that without support the plant would grow on the
ground.
Lu'pulus, Brunfels. From L., lupus, a wolf. Pliny calls
the plant " Lupus salictarius," meaning literally the
*' willow wolf." It probably took this name from the
tenacity with which it clung to willows. Lupulus
was an officinal name for the Hop.

Hutchin'sia. Named in honour of Miss Hutchins, of
Bantry, Ireland, who was an excellent and well-
known botanist.

Hyacin'thus. See Agraphis.

NAISIES OF PLANTS. 135

Hydroch'aris, Linneus. From G., hydro, water, and
charis, elegance. Pretty water plants.
Morsus-ra'nce, Dodonseus. L., morsus, a biting, rancBy of a
frog. Frog-bit ; frogs were supi30sed to eat it.

Hydrocot'yle, Tournefort. From G., hydro, water, and
cotyle, cup ; from the species growing in watery
places, and bearing leaves that are somewhat cup-
shaped. See Cotyledon.

Hymenophyl'lum, Smith. From G., hymen, membrane, and
])hyllon, leaf; Film Ferns.

Hyoscy'amus, Dioscorides. G., hyos, hog's, and cyanos, bean ;
because hogs are said to eat the fruit, which is some-
thing like a bean.

Hyper'icum, Dioscorides. G., the meaning is doubtful. It
has been supposed to be derived from hyper, above,
and eikon, image; as being used for an amulet against
spirits. Hyperi'cum would seem the correct pro-
nunciation, but it is not usual.
Androsce'mmn, Dioscorides. G., andros, man's, cema, blood.
Lonicerus tells us because, if the seed or the flower
be rubbed, it will give out "man's blood." Fuchs
puts it, because "they have said that the flower,
rubbed in the fingers, emits a blood' coloured juice."

Hypoch.e'ris, Theophrastus. From G.. hypo, for, and
chceros, a hog : the roots being eaten by that animal.

Ibe'ris, Dioscorides. Named from Iberia, or Spain, where

many of the species grow.
Flex, Pliny. L. for the Holm Oak, or Ever-green Oak.

Aquifolium, Pliny; i.e., acui-foUum, or pointed leaved, L.
Ille'cebrum, Dodonseus. L., illecehra, an enticement, or

attraction; a name formerly given to Stonecrops.

Fuchs uses it for Sedum Telephium, and Dodonseus

for Sedum acre, of Linneus. Applied by Linneus to

this lowly, but pretty little plant.

136 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Impa'tiexs, Dodon£eus. Impatient, from the sudden open-
ing of the capsule if touched when it is ripe.
No^li-me -tang ere, Columna. L., touch me not; for the
same reason as the last. Gerard gives this name
to the Squirting Cucumber {Echalium officinarum),
which has a very remarkable provision for the dis-
tribution of its seeds, for when quite ripe the
fruit parts from its stem, and the contents are
discharged wdth such force as to convey them a
considerable distance.

In'ula, Horace. L., for Elecampane, said to be from G.,
Helen; the plant being supposed to have sprung
from the tears of the heroine of the Trojan war.
Cony'za, Hippocrates. G. name for the plant.
Hele' niiun, Dioscovides. See Inula; the derivation is the
same.

I'ris, Theophrastus. G. for the rainbow ; from the varied
colour of the flowers.
Pseud- ac'orus, Linneus. G., })seud, false, and Acorus,
which see. It is an older name than Linneus ; thus
Matthiolus caUs it Pseudo-acorum, w^hich is practi-
cally the same name, though not identically.

Isa'tis, Dioscorides. G. name of the plant.

Isnar'dia, Linneus. Named after Antoine d'Isnard, a bota-
nist, and professor at Paris, who died in 1743.

Isoe'tes, Linneus. G., iso, equal, or alike, and etos, the
year ; meaning evergreen.

Isol'epis, K. Brown. G., iso, equal, and lejyis, a scale ; on
account of the uniform size of the glumes.
Holoschoe'nus, Dalechamps. Greek for a kind of rush.

Jas'ione, Jasi'one, Jasio'ne. The last accentuation is given
by Withering, but may be considered quite out of
date. Name of Theophrastus; G., generally supposed

NAMES OF PLANTS. 137

to have been given by him to some sort of Campanula,
but we have no certain knowledge about it.

Jun'cus, Plin}^ L. for a rush; from the Yevh jungo, to join,
or bind, because of their use for tying.

Junip'erus, Pliny. L. for Juniper.

Knap'pia, Smith. Named in honour of J. L. Knapp, an
English botanist, and author of a work on the British
Grasses : he died in 1845.

Knaut'ia, Linneus. Named in honour of Christian Knaut,
a botanist of Saxony, who flourished in the latter
half of the seventeenth century, and died in 1716.

Kobee'sia. Named in honour of M. de Kobres, of Augs-
burg, a patron of Botany.

Koele'eia. Named in honour of George Louis Koeler,
author of a work on German and French Grasses,
who died in 1807.

Ko'niga, Brown. " Name revived by Mr. Brown, from the
Konig of Adanson, and altered by him to Koniga,
in order to commemorate the important services
rendered to Botany by Mr. Konig, of the British
Museum." — Hooker and Arnott.

Lactu'ca, Pliny. From L., lac, milk; because of the milky

juice which flows from the broken stems of many of

the species.
Lagu'rus, Linneus. G., lag, hare, and our, tail; Hare's-

tail Grass.
La'mium, Pliny. G., laimos, throat; on account of the

throat-like corolla.
Lapsa'na, Dioscorides. G., laimzo, purge ; by reason of its

medicinal property.
Lastee'a, Presl. " The name of the genus in its original

form (Lastrsea) was given by Bory de St. Vincent, in

honour of M. Delastre, of Chatellerant, a zealous

n

138 NAMES OF PLANTS.

botanist and microscopist. Presl in adopting it, and
giving it a new application, writes it Lastrea." —
Moore, ' Nature -printed British Ferns.'

Lathe.¥/a, Linneus. G., lathrce, hidden, or concealed ; the
plant being often much concealed by dead leaves.

Lath^^rus, Theophrastus. Name for some leguminous
plant; the exact one is not known.
Aph'aca, Dioscorides. G., apliace. Name formerly given
to two or three small leguminous plants. Dodonaeus
gives us a picture of this plant under the name
Aphace. Matthiolus gives us Yicia sativa (of Lin-
neus) as the Aphace of Dioscorides.
Nisso^lia, Tournefort. Named in honour of M. G. Nissole,
a professor of Botany at Montpellier, who died there
in 1734.

Lavate'ra, Tournefort. Named in honour of the two
Lavaters, physicians and naturalists of Zurich, and
friends of Tournefort.

Leer'sia. Named in honour of John Daniel Leers, a Ger-
man botanist, who published a ' Flora Herbornensis,'
and died at Herborn in 1774.

Lem'na, Theophrastus. G. name for the plant, the origin of
which is unknown. The only derivation I have seen
suggested is from le2ns, a scale, but this is scarcely
probable.

Leon'todon, Linneus. G., leon, lion's, and odon, tooth ;
from the tooth-like margins of the leaves.
Taraxacum, Lonicerus. G., tarass, change ; on accomit of
its supposed effects on the blood.

Leonu'rus, Linneus. From G., leon, a lion, and oura, a

tail; on account of the supposed resemblance.

Cardi'aca, Fuchs. L., affecting the stomach ; because of

its repute formerly as a remedy for that disease of

the stomach that we call heartburn. Fuchs attributes

NAMES OF PLANTS. 139

the name to its property of allaying palpitation of the
heart. The G. word cardiacos refers both to the heart
and the stomach. The name was an of&cinal one.

Lepid'ium, Fuchs. G., lejJ, scale ; from the form of the
little pouches, or seed-vessels ; or, as Fuchs reports,
because it removes scales and spots from the face.
Dra'ha. See earlier.

Leptu'eus, E. Brown. G., lept, slender, and our, tail;
referring to the slender spikes.

Leuco'jum, Dioscorides. G,, leuc, white, and ion, violet.

Ligus'ticum, Dioscorides. Named from Liguria, where it
abounds.

Ligus'trum, Pliny. L., lig, bind; on account of the branches
having been sometimes used for such purposes.

Lil'ium. L. for Lil}^ in G. leirion ; a very ancient name, of
which the origin is unknown.

Limnanth'emum. G., limn, marshy lake, and anthemum,
flower.

Limosel'la, Linneus. L., Umiis, mud; the plant growing
in muddy places.

Lina'ria, Tournefort. From lin, flax ; from the resemblance
of the leaves of some species to those of flax, as
Linaria vulgaris, which we call Toad-flax.
Cymbala'ria, Matthiolus. From L., cymbalum, a cj^mbal.
Dioscorides gives this name to his second species of
Cotyledon, which is our London Pride. There was
a good deal of confusion in the use of the name
" Navel-wort," in various Latin forms : thus Fuchs
says it was one name for Sow-bread (Cj^clamen), and
Dodonseus as a name of Pennywort (Hydrocotyle).
Matthiolus points out that this plant, in his time
commonly called Cybalaria, is not the Cymbalaria
mentioned by Dioscorides. He gives pictures of the
three plants, viz., first and second kinds of Cot3'ledon
of Dioscorides, and Cymbalaria. See Cotyledon.

140 NAMES OF PLA.NTS.

Linn.e'a, Gronovius. Named in honour of Linneus, with
his concurrence, by his friend Dr. J. F. Gronovius.
It is a " little northern plant, long overlooked, de-
pressed, abject, flowering early, which Linneus selected
to transmit his own name to posterity." — Smith,
Eng. Fl.

Linosy'eis. Named from L., lin, flax, and osyris, an appel-
lation given by Pliny to a plant with supple branches,
and leaves like flax.

Li'num, Theophrastus. From G., linon, flax, changed in L.
to linum.

Lip'aeis. G., liparos, fat, or unctuous to the touch.

Lis'teea, E. Brown. Named in honour of Dr. Martin
Lister, a British naturalist, who died in 17 IL
Ni'dus-avis. L., nidus, nest,, ai? is, of a bird.

Lithospep/mum, Dioscorides. G., litho, stone, and simin,
seed ; on account of its seeds being very hard.

Littoeel'la, Linneus. L., lit, the shore; which is its
place of grow^th.

Lloyd'ia. Named in honour of Mr. Edward Lloyd, a
learned Welsh antiquarian and naturalist of the
seventeenth century, who first discovered this plant
in Britain.

Lobe'lia, Plumier. Named in honour of Lobel. See p. 40.
DortmaiVna, Linneus. Named in honour of Dortmann, a
Dutch apothecary, wdio did good service to Botany.

Loiseleu'eea. After the French botanist Loiseleur Deslong-
champs, who published a Flora of France, and other
botanical works, and died in 1849.

Lol'ium, Pliny. L. for Darnel.

Loma'eia, Willdenow. From G. loma, the hem or border of
a robe ; from the marginal sori.

Lonice'ea, Linneus. Named in honour of Lonicer. See p. 38.
Pericly'meniim, Dioscorides. From G. iieri-cleio, I enclose

NAMES OF PLANTS. 141

or entwine ; in allusion to the method of ascent of
the Honeysuckle stem.

Lo'tus, Theophrastus. Application uncertain ; it has been
supposed that it is one of the kinds of the lotos, of
the Greeks.

Ludwig'ia. In honour of Christian Gottlieb Ludwig, a pro-
fessor of Botany at Leipsic, where he died in 1773.

Lu'zuLA. Smith (Eng. Fl.) calls this genus "Luciola"
instead of Luzula, and remarks on it as being " an
indispensable correction in the orthography of the
name." He continues : — " The hairy heads of flowers,
wet with dew, and sparkling by moonlight, gave the
elegant Italians an idea of their lucciole, or glow-
worms ; sometimes written luzziole, but this is a
provincial corruption. Hence, however, John Bauhin
got the name of Gramen luzulcd, or Glow-worm Grass,
for he never called it Luzula, which would have been
the same as actually calling it a glow-worm." Not-
withstanding this correction the genus continues to
be called Luzula. All the names are derived from
L., luceo, I shine.

Lychnis, Theophrastus. From G., lycJinos, a lamp ; " the
thick cottony substance on the leaves of some
species, or some similar plant, having been employed
as wicks for lamps;" or "from the flame -like flowers
of some species." There is some diff'erence of
opinion as to the exact reason of the name.
Flos- cii' cull, Tragus. 1j., flos, flower, cucuU, of the cuckoo.
A name that has been given to difi'erent plants that
flower in April and Maj^ "when (as Gerard expresses
it) the Cuckowe doth begin to sing her pleasant notes
without stammering ; " thus Dodon^ieus calls the May
Flower {Cardamine pratensis), Flos-cuculi.
Visca'ria, Lobel. From L., viscum, mistletoe, and also

142 NAMES OF PLANTS.

bird-lime (made from it). Lobel calls this plant
Viscaria, and Gerard calls it in English " Catch-fly,
or Bird-lime-wort."

Lycopod'ium, or po'dium, Clusius. G., lycOy wolf, snidpodion,
little foot ; alluding to the appearance of the branches
of some of the species.
SeWgo, Dillenius. G., sela, shining.

Lycop'sis, Dioscorides. G., lye, wolf, and ojms, a face;
because of some fancied resemblance of the flowers
to a wolfs face.

Ly'copus, Fuchs. G., lyco, wolf, and 2^ous, foot ; from the
shape of the leaves.

Lysima'chia, Dioscorides. Lysi, dissolving, and mache,
battle. Loose-strife ; because it was said to appease
the strife of oxen at the i^lough if put about their yokes;
or others say that it is named in honour of Lysima-
chus, a king of Macedonia, who was killed in battle
281 years before Christ, in the 80th year of his age.
He is said to have discovered the virtues of the plant.
Nummula'ria, Dodonseus. From L., nummus, coin;
Moneywort or Herb Twopence; from the shape of the
leaves. Fuchs mentions the name, but himself calls
the plant Centum morbia (a hundred diseases), on
account of its great medicinal repute.

Lyth'rum, Linneus. G., lythron, blood ; it is said from the
colour of the flowers.
Salica'ria, Tournefort. Like a Willow, L., salix. Willow-
herb. This plant was formerly classed along with
the Willow-herbs, which were then called Lysi-
machia, and this particular one Lysimachia purpurea
spicata.

Maianth'emum, Moench. G., mai, May, and anthemon, a
flower.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 143

Malach'ium. The word would seem to mean " Mallow-
like " (G., malache, a mallow), but the plant has no
resemblance to a mallow, and the explanation is more
likely to be G., malakos, soft or feeble ; from the
nature of the plant.

Malax'is. G., a softening ; on account of the tender nature
of the plant.

Mal'va, Plin3^ L. for mallows. Altered from the G. name
malache, which is from malass, soften ; in allusion to
the emollient properties of the species.

Marru'bium, Pliny. The meaning of the name is uncertain.

Matrica'ria, Brunfels. Named from its reputed medicinal
virtues.
ChamomiVla, Tragus. G., cliamaimelon, meaning literally
ground apple ; so called (according to Gerard) because
the flowers have the smell of an apple.
Parthenium, Dioscorides. G. name for the plant.

Matthi'ola, Plumier. Named in honour of Matthiolus.
See p. 37.

Meconop'sis. . From G., mecon, a poppy, and opsis, a face
or appearance.

Medica'go, Tournefort. The medice of the Greeks; so
called because it was introduced into Greece by the
Medes.

Melam'pyrum, Theophrastus. From G., melas, black, and
pyros, wheat. Its seeds resemble wheat, and are said,
when mixed with it, to make the bread black.

Mel'ica, Dodonseus. "Melica/or Melliga, name given in
Italy to the Sorghum vulgare, on account of the
sweet flavour of its stem (L., 7nel, honey), was applied
by Linneus to this somewhat allied genus." — Hooker
and Arnott.

Melilo'tus, Pliny. From L., mel, honey, and Lotus, which
see.

144 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Melis'sa, BiTinfels. G. for a bee, and also for honey. Bees
are foncl of it.

Melit'tis, Pliny. From G., melissa, a bee ; because of its
yielding honey to bees.
MelissophyVlum, Kivinus. From G., melissa, a bee, and
phyllon, a leaf; for a similar reason to the last.

Men'tha, Theophrastus. G., mintlia, or minthe, a fabled
nymph who was changed into the herb Mint by
Proserpine.
Pule'gium, Pliny. L. name for Pennyroyal, from index, a
flea ; because it was supposed to kill fleas. " The
blossom of it, fresh gathered and burnt, kills fleas by
its smell." — Pliny.

Menyan'thes, Dioscorides. G., men, month, and anth,
flower; it is said from the duration of the flowers
being a mouth.

Menzie'sia. Named in honour of Archibald Menzies,
surgeon and naturalist to the Expedition under
Vancouver, in 1790 : he died at Kensington in 1842.

Mercuria'lis, Pliny. Named after the god Mercury, who
is said to have discovered some virtues in it.

Merten'sia. Named in honour of F. C. Mertens, a German
botanist, who died at Bremen in 1831.

Mes'pilus, Theophrastus. G., mespile, the medlar.

Me'um, Dioscorides. Supposed to be G., meon, of Dios-
corides.
Athaman'ticum, Pliny, who says: " because, according to
some, it was first discovered by Athamas ; or else
because, as others think, that of the best quality was
found upon Mount Athamas." Athamas, according
to the ancients, was king of Thebes, in Boeotia, and
son of ^olus, who was the king of storms and winds,
and reigned over ^olia ; he was the son of Hippotas,
a Trojan prince, who was changed into a river, &c.

NAMES OP PLANTS. 145

Mil'ium, Pliny. From L., mille, a thousand ; on account
of its fertility. '' The Latin name for the true Millet
misapplied." — Dr. Hooker, ' Student's Flora.'

Mim'ulus, Linneus. L., iniiiiy mimic; hence Monkey
Flower.

M(en'chia. Named in honour of Conrad Moench, Professor
of Botany at Hesse Cassel.

Molin'ia. Named in honour of the Kev. Juan Ignazio
Molina, who wrote an account of the Natural History
of Chili, published in 1782, and died in 1829.

Mone'ses. G., mon, alone; on account of the solitary
flowers and combined petals.

Monot'ropa, Linneus. G., mon, one, and trepo, I turn ; the
flowers all turning one way.
Hypop'itys, Dillenius. From G., hypo, under, or about,
and pitys, a Fir-tree ; the plant grows in Fir woods.

Mon'tia. Named in honour of Guiseppe Monti, Professor
of Botany and Natural History at Bologna, who died
there in 1760.

Mulge'dium. From L., mulgeo, I milk; on account of its
milky juice.

Mus'cARi, Clusius. Late L. muse, musk ; on account of the
scent yielded by one species.

Myoso'tis, Dioscorides. G., myos, mouse's, and ot, ear;
from the shape of the leaves.

Myosu'eus, Dodonseus. G., m^/os, mouse's, and oura, tail;
from the elongated spike of the seed vessels, re-
sembling a mouse's tail.

Myei'ca, Theophrastus. G. name for Tamarisk.

Ga^le, Bauhin. The Myrtus brabantica of Dodonseus and
Gerard. Gerard caUs it in English Sweet Willow, or
Gaule, and gives the Dutch name as Gagel. Gale
seems to be an altered form of the word. It is now
called Gall, or Gall-bush, in Scotland.

o

146 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Myriophyl'lum, Dioscorides. G., myrio, myriad, and
l^hyllon, leaf; because of its many leaves.

Myr'rhis, Dioscorides. From G., myrrha, myrrh; on
accomit of the scent of the leaves.

Nai'as, Linneus. Named after the naiads, or water nymphs.

Nakcis'sus, Theophrastus. The name of a beautiful youth
of heathen mytholog}^, who was said to be changed
into a plant. This is usually set down as the origin
of the name. Pliny says that it has received its
name from " narce " (torpor) on account of its effects,
and not from the youth Narcissus, mentioned in
fable ; and this derivation is supported by Theis.
Prior writes : — " an instance, among many more, of a
legend written to a name ; for as an old poet, Pam-
philus, remarks, Prosperine was gathering Narcissi
long before that youth was born."
Pseiif do-narcis' sus, Dodonseus. G., pseudo, false, and
narcissus (see above).

Nar'dus, Theophrastus. G. name; a plant, from the
flowers of which a sweet- smelling oil was prepared.
There is no apparent reason why the name should
have been applied to this genus.

Narthe'cium. From G., narthex, a rod ; probably from
the elongate, straight raceme of flowers. The name
Narthex was given by the Greeks to quite a different
plant, a species of Ferula, the genus from which we
obtain Assafoetida.

Nastuh'tium, Pliny. L., nas, nose, and tortus, twisted;
from the smarting sensation which its pungency
causes to the nostrils.

Neoti'nea. " The name of this genus was originally Tinea,
to which the younger Keichenbach prefixed Neo, to
distinguish it from Tinea, a well-known genus of

NAMES OF PLANTS. 147

small moths/'—E. B. Tinea is L. for a moth, and
Neo is a G. prefix signifying new, or fresh. Such
names, composed of Greek and Latin, are not con-
sidered good (see canon la, p. G4) ; further, names
of members of the animal kingdom are not allowed
by Linnean rule to be used for plants (see canon 17,
p. 65).

Nep'eta, Pliny. Named, according to Linneus, from Nepi,
a town in Italy; others say from nejoa, a scorpion,
for whose sting this ]3lant was considered a cure.
See Nepeta, under Cala^hntha.
Cata'ria, Dodonseus. From L., catus or catta, a cat.
" The latter herbarists do call it Herba Cattaria, and
Herba Catti, bicause the cats are very much delighted
herewith ; for the smell thereof is so pleasant vnto
them, that they rub themselues vpon it, and wallow
or tumble in it, and also feede on the branches and
leaues very greedily." — Gerard.
Glecho'ma, Linneus. From G., glechona, Pennyroyal.

Nephro'dium. G., nephros, the kidneys, from the kidney-
shaped involucres. The British species are all
included in the sub -genus Lastrea, which is dis-
tinguished by having free veins.

Nu'PHAR, Smith. Arabic, nauphar.

Nymph^'a, Theophrastus. G., referring to the water
nymphs, or naiads of ancient mythology, who pre-
sided over rivers, springs, and fountains.

Obi'one, Gartner. Prof. Asa Gray says :— " Origin of the
name unknown, unless from the river Obi, in Siberia,
whence the original species came." '

GEnan'the, Theophrastus. G., cen, wine, and antli, flower;
alluding to the smell of the flowers.
PhellanUlrium, Pliny. From G. "Dr. Both always

148 NAMES OF PLANTS.

writes the old name Plielanclrium ; which agrees with
an etymology I have hazarded in Bees' Cyclop£edia,
V. 27, from j^heleo, to be treacherous, alluding to the
poisonous nature of the plant." — Smith, Eng. Fl.

CEnothe'ea, or (Enoth'eka, Theophrastus. G., ceno, wine
and thera, searching, catching, or acquiring; "the
roots having a vinous scent when dried : they were
also formerly eaten as incentives to wine drinking, as
olives are ; hence the name was changed from onagra,
the ass food, to osnotliera, the wine trap. We are
not sure that the change was necessary." — E. B.

Onob'eychis, or Onobry'chis, Dioscorides. G., ono, ass,
and hrycli, bray ; it is said from the animal braying
to get at it.

Ono'nis, Theophrastus. G., ono, ass; because the ass eats it.

Onopor'dum, Pliny. G., ono, ass, and jperd, crepitation ;

from the carminative effects (according to Pliny)

upon asses when they eat of it.

Acantliium, Dioscorides. G., has been supposed to be the

acantliion of Dioscorides, from acanth, thorn or prickle-

Ophioglos'sum, Tragus. G., ophio, serpent, and gloss,
tongue; the Adder's Tongue Fern. The allusion
is to the shape of the fertile frond, which is also
the origin of the English name.

Oph'rys, Pliny. G., oplirys, the eyebrow. Pliny includes
it, among some others, to apply to the hair : " Lysi-
machia imparts a blonde tint to the hair, and hyperi-
con, otherwise called corison, makes it black. The
same, too, with ophrys," &c. The Ophrys of Pliny
seems by his description to be our Tway-blade
{Listera ovata). The name was applied to this
genus by Linneus. Tlieis remarks that the calyx
in the greater part of these plants resembles the
eyebrow by its arched form.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 149

Or'chis, Theophrastus. G. name for plants having a double

tuberous root.
Mo'rio, Linneus. From L., ononis, a fool; Fool's Orchis,
an old name for the plant.

Orig'anum, Theophrastus. G., ori, hill, and gan, joy; the
delight of the mountains, of which the species are
ornaments. Matthiolus remarks that with the ancient
herbalists the history of the different species of
Origanum is various and confused.

Orni'thogalum or Ornithog'alum, Dioscorides. G., ornitho,
bird, and gal, milk.

Orni'thopus, Gesner. G., ornitho, bird, and_po?ts, foot; from
the similarity of the seed-vessels to a bird's foot.

Orobanch'e, Theophrastus. G., oroh, in this case any kind
of leguminous plant, and anclie, strangle ; from their
being parasitical on the roots of such plants.

Osmun'da, LobeL "After the godThor (Osmunder)." — Theis.

Ox'alis, Pliny. From G., oxy, sharp, or acid. The Oxalis
of Pliny is the Rumex Acetosella of Linneus, not his
Oxalis Acetosella.
AcetoseVla, Linneus. From L., acet, sharp, or sour-tasted
(acidus, acid or sour) ; an old officinal name.

OxYCOc'cos. See under Vaccinium.

Oxyr'ia, R. Brown. G., oxy, sharp, or acid; on account of
the acid flavour.

Oxyt'ropis. G., oxy, sharp, and tropis, a keel; a dis-
tinguishing character of the genus, which has a
narrow-pointed keel (carina) — the name for the two
lower petals of a papilionaceous or butterfly -shaped
flower, such as the pea, which together resemble the
keel of a boat.

P.eo'nia, Theophrastus. G., named in honour, it is said, of
the celebrated physician P^ieon, who cured the wounds
which the gods received during the Trojan war.

150 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Pan'icum, Linneus. From L., |?ams, bread; the seeds of
some si^ecies being used to make bread.
Crus-galli, Linneus. L., cms, leg, galU, of a cock ; old
officinal name.

Papa'ver, Pliny. " So named because it is administered
with pap (papa in Keltic) to induce sleep." — Hooker
and Arnott. The etymology is dubious.
Argemo'^ie, Dioscorides. G. name of the plant, from
argema, on account of its use formerly for the cure
of cataract in the eye. See Agrimonia.
Rhce'as, Lobel. Called by the Greeks mecon, poppy,
rhoias. Rhoia (rhsea) :means a Pomegranate, which
the capsules somewhat resemble. Or perhaps from
rJieo, I flow; which derivation seems to have been
more generally accepted, for Dodonseus and the other
botanists of that time give Papaver liquidum as the
L. name, which might have been applied on account
of its quickly-falling petals, or seeds, or the milky juice
which flows from the stems if they are broken : though,
as pointed out by Gerard, such distinctions are not
more applicable to this kind of poppy than to others.

Parieta'ria, Pliny. From L., paries, a wall ; the species
frequently growing on walls.

Par'is, Matthiolus. L., equal, on account of the regularity of
its leaves and flowers. It was formerly called Herba
Paris, or Paris herba, and we call it Herb Paris.

Parnas'sia, Linneus. From Mount Parnassus, though this
" grass of Parnassus" is by no means peculiar to that
locality. It was called Grass of Parnassus {Gramen
Parnassium) by Dodonseus, and others of his time.

Pastin'aca, Pliny. L. for a parsnip, or carrot ; from pastus,
food.

Pedicula'ris, Gerard. From L., pecliculus, a louse ; because
it was supposed to produce a lousy disease in sheep.

Pep'lis, Linneus. From G., peplion, anciently applied to

NAVIES OF PLANTS.

151

the genus Portulaca, now to this one, which is similar
in habit.
Por'tula, Dillenius. L., portulaca, Purslane.
Petasi'tes, Dioscprides. From G., loetasos, a covering to
the head, or an umbrella; on account of the great
size of its foliage.
Petroseli'num, Dioscorides. From G., iMros, rock, and

selinon, parsley ; as it grows in rocky places.
Peuced'anUxM, Dioscorides. From G., pence, a pine tree
and dams, a gift ; on account of a resinous substance
that exudes from some of the species.
Ostru'thium, Dodonseus. This name was applied to
Masterwort, on the Linnean system of nomenclature,
by Koch.* It is an old name for the plant, which
was formerly also called Astrantia and Imperatoria.
Dodonseus says :— " Some recent authorities call this
plant Imperatoria, as well as Astrantia, and some
Ostrutium, the same as Struthion, but it differs
greatly from Struthion." Struthion is an old Greek
name of Theophrastus for some unrecognized plant ,
and is mentioned by Pliny, who calls it Eadicula, in
Latin. More recently it has been given to different
plants, as to Sneezewort {Achillea Ptarmica), and to
our garden plant, the Scarlet Lychnis [Lychnis Choice-
clonics), which Dodonseus calls Flos Constantinopoli-
tanus. I cannot trace the meaning of Ostruthium.
Phal'aris, Dioscorides. G., phal, shining; Canary-seed

being very glossy.
Phle UM, Pliny. G.,phleos, formerly applied to the Eeed-mace,
to which this genus bears some distant resemblance.

»- Wilbelm Daniel Joseph Koch was born at Kusel, near Deux-
Ponts, in 1771, and died at Erlangen in 1849. He published several
botanical works, the most important being a Synopsis of the German
and Swiss Flora. He is celebrated for his extensive knowledge of
European plants.

153 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Pheagmi'tes, Trinius. G. name, meaning material for an
enclosure; these reeds being used for thatching,
garden fences, &c. Arundo Phragmites was the
name given by Linneus and numerous other autho-
rities to the common Reed.

Phyllod'oce. L., name of a sea nj^mph in ancient
mythology.

Physospermum. From G., physa, a bladder, and sperma, a
seed ; from the loose covering to the seed.

Phyteu'ma, Dioscorides. G., ^'pliyteama (the same as
phyton), the plant; given par excellence to some
medicinal plant by the ancients, but which probably
bore little or no resemblance to the present." —
Hooker and Arnott.

Pi'cRis, Dioscorides. G., picros, bitter; as are many of
this genus.

Pilula'eia. L., pilula, a little pill ; which its fructification
resembles.

Pimpinel'la, Fuchs. Altered from L., bipennula, or twice
pinnate ; in allusion to the divisions of the leaves.
Saxifraga. From the resemblance of the lower leaves to
some species of Saxifraga, which see.

Pinguic'ula, Gesner. From L., pinguis, fat; on account
of the texture of the leaves ; hence the EngUsh name
Butterwort, and the French Grassette.

Pi'nus, Pliny. L. name for the plant.

Planta'go, Pliny. L. name applied to some plants of this
genus, and also to the Water Plantain (Alisma). Its
origin is unknown.
Coron'opus, Dioscorides. From G., coron, crow, and
pons, foot ; crow's foot. Smith says : — " There has
been much controversy respecting the Coronopus of
ancient authors, some taking it for Cochlearia Coro-
nopus, of Linneus, others for his Plantago Coronopus,
others for Myosurus, or for Achillea Ptarmica, while

NAMES OF PLANTS. 153

that of Pliny seems by his description very different
from all these, as well as from what Dioscorides
intended. ... It seems to me that the name in
question was applied by the ancients to various plants
whose roots were crowned with radiating depressed
leaves."
LanceoWta. L., lanceolate, or tapering to each end; in
allusion to the leaves. Lanceola, or Lanceolata, was
the old officinal name for this plant, as may be found
in the works of Fuchs, Lonicer, &c. It was not spelt
with a capital letter by Linneus, or any one after
him, so far as I know, nor is it a name that is worth
commemoration in that wa3^ Still it should be
mentioned.
Po'a, Theophrastus. G. for Grass.

Polemo'nium, Dioscorides. G. and L. name for Greek
Valerian, or Jacob's Ladder ; after Polemon, a king
of Pontus, who died at an advanced age, about 270
years before Christ ; or according to Pliny from
2)olemos, war, the plant having caused a war between
two kings, who each of them claimed its discovery !
Polycar'pon, Dalechamps. From G., poll/, manj^, and

carpos, fruit ; our English name is Allseed.
Polyg'ala, Dioscorides. From G. poly, much, and gala,
milk; from its reputed property of promoting the
secretion of milk.
Polygon'atum, Dioscorides. From G. 2^oly, man}-, and
gonat, knee, or joint ; on account of the numerous
knots, or swellings, of the root, according to Fuchs ;
or perhaps on account of the many nodes, or joints,
of the stem.
Polygonum, Dioscorides. From G. 2^olg, many, and gon,
knee, corner, or joint; from the numerous joints of
the stem, — as we say Knot-grass.

p

154 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Bistor'ta, Mattliioliis. L., twice -twisted (bis-forta) ; al.
luding to its roots.

Fagop'yrum, Dodonreus. It was also called Fagotriticum
(L. Fagtis, a beech, and Tritkumy wheat). Fago-
pyrum is the same name in G., phegos, a beech, and
pyros, wheat ; on account of the resemblance of the
three-cornered seeds to beech-mast. See Fagus.

Convolv'ulus. See the genus earlier; so called from its
twining habit.

Hydropi'per. See under Elatine.

PersicaWia, Pliny. From L. persicus, a i^each tree ; on
account of the resemblance of the leaves.
Polypod'ium, or po'dium, Theophrastus. From G. _2^oZ2/,
many, and podion, a little foot; on account of the
divisions of the rhizome.

Dryop'teris, Dioscorides. G., dryo, oak, and pteris, fern;
Oak Fern. Five of our British ferns have been
called Dryopteris by different authorities at different
times.

Phegop^teris, Linneus. From G. phego, a beech tree (see
Fagus), and pteris, a fern. Beech Fern.
Polypo'gon. From G. poly, much, and p)ogon, beard ; from

the bearded appearance of the panicle.
Polys'tichum. From G. poly, many, and sticlws, order;
" applied to the shield ferns in allusion to the nume-
rous regular lines of sori, which are seen distributed
over the fronds." — Moore.
Pop'uLUS, Pliny. L. name for the Poplar ; the derivation
is doubtful. It has been suggested that it is an
altered form of palpaliis, from G. 2^(f^llomai, to quiver,
or shake ; which the leaves of the Aspen and other
Poplars are remarkable for doing.
Potamoge'ton, Dioscorides. G., potamo, river, and geiton,
a neighbour, They are water plants.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 1^^

PoTENTiL'LA, Brunfels. From L. potent, powerful; on
account of the medicinal virtues attributed to some
of the species. It is a comparatively recent name,
and was applied by Matthiolus, Fuchs, and others of
that period, to Potentilla Anserina. Gerard also
gives Potentilla major as one of the names of Meadow
Sweet.
Auseri'na, Tragus. I have put down Tragus opposite
this name, but it was in common use in his time
officinally for this plant, and continued in use for
some time afterwards; thus you may find it in
Linneus' ' Materia Medica ' as the ofdcinal name for
Potentilla. Lonicerus says :— " By what name the
ancients called that which we now-a-days call Poten-
tilla does not appear. It is Genserich of the Germans,
meaning the same as Anserina, because geese rejoice
in it for food." The derivation is from L., anser, a
goose; in English it is sometimes called Goose-grass.
Another old name for it was Argentina, fro^^ L.,
argentum, silver ; Silver-weed, the name we commonly
give it in English.
Fragarias'trum. From Fragaria (which see), on account
of the resemblance. It was called by Linneus
Fragaria sterilis, and has since been called Potentilla
Fragaria, and P. fragarioides. The Enghsh names
are Barren Strawberry, and Strawberry-leaved
Cinquefoil. See Raiolianistrum under Eaphanus.
TormentiVla, Matthiolus. By Dodonseus this is set down
as a recent name, the older being Septifolium, or
Septfoil. I do not meet with any explanation of
Tormentilla: in French it is Tormentille. The
reference would seem to be to its medicinal properties
as an astringent in bowel complaints, for which it is
still used. L., tormina, dysenteric pains.

15() NAMES OF PLANTS.

PoTE'r.iUM, Linneus. G., literall}^ a drinking cup, but in
this case alluding to a beverage. According to Pliny
it was taken in wine, and also as a decoction mixed
with honey for different complaints. It is a name of
Dioscorides, but was applied by him to quite a
different j)lant from the Salad Burnet. Poterium, in
its present application, must be taken as a fresh
invention. Theis remarks that "the English use it
in the preparation of a refreshing beverage which
they drink in hot weather. It is called cool-tankard.*'
Sancjulsor'ha. See genus later.

Prim^ula, or Pei'mula, Matthiolus. From L. primus, first;
on account of its being one of the earliest spring
flowers.

Peunel'la, Brunfels. Named from the German hraune,
the quinsy, which it was supposed to cure : hence
also called Brunella by some old authorities as
Dodonseus, Pdvinus, and more recently by Tourne-
"- fort and Bentham, while Fuchs, Bauhin and others
used the softer sounding Prunella.

Pku'nus, Plin}^ L. for Plum Tree. The G. name was
proune.
Cer'asus, Pliny. L. for the Cherry Tree, which was
brought by Lucullus from Cerasus, in Pontus, to
Italy.
Paulas, Theophrastus. Prunus Padus is the name given
by Linneus to the Bird Cherry. Padus was the
name of the river Po, and Pliny tells us: — "Metro-
dorus, of Scepsos, informs us that this river has
obtained its name of Padus from the fact that about
its source there are great numbers of Pine Trees,
which in the Gallic language are called 'padi.'"
I know of no other connection between Padus and
a tree.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 157

Psam'ma. G., psamme, sand ; on account of the plant grow-
ing in the sand on the coasts.

Pter'is, or Pte'ris, Theophrastus. G., a fern.

Pulica'ria. See under Inula, p. 136.

Pulmona'ria, Gesner. From L. pulmo, a lung; because
the spotted leaves have somewhat the appearance of
lungs. Hence, according to the doctrine of signa-
tures, which taught that such marks on plants point
out their medicinal uses, the Pulmonaria was sup-
posed to be useful in lung diseases.

Py'kola, Brunfels. From L. p^?'/fs, a Pear-tree ; from the
resemblance of the leaves to those of a Pear-tree,
according to Lonicerus.

Py'rus, Pliny. L. for Pear-tree {pyrus or pyrum).

A'ria, Theophrastus. P^tus Aria is given by Gerard as

the Aria of Theophrastus.
Ma^luSj Varro. L., an Apple-tree.

Quer'cus, Pliny. L., an Oak-tree.
Ilo%ur, Pliny. L., a kind of Oak.

Rad'iola, or Eadi'ola. Diminutive of L. radius, because
the cells of the ripe capsule diverge like the rays of a
little wheel.

Millegra'na, Gerard. L., mille, a thousand, or innumer-
able, grana, grains, or seeds ; we call it Allseed.
Eanun'culus, Pliny. Diminutive of L., rana, a frog; a
little frog, most of the species growing in those moist
situations where young frogs are to be found, and
they flower at about the same time as that when frogs
are young.

Flca^ria, Brunfels. From L. Jicus, a fig ; on account of
the form of its roots.

Flam'mula, Dodonieus. L., diminutive of Jlamma, a

158 NAMES OF PLANTS.

flame ; a little flame. The reference is to the red-
ness or inflammation caused by the application of
the leaves to the skin, a property possessed by most
of the Crowfoots. Some remarks of Gerard in
reference to this property are quaint and amusing.
This he says of Crowfoots in general: — "Many do
Yse to tie a little of the herbe stamped with salt vnto
any of the fingers against the paine of the teeth,
which medicine seldome faileth; for it causeth
greater paine in the finger than was in the tooth, by
the meanes whereof, the greater paine taketh away
the lesser." The name Flammula is also given to a
species of Clematis.
Ling'ua, Pliny. L., a tongue, from the shape of the leaf;
so called on the supposition that it is the " Lingua "
of Pliny. " There is a herb called ' lingua ' which
grows in the vicinity of fountains " (Pliny's Nat.
Hist.) "Fee identifies it with Scolopendrium ofiici-
narum of Willdenow, the Lingua cervina of other
botanists " (note in Bohn's Ed. of Pliny) — or the
Hart's-tongue Fern, which seems to be more pro-
bably the plant alluded to b}^ the author.

Kaph'anus, Theophrastus. G. raiohanis, L. raplianus, a
radish ; from G. rapJiainein, to appear quickly,
according to Fuchs, on account of its rapid germi-
nation.
Mcqjhanis'trum, Kay. The same derivation as the last.
" The repetition of a generic name, with the addition
of ' istrum ' or ' astrum ' applied to a species,
indicates that it is a useless or contemptible member
of that genus, or bears a false resemblance to the
species which comprise it." — E. B.

Bese'da, Pliny. From L. resedo^ I calm ; from its supposed
sedative qualities.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 159

Lu'teola, Ray. From L. lutum, dyers' weed, or weld.
Luteus means that which pertains to the plant lutum ;
hence j^ellow. Luteolus is the diminutive of luteus,
and means yellowish.
Rham'nus, Theophrastus. G., rhamnos, Buckthorn.

Franc/iila, Matthiolus. From h./rango, I break : a name
given to the Alder Buckthorn at the time of Gerard,
and up to the time of Linneus. Another name in
those days was Alnus nigra, "black Aller" (Alder,
still called " Owler " in Lancashire).
Rhinan'thus, Linneus. From G. rhiu, nose, and anthos,
flower ; from the shape of the upper lip of the corolla,
which is remarkable in some species.
Cris'ta-gaVli, Dodon^eus. L., crest of a cock, or cock's
comb ; because, according to Pliny, " it has numerous
leaves resembling a cock's comb." The English
name is Cock's-comb, and the allusion is to the
shape of the calyx.
Ehodi'ola. See under Sedum.
Rhynchos'pora. From G. rhynclios, a beak, and spora, a

seed; Beak-rush.
Pa'BES, Fuchs. Eibes was a word applied by the Arabian
physicians to a species of Rhubarb {Rheum ribes), and
its present application arose from a comparison of
the taste of this plant with that of the fruit of our
Gooseberry.
GrossuWria, Dodon^eus. L., grossus, an unripe fig. The
name was applied by Linneus as the second name for
the Gooseberry. The most usual name for this
plant in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was
Uva crispa. It does not appear to have been known
to the ancients, which may be accounted for by its
being " chiefly confined to cold or temperate climates,
neglected in Switzerland, and with difficulty raised in

160 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Ital3\" — Smith, Eng. Fl. DodoD?eus gives Gros-
sularia as a recent name, and saj's the plant was
more usually called Uva crispa.

Roeme'eia. Named in honour of J. J. Eoemer, professor of
Botany at Zurich, who died there in 1819.

Eo'sA, Pliny. L. name for the liose. It appears to be
derived from rliodd, which in different forms is traced
both in the Greek and Keltic, and signifies red, or
rose-coloured.

Ru'bia, Pliny. From L. ruber, red; from the colouring
properties of the genus. Rubia tinctorum supplies
the Madder-root of commerce, from which is obtained
the beautiful fast colour called " Turkey red," and
several other colours, according to the chemicals it is
brought into contact with. The colouring matter
(alizarin) may be separated, in the form of brilliantly
tinted needle-shaped crystals.

Ru'bus, Plin3\ L. name for a Bramble-bush.

Ru'mex, Pliny. The origin of the name is doubtful ; it is
used by Pliny.
Aceto'sa and Acetosel'la. See Oxalis.
Ilydrolap'athum, Gerard. G., laimthon, Sorrel, or Dock ;
Hydro-lapathum, Water- dock.

Rup'pia, Linneus. Named in honour of Heinrich Bernhard
Ruppius, a German physician, and author of ' Flora
Jenensis,' who died in 1719.

Rus'cus, Virgil. L. for Butcher's Broom. Gerard says it
was called Bruscus in the shops.

Sagi'na, Linneus. L., meaning meat that fattens. A name
given by Linneus, but it does not seem very appro-
priate to these small plants, though it has been
stated that sheep are very fond of them, and that this
food fattens them greatl3\ This seems doubtful.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 161

Sagitta'ria, Lobel. From L. sagitta, an arrow; on account
of the shape of the leaves.

Salicor'nia, Dodon^eus. From L. sal, salt, and cornu, a
horn ; from the horn -like stems of the plant and its
saline nature, it being one of those sea- shore plants
the ashes of which consist chiefly of soda. Before
soda was prepared from salt, the ashes of this and
other sea- shore plants were an important article of
commerce, suppljdng what is called Barilla.

Sa'lix, Pliny. L. for a Willow-tree.
Arbus'cula, Linneus. L., a small tree, diminutive of
arbor, or arhus, a tree. I do not know why it is
generally spelt v^ith a capital letter, or whether it
should be. Linneus (' Species of Plants,' 2nd ed.)
spells it with a small letter, Willdenow with a capital,
Smith with a capital, and among his authorities the
first is Linneus ('Lapland Flora '), Withering has a
small letter ; the later authorities use the capital. I
cannot trace the name further back than Linneus,
and I do not understand on what principle it is spelt
with a capital letter.
Cap'rea or Capre'a, Linneus. From L. caper, a goat. This
is not an old substantive name, so far as I can make out,
nor is it spelt with a capital letter by Linneus, Will-
denow, Smith, Withering, or Lindley. Why it should
be by Babington, Hooker and Arnott, Bentham, in the
last edition of 'English Botany,' and by Dr. Hooker
C Student's Man.'), I cannot say. " The name caprea
seems to have originated in the reputed fondness of
goats for the catkins, as exemplified in the wooden
cut of the venerable Tragus, their namesake."— (Smith,
Eng. Fl.) This cut represents a goat standing on its
hind legs, with its fore feet on the trunk of a Sallow,

Q

162 NAMES OF PLANTS.

and its head stretched up as high as possible to get
at the catkins, which it is eating.
He'lix, Linneus ; see Hedera. I do not understand the
reason of the application of this name to the Rose
• "Willow, which is so called from the rose-like expan-
sions at the end of its branches, caused by the
puncture of an insect, which are permanent through
the winter.
Myrsini'tes, Linneus. From G. myrsino-eides ; Mj^tle-
like. This is not an old substantive name, and, as in
the case of Salix arbuscula and S. caprea, there seems
to have been some carelessness in the use of the capital
letter, for while the Linnean school spelt myrsinites,
and Bentham does the same, Hooker and Arnott,
Babington, 'English Botany' and others give us Myr-
sinites. This must be accidental. Linneus has (Salix)
97iyrsinites and (Euphorbia) illjTsinites, but in the last
instance it is the Myrtites of Plin3^

Sal'sola, Csesalpinus. From L. sal^ salt; on account of
the abundance of alkali yielded by its ashes (see
Salic ornia).
Kali. An Arabic name ; the same as alkali (see p. 17, the
Arabic article ; also Salsola and Salicornia).

Sal'via, Pliny. L. for sage, from salvo, I heal; on account
of its medicinal repute.

Sathbu'cus, Pliny. L. for the Elder. This name is sup-
posed to have been given because a musical instru-
ment called the sambuca was made of it, but I do not
know what authority there is for the fact. The
sambuca was a stringed instrument, and whatever
musical instrument w^as made of the Elder was
probably a wind instrument, a shepherd's horn in
fact, for Pliny tells us : — " It is a belief among the
shepherds that if the^ cut a horn, or trumpet, from

NAMES OF PLANTS. 163

the wood of tliis tree, it will give all the louder sound
if cut in a spot where the shrub has been out of
hearing of the crowing of the cock." Elder stems
look particularly unsuitable to strain strings from,
still it is pretty generally affirmed that the wood of
the Elder was used to make the sambuca, and it
seems probable, from what Pliny says, that it was
used for some musical instrument or instruments.
Perhaps colloquially the word samhiica had a more
extended meaning than the stringed instrument of
the classics.
EVulus, Virgil. L. name for the dwarf Elder, or Banewort.

Sam'olus, Pliny. " The Druids have given the name of
* samolus ' to a certain plant which grows in humid
localities. This they say must be gathered fasting,
with the left hand, as a preservative against the
maladies to which swine and cattle are subject." —
(Pliny). It is uncertain to what plant the name was
originally given.

Sanguisor'ba, Fuchs. From L. sanguis, blood, and sorheo,
I take in, or absorb. "Burnet is a singular good
herbe for wounds, and commended of a number : it
stancheth bleeding, and therefore it was named
Sanguisorba, as well inwardly taken as outwardly
applied." — Gerard.

Sanic'ula, Brunfels. From L. sano, I heal ; because it was
used as a remedy for woundisT

Sapona^kia, Gesner. From L. sa^po^ soap. " Of the great
scouring qualitie that the leaues haue; for they
yeelde out of themselues a certaine iuice when they
are brused, which scowreth almost as well as sope." —
Gerard.

Sarotham'nus. From G. saroo, I sweep, and thamnos, a
shrub ; because it is used to make besoms.

164 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Saussu'rea. Named in honour of Horace Benedict de
Saussure, an eminent naturalist of Geneva, where he
was philosophical professor for 25 years. He was
born 1740, and died 1799.

Saxif'eactA, Pliny. L. sax, stone, and /ra^/, break; from its

reputed medicinal properties, in calculus diseases;

according to Theis, by analogy, from the species

rooting into rocks and breaking them up.

Ge^im, see the genus. The name was applied to this plant

by Magnol, and by Linneus as a trivial name.
Hir' cuius, Clusius. L., a little goat ; name given to this
plant by Clusius — " the father of forren simples " as
Gerard calls him — in 1611. The French name is
(Eil de bouc, or goat's eye.

ScABio'SA, Brunfels. From L. scabies, for which the plant
was a reputed remedy.
Columharia, Linneus. From L. columha, a dove. The
stem-leaves resemble in their divisions the foot of a
pigeon. — Theis.
Succi'sa, Fuchs. L., cut off at the lower part, in allusion
to the root. This is an old substantive name, which
is frequently though incorrectly spelt with a small
letter. The plant was once called Succisa Fuchsii.
Fuchs does not claim to be the first user of the name,
for he says it is to be found in old manuscripts. It
is spelt with a capital letter by Linneus.

Scan'dix, Theophrastus. G. name for some kind of Cher-
vil, perhaps for the plant to which we now apply it.
Pec'ten, Dodonseus. L., a comb; our English name is
Venus' Comb, which is the translation of the old
name Pecten Veneris.

Scheuchze'ria, Linneus. Named in honour of the brothers
Scheuchzer, celebrated Swiss botanists (see p. 69).

Schce'nus, Theophrastus. G. for a rush ; pronounced skeenus.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 165

Maris cus. See under Cladium.

Scil'la, Dioscorides. G. and L. for Sea Onion, or Squill.

Scir'pus, Plautus. L. for Bulrush; pronounced sirpus.
"Nodum in scirpo quaerere," to seek a knot in a
bulrush, i. e., to seek a difficulty where there is none,
was a L. proverb.
Holosclioe'niis, Dalechamps. G. liolos, entire, and schcenus,
rush.

Scleran'thus, Linneus. G. scler, hard, and anthos, a
flower; from the hard nature of the floral covering.

Sclerochlo'a. G. scler, hard, and Moe, grass.

Scolopen'drium, Theophrastus. Said to be named from the
lines of fructification resembling the feet of a scolo-
pendra, or centipede; but the name seems to have
been given originally to Ceterach, and not to the
Hart's-tongue. Both Matthiolus and Gerard speak
of the name Scolopendrium being incorrectly given
by some to this fern, the Phylittis of Dioscorides
and Lingua cervina of the shops, probably the Lingua
of Pliny (see Kanunculus Lingua). The reason for
the name is therefore uncertain.

Scrophula'ria, Brunfels. From L. scrofula ; the roots of
some species resembling scrofulous tumours, " and it
is reported to be a remedie against those diseases
whereof it took his name." — Gerard.
ScorocWnia, Linneus ; see also under Teucrium. From
scoroclon, G. for Garlic. This plant was called by
Plukenet, Kay, and others, " Scrofularia scorodonise
folio."

Scutella'ria. From L. scutella, a little dish or cup, which
the calyx, with its appendage, or ear, somewhat
resembles.

Se'dum, Pliny. From L. sedeo, I sit; on account of their

166 NAMES OF PLANTS.

manner of squatting on rocks, walls, or roofs, with
scarcely any soil.
RhocViola, or Rliodiola, Linneus. The old name was
Ehodia radix, Eose-root. " Some haue thought it
hath taken the name Rhoclia of the Hand in the
Medeterranean sea, called Khodes : hut doubtlesse it
tooke his name Rhoclia radix, of the root, which
smelleth like a Eose : in English Eose roote, and
Eose woort." — Gerard. See Eosa. Rhodi, of a
Eose, ola, smelling.
Tele'phium, Dioscorides. G. name for the Orpine ; from
Telephus, a son of Hercules, and king of Mysia.

Selaginel'la. Diminutive of Selago, an old name for
Lye op odium.

SemperviVum, Pliny. L., semper, always, and vivum, living.

Senebie'ra. Named in honour of Jean Senebier, a physio-
logist of Geneva, who died there in 1809.
Coron'opus, Theophrastus. See under Plantago.

Senec'io, Pliny. From L. senex, an old man ; on account
of the hoary appearance of some of the species. See
Erigeron.
Jacohcd^a. From L. Jacobus, James ; St James'-wort.

Serrat'ula, Pliny. From L. serratiis, saw-shaped; alluding
to the margins of the leaves.

Ses'eli, Dioscorides. G. and L. name for Meadow Saxi-
frage.

Sesle'ria. Named after Leonard Sesler, an Italian physi-
cian and botanist.

Seta'ria. From L. seta, a bristle; on account of the
involucre of bristles surrounding the sj)ikelets.

Sherard'ia, Dillenius. Named in honour of William
Sherard, D.C.L., F.E.S., who was born 1658, at
Bushby, in Leicestershire. He studied Botany under
Tournefort, and travelled much on the continent.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 16"^

He was thirteen years Consul at Smyrna, and died
1728, at Eltham, in Kent, a place remarkable for the
celebrated garden of his brother James, the choice
plants of which are pictured and described in the
*Hortus Elthamensis' (Eltham Garden) of Dil'
lenius. See p. 60.
Sibbal'dia, Linneus. Named in honour of Eobert Sibbald,
an Edinburgh professor, who published a book on
the Natural History of Scotland in 1684, with a
figure of the only British species of this genus. He
died in 1720.
SiBTHOKP'iA, Linneus. In honour of Dr. Humphrey Sib-
thorp, the successor of Dillenius in the botanical
chair at Oxford.
Sila'us, Pliny. A name used by Pliny, but its meaning is
unknown, and there is great uncertainty as to the
particular plant alluded to.
Sile'ne, Theophrastus. Supposed to arise from G. slaloiiy
saliva, in allusion ^to the viscid moisture on the
stalks of many species: whence, too, the English
name " Catch-fly."
Arme'ria. See the genus.

Oti'tes, Smith. From G. ot, ear, on account of the shape
of the leaves. As a trivial name Otites was used by
several authorities before Smith, but under a different
generic name than Silene. Silene Otites is now the
generally received name for the plant, but Otites is
scarcely a substantive name, though spelt with a
capital letter.
Sil'ybum, Dioscorides. G. name of a kind of Thistle which
was considered edible. Pliny tells us :— " In Cilicia,
Syria, and Phoenicia, the countries where it grows, it
is not thought worth while to boil it, the cooking of
it being so exceedingly troublesome, it is said."

168 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Sime'this. Named after a Sicilian nymph called Symethis.

Sina'pis, Theophrastus. G. and L. sinapi, mustard.

Si'soN, Dioscorides. " Sizuiiy signifying in Keltic a running
brook; some of the plants formerly placed in this
genus delighting in such situations." — Theis.
Amo'mum, Pliny. A name of Pliny for a plant which he
describes, but it has not been decided what that
plant is, though more than half a dozen have been
suggested. It is not our Sison Amomum.

Sisym'brium, Theophrastus. G. sisymhrion, Water Mint, a
name also given to several other plants, probabl}^,
among the rest, to some of this genus.
2Vio, Dioscorides. G., a name used by Dioscorides.
SophVa, Dodonseus. G. for wisdom. Gerard calls it
" Sophia chirurgorum," or the wisdom of surgeons, in
allusion to the high repute of the herb for healing
wounds and remedying some diseases. An absurd
officinal name.

Sisyeinch'ium, Theophrastus. Jjr. name given to some
bulbous-rooted plant.

Si'uM, Dioscorides. G. sion, the meaning is uncertain.
Gerard says of " Apium sylvestre, or Wilde Parsley"
(our Marsh Hog's Fennel, Peucedanum palustre) that
"oftentimes it is named Elioselinum and Slum,"
almost seeming to infer that Sium is a contraction of
Selinum, or Parsley. Fuchs says that it means the
same as L. concussus (a shock or shaking), from G.
seio, I shake ; from the plant having attributed to it
medicinal properties similar to those of Saxifraga,
which see.

Smilaci'na. Diminutive of Smilax, of Pliny, or Sarsapa-
rilla. Smilax was a [fabled beautiful shepherdess of
antiquity, who was reported to have been changed
into a plant.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 169

Smyr'nium, Dioscorides. From G. Smyrna, the same as
myrrha, myrrh ; from the scent of its juice.
Olusa'trum, Gerard. From L. olus, a pot-herb, and
atrum, black. Alexanders was formerly much used
as a x^ot-herb, and received its L. name from the
sombre colour of its foliage ; in French it is called
Persil noir, i. e. Black Parsley.

Sola'num, Pliny. According to some altered from L.
solamen, comfort, relief or solace ; from the sedative
qualities of some of the species. This is doubtful.
Dulcama'ra, Dodonaeus ; and also formerly Amara-dulcis.
L. dulcis, sweet, amara, bitter. Bitter-sweet as we
call it ; because its first taste is bitter, but afterwards
the sensation changes to that of sweetness.

Solida'go, Brunfels. From L. solidare, to make whole or
'sound ; it is a name that has been given to different
plants, as Comfrey, Self-heal, and others, besides
Golden-rod.
Virgau'rea, Matthiolus. From L. virga, a stem, branch,
or rod, and aurea, golden ; from the yellow racemes
of flowers.

Sonch'us, Theophrastus. G.sonchos. "According to Theo-
phrastus the name of this genus of plants comes from
G. sods, safe, and echein, to have ; from its yielding a
salubrious juice, but to which species this applies is
not clear." — E. B.

Sparganium, Dioscorides. G. sparganon, a little band;
from its narrow and long leaves.

Sparti'na. From G. spartion, of Dioscorides; Broom.
Pliny mentions the name in connection with a kind
of Broom, which he tells us was used for making
withes; and in another part of his work he also
alludes, under the same name, to what we now call
Esparto, of which large quantities are at present

170 NAMES OF PLANTS.

imported into this coimtiy by the paper-makers.

This is the Stipa tenacissima of Linneus.
Specula'eia. L. S2)eculum, a mirror, usually of burnished

metal ; on account of the shape of the flowers.
Sper'gula, Dodonseus. From L. sjxirgo, I scatter; the

seeds being widely dispersed. Spergula arvensis is

a troublesome weed of corn-fields.
Spergula'eia. Named from resembling Spergula.
Spir^'a, Theophrastus. Derivation uncertain.
Filipend'tda, Dodonseus. From L. Jili, thread, and peoi-

clula, hanging; because the knobby roots of the

Dropwort hang, as it were, by threads.
Ulma'ria, Dodonseus. From L. ulmus, an Elm-tree ; the

leaves being something like those of an Elm.

Dodonseus gives Ulmaria as a common name for

our Meadow-sweet, but the name that he uses is

"Eegina prati," i.e., Queen of the Meadow.
SpiPtAN^THES. G. sj^eir, a thing twisted or wound round, and

anthos, flower ; referring to the twisted inflorescence.
Stach'ys, Dioscorides. G. stachys, a spike, or ear of corn ;

the name given from the general appearance of the

flower spikes of these plants.
Stat'ice, Dalechamps. From G. staticos, causing to stop ;

having been employed from its astringent qualities to

check dysentery.
Limo'nmm, Dioscorides. G. It was formerly applied to

the Winter-green, as well as to Sea Lavender. The

G. word limonios means pertaining to a meadow, or

any moist grassy place.
Stella'kia, Brunfels. From L. Stella, a star ; on account

of the star-like form of the flowers.
Holos'tea. See Holosteum.
Stratio'tes, Dioscorides. G. name for a soldier. The

Stratiotes of Dioscorides is not our Water Soldier,

NAIVIES OF PLANTS. 171

and the name does not appear to have been so applied
much before the time of Gerard, who mentions it
among the names for our plant, while Lonicerus
gives it to the Water Milfoil. Pliny gives an account
of the Stratiotes of the Greeks, and " Csesalpinus
identifies it with Salvinia natans; but Fee thinks,
with Sprengel, that it is the Pistia stratiotes of Lin-
naeus, Great Duckweed or Pondweed." — Note in
Bohn's Ed. of Pliny. Whatever the plant may have
been, the name was probably given originally on
account of a vulnerary property, and has been
applied as at present on account of its sword- shaped
leaves.

Su.e'da, Forskal. " Siiad is the Arabic appellation of one
of the species, all of which jdeld soda." — Hooker
and Arnott. (See also Salicornia and Salsola
Kali),

Subula'eia, Eay. From L. suhula, an awl; the leaves
being awl- shaped.

Symph'ytum, Dioscorides. G. name, from symphyo, I make
to grow together; from its reputation for healing
wounds.

Tam'arix, Pliny. The derivation seems to me doubtful, but
the following may be quoted :— " This genus of plants
is named from a Hebrew word tamarik, abstertion,
from the reputed qualities of some of the species for
cleansing and purifying the blood, or from the fact of
the branches being used as brooms. This is the
derivation given by the best authorities ; others say
that the i)lant derives its name from the fact of its
growing on the banks of the Tamaris, now Tambro,
on the borders of the P^^renees." — E. B. I do not
pretend to estimate the comparative value of the

173 NAMES OF PLANTS.

writings of veiy high authorities, and must leave that

to my readers.

Ta'mus, Gesner. Probahly the uva taminia of Pliny, which

name he alludes to as having been erroneously

applied to another plant, but in his chapter on Black

Brj'ony he does not use this name. He says : " For

there is a black vine properly known as the ' bryonia,'

though by some persons it is called the ' cheironia,'

and by others the ' gynsecanthe ' or ' apronia.' It

differs only from the one previously mentioned "

(Bryonia dioica, or White Bryony) '' in its colour,

which, as already stated, is black. The shoots of

this tree, which resemble asparagus in appearance,

are preferred by Diodes for eating to real asparagus,

as a diuretic, and for its property of reducing the

spleen." — Pliny Nat. Hist. Bohn. " The shoots of

Tamus communis are still eaten in Tuscany as a

substitute for asparagus, to which, however, they are

inferior in quality. It is there known by the name

of tamaro." — Note in Bohn's Ed.

Tanace'tum, Pliny. Formerly called also G. Athanasia,

immortality {a not, and thanatos, death. Tanacetum,

is according to Linneus an altered form of Athanasia,

but it seems a rather far-fetched derivation.

Tarax'acum. See under Leontodon.

Dens-leonis, Dodonseus. L., tooth of a lion. The French
name, having the same meaning, is Dent cle lion, of
which our name Dandelion is a corruption. The
allusion is to the large teeth of the leaves.
Tax'us, Pliny. L. for the Yew-tree, perhaps from G. toxon,
a bow ; as the wood is an excellent material for these
weapons, but the etymology of the name is uncertain.
Teesda'lia, R. Brown. Named in honour of Mr. Robert
Teesdale, a Yorkshire botanist, who died in 1804.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 1^3

Teu'crium, Dioscorides. Named from an ancient king of
Troy called Teucer, who is said to have first employed
this plant medicinally.
Bofrys, Dioscorides. G., a bunch of grapes.
Chamce'drys, Dioscorides. G. cliamce^ on the ground,
and drySi an Oak. Applied by Dioscorides to
Germander.
Scor'dium, Dioscorides. G. scorodon, Garlic.
Scorodo'nia, Cordus. The same derivation as the last.
The former is the Garlic germander, and the latter
the Garlic sage, of Gerard.

Thalic'trum, Dioscorides. From G. thallo, I flourish, or
shoot out.

The'sium, Theophrastus. Named from Theseus, a king of
Athens, b.c. 1235, one of the most celebrated heroes
of antiquit3\ Festivals and games were instituted to
his memory, and these were still celebrated with their
original solemnity in the age of Pausanias and Plu-
tarch, about 1200 years after his death. Sprengel
says that the Thesion of Pliny is the Thesium lino-
phyllum of modern Botany, but from Pliny's descrip-
tion there seems little ground for this opinion. The
G. theseion was some plant used to form the crown
competed for at the games (called Theseia) just
mentioned.

Thlas'pi, Dioscorides. From G. thlao, I flatten ; on
account probably of its compressed seed-vessels.

Thrin'cia. From G. thrincos, a battlement; from the
resemblance of the seed-crown of the marginal florets
to the battlements of a wall.

Thymus, Theophrastus. G. thymos, perhaps from thyod, I
make fragrant, but the most usual derivation is from
tliyo, I excite; from its reputed medicinal properties;
or from " thymos, the heart, from its balsamic odour

1^4 NAMES OF PLANTS.

strengthening the animal spirits." — Hooker and
Arnott.
SerpyVlum, Pliny. L. for Wild Thj^me. G. name her-
l^yllos, derived from heiyo, I creep ; the L. seiyo, I
crawl, and rejyo, having the same meaning, are both
from this root.

Til'ia, Pliny. L. for the Lime-tree.

Till^'a. Named in honour of Michael Angelo Tilli, an
Italian botanist, born 1655. He was Professor of
Botany at Pisa, and author of ' Horti Pisani Cata-
logus' (Catalogue of the Pisa Garden), with fifty
plates. He died at Pisa in 1740.

Tofield'ia. Named by Hudson in honour of Mr. Tofield,
a Yorkshire botanist.

Tordyl'ium, Dioscorides. G. torclylion.

Toril'is, Adanson. Meaning of the name not known ; probably,
like many of Adanson' s names, it has no meaning.
Anthris'cus, Pliny. Has been supposed to have meant
cultivated Chervil.

Teagopo'gon, Dioscorides. From G. trago, goat, and
pogon, a beard ; from the bearded fruit.

Trichom'anes, Dioscorides. G. trichoma, a growth of
hair; because it was supposed to restore the hair.
*' The lie wherin it hath beene sodden, or laid
to infuse, is good to wash the head, causing the
scurffe and scales to fall off, and haire to growe in
places that are pild and bare." — Gerard. This name
was not formerly given to the Bristle Fern, but to
the Maidenhairs. Lonicerus tells us that " Tricho-
manes is Polytrichum of the apothecaries, which
name is common to all species of Adiantum, as
Trichomanes is also a species of Adiantum." He
applies the name particularly to our common Maiden-
hair Spleenwort, and this seems to have been the

NAMES OF PLANTS. 175

general custom. Gerard gives two plates, the male
Trichomanes and the female. The first is Asplenium
Trichomanes, and the second seems to be the same.

Trichone MA. G. tricho, hair, and nema, a filament.

Trienta'lis, Cordus. It is not known for what reason this
name has been given. L. triejis means the third part
of anything, and it has been suggested by Theis that
the explanation may be found in the plant being four
inches high — more or less — or the third part of a
foot ; this is at least ingenious.

Trifo'lium, Pliny. L. for clover, tri, three, ?Lnd folium, a leaf;
as we say trefoil, on account of the ternate leaves.

Teiglo'chix, Linneus. G. tri, three, and glochin, a point;
from the three points or angles of the capsules in the
common species.

Teigonel'la, Linneus. G. tri, three, and gon, angle, on
account of the triangular appearance of the flower.

Tein'ia. Named in honour of Karl Bernhard von Trinius,
a German botanist, author of * Species Graminum,'
&c., who died at St. Petersburg in 1844.

Teiod'ia, K. Brown. G. tri, three, and od, tooth ; because
the giumellas are three -toothed at the summit.

Trise'tum. L. tri, three, and seta, a bristle or stiff hair ;
referring to the three awns.

Teit'icum, Pliny. L. for wheat, from tritus, rubbed ; wheat
being rubbed from the ear.

Trol'lius, Gesner. " Troll-flower, the globe-flower, from
Sw. troll. Da. trold, Fris. trol, a malignant super-
natural being, a name corresponding to Scotch
Witches Goivan, and given to this i^lant on account
of its acrid poisonous qualities." — Prior.

Tu'lipa, Gesner. From an eastern name for a turban,
which has been variously written Tulipa, Tulipan, and
Tolibum, from some supposed similarity in the flower.

170 NAMES OF PLANTS.

Turri'tis, Lobel. From L. tiirris, a tower; the leaves
becoming gradually smaller upwards, so that the
plant assumes a p^Tamidal form.

Tussila'go, Pliny. From L. tussis, a cough ; for the cure
of which the plant is still considered useful.
Far'fara, Pliny. A name which has been used in several
forms for Coltsfoot, as Farfarum, Farfugium, Far-
faranum, Farfarella, &c. Pliny says : — *' The Cha-
mseluce is known amongst us as the Farfarum, or
Farfugium : it grows on the banks of rivers, and has
a leaf like that of the Poplar, only larger. The root
of it is burnt upon cypress charcoal, and by the aid
of a funnel the smoke is inhaled in cases of inveterate
cough." Coltsfoot is still smoked, either by itself or
in conjunction with tobacco, but Fee judiciously
remarks that to inhale the smoke in the manner here
described would be enough to create a cough if it did
not exist before.

Ty'pha, Theophrastus. From G. typlios, a pool ; such
being the habitat of these plants.

U'lex, Pliny. A name used by Pliny for some plant which
has not been certainly identified, but which may have
been our Gorse. In a chapter on the finding of gold
he says: — "Trenches — known as 'agogse' — have to
be dug for the passage of the water; and these, at
regular intervals, have a layer of Ulex placed at the
bottom. This Ulex is a plant like Kosemary in
appearance, rough and prickly, and well adapted for
arresting any pieces of gold that may be carried along."

Ul'mus, Pliny. L. for an Elm-tree.

Ur'tica, Pliny. From L. uro, I burn; in allusion to its
stinging property.

Utricula'ria, Linneus. From L. utrlculus, a little bladder ;

NAMES OF PLANTS. 177

on account of the little bladders that float the
plants.

Vaccin'ium, Pliny. Probably altered from L. haccinia ;
denoting a plant with abundance of haccce, berries.

MyrtiVlus. From L. myrtus, a myrtle ; little myrtle, on
account of the form of the leaves.

Oxycoc'cos, Cordus. G. oxy, sharp, or acid, and coccos, a
berry.

Vitis-Idce'a, Pliny. L., Vine of Mount Ida, a celebrated
mountain in Troas.
Valeeia'na. Said to be from L. valeo, I am powerful ; on
account of its medicinal effects : others have said
from Valerius, the name of several celebrated
Romans. Whatever the derivation may have been
the apothecaries of the middle ages seem to be
responsible for it. The G. name was PliUj equivalent
to our Faugh ! an expression of disgust, and to the
human sense it is certainly an ill-smelling herb,
though cats like it. Other names were numerous,
but the name of the shops was Valeriana domestica.
Valerianel'la, Columna. From some resemblance to
Valerian, of which name it is a diminutive.

Auri^cula. L., a little ear.
Verbas'cum, Pliny. Supposed to be altered from Barbas-
cum, from L. harha, a beard; in allusion to the
shaggy nature of its foliage.

BlattaWia, Pliny. From L. hlatta, a moth, or other
insect, which its leaves were supposed to collect.

Lychni'tis, Linneus. From Lychnis, which see.

Thap'sus. " Thapsus has been derived from Thapsus, in
Africa, near which place it is said to have formerly
abounded." Tapsus barbatus was the old officinal
name for Mullein.

178 NAMES OF PLA.NTS.

Vekbe'na, Pliny. Speaking of " Sagmen" and "Verbena"
Pliny saj's: "These two names no doubt originally
signified the same thing — a green turf torn up from
the citadel, with the earth attached to it, and hence,
when envo3's were despatched to the enemy for the
purpose of clarigation, or, in other words, with the
object of clearly demanding restitution of property
that had been carried off, one of these ofl&cers was
always known as the verbenarius,"— or bearer of the
verbena. The etj^mology of the name is dubious.
It has been said to be derived from Keltic ferfaen,
having the same signification as Saxifraga, which
see. The w^ord verhence (L.) signified generally
sacred boughs, or branches of trees that were used in
religious ceremonials ; hence it has been suggested
that it is a corruption of the two G. words, hiera
hotane, or sacred plant.

Veroxi'ca or Veron'ica, Fuchs. A name of the middle
ages, the meaning of which is very uncertain. Loni-
cerus tells us it is called " after some king of France,
as Brunschwigius asserts." Others say that it is
called after the Saint of that name, and several more
derivations, rather ingenious than probable, have
been suggested from the Greek, Latin, Persian, and
Arabic. G., hiera, sacred, eicon, picture, seems the
most likely.
Beccahung'a, Dodonaeus. Changed from the German
name Bachbunge {hach, a brook, and hunge, a
bunch). The plant growing in brooks, in closely
matted bunches.

ViBur/xuM, Yarro. The wayfaring tree is supposed to be
the Viburnum of Virgil. The derivation of the name
is uncertain.
Lanta'na, Dodonajus. Italian name for the wayfaring tree.

NAIVEES OF PLANTS. 179

Op'ulus. A Latinised name used for the Guelder Rose in
the middle ages. The French name is ohier, and an
English name used by Gerard, the Ople-tree, though
now gone out of use, may be found in Johnson's
Dictionary on the authority of Ainsworth. Theis
says that Opulus was altered from Populus, the
leaves being similar.

Vic'iA, Varro. Fuchs quotes Varro in giving the derivation
of the name from vi{n)cw, I bind, encircle, or twine
about; in allusion to the tendrils of Vetches. Ac-
cording to Theis it is derived from Keltic gwig.
Crac'ca, Dodonseus ; according to whom the plants
known by this name were also called Arachiis, from
the G. name arachon ; Cracca seems to be an altered
form of the word.
Or'ohiLs, Theophrastus. G. name for a kind of pulse.

YiLLAP/siA. Named in honour of Dominique Villars, author
(in 178G) of a Flora of Dauphine, and other botanical
works.

Vin'ca. Pliny gives this name at full length as Yincaper-
vinca, and it is supposed to mean our Periwinkle.
The derivation is the same as that of Vicia.

Vi'oLA, Pliny. L. for the Violet, and it was also used for
the Wallflower and other plants : from G. loiiy of
Theophrastus. " It is called Ion, according to
Nicander,* because certain nymphs of Ionia fii*st
presented this flower of Jove as an offering. Or,
according to others, because the earth brought forth
this flower for the food of lo when she was changed
into a cow." — Lonicerus.

■•' Nicander was a Greek granunarian, poet, and physician of Colo-
phon, B. c. 137. His wiitings were held in estimation, but his judgment
cannot be highly commended, since without any knowledge of
agricultm'e he ventiQ*ed to compose a Look on that intricate subject. —
Lempriere,

180 NAMES OP PLANTS.

Vis'cuM, Pliny. L. for Mistletoe, and also for bird-lime
prepared from it; from G. m'os, having the same
meaning. It is said to have been originally derived
from Keltic givid, the shrub ; on account of the
reverence in which it was held by Keltic nations.

Wahlenbekg'ia. Named in honour of Goran Wahlenberg,
M.D., of Upsal, who published in 1813 a * Flora
Lapponica,' and other botanical works, including
an edition of Linneus' * Flora Suecica.'

Wolf'fia. Named in honour of J. F. Wolff, who published
a work on Lemna in 1801. Wolffia is a separation
or split from the genus Lemna.

WooDs'iA. Named in compliment to Joseph Woods, Esq.,
author of a ' Monograph of the British Koses,' ' The
Tourist's Flora,' &c., who died in 1864.

Xan'thium, Dioscorides. From G. xanthos, yellow, or fair ;
because an infusion of this plant was supposed to
improve the colour of the hair.
Struma'rmm, An old name for the plant. It is not
spelt with a capital letter by Linneus, but by the
application of his rules, and his general practice,
it should be. " The lesser Burre Docke is called
of the Grascians, Xantliion, in Latine Xanthium : in
shops, Lapija minor, Lajjpa inuersa, and of diuers,
Strumaria." — Gerard. Struma is L. for a scrofulous
tumour, and Striimus was a name given by Pliny to a
species of Ranunculus used for this complaint. I
cannot trace the reason for the application of the
name Strumarium to Xanthium.

Zannichel'lia. Named in honour of John Jerome Zanni-
chelli, a Venetian apothecary and botanist. He

NAMES OF PLANTS. 181

published a history of the plants growing in the
neighbourhood of Venice, and died in 1729.
Zoste'ra, Linneus. From G. zoster, a girdle, or ribbon;
which the leaves somewhat resemble.

ADDITIONAL.

I add the following names, which have been inadvertently-
omitted. With the exception of Draba, Galinsoga and
Pulicaria, they are synonyms of genera already mentioned,
which have been adopted in one or other of the four most
recent standard works on the British Flora.

Ape'ra. Applied to a section of Agrostis. A name given
by Adanson, and probably without any meaning.

Brunel'la. The same as Prunella, which see.

Cyt'isus, Pliny. L., it is uncertain to what plant this name
was originally given. The account of Pliny describes
it as a valuable fodder plant, but from the varying
statements of different ancient authors, it has been
supposed that two have been mixed up together as
Cytisus, one of which may have been Lucerne, and
the other Laburnum. It was at any rate a legu-
minous plant. The only British species of Cytisus
is the Broom, otherwise called Sarothamnus.

Dabeo'cia. From St. Dabeoc, an Irish saint; the j)lant
(otherwise called Menziesia polifolia) occurs as British
in Ireland only.

Dra'ba. Dioscorides applies the name Drahe, or Arah'is to
a kind of Cress. The usual explanation is G. drahe,
acrid, from the taste, which, if there is such a word
having that meaning, seems plausible enough. Arabis

182 NAMES OF PLANTS.

is said to be derived from Arabia, but Gerard had a
curious fancy that it was corrupted from Drabe: —
"in Greeke drabe or Arahis, by a small errour in
chaunging cl into a." The Drabe of Dioscorides was
not a British plant, and the meaning of the name
seems doubtful.

Endym'ion. a mythological shepherd, who, it is said,
required of Jupiter to grant him to be always young,
and to sleep as much as he would : whence came the
saying *' to sleep the sleep of Endymion," to express
a long sleep. The name, botanically, is a synonjan
of Agraphis. Whether the sleeping propensity of
Endymion had any connection with the nodding
habit of this flower, I do not know.

Eroph'ila. G. ero, spring, and phila, loving. "Usually
combined with Br aha, but as distinct as any genus
in the Order." — Student's Flora.

Eufra'gia, synonymous with Euphrasia, which see. In
this case the name is applied to the plant called also
Bartsia viscosa. Bartsia was formerly considered
by some to be a kind of Eyebright, and Gerard calls
it Eyebright Cow-wheat.

Fagop'yrum. See Polygonum FagopjTum.

Galinso'ga. Named in honour of Don M. M. Galinsoga, a
Spanish botanist. It is a Peruvian Composite, which
is admitted into the British Flora as a colonist by
Hooker and Syme. It grows chiefly about Kew.

Halos'cias. From G. lialos, of the sea; a synonym of
Ligusticum. It grows on rocks by the sea.

Pulica'ria. From L. index, a flea; either from its being
supposed to drive away fleas, or from the resemblance
of the seeds to those insects.

§ n.
ADJECTIVE NAMES;

WITH THEIR MEANINGS.

Those marlicd - are Greek, the rest are Latin.

A.

*acanthoi'des; like the Acanthus, or Bear's Breech,
acau'lis ; without stem,
acicula'ris; pointed, or needle-shaped. From aciculas, a

little needle,
aculea'tus ; thorny, or prickly,
acumina'tus; acuminate, i.e., pointed,
a'cris; acrid. Sedum acre, biting Stonecrop.
acutiflo'rus ; pointed as to the flower,
acutifo'lius ; pointed as to the leaf,
acu'tus ; acute or pointed,
sestiva'lis ; belonging to summer. From cestivus, summer,

adj. ; cestas, summer, sub.
sestivus; summer, adj.
affi'nis; allied.

agra'rius ; pertaining to agri, or fields,
aggrega'tus ; gathered together.
*agrosti'dea; like Agrostis, see p. 100.
*aizoi'des ; like the House-leek. G. ai, ever, zoon, living, is

equivalent to L. Sempervivum, which see p. IGG.
al'bus; white,
al'bidus; whitish.

184 NAMES OP PLANTS.

*aloi'cles; aloe-like,
alpes'tris ; alpine, growing on lofty mountains,
alpi'nus; alpine,
alsinifo'lius ; alsine-Ieaved. Alsine was the old name for

Cliickweed.
alterniflo'rus ; alternate-flowered, i.e. arranged at different

heights on the same stem, — not opposite,
alternifolius ; alternate-leaved, see last,
ama'rus; bitter,
ambig'uus; obscure,
amethys'tea; bluish, or amethyst-coloured, amethystina

would be more correct,
amphib'ius ; amphibious,
amplexicaul'e ; amplexicaul, i. e. (the leaves) embracing the

stem ; amplexo, I embrace, and caulis, a stem,
ampulla'cea ; bottle-shaped, from ampulla, a vessel swollen

in the middle and having a narrow neck.
* amygdaloi'des ; almond-like,
angula'ris ; angular.

angustifo'lius ; narrow leaved, angustus, narrow,
angustis'simus ; narrowest,
anno'tinus ; a year old.
annuus; annual.
*anthropoph'ora; man bearing (the man-orchis), from the

resemblance of the flower.
*apet'ala; without petals,
apif'era; bee-bearing (the bee-orchis). From ajns, bee,

and fero, I bear; from the resemblance of the

flower,
aquat'icus ; aquatic, i. e. growing in or near aqua, water,
aquat'ilis : pertaining to water,
aquili'na; pertaining to an eagle. Pteris aquilina. Bracken,

presents in the section of its root a figure which

Linneus likened to the royal eagles of his native flag.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 185

* arachni'tes ; spider-like; <xmc7me, a spider; the late Spider
Orchis {Oplirys arachnites).

aranif'era; aranea, a spider, spider-bearing; Spider Orchis,
(Ophrys aranifera).

arbor'eus ; arbor, a tree, tree -like.

arc'ticus; arctic, from G. arctos, the Great Bear, or
northern constellation ; the North Pole.

arcua'tus; in the form of a bow (arcus),

arena'rius ; pertaining to sand (arena).

argen'teus; silvery (argentum, silver).

aromat'icus ; aromatic ; aroma, spice.

articula'tus ; jointed; articulus, 2i]om.i.

arundina'cea ; arundo-like. Arundo, a reed.

arven'sis ; inhabiting ploughed fields {arvus, a field).

as'per, as'pera, as'perum; rough.

asper'sus ; sprinkled.

atra'ta ; clothed with black.

au'reus ; golden ; aurum, gold.

auranti'acum ; orange-coloured. Citrus aurantiacus is the
name given to the Orange on account of the golden
colour of its fruit ; in this place a trivial name for
one of the Hawkweeds (Hieracium).

auric'omus ; auri, of gold, and coma, hair ; or, as we say,
Goldylocks.

auri'tus ; provided with ears [auris, an ear).

austra'lis ; southern.

autumna'lis ; belonging to the autumn.

avena'ceum ; resembling the Oat (A vena).

avicula're ; pertaining to little birds (aviculus, diminutive of
avis, a bird). The name is applied to that species of
Polygonum which we call Knotweed. Withering,
quoting Linneus, says : — '* The seeds are useful for
every purpose in which those of the next species
(Buckwheat) are employed. Great numbers of small

18G NAMES OF PLANTS.

birds feed upon them ; cows, goats, slieep, horses and

swine eat it. The stubbles in Sweden are purpled

over with this plant."
a'vium ; of birds ; Bird-cherry {Prunus avium) ; food for

birds,
axilla'ris ; axillar}^ i. e. arising from the axil of a leaf.

B.

bacca'tus ; bearing berries.

barba'tus; bearded.

bi'color; two-coloured.

bien'nis; biennial, or flowering in the second year of its
growth and then dying.

biflo'rus; two -flowered.

bifo'lia; two -leaved.

biner'vis ; two -nerved.

borealis ; northern.
*brizoides ; like Briza, or Quaking-grass.
*bromoi'des; like Bromus. Brome-grass, or Oat-grass.

bulbif 'era ; bearing bulbs.

bulbo'sus; bulbous.

C.

cseru'leus; blue.

caerules'cens ; bluish.

cse'sius ; bluish gray.

csespito'sus ; from ccEspes, literally a sod cut out, or turf.
Used in botany to signify tufted, or caespitose.

calca'reum : pertaining to lime.

campes'tris ; pertaining to a field (campus).

canes'cens ; grayish.

cani'na; pertaining to a dog; as we say Dog-violet, Dog-
rose, &c., signifying inferior or common.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 187

capilla'ris; capillary or hair-like. A name applied to a
small species of Carex by Limieus; its leaves are
very slender, and its fruits are fixed to hair-like
pedicels.

capita'tum; headed. Applied to a kind of cotton sedge,
having an almost round flower-head; ccqntt, a head.

capreola'ta; from caiKr, a goat. Applied to Eampant
Fumitory.

carina'ta ; carinated, i. e. keeled, referring to the fruit.

carpinifolius ; hornbeam-leaved.

carj^ophylla'cea ; clove-scented.

castan'eus ; like a chestnut. A name applied by Smith to
an alpine rush, probably from its colour.

cathar'ticus ; purging, as Buckthorn and Mountain Flax.

cer'nuus ; bending, or looking towards the ground.
*cheiranthoi'des; like the Cheiranthus, or Wallflower.
*chloran'tha; chlor, green, antlia, flower; the Butterfly-
orchis, though its flowers are scarcely green.

cicuta'rium ; from cicuta, hemlock. Applied by Smith to
the plant called Hemlock Stork's-bill, referring to
the shape of the leaves.

cilia'ris : cilium, an eyelid, with eyelashes ; fringed.

cilia'ta ; same as the last.

circina'tus ; from circinuSf a pair of compasses. Applied to
a form of Water-crowfoot, the outline of the leaves
of which are circular.

ciner'ea; ash-coloured.

cinnamo'mea; cinnamon. Name given to a Rose, Cinna-
mon Rose.

clandesti'na ; hidden, concealed. Name given to a little
sedge, which is " remarkable for the few flowers of its
fertile spikelets, which are concealed by the com-
paratively large membranous sheaths, as the short
stems are by the leaves." — Hooker and Arnott.

188 NAMES OF PLANTS.

clava'tum ; from clava, a branch or club. Applied to a

branching Lycopodium, or Club -moss,
clavicula'ta ; clavicula, a tendril ; provided with tendrils,
coeno'sus; muddy.
coUi'nus ; pertaining to a hill,
columbi'nus ; loertaining to or resembling a dove,
commu'nis; common,
commuta'tus; changed,
como'sus ; hairy,
compres'sus; compressed,
congiomera'tus ; gathered into a ball,
con'icus ; cone-shaped.
*conop'sea; from conops, a gnat.
coralH'na; red coral. I suppose in reference to the colour

of the seeds,
corda'ta ; heart-shaped,
cornicula'tus ; bearing little horns,
corylifo'lius ; hazel-leaved {Corylus).
corymbo'sus ; corymbose, i. e. the kind of inflorescence

represented in the Pear, where a number of flowers

form an even head, though the flower-stalks are of

different lengths, rising from difi'erent parts of the

stem.
Qi'is'pus ; crisped, or curled,
crista'tus ; crested.
*crithmoi'des; like Crithmum, or Samphire,
croca'tus ; saftron- coloured,
cur^tus ; shortened.
cuspida'tus ; from cuspis, a lance, i. e. pointed in the

manner of a lance, broad at the base and narrowing

to the summit.

D.

^dasyphyl'lus ; thick-leaved.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 189

*claiicoi'des; like the Daucus, or carrot.

decororans ; becoming deprived of colour.
*deltoi'dea; delta-like, or triangular.

demer'sus ; immersed in water.

denta'tus ; dentate, i e. toothed.

denticula'tus ; denticulate, i. c. finel}' toothed.

den'sus ; dense, set close.

depaupera'tus ; impoverished, starved.

digita'ta ; digitate, i. c. like the fingers in arrangement.

dilata'tus ; spread out.
*dioi'ca; literally two habitations (di — oica). Dicvcious
plants, or such as have the male flowers on one
plant, and the female on a different one.

dissec'tus ; cut asunder.

dis'tans ; standing apart.
*dis'ticha; from dis, double, and sticJws, a row or line

dim*'na ; (flowering in) the daytime. Thus Lychnis diurna
is contrasted with L. vespertina, which flowers in the
evening.

divi'sus; divided.

divul'sus ; torn asunder.

domes'ticus ; pertaining to a house (domus), cultivated.

du'bius ; doubtful, or obscure.

diuneto'rum ; (growing) among bushes (dumeti).

E.

ebractea'tum ; ebracteate, i.e. without bracts or floral

leaves.
*echinoi'des; like an ecliinus, or hedgehog,
ela'tior; higher, more elevated,
ela'tum ; similar to the last. Hypericum elatum is not a

British plant, though it finds a place in some of our

Floras.

190 NAMES OF PLANTS.

elonga'ta ; elongate, lengthened, extended.

ensifo'lia ; from ensis, a sword, sword-leaved.

erec'tus; erect.

ericeto'rum ; of, or pertaining to, heaths.
*eriophorus; wool-bearing.

excel'sior ; higher, comparative of excelsus. This name is
applied to the Ash (Fraxinus excelsior), one of our
finest forest trees ; it is given by Bauhin, and probably
refers to the height of the tree.

exig'uus ; small, mean.

exim'ius ; uncommon, rare, extraordinary.

exten'sus ; stretched out, extended.

F.

falca'tus; falcate, i.e. sickle -shaped.

farino'sus ; mealy, like the Bird's-eye Primrose.

fastigia'tus ; becoming pointed. It is a name given, for

instance, to the Lombardy Poplar, and refers to the

form of the tree,
fat'uus ; foolish, silly, or wild, as we say Ignis fatuus, wild

fire, or Will o' the Wisp,
ferrugin'ea ; the colour of iron rust,
ficifolium ; fig-leaved {fici, of a fig ; folium, a leaf),
filifor'mis ; filiform, i. e. thread-shaped (fili-formis).
fis'sus; cleft,
fistulo'sus; fistulose, i.e. hollow or pipe-like. Yyovh fistula,

a hollow reed,
fla'vus ; yellow,
flaves'cens ; yellowish.

flexuo'sus ; flexuose, i. e. bent in alternate directions,
fluitans ; floating, on water,
fluviat'ilis ; pertaining to rivers,
foe'tidus; stinking.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 191

foetidis'simus ; most stinking.

fonta na ; (growing) about fountains, or springs.

fragif 'erum ; strawberrj^-bearing. The Strawberry Clover

in fruit is much like strawberries,
frag'ilis ; fragile, brittle.

frutico'sus; fruticose, i.e. shrubby; frutex, a shrub,
fruticulo'sus ; a little shrubby, suffruticose.
ful'vus ; tawny,
fu'cus; red, derived from the name of a Lichen (faciis)

which was used as a red dye and as rouge for the

cheeks,
fus'co-a'ter; dark black.

G.

galericula'ta ; provided with a small skull-cap. Much the
same meaning as Scutellaria, which see.

gemmip'ara; producing leaf-buds.

genicula'tus ; jointed, knotted.

geranoi'des; geranium-like.

gib'ba ; gibbous, i. e. having a swelling at some part of the
surface.

gigan'tea; gigantic.

gla'bra ; glabrous, i. e. smooth, without hairs.

glandulo'sus ; having a remarkable supply of glands.

glau'ca ; glaucous, i. e. bluish gray, used to express the
bloom which covers the leaves of many plants.

globo'sus ; globose, i. e. spherical, or globular.

globulif 'era ; globule -bearing.

glomera'tus ; formed into a ball.

glutino'sus; gluey, sticky.

glj^cyphyllus ; sweet-leaved.

grac'ilis; graceful, slender.

gracilen'tem ; of graceful habit.

192 NAMES OF PLANTS.

grandiflo'ra ; large-flowered.

grandifo'lia ; large-leaved.

gramin'eus : grassy.

granulatus; granulated, having granules. In Saxifraga

granulata the reference is to the roots,
grav'eolens ; heavy- smelling,
gutta'tus ; spotted. From gutta, a drop.

H.

hasta'tus ; from hasta, a spear, hastate, L e. spear-headed,
hedera'ceus ; ivy-like,
hedersefo'lius ; ivy-leaved.

herba'ceus; herbaceous. Salix herbacea, the herb-like
Willow ; from its small size,
^heterophyllus ; differently-leaved, as a species of Potamo-

geton (Pondweed).
*hexan'dra; hexandrous, i.e. six-stamened.
hirci'na; goat's.

hirsu'tus; hirsute, i. e. covered with long stiff hairs,
hir'tus ; rough, hairy.

his'pida ; hispid, i. e. covered with long, very harsh hairs.
*holoseri'cea ; entirely silken. Name given to a Willow, with
reference to the flower,
hordeifor'mis ; barley-shaped,
humifu'sa ; ground- sprawling,
hu milis ; lowly,
hy'bridus ; hybrid.

hyema'lis ; belonging to hyems, winter.
*hyperbo'rea ; arctic, literally beyond Boreas, or the north,
that is the extreme north. The Hj-^perboreans were
a supposed people in the extreme north.
*hypnoi'des ; like hypnum, or moss.
*hypoglot'tis ; hypo, under, and glotta, tongue. A name

NAMES OF PLANTS. 193

given by Linneus to a kind of Milk-vetch. I cannot
trace his meaning,
hyssopifo'lium ; hyssop-leaved.

I.

imbrica'tus ; imbricate, i. e. arranged one over another, like
the slates of a house-roof.

impa'tiens ; impatient.

inca'nus ; gray, hoary.

incarna turn ; this name is given to a species of Trefoil, but
its meaning is not very apparent : it might mean
fleshy, or not fleshy, or reddish coloured, or pro-
ducing flesh, being a valuable fodder plant. Trifolium
incarnatum is called in English " Crimson Clover,"
but the flowers are not always crimson ; indeed one
of its synonyms is " Trifolium album incarnatum
spicatum." It is not an indigenous British plant.

inci'sum ; cut into.

incur'va; curved, bent, or bowed.

infes'ta; troublesome.

infla'ta; inflated (as the calyx of Bladder-Campion).

inna'ta ; innate, inborn. I do not trace the exact applica-
tion ; the name is given to an orchid called Corallo-
rhiza, of which the spur is adnate, or growing to the
ovary.

ino'dora ; not scented.

interme'dius ; intermediate.

interrup'ta ; interrupted.

inunda'tus ; inundated, as growing in a marsh.

involu'ta; literally, turned inwards or involved, hidden,
intricate, obscure. Name given by Smith to a kind
of Kose.

irrig'ua; wet, soaked.

104 NAMES OF PLANTS.

J.

jun'ceum; juncus-liko.

lacinia'ta ; laciniated, i. e. irregularl}^ cut up into narrow

segments,
lacus'tris ; pertaining to lakes.
Iseviga'ta; smooth, free from rougliness. From levis,

" erroneously Icevis " (White).
Ise'vis ; see the last.
*lamprocar'pus ; bright-fruited,
lana'tus; woolly.

lanceola'tus ; lanceolate, i. e. lance-shaped,
lapathifo'lium ; Dock-leaved,
^lasiophyllum ; shaggy -leaved.
* lathy roi'des; Lathyrus-like.
latifo'lius; broad-leaved,
lax'a ; slack, loose, not rigid.

ledifolium ; Ledum-leaved (Ledum, Labrador Tea, culti-
vated in our gardens),
lendi'gerum ; nit-bearing, Nit-grass. Lens means both a

nit and a lentil,
lepori'na ; pertaining to a hare (lejms) ; Hare's-foot Carex.
lingula'tum ; {lingala, a little tongue) Ungulate -leaved

(Hawkweed).
limo'sa; muddy.

linarisefoTia ; linaria-leaved (Linaria, Toad-flax),
linic'ola ; from Linum, Flax. A name given to a species

of liye-grass, from some resemblance.
linophylTum ; flax-leaved,
littora'lis ; pertaining to the shore.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 195

loba'tum; lobed.

lolia'cea ; lolium-like ; Lolium, Darnel.

longifolia ; long-leaved.

lu'cens; shining.

lu'cidum ; shining, bright.

lupuli'na; i^ertaining to a wolf. The meaning I do not
clearly understand. It was applied by Linneus
to a species of Medick (Black Medick). The meaning
may be like the Lupulus. See Liipulus, under
HuMULUs, p. 134.

lu'teo-arbum ; yellow-white.

lu'teus; yellow.

M.

•macrorrhi'zus ; great-rooted.

macula'tus ; spotted.

mag'nus; great.

maja'lis ; (maialis) belonging to May. May is the month
dedicated to Maia, of Greek mythology, who was the
daughter of Atlas, and the mother of Mercury. The
spelling with i orj is very much according to fancy.
Some spell Apuleius, Apulejus; Leucoium,Leucojum;
John, lohn— pronounced in the German, by the way,
(Johan) Yohan ; and the corresponding Arabic name
Ja ja (German fashion) is spelt in England Yah ya.

ma'jor; greater.

ma'jus; greater.

margarita'cea ; pearly, margarita, a pearl.

mari'nus; marine.

marit'imus ; belonging to the sea.

mas'cula; male.

max'imus; greatest.

me'dius; middle.

196 NAMES OF PLANTS.

*micran'tha ; small-flowered.

milita'ris; military, the Military Orchis, on account of
some resemblance in the flower to a helmet.

min'imus; smallest.

minor; less.

mi'nus ; small.

mi'te ; mild, pleasing, gentle, agreeable.

mollis; soft.

monta'na ; pertaining to mountains.

moscha'tum ; musky.

mucrona'tus ; from mucro, a sharp point, mucronate, i. e. as
a botanical term, a stiff point, abruptly terminating
an organ.

multicau'lis ; many-stemmed.

muralis ; mural, i. e. pertaining to walls.

murica'ta ; from murex, a fish armed with sharp prickles,
muricate, i. e. covered with firm short points or
excresences.

muri'num; (from mus, a mouse), murinus, mouse-like.
Applied to Hordeum (murinum) Way-Bennet, in
reference to its spike, or it might be referred to
murus, a wall; for the plant grows both by way-
sides and on walls.

muro'rum ; of or belonging to walls.

muscif 'era ; from musca, a fly, fly-bearing, the Fly Orchis.

muscoi'des ; from muscus, moss ; moss-like. The termi-
nation oides is Greek, but muscus is Latin. Smith
strongly condemns such hybrid names.

N.
na'na; dwarf,
na'tans ; swimming,
nemora'lis ; pertaining to a grove.

NAMES OF PLANTS. . 197

nemoro'sa ; pertaining to a grove, but not so good a name
as the last, for the strict meaning is (a country) full
of groves. I use the word grove in preference to wood
as a distinction between nemorosa and sylvatica,
though we call Anemone nemorosa, Wood Anemone.

nem'orum; of groves.

ni'ger, ni'gra, ni'grum ; black.

nigres'cens ; blackish.

nigritel'lus; literally black earth, or black country, but
applied to a species of Eush called the Black-headed
Jointed Eush.

ni'tens ; shining.

ni'tidus ; shining, or luxuriant.

nivalis; pertaining to snow. Applied, for example, to a
beautiful Alpine Gentian.

no'bilis ; noble, excellent, superior.

noctiflo'ra ; night-flowering.

nodiflo'rus ; flowering at the nodes. The node, as a bota-
nical term, is that part of a stem from which a leaf-
bud proceeds. The word nodus means knot, and
thus stems may be said to be divided into varying
lengths by nodes, knots, or joints.

nudicau'lis ; naked-stemmed.

nudiflo'rus ; naked-flowered. Well applied to plants which
flower at times when the leaves have disappeared, or
have not yet grown, as autumnal Crocus, and our
garden Yellow Jasmine.

nu'tans ; nodding.
*nymph8eoi'des; Nymphsea-like. Nymphsea, Water-lily.

0.

oblon'gus; oblong.

obtusiflo'rus ; blunt-flowered. Thus there are contrasted
Juncus obtusiflorus and J. acutiflorus.

199. NAVIES OF PLANTS.

obtusifo'lius ; blunt-leaved.
*ochroleu'cum ; literall}' pale white, which is a colour I have
no certain idea of: it is applied to the sulphur-
coloured Clover. Say cream-coloured,
^octopet'ala; eight-petalled.

odora'tus; (sweet-) smelling.

officina'lis ; officinal, or sold in shops.

olera'ceus ; garden-stuff, pot-herb, culinary vegetable.

olldum; ill-smelling.

ophioglossifo'lius ; ophioglossum-leaved, or having leaves
like the Adder's-tongue (fern).

oppositifolium ; opposite -leaved.

orientalis ; eastern.

ova'ta; ovate, oval, or egg-shaped. From ovum, an egg.

ovi'na ; pertaining to a sheep {ovis), Sheeps' Fescue-grass.

P.

palles'cens ; rather pale.

pallidus ; pale.

palu'stris ; pertaining to a marsh.

paludo'sus ; marshy.

panic'ea ; like Panicum, or Panic -grass.

panicula'ta ; paniculate, i.e. bearing panicles. A panicle in
Botany is that manner of inflorescence, or bearing
flowers, of which we have striking examples in Oats
and Quaking Grass ; but though principally used in
application to Grasses, it is used also for any
branched raceme. (See racemosus.)

paradox'a ; paradoxical ; applied to a dubious Carex that
puzzles the botanists.

parvifolia ; small-leaved.

par'vulus ; tiny.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 199

pat'ulus ; standing open.

pauciflo'rus ; few- flowered.

pectina'tus ; pectinate, i. e. divided in the manner of a
pecteiif or comb.

peduncula'tus ; pedunculate, i. e. provided with peduncles.
A pedicel is a flower -stalk carrying a single flower,
and where such is the case the plant is called pedi-
cellate. A peduncle is the general flowering axis
which usually bears several flowers, attached to
pedicels.

pen'dula ; hanging.
*pentan'dra; pentandrous, i. e. having five stamens.
*peploi'des; peplus-like. See Euphorbia Peplus.

peren'nis ; perennial.

perfolia'tus ; perfoliate, where there are opposite leaves
united at the base, so that the stem appears to pass
through the leaf. This is illustrated in Chlora, and
in one of the Claytonias, which is rapidly spreading in
our country, both of them having the trivial name
perfoliata.

perfora'tum ; perforate ; applied to a species of St. John's-
wort (Hypericum). If you hold a leaf of it up
against a good light, you observe what look like
holes or perforations. These are really glands : they
are well illustrated in the Myrtle family.
*petr£e'a; (growing in) rocky (places).

persicifo'lia ; peach-leaved (persicum, a peach tree).

phse'um ; purple.

phoeni'ceum ; purple-red.

phylicifolia ; phylica-leaved. Phylica, a plant of the
Buckthorn family, grown in gardens.

pilo'sus ; pilose, i. e. hair3%

pilulif'era: pilule-bearing. Alluding to the fructification.
Ex. Urtica pilulifera ; Carex pilulifera, &c.

'200 NAMES 01" PLANTS.

pimpinelloi'des ; pimpinel-like. Hybrid name; see mus-

coides.
piperi'ta ; (piper, pepper) peppery. Alluding to a species

of Mentha — Pepper- mint,
planicul'mis ; flat-stemmed,
plantagin'eus ; like Plantago, or Plantain (as to the

leaves).
*plat3^phyl'la ; broad-leaved,
plica'tus ; plicate, i. e. folded like a fan. From plicOf to

fold,
poet'icus ; poetical, one of many senseless names : Narcissus

poeticus, "poet's" (or more correctly poetical) Nar-
cissus. Though it has little to recommend it, the

name was given by Linneus.
polifo'lia ; polished-leaf.
*polyrhi'za; many-rooted.
*polysper'mum ; many-seeded,
porrifolius ; leek-leaved {porrum, leek),
portulacoi'des ; purslane-like,
prse'cox; precocious, or early ripe,
prselong'us ; very long.

praten'sis ; pertaining to a meadow (pratiim).
*prenanthoi'des ; prenanthes-like.
procum'bens ; procumbent. As a botanical term, lying on

the ground,
pro'lifer ; proliferous, i. e. that produces abnormal buds.

Ex. Dianthus prolifer, childing or proliferous pink,
pubes'cens ; pubescent, i. e. covered with short and soft

hairs,
pulcheria, pronounced pulkella ; pretty,
purcher, pul'chra, purchrum ; beautiful,
pulica'ris; pertaining to, or resembling, a flea. Flea-

carex, a name given by Linneus in reference to the

seed.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 201

pulverulen'tus ; pulverulent, i.e. covered with dust, or

powder (pidvis).
puncta'tus ; punctated, dotted. Ex. Carex punctata, dotted

fruited Sedge,
pun'gens; pungent,
purpu'reo-cseruleum ; purplish -blue,
purpu'reus ; purple.
pusiFlus ; very small, insignificant.

Q.

quadrang'ulum ; four-cornered.

E.

racemo'sus ; from racemus, a bunch or cluster of grapes,
racemose, i.e. bearing racemes; the kind of inflores-
cence exemplified in the currant, where the main
flowering axis throws off a succession of flowers.

rad'icans ; rooting, as Trichomanes radicans, of which the
creeping rhizome is continually throwing out roots,
which fix the plant firmly to the stones about water-
falls.

radica'ta ; rooted, especially when roots are remarkably long.
Ex. Hypochseris radicata ; long-rooted Cat's-ear.

ramo'sus ; ramose, i. e. branched.

ranunculoi'des ; Ranunculus -like. A G. termination to a
L. name ; see muscoides.

rapunculoi'des ; Rapunculus-like ; (Rapunculus, Rampion.
See Campanula Rapunculus).

rariflo'ra; few-flowered.

recHna'ta ; reclined ; spreading on the ground.

reflex'um ; bent back.

remo'tus ; distant, as are the spikelets of Carex remota, &c.

re'pens; creeping.

X

202 NAIVIES OF PLANTS.

rep'tans ; creeping.

reticula'ta, from reticulum, a little net; reticulated, or

finely netted ; as may be observed in the veining of

any leaf of a dicotyledonous (or two seed-leaved)

plant if held to the light.
rhamnifo'lius ; Khamnus- or buckthorn-leaved,
rig'idum ; rigid, stiff. Ex. Aspidium rigidum, or Lastrea

rigida.
ripa ria, from riim, the bank of a stream ; pertaining to the

banks of streams.
rivula'ris, rivulus, a small brook ; pertaining to small

brooks,
ro'seus ; rose-coloured,
rosmarinifo'lia ; rosemary-leaved,
rotundifo'lius ; round-leaved,
rubella; reddish,
ru'ber, ru'bra, ru'brum ; red.
rubigino'sa ; the colour of rust. A name given by Linneus

to a species of Kose, from the rusty appearance of

the leaves,
rudera le, from ntdits, rubbish ; pertaining to old rubbish

of buildings, as plaster, broken stones, &c.
rufes'cens ; reddish,
ru'fus ; red.
rupes'tris, from rapes, a rock ; pertaining to rocks.

S.

sacchara'tus ; sugary. (Saccharon, sugar, of Dioscorides

and Pliny.)
sagittifo'lia ; arrow-leaved; sagitta, an arrow,
salicifo'lia ; Salix-leaved. (Salix; willow.)
salig'na ; willow-like, given to a species of Lactuca (or

lettuce), having narrow leaves.

NAIVIES OF PLANTS. 203

sanguina'lis ; causing effusion of blood, sanguis.

sanguin'eus; blood-coloured, applied to different plants
and different parts of tliem ; Kumex sanguineus, in
reference to the leaves ; Cornus sanguinea, the twigs ;
Ribes sanguineum, the flowers.

satiVus ; cultivated, from sew, satum, to sow, plant, or
propagate. *^^

saxat'ilis ; pertaining to rocks.

sca'ber, sea bra, sca'brum ; scabrous, i. e. rough, covered
with ver}^ stiff short hairs.

scelera'tus ; wicked ; applied to the celery-leaved crowfoot
(Ranunculus) on account of the extreme acridity of
its juices. I have known celery-leaved to be taken
for the literal meaning of sceleratus, on account of
the similarity in sound ; an odd, though not unnatural
mistake, which may at least serve as an aid to the
memory.

scopa'rius; from scopce, thin twigs — hence the name was
also used, for besoms ; and scoparius means fit
for making besoms. We mean the same thing in
speaking of broom -tree, as though we said besom-
tree.

scutella'ta ; salver- shaped ; (Veronica) scutellata, alluding,
I suppose, to the capsulei of two flattened orbicular
lobes.

secali'nus ; secale-like ; not our seakale, but the se-ca-le of
Pliny, which means Rye. It was a name given by
Smith to a species of Carex, which is also called
hordeiformis, or barley- shaped.

secun'da ; flowers turned in one direction, as in a species
of Wintergreen (Pyrola). This apparently curious use
of a word, which we should naturally take to mean
only second, is explained by its derivation sequunda
following either in rank, or order).

204 NAMES OF PLANTS.

sedoi'des ; Sedum-like.

seg'etum; pertaining to corn-fields, or segetes.

selaginoi^des ; Selago-like. See Lycopodium Selago.

sem'idecan'drum ; half ten-stamened.

sempervi'rens ; ever-green.

se'pium; of hedges, as Convolvulus sepium, growing in

hedges,
septangula're ; seven-cornered,
septentriona'le ; northern. The word refers to the seven

(septem) stars in the constellation of Charles' Wain,

or the Great Bear, situate in the northern part of

the heavens,
sero'tina ; late in season.

serpyllifolia ; Serpyllum -leaved. See Thymus Serpjdlum.
seta'cea, from seta, a bristle ; bristle -like,
sexangula're ; six-cornered,
sim'plex; simple,
sinua'ta, from sinus, a fold, or hollow; sinuate, i. e. with

wavy margins of the leaves,
sol'idus ; solid ; not hollow,
solstitialis ; belonging to the summer solstice,
somniferum; sleep-bearing, as for instance the Poppy

yielding opium. {Somnus, sleep ; fero, bear),
^sphseroceph'alum; round-headed; sphaira, a ball; cephaUy

a head,
spica'ta ; spicate, i. e. bearing flowers in spikes. A spike is

that kind of inflorescence which consists of numerous

flowers sessile on the axis of growth, as for instance,

the common Plantain. Spica was an old substantive

name for Spikenard (called Spica indica) and also for

Lavender,
spinosis'sima ; most thorny; well applied to the little

Burnet Rose, with its innumerable prickles,
spino'sus ; thorny, or prickly.

NAMES OF PLANTS. 206

spu'rius ; not genuine.

squaridus ; squalid, inelegant, ngl}'.

squaiTo'sus ; squarrose, i. e. covered with processes spread-
ing at right angles, or in a greater degree. Juncus
squarrosus.

stagni'na; pertaining to stagnant water. Viola stagnina,
inhabits bogs and fens.

stella'ris ; starr}^ Saxifraga stellaris, stella, a star.

stella'tnm ; arranged like a star.

stellig^erum ; star-bearing.

stellula'ta ; arranged somewhat like a star.

ster'ilis; barren.

stipula'ris; remarkable as to the stipules. Stipules are
those appendages at the base of the leaf-stalks which
are like little leaves. In many plants they are
wanting; in some they are small, in others large,
while in some cases they supply the place of leaves
altogether, as in LathjTus Aphaca, which has no true
, leaves, but large stipules, the leaves being repre-
sented by tendrils onl}^

stria'tum; streaked.

stric'tus ; growing erect, conspicuousl3\

strigo'sus ; strigose, i. e. covered with rough, strong,
adpressed hairs.

suberec'tus; not quite erect, but nearly; suh, under, or
slightly erect.

subero'sa; suberous, i.e. of a corky texture (from suber,
the cork oak).

submer'sum ; submerged.

subterra'neum ; subterranean ; applied to a species of Tre-
foil, on account of a peculiarity in the ripening of its
fruit, a description of which may be found in all
hand-books.

subula'ta, from suhida, an awl; subulate, i.e. awl-shaped.

200 NAMES OF TLANTS.

succi'sa. See Scabiosa Succisa.

succis^efo'lia ; succi&a-leaved.

sufFoca'tum ; suffocated, applied to a small Trefoil.

supi'num ; supine, or lying on the back ; a name given to

the dwarf Cudweed (Gnaphalium) by Linneus.
sylvat'icus ; pertaining to a wood, sllva.
sylves'tris; living in woods. Silva is accounted more

correct than sylva, though botanically sylva is the

more usual form; yet we have Evelyn's "Silva," a

discourse on Forest trees.
*sys'tyla ; styles united ; name given to a kind of Eose : the

two Greek words are sy(n), together ; and stylos, a

column.

T.

tanacetifo'lia ; tanacetum, or tansy-leaved.

taraxacifo'lia ; taraxacum, or dandelion-leaved.

tecto'rum ; of roofs.

temulen'tum ; drunken, with reference to the effects.

tenella; rather slender.

tenuiflo'rus ; slender-flowered.

tenuifo'lius ; slender-leaved.

ten'uis ; slender.

tenuis'simum ; most slender.
*tephrosan'thus, from te]phra, ashes (sprinkled over the
head and clothes in token of grief) ; and anthos,
flower, or ash-besprinkled flower; a name well
given to the Monkey Orchis, from the prevailing
ash -colour of its flowers.

teretius'cula ; rather terete, i. e. rounded ; applied to a
kind of Carex, of which the straw is roundish, most
of the sedges having three-cornered stems.

terres'tre ; pertaining to the land.

NAMES or PLANTS, 207

*tetrag'onum; four-kneed, or cornered.
*tetran'drum; tetrandrous, i.e. four-stamened.
*tetrasper'ma ; four-seeded,
thapsifor'me ; thapsus-like. See Verbascum Thapsus.
thyrsiflo'ra ; thyrsus-flowered, i.e. having the kind of
inflorescence called in botany by that name. It is
represented in the flower-bunches of the Lilac, where
the flower-stalks in the middle of a dense panicle
(see paniculatus) are longer than those at the
extremities. The meaning of thyrsus in Latin is
the stem of a plant, and it was used to signify a staff
entwined with Ivy and Vine-shoots carried about at
the feasts of Bacchus,
tincto'ria; used as dye-stuff.

tormina'lis; useful for tormina, gripes or colic; applied
to the wild Service-tree (Sorbus), the fruit of which
was used formerly for complaints of the bowels,
and generally supposed by Gerard and others to be
the Sorbus torminalis of Pliny,
tomento'sus ; tomentose, i. e. covered with an entangled
cottony down; tomentum means stuffing for cushions.
*trach3^od'on ; throat-toothed; ahorse-tail (Equisetum), to
which the name is given, being remarkable for the
teeth of its sheaths,
trem'ula ; shaking, quaking, tremulous.
*trian'drum; triandrous, i.e. three-stamened.
* trichoi'des ; hair-like,
tri'color ; three-coloured,
tricor'ne ; three-horned.
*tridactylites; three-fingered, alluding to the divisions of
the leaves of the little Saxifrage to which the name
is given,
tridenta'tus ; three -toothed,
tri'fidus ; thrice-cut.

208 NAMES OF PLANTS.

triglu'mis ; three -glumecL A glume is the covering of the
reproductive organs of the spikelets of grasses.
*trigy'num; three-pistilecl.

triner'vis ; three-nerved.

triparti'tus ; thrice-divided.
*triphyrius; three-leaved.

triquet'rus ; three-cornered.

trisuVcus ; three -cleft (or furrowed).

trivia'lis ; trivial, common.

tubero'sus ; tuberous.

U.

uligino'sus ; growing in marshy places, uligines.

umbella'tus ; umbellate, i. e. the kind of inflorescence
illustrated by the Carrot, Angelica, Sweet Cicely, &c.,
where several stalked -flowers proceed from one point,
so as to resemble an umhella, little shade, parasol, or
umbrella.

umbro'sus ; growing in shady places.

undula'tus ; undulate, wavy.

uniflo'ra ; one-flowered.

uniglu'mi's ; single-glumed. See triglumis.

urba'num ; literally belonging to the city or town ; but by
metonymy having several other meanings, as polished,
cultivated, urbane, &c. Its application to Geum was
some fancy of Linneus', that I do not quite under-
stand.

ur'bicum. See last. In this case the trivial name is
applied to the upright Goosefoot (Chenopodium),
which grows chiefly on dung-hills and among rubbish.
A name of Linneus'.

u'rens ; burning, stinging.

usitatis'simum ; most common, or ordinary; well applied
to the flax of commerce (Linum).

NAMES OF PLANTS. 209

ustula'tus; scorclied. The pretty Orchis ustulata is so
called, because the flowers are first dark above and
white below, presenting the appearance of having
been scorched.

V.

va'gans ; wandering.

vagina'tus ; sheathed, vagina^ a sheath.

variega'tus; variegated.

verna'lis ; pertaining to spring, ver.

ver'nus ; spring, adj.

versic'olor; of varied colour, or changing colour, as in the
case of Myosotis versicolor.

verticilla'tus ; verticillate, i. e. arranged in verticils, or
whorls, from verto, I turn; thus, vertex, a whirl-
pool.

vesica'rius ; like a vesicus, or bladder ; thus Carex vesicaria
has its fruit broadly ovate, inflated.

vesperti'na ; belonging to the evening ; flowering then.

villo'sus ; villous, i. e. covered with long, soft hairs, and
having a woolly appearance.

vimina'lis ; suitable for making baskets, as the osier.

vinea'le; pertaining to vineyards; a habitat very com-
monly given for species of Allium. Allium vineale,
literally vineyard-leek, we call in English Crow-
garlic, for we have no vineyards, but on the continent
they occupy a good deal of ground.

viola'ceus ; violet-coloured.

vi'rens ; green and flourishing.

virga'tus; virgate, i.e. long and straight like a wand
(virga).

vir'idis ; green.

viro'sus ; full of poison.

visca'rius ; viscous, sticky, like bird-limco

210 NAMES OF PLANTS.

visco'sus ; the same as the last,
vulga'ris ; common.

vulga'tus ; commonly or generally known.
vuljDi'nus; fox- coloured, xulpes, a fox.

Z.

zostersefo'lius ; zostera-leavecl (zostera, grass-wrack) ; trivial
name for a kind of Pond-weed (Potamogeton).

APPENDIX.

On looking over the first part of this work there seems to
be too slight notice taken of some old English botanists
whose names are well known, and whose books are con-
tinually quoted. Though the}^ may not have much to do
with plant-nomenclature, and have therefore been very
briefly treated of, they have been of considerable service to
Botany in England. I allude especially to Turner, Gerard,
Johnson, Parkinson, and Evelyn, each of whom was remark-
able for something original, which has served as a basis
for others to work upon and improve. Thus, Turner
wrote the first 'English Herbal' worthy of the name.
Gerard introduced Physic-gardens, and originated the
cultivation of the potato in England, besides writing the
most popular of Herbals. Johnson commenced "Local
Floras," the compilation of which has done such good
service in giving us knowledge of the plants of our country.
Parkinson was the earliest writer in England on gardens, —
for flowers, culinary vegetables and fruits ; and he intro-
duced garden -rhubarb into England. Lastly, Evelyn wrote
for us a book on forest trees, which has perhaps done
more for their culture in this country than any other work,
either before or since his time. We may say of these five
botanists that they form the fountain-head of popular botany
in England : they instruct us about field-botany, medical-
botany, physic -gardens, flower-gardens, kitchen-gardens,
fruit- gardens, and timber. We may still gather from them

212 APPENDIX.

mucli valuable and interesting information, wliicli cannot be
had from any other source; and if we remember what
scanty accounts had been previously published of British
plants, and plants that were commonly cultivated in this
country, we cannot but admire their great knowledge
of them, gained by direct observation, as well as their
industry and learning. I therefore add a few notes on these
old writers, and also a few others of matters that I had
either overlooked or that have recently come to my know-
ledge, in the hope that they may not prove without interest.
I am much indebted for several of these notes to a very
interesting " Sketch of the progress of botanical investiga-
tion in Middlesex, with biographical notices," appended to
the 'Flora of Middlesex,' by H. Trimen, M.B., and
W. T. T)yei% B.A.; and also for some fresh records of
Gerard and Parkinson to articles in the ' Journal of
Horticulture' about these old Herbalists.

* The Grete Herbal.'

" Several editions were indeed published, but without
improvements; that of 1526 is the best known. We have
seen copies dated 1526, 1529, 1539 (without figures). One
is said to have appeared so late as 1561." ('Flora of
Middlesex.') I have a tolerably complete copy of the edition
of 1561, which has no figures excepting two fanciful ones, —
' Mandrake the male,' and ' Mandrake the female.'

William Turner.

I add a few notes about William Turner, who is known
as the " Father of British Botany."

Living in the disturbed reigns of Henry VIII. , Edward
YL, Mary, and Elizabeth, and being a clergyman who took
a lively interest in the religious controversies of the time.
Turner alternately lived in England, with high preferments.

APPENDIX. 213

and on the continent, where he had to take refuge from perse-
cution. He was elected aFellowof Pembroke Hall in 15S0, and
held the same fellowship in' 1538. About this time he became
Latimer's disciple, embracing with enthusiasm the principles
of the Reformation; and about 1540 he left Cambridge,
and travelled about England preaching. In consequence,
probably, of refusal to subscribe to the ' Six Articles,'* he
was imprisoned for some time; and, on his release in 1542,
he was obliged to leave England, to which he did not return
until after the death of Henry YIII. During his absence he
devoted much time to Botany, and became intimate with the
great naturalist Gesner, and other eminent men. He also
took the degree of M.D. at Ferrara.

On his return to England in 1547, Turner seems to
have been in high favour, for the new king made him a
Prebend of York and Canon of Windsor ; ' the Duke of
Somerset, Lord Protector, appointed him his physician ; and
the University of Oxford granted him the degree of M.D. on
his appointment. Li 1550 he w^as made Dean of Wells.
He was also a member of the House of Commons. On the
death of the king and the accession of Mary, Turner had
again (1553) to take refuge abroad, and did not return to
England until after her death. Queen Elizabeth restored
to him all his church preferments, and in 1563 presented
him to the rectory of Wedmore, in Somersetshire. The
latter years of his life appear to have been spent at
Wells and in London, where he had a house ' in the crossed
Fryers.' He died on July 7th, 1568, and was buried on the
9th, in the south-aisle of St. Olave's, Hart Street, Crutched
Friars. A stone, erected by his widow, is let into the

- The statute of ' Six Articles,' piibhshed in 1539 by Henry VIII.,
decreed the ackuowleclgraent of transubstantiation, communion in
one kind, vows of chastity, private masses, cehbacy of the clergy, and
auricular confession. Offenders were punishable as heretics.

214 APPENDIX.

corner of the east- wall, on which the Latin inscription is
still easily legible. He left two daughters and a son.

Turner's works are theological, medical, botanical, and
general, of which a list is given in the ' Flora of Middlesex,'
abeady mentioned. One example will serve to illustrate the
curious titles of his controversial works : — * The huntyng
and fyncling out of the Romyshe Foxe, which more than
seuen yeares hath bene hyd among the bisshoppes of
Englonde, after that the Kynges Hyghnes had commanded
hym to be dryven owt of hys Eealme.' Basyll, 1543. 12mo.
Published under the pseudonym of Willm. Wraghton, and
dedicated to King Henry VIII.

Turner's first botanical work, called ' Lihellus cle Re
Herbaria novus' (new pamphlet on Botan}^), was printed in
London in 1538. It was a quarto tract of twenty pages, in
which are noticed the localities of several plants in his
native county of Northumberland ; and these are the earliest
printed records of the kind in England. In 1548 he pub-
lished ' The Names of Herhes in Greke, Latin, Englishe,
Duche, and FrencJie, wyth the commune names that Herba-
ries and Apotecaries use.' London. The preface is dated
from Sion House, the residence of the Lord Protector, to
whom the book is dedicated.

His ' Herbal,' by which Turner is best known, appeared
at different times. The first part, dedicated to the Duke of
Somerset, was published in 1551: it is called 'A New
Herhall, wherein are contejmed the names of Herbes in
Greke, Latin, Englysh, Duch, French, and in the Potecaries
and Herbaries Latin ; with the properties, degrees, and
naturall places of the same; gathered and made by Wylliam
Turner, Phisicion vnto the Duke of Somersettes Grace.' It
is a folio book, containing ninety-four leaves in all. ' The
seconde imrte of Fuilliam Turner's Herhall, wherein are
conteyned,' Sec, was published at Cologne in 1562; and the

APPENDIX. 215

third part at the same place in 1566. The three parts —
collected together into one volume, with some additions and
alterations — were published in 1508, dedicated to Queen
Elizabeth. In this work upwards of three hundred species
are given as natives of England.

Anthony Ascham.

The Herbal of Anthon}^ Ascham is thus mentioned by
Pulteney :* —

" Anthony Ascham, a priest, and vicar of Burnishton,
in Yorkshire, to which he was preferred by Edward VI. ,
after a liberal education, which, it might have been
expected, w^ould have secured him from such delusion,
gave himself up to the study of astrology, on which subject
he published several tracts. He wrote also ' On the Leap-
Year ; ' and the following : ' A Lyttel Herbal of the properties
of Herbs; newly amended and corrected, with certain
additions at the end of the boke ; declaryng what herbs
have influence of certain starres and constellations, whereby
may be chosen the best and most lucky times and days of
their ministration, which is daily appointed in the Almanack.
Made and gathered in the year M.D.L., xii. Feb., by Anthonye
Ascham, Physician. Lond. 1550. 12°.'"

Keixbert Dodoens.

Johnson, in his edition of Gerard's Herbal, gives the
following account of the work of Dodonseus : —

" Remhertus Dodonceus, a Physician, born at Mechlin,
in. Brabant, about this time, began to write of Plants.
He first set forth an history in Dutch, which by Clusius
was turned into French, with some additions. An. 1560.

'■'' ' Historical and Biographical Sketches of the Progress of Botany
in England, from its Origin to the Introduction of the Linnsean
System.' By Eichard Piilteney, M.D., F.E.S. 1790.

216 APPENDIX.

And tills was translated out of French into English by
Mr. Henry Lyte, and set forth with figures, Ann. Bom.
1578; and divers times since printed, but without figures.
In the 3^eare 1552 Dodonseus set forth in Latine his
' Frugum historia,' and, within a while after, his * Florum
purgantium et deleteriorum historia.'' And afterwards he
put them all together, his former and those his later
Works, and diuided them into 30 books, and set them
forth -with 1305. figures, in fol. Ann. 1583. This edition
was also translated into English, which became the founda-
tion of this present Worke, as I shall shew hereafter. It
hath since been printed in Latine, with the addition of
some few new figures; and of late in Dutch, Ann. 1618,
with the addition of the same figures, and most of those in
the Exotichs of Clusius, and great store of other additions."

Kam's Little Dodeon.

"'A briefe Epitome of the new Herball, or History
of Plants out of the most exquisite,' " &c. The author
of this curious little work, of which there is a copy in the
British Museum, was, I suppose, the William Ramme,
alluded to by Gerard in his chapter on the Thorn-apple : —
" The iuice of Thorne apples boiled with hogges grease to
the forme of an vnguent or salve, cureth all inflammations
whosoeuer, all maner of burnings or scaldings, as wel of fire,
water, boiling lead, gunpowder, as that which comes* by
lightning, and that in a very short time, as myselfe haue
found by my daily practise, to my great credite and profite.
The first experience came from Colchester, where mistresse
L'obel, a marchants wife there, being most greeuously
burned with lightning, and not finding ease or cure in any
other thing, by this founde helpe when all hope was past, by
the report of master William Ramme, publike notarie of the
saidc town was perfectly cured."

appendix. 217

John Gerard.

These additional notes about Gerard are chiefly taken
from an interesting article in the ' Journal of Horticulture,'
February 18th, 1875.

The date of Gerard's birth cannot be ascertained with
certainty. There is no entry of his baptism in the Nantwich
registers from 1539 to 1545, the only early entries, and all
subsequent ones, are lost down to the year 1572. It has,
therefore, been derived from the Latin inscription round
his portrait prefixed to his ' Herb all,' which in English is —
" Portrait of John Gerard, of Cheshire, citizen and surgeon
of London, in the 53 year of his age, 1598." He was born
at Nantwich, and went to school in the same neighbourhood,
as appears from his ' Herbal.' He says of Cardamine pra-
tensis that it is " called at that Namptwich in Cheshire
ivhere I had my beginning, Ladie smockes," and of Kubus
id£eus, "I haue found it among the bushes of a cawsey
neere vnto a village called Wisterson, ivhere I zvent to
schoole, two miles from the Nantwitch in Cheshire."

Gerard's first publication was his ' Catalogue of Trees,
Shrubs, and Plants, both Indigenous and Exotic, growing
in the garden of John Gerard, citizen and surgeon of London.'
It is dedicated to Lord Burleigh, and occupies eighteen
small quarto pages in double columns. The plants are
arranged alphabetically, from Abies to Zizyphus, and are
1039 in number. There is a second edition of this v/ork.

Gerard was the first cultivator of the potato in England;
and, in the portrait which appears in both editions of
his *Herball,' he is represented with a sprig of the
plant in his hand. He was chairman of the company of
Barber- Surgeons, which two occupations w^ere conjoined,
even among the early Greeks and Romans. The Barber-
Chirurgeons were incorporated here in 143G, and their Hall

z

218 APPENDIX.

was on the west side of Monkwell Street, in Farringdon
Ward. These two occupations were separated by a statute,
passed 1546, which forbade barbers performing any other
surgical operation than drawing teeth ; so that, though the
company still existed, its occupation was gone. It is certain
that Gerard never followed the profession of barber, but of
" surgeon and herbarist." After the long period — over tw&nty
years — during which he was gardener to Lord Burleigh, it
seems he was employed by James I. and his queen; for
among the public records are the following : — " Anne, queen
of England, &c., for the sum of five shillings, by way of fine
paid by John Gerard, of London, surgeon and herbarist to
the king, and for other considerations ; but especially of his
singular and approved art, skill, and ministrie in j)lanting,
nursing, and preserving of plants, pear-trees, flowers, and
fruits of all kinds, do grant and let to him one garden
plot .... containing about two acres, to be held by him (&c.)
from the feast of St. Michael next ensuing, for the term of
the queen's life, and for twenty-one years, paying annually a
rent of fourpence, to be paid quarterly, and yielding for our
own use at the proper seasons of the year a convenient
quantity of herbes, flowers and fruits, growing in the said
garden, by the art and industry of the said John Gerard, if
they be lawfully demanded of him."

But little more is known about Gerard. That he
travelled out of England is shown by a remark in his
chapter on the " Firre, or Deale-tree," of which he says: —
" They are found likewise in Pruse, Pomerania, Liefeland,
Eussia, and especially in Norway ; where I haue scene the
goodliest trees in the worlde of this kinde, growing vpon the
rockie and craggie mountaines, almost without any earth
about them, or any other thing, sauing a little mosse about
the rootes, which thrust themselues he ere and there into the
chinkes and cranies of the rockes, and therefore are easily

APPENDIX. 219

cast downe with any extreme gale of winde." He frequently
mentions different English counties which he seems to have
visited ; but it is somewhat curious that we should know so
little of such a well-known man; and it is no slight credit
to his ' Herbal' that it alone should have preserved Gerard's
name to us as a " household w^ord." We know nothing of
his private life, whether he was married or single, whether
he was wealth}^, or in fairly good circumstances, or poor,
except by conjecture. Even the time of his death was set
down incorrectly by Johnson, and has been repeated ever
since. The writer of the article in the * Journal of Horti-
culture,' which has been already mentioned, says : — " All
who have written about him state that he died in 1607. As
he lived and died in Holborn, it would have been easy to
consult the registers of St. Andrew's Church, in that parish ;
but no one ever did until — within a few days of my writing
this — I turned over the parchment leaves of those well-kept
registers, and in them found this entry: — "Mr. John Gerrard,
freeman of the Barber- Chirurgeons, buried the xviii. February,
1611." That would have been 1612, had the year then, as
now, commenced in January.

Gerard was evidently a parishioner of consideration, for
he is the only one in that and other years with the prefix of
" Mr." All others have, at the most, merely their christian
and surnames recorded, whilst too many have such a totally
useless record, as " A poor man," or '* A maid from John
Smith's, buried this day."

Thomas Johnson.*

Johnson, as a botanist, is especially remarkable for in-
troducing the useful plan of carefully examining the Floras
of small districts, and next for his new and much enlarged
edition of Gerard's ' Historic of Plants.' He published a
■''• See ' Flora of Middlesex.'

220 APPENDIX.

narrative, dated July 13tli, 1629, of an expedition in a
company of ten to investigate the plants of Kent, which
has been described as " A pleasantly written account of one
of the herborising excursions, which for some years it had
been the practice of the company to make at intervals.
This is the first printed account of a botanical excursion
in England." An appendix of three pages gives us the
results of a similar journey to Hampstead Heath, on August
1st, 1629. In 1632 Johnson published a list of plants
growing on Hampstead Heath and the neighbourhood,
consisting of seven pages, six of which are occupied by a
catalogue of names. " This catalogue may be considered as
the first 'Flora' of a small district printed in England."

Johnson's edition of Gerard's 'Herbal' is dated, in his
letter to the reader, " From my house on Snow-hill,
Octob. 22, 1633. He tells us in his Appendix that he
was "forced to perform this task within the compasse
of a yeare," which, considering the extent of the work and
the ability with which it is performed, shows him to have
been an expeditious writer, and one who well understood his
subject. Notwithstanding the many excellencies of Gerard's
book and its great popularity, a new and improved edition
was greatly wanted, by reason of the numerous errors in the
original work. Johnson remarks of Gerard: — "His chiefe
commendation is, that he out of a propense good will to the
publique aduancement of this knowledge, endeauoured to
performe therein more than he could well accomplish ;
which was partly through want of sufficient learning, as
(besides that which he himselfe saith of himselfe in the
chapter of Water Docke) may be gathered by the translating
of diners i^laces out of the Adiiersaria.'' .... The sentence
to which Johnson alludes is creditable to Gerard, as showing
his modesty, other instances of which are not wanting (see
account of the Goose-tree, p. 46). It is as follows : — " Other

APPENDIX. 221

distinctions and differences, with the temperature and euery
other circumstaunce, I leaue vnto the learned phisitions of
our London colledge (who are very well able to search into
this matter), as a thing far aboue my reach, being no
graduate, but a countrie scholler, as the whole framing of
this historie doth well declare : but I hope my good meaning
will be well taken, considering I do my best, not doubting
but some of greater learning will perfect that which I haue
begun according to my small skill, especially the ice being
broken vnto him, and the woode rough hewed to his
handes."

The additions made by Johnson to Gerard's * Herbal' are
so numerous that it is almost entitled to be considered a new
book ; and to treat it all as Gerard's work, as is done by
Smith (in Eng. Flo.), who quotes "Gerard" always from
this edition, is not correct. The additions of plants amount
to 800, and of figures 700 ; and the additional matter to and
the corrections of the original are of great extent and
importance. Another merit of this work of Johnson's is
that he clearly points out where and to what extent he has
altered the original. He adds an appendix of forty pages
and thirty chapters with this proem : —

"An Appendix or Addition of certaine Plants omitted in

the former Histor3\

" The Preface.

" Hauing run through the history of plants gathered by
Master Gerard, and much inlarged the same, both by the
addition of many figures and histories of plants not formerly
contained in it, and by the amending and increasing the
history of sundry of those which before were therein treated
of; I finde that I haue forgotten diuers which I intended to
haue added in their fitting places : the occasion hereof hath
been, my many businesses, the troublesomnesse, and aboue
all, the great expectation and haste of the AVorke, whereby

222 APPENDIX.

I was forced to perform this task within the compasse of a
years. Now being constant to my first resolution, I here
haue, as time would giue me leaue, and my memorie serue,
made a briefe collection and addition (though without
method) of such as offered themselues to me ; and without
doubt there are sundry others which are as fitting to be
added as those ; and I should not haue bin wanting if time
had permitted me to haue entred into further consideration
of them. In the meane time take in good part those that I
haue here presented to your view."

Johnson " seeins to have been as good a soldier as a
botanist, for he distinguished himself greatly in the war,
and became lieutenant-colonel to Sir Marmaduke Eawdon.
In 1642, the University of Oxford made him a Bachelor of
Physic, and in the next year he proceeded to M.D. He did
not, however, live long to practice his profession as a
physician, for on September 14th, 1644, during a skirmish
with the rebels under Colonel Richard Norton, at the siege of
Basing House, he received a shot in the shoulder, ' whereby
contracting a feaver, he died a fortnight after.' He was
much regretted, being, we are informed, ' no less eminent in
the garrison for his valour and conduct as a soldier, than
famous through the kingdom for his excellency as an
herbalist snd physician.'"

John Parkinson.*
John Parkinson was born in 1567, for the inscription on
his portrait, published in 1629, states that he was then in
his sixty-second year. The place of his birth is not known,
but is supposed to have been somewhere in Nottingham-
shire. The greater part of his life was spent in London,
where he followed his profession of apothecary and herbalist,
a profession which does not appear to have been very
- See ' Journal of Horticulture,' June 24tb, 1875.

APPENDIX. 228

lucrative, and therefore (perhaps) was not much honoured.
Nevertheless Parkinson spent a long life, evidently with
satisfaction to himself and benefit to his countrymen. He
was assiduous in the collection and cultivation of new
plants, and tells us that he had spent nearly forty years in
"travell," or, as we now spell it, "travail," to acquire a
knowledge of plants; and, not satisfied with his own
researches, he contributed to the expenses of one botanist
to enable him to search some parts of Europe for new
plants, but was justly displeased with him, for he, " going,"
as Parkinson says, "into Spaine, almost wholly on my
charge, brought me little else for my money than seeds of
Chiceling Peas." Yet he gave seeds to others ; so that " I
beate the bushe, and another catcheth and eateth the bird."
Then, also, as now and at all times, there were well-to-do
patrons of botany, merchants, and others who were of assist-
ance ; and Parkinson mentions some of those who helped
his collection : —

" Mr. Nicholas Lete, a worthy merchant, and a lover of
all faire flowers."

" Mr. John de Franqueville imparted to me many good
things."

" Mr. John Gordier (Goodyer), a great lover and curious
searcher of plants, who hath found in our country many
plants not imagined to grow in our land. I wish there were
many more of his minde, that not hindering their affaires at
spaire times would be industrious to search out and know
what the ground bringeth forth where their occasions are
to be." (See Goodyera.)

Altogether, Parkinson made a fine collection of flowers,
fruits, and herbs. Thus he says of roses : — " I have of roses
to furnish this garden thirty sorts at the least, every one
notably different from the other both in form, colour, and
smell;" while of tulips he had one hundred varieties ; and

224 APPENDIX.

SO on throughout. He introduced our garden rhubarb,
which he makes mention of in these words : — " I haue a
kinde of round leafed Dock growing in m}^ Garden, which
was sent me from beyond Sea by a worthy Gentleman,
Mr. Dr. Matth. Lister, one of the King's Physitians, with
this title, Rai:>onticum verum, and first grew with me, before
it was ever seen or known elsewhere in England, wS^ by
proof I haue found to be so like vnto the true Paibarbe, or
the Eha of Pontus, both for forme and colour, that I daresay
it is the very true Eubarbe, our climate only making it lesse
strong in working, lesse heauy, and lesse bitter in taste." —
^Paradisus.'

His two works — one on gardening, and the other on
general botany — have already been mentioned (p. 50). The
title of the first work in full is —

^PAEADISI IN SOLE,
Paradisus Terrestris:*
or,
A Garden of all sorts of pleasant flowers which our English
ayre will permitt to be noursed vp : with a Kitchen garden
of all manner of herbes, rootes, and fruites, for meate or
sause vsed with vs, and an Orchard of all sorte of fruit
bearing Trees and shrubbes fit for our Land, together with
the right orderinge, planting, and preseruing of them, and
their vses and vertues. Collected by John Parkinson,
Apothecary of London, 1629.' It was dedicated to the
queen (Henrietta Maria).

A second edition of the ' Paradisus' appeared in IGSG, six
years after the death of its author.

Parkinson's other work was entitled, ' Theatrum Botani-

cum: the Theater of Plants, or an Herball of a large

extent.' The title-page states more at length what the work

contains : — " Collected by the many yeares travaile, industry,

" The translation is ' Park-in-siin's Terrestrial Paradise.'

APPENDIX. 225

and experience in this subject by John Parkinson, Apothe-
cary of London, and the King's Herbarist. Published by
the Kings Majestyes especiall priviledge." 1640. This work
was dedicated to the king.

Parkinson died in 1650, and the register of burials of St.
Martin-in-the-Fields contains this entry: — " 1650, Aug. 6,
John Parkinson sepultus." Guided by the inscription on
his portrait we thus learn that his death occurred in his
eighty- third year.

We may say of Parkinson's ' Paradisus ' that it is not only
the first work we have of its kind, but that it shows so much
acquaintance with the subject, and is written in so pleasant
a style, that it still remains a very excellent gardening
book.

John Evelyn.

John Evelyn was born at Wotton, in Surrey, the seat of
his father, Richard Evelyn, Esq., October 81st, 1620. He
was descended from a very ancient and honourable Shropshire
familj^, which settled at Wotton in the reign of Queen Eliza-
beth. His first instruction was received in the free-school
at Lewes, from w^hich he was removed in 1637, and was then
placed at Baliol College, Oxford, where he remained three
years studying diligently. After this he removed to the
Middle Temple, London, to acquire some knowledge of law.
In 1644 he left England to travel on the continent, where
he remained some years, returning about 1651. In 1647 he
was in Paris, and, being recommended to Sir Richard
Browne, the king's minister there, he became acquainted
with his only daughter Mary, whom he shortly afterwards
married, and by whom he became possessed of Sayes-Court,
near Deptford. Here he took up his residence, and lived a
very retired life, the violence and confusion of the times
being very repugnant to his studious and gentle temper.

2a

/

00(; APPENDIX.

He had it even in mind, and suggested it to his friend
Boyle, to establish a retreat, where the lovers of virtue and
science might shelter themselves from the accidents of the
times. In 1699 he succeeded to the family estates, and
removed to Wotton, where he passed the remainder of
his life.

"Eveljm lived through the troubled times of Charles I.,
Cromwell, Charles II., James II., and William; and without
surrendering any principle, or condescending to any flattery,
he was preserved from persecution by the respect universally
accorded to his character. He lived in intimacy with men
of all persuasions; and few foreigners, distinguished for
learning or arts, left England without visiting him."*

Evelyn died in the eighty- sixth year of his age, 27th
February, 1705—6, and was buried at Wotton. His tomb,
by his desire, bears this inscription : — " Living in an age of
extraordinary events and revolutions, he had learned from
thence this truth, which he desired might be thus commu-
nicated to posterity : That all is vanity which is not honest ;
and that there is no solid wisdom but in real piety."

Evelyn's writings were very numerous and on many
subjects, which, as not concerning this work, I do not
specify. The most important and best known is his ' Silva ;
or, a Discourse of Forest-trees, and the propagation of
Timber in his Majesty's dominions.' This work was written,
at the request of the Royal Society, " upon occasion," as it
is stated on the title-page, " of certain Queries propounded
to that Illustrious Assembly by the Hon. the Principal
Officers and Commissioners of the Navy." It was delivered,
15th October, 1662, and published by order of the Royal
Society. It has since " undergone several editions : a
second in 1069; a third in 1079, with great additions and
improvements ; a fourth in 1705, still considerably augmented ;
- ' Imperial Dictionary of Universal Biography.'

APPENDIX. 227

and a fifth in 1729, with all the lesser pieces of our Author
relating to Agriculture and Gardening annexed, as they
were in the fourth. But these two last editions are
extremely incorrect."* Since then three editions, with
copious notes, have been published by Dr. Hunter, of York ;
the last in 1801.

Evelyn's ' Silva ' is worthy of all the encomiums that have
been bestowed on it, and there can be no doubt that it has
done much to promote a judicious culture of forest
trees. In his Epistle Dedicatory to " The King's most
sacred Majest}^ Charles the second," the author says: — "I
need no.t acquaint your Majesty how many millions of
timber-trees, besides infinite others, have been propagated
and planted throughout your vast dominions, at the instiga-
tion, and by the sole direction of this work ; because your
gracious Majesty has been pleased to own it publickly for
my encouragement, who, in all that I here pretend to say,
deliver only those precepts which your Majesty has put into
practice ; as having like another Cyrus, by your own royal
example, exceeded all your predecessors in the plantations
you have made, beyond, I dare assert it, all the monarchs of
this nation since the conquest of it."

P. 69. BuFFONiA TENUiFOLiA. — It is pretty well established
that Smith was wrong as to the intention of Linneus in
the application of the name.

P. 72. Viola lutea. — A hlae variety of this plant is not
unfrequent : it is figured in the new edition of ' Sowerby's
Botany,' by Dr. Syme.

P. 77. English Botany. — There can be little doubt that
this work is correctly called " Sowerby's" 'EngHsh Botany,'
for it was chiefly remarkable for the excellence of its plates,
with which it originated ; and Smith was employed to write

'•= Evelyn's ' bilva,' by A. Hunter, M.D., F.R.S.L. unci E., old ed.

228 APPENDIX.

the descriptioDS at a guinea for each article. Yet he was
very sore about the book being called ' Sowerby's Botany,'
and thereby gave an illustration of the petulance of his
temper. (See 'Journal of Botan}^' 1872, p. 374.)

P. 80. Lixdley's HEPtBARiuM. — THs valuable collection
is now at Cambridge, excepting the Orchidacese, which are
at Kew. Two of Lindley's most important works should be
noticed, viz. ' Genera and Species of Orchids,' and ' Folia
Orchidacea.'

P. 81. — The 'Miscellaneous Botanical Works of Robert
Brown,' in 2 vols., with a vol. of plates, was issued by the
Kay Societ}^ in 1866.

INDEX

Abbreviations 97
Abenguefit 24
Absinthium 100
Abu-al-Teifuri 20
Abul Faradsch Dscbor-

dschis 28
Acanthium 148
Accentuation 92
Acer 98
Aceras 98

Acetosella 149, IGO
Acinos 111
Aconitum 98
Acorus 99
Actsea 99
Actinocarpus 99
Adanson 117
Adder's-tongue 148
Adiantum 99, 174
Adiantum-nigrura 107
Adonis 99
Adoxa 99
iEgopodium 99
iEsculapius 2
vEthusa 100
Agraphis 100
Agrimonia 100
Agrostemma 100
Agrostis 100
Ahmed Ben Ibrahim 18
Aira 100
Ajuga 100
Alchemilla 101
Alchindi 19
Alexanders 169
Alfred the Great 19
Alisma 101
Alizarin IGO
Alliaria 101
Allium 101
Allosorus 101
Allseed 153, 157
Alnus 102
Alopecurus 102
Alpini 42
Alsinastrum 102
Alsine 102

Althffia 102
Alyssura 102
Amaradulcis 169
Amarautus 102
Am a r ell a 131
Ammophila 102
Amomum 108
Ampeloi^rasum 101
Anacharis 102
Anagallis 102
Anchusa 103
Andromeda 103
Androssemum 135
Anemone 103
Angelica 103
Anne of Cleves 31
Anserina 155
Antenuaria 103
Antirrhinum 104
Anthemis 103
Anthriscus 104, 174
Anthoxanthum 103
Anthyllis 104
Apargia 104
Aparine 130
Apera 181
Aphaca 138
Apium 104
Apuleius 10
Aquifolium 135
Aquilegia 104
Arab inventions 29
Arabic names 10
Arabis 104, 182
Arbuscula 101
Arbutus 104
Arctium 105, 130
Arctostaphylos 105
Arenaria 105
Argeraone 150
Argentina 155
Argon au tic expedition
Aria 157
Aristolochia 105
Aristotle 4

Armaria 105, 122, 107
Armoracia 105

Arnoseris 105
Arrenatherum 105
Artemisia 105
Arthrolobium 106
Arum 100
Asarum 100

Ascham, Anthonv 38,215
Ash 129
Asparagus 100
Asperugo 100
Asperula 100
Aspidium 100
Asplenium 100, 175
Aster 107
Astragalus 107
Astrautia 107
Astrology 51
Atharaanticum 144
Athyrium 107
Atriplex 107
Atropa 107
Auricula 128, 177
Australia, Government

Expedition to 82
Avellana 119
Avena 108
Avens 123
Averroes 25
Avicenna 23
Azalea 108

Ballota 108

Banks, Sir Joseph 70, 82
Barbarea 108
Barbarus 4
Barilla 101
Barnakle-tree 40
Barren Strawberry 155
Bartsia 108
Bauhin, Caspar 5, 49
Bauhin, John 49
Beak-rush 159
Bear-berry 105
Beccabungal78
Beech 128
Beech -fern 154
Beet 108

230

INDEX.

Belladonna 108
Bellis 108
Berberis 108
Beta 108
Betonica 108
Betula 100
Betulus ll-J
Bidens 109
Bindweed 11!)
Birch 109
Birdlime-wort 141
Bistorta 154
Bitter-sweet 160
Black Aller 159
Black Bryony 17:2
Blattaria 17 7
Blechnum 100
Blitum 102
Blue-bottle 114
Blysmus 109
Boerhaave 57
Bonus Henricus llU
Borago 109
Borkhausia 110
Botany and Medicine 79
Botrychium 110
Botrys 173
Box 110

Brachypodium 110
Bramble 160
Brassica 110
Briza 110
Bromus 110
Broom 130, 1G9
Brown, Robert 81, 228
Brunella 156, 181
Brunfels 34, 36
Bruscus 160
Bryonia 110
Buckthorn 159
Buffon 8, 03
Buffonia 69, 227
Bulbocastanum 113
Bunium 110
Bupleurum 110
Bursa-pastoris 112
Butoraus 110
Butterwort 152
Buxus 110

Csesalpinus 40
CaiUe-lait 130
Cakile 110
Calamagrostis 110
Calamintha 111
Calamus 99
Calceolus 121
Calcitrapa 114

Calfs-snout 104
Callitriche 111
CaUuna 111
Caltha 111
Calystegia 111
Camelina 112
Camerarius 41
Campanula 112
Cannabis 112
CapiUus-Yeneris 99
Caprea 161
Capsella 112
Caraway 113
Card amine 112
Cardiaca 138
Carduus 112
Carex 113
Carlina 113
Carota 122
Carpinus 113
Carui 113
Carum 113
Caryophyllata 123
Caryophyllus 122
Castanea 114
Catabrosa 114
Catch fly 142, 167
Cato 5
Caucalis 114
Celery 104
Centaurea 114
Centaureum 126
Centranthus 114
Centum morbia 142
Centunculus 115
Cephalanthera 115
Cerastium 115
Cerasus 156
Ceratophyllum 115
Cerefolium 104
Ceteracli 115, 165
Chferopbyllum 115
Chamsedrys 173
Charasepytis 101
Chamagrostis 115
Chamomilla 143
Charles 11. 56
Cheese-rennet 130
Cheiranthus 115
Cheiri 115
Chelidonium 116
Cheuopodium 116
Cherleria 116
Cherry tree 156
Chervil 164, 174
Cblora 116
Chrysanthemum 117
Chrysospleniuni 117

Cicendia 117
Cichorium 117
Cicuta 117
Circaja 117
Cladium 118
Claytonia 118
Clematis ll8
Clinopodium 111
Clusius 48
Cnicus 118
Cochlearia 118
Cock's-comb 159
Colchicum 119
Colt's-foot 176
Columbaiia 164
Columella 6
Columna 41
Comarum 119
Conium 119
Consolida 122
Convallaria 119
Convolvulus 119, 154
Cony z a 136
Cool tankard 156
Corallorhiza 119
Cordus 34, 36
Coriandrum 119
Cornus 119
Coronopus 152, 166
Corrigiola 119
Coryd-alis 119
Corylus 119
Cotoneaster 119
Cotnla 103
Cotyledon 119
Cracca 179
Crambe 119
Crane's-bill 131
Crataegus 120
Crepis 120
Crista -galli 159
Crithmum 120
Crocus 120
Crosswort 130
Crowfoots 158
Cruciata 130
Crus-galli 150
Cryptogramma 120
Cucubalus 120
Culpeper 51
Cuscuta 120
Cuvier 8
Cyauus 114
Cyclamen 120
Cymbalaria 139
Cynanchica 106
Cynapium 100
Cynodon 120

INDEX,

281

Cynoglossum 121
Cynosui'us 131
Cyperissias 127
Cyperus 121
Cypripedium 121
Cystopteris 121
Cytisus 181

Dabeocia 181
Dactylis 121
Dactylon 120
Dalechamp 38
Damasonium 99
Dandelion 172
Danewort 1G3
Daphne 121
Darnel 140
Datura 121
Daucus 122
Delphinium 123
Dens-leonis 172
Deslongchamps 140
Dianthus 1<;2
Digitalis 123
Digitaria 123
Digraphis 123
Dillenius 59
Dioscorides 4
Diotis 123
Diplotaxis 123
Dipsacus 123

Eastern botany 1
Ebn AbuOseibia 15, 26, 27
Ebn Abu Zaher 18
Ebn Al Beitar 20
Ebn Roschd 25
Ebn Sina 23
Ebn Wafid 24
Ebulus 163
Echinochloa 124
Echinophora 124
Echium 124
Elatine 124
Elder 162
Eleocharis 124
Elodea 124

Eltham garden 60, 367
Elymus 125
Empetrum 125
Endymion 182
English Botany, Sower-

by's 77, 227
English Physician, the 51
Epilinum 120
Epilobiuin 125
Epimedium 125
Epipactis 125

Epipogium 125
Epithymum 120
Equisetum 125
Eranthis 125
Erica 125
Erigeron 125
Eriocaulon 126
Eriophorum 126
Erodium 126
Erophila 182
Eryngium 126
Erysimum 126
Erythraea 126
Esparto 169
Esula 127
Euonymus 126
Eupatorium 100, 126
Euphorbia 126
Euphragia 182
Euphrasia 127
Evelyn 56, 225
Eyebright 128

Fagopyrum 154, 182
Fagus 128
Farfara 176
Fedia 128
Festuca 128
Ficaria 157
Filago 128
Filipendula 170
Filix-foemina 107
Filix-mas 106
Film ferns 135
Fitz Herbert, Judge 37
Flammula 157
Flinders, Captain 82
Flora, first local 50, 220
Flos - Constantinopoli-

tanus 151
Flos-cuculi 141
Foeniculum 128
Fool's Orchis 149
Fool's Parsley 100
Forskal 121
Fox-glove 123
Fragaria 128
Fragariastrum 155
Frangula 159
Frankenia 128
Fraxinus 129
Fritillaria 129
Frog-bit 135
Fuchs 36
Fumaria 129
Fumus-terrffi 129

Gage, Sir Thos. 129

Gagea 129
Galanthus 129
Gale 145
Galen 11
Galeobdolon 129
Galeopsis 129
Galinsoga 182
Galium 130
Gall -bush 145
Garlic 101

Garlic Germander 173
Garlic Sage 173
Gastridium 130
Genista 130
Genserich 155
Gentiana 130
Georgics 5
Geranium 131
Gerard 42, 217

Germander 173

Gesner 34, 36

Geum 131

Githago 100

Gladiolus 131

Glaucium 131

Glaux 131

Glyceria 131

Gmelin 96, 125

Gnaphalium 131

Goatweed 99

Golden Ass, the 11

Golden -rod 169

Good Henry 116

Gooflyer 131, 223

Goodyera 131

Gooseberry 159

Goose-foot 116

Goose-grass 155

Goose tree 46

Gorse 130, 176

Goutweed 99

Grass of Parnassus 150

Grassette 152

Gray 32, 43

Greek, pronunciation of
94

Greek Valerian 153

Greeks, early 2

Green weed, Dyers' 130

Gregorius Abul Pharadsh
15

Gregorius Bar Hebraus
28

Grete Herbal 32, 212

Gronovius 118, 140

Grossulaiia 159

Gymnadenia 131

Gymnograrama 131

'2S2

INDEX.

Habenaria 131
Haller 58
Haloscias 182
Hard fern 109
Hare's-tail grass 137
Harun 19
Hazel 119
Hedera 132
Helenium 130
Heleocharis 132
Helianthemum 132
Helioscopia 127
Helix 132, 162
HeUeborus 132
Helminthia 132
Helosciadium 132
Hemp 112

Hemp Agrimony 126
Heracleum 132
Herb Bennet 123
Herb Gerard 99
Herb Paris 150
Herculaneum 9
Herminium 133
Herniaria 133
Hesperis 133
Hieracium 133
Hierochloe 133
Hippocrates 2
Hippocrepis 133
Hippopbae 133
Hippuris 134
Hirculus 161
History of the world 8
Holcus 134
Holland, Philemon 9
Holly fern 106
Holoschoenus 130, 165
Holostea 170
Holosteum 134
Honckeny, G. A. 134
Honckenya 134
Honein 19
Hop 134
Hornbeam 113
Hotton, Pierre 134
Hottonia 134
Humulus 134
Hutchins, Miss 134
Hutchinsia 134
Hyacinth 134
Hydrocharis 135
Hydrocotyle 135
Hydrobipatbam 160
Hydropiper 124, 154
Hymentiphyllum 135
Hyoscyamus 135
Hypochseris 135

Hypopitys 145

Iberis 135

Ilex 135

lllecebrum 135

Impatiens 136

Intybus 117

Inula 136

Irio 168

Iris 136

Isatis 136

Isnard, Antoine d' 130

Isnardia 136

Isoetes 130

Isolepis 136

Jacea 114
Jacobaea 166
Jacobite Christians 22
Jacob's ladder 153
St. James' wort 166
Jasione 136
Johannitiiis 19
Johnson, Thomas 50,219
Josephus 1
Juncus 137
Juniperus 137

Kali 162

Kindi, al- 19

Kiichen gardens and

orchards 31
Knapp, J. L. 137
Knappia 137
Knaut, Christian 137
Knautia 137
Knot-grass 153
Kobres, M. de 137
Kobresia 137
Koch, W. D. J. 151
Koeler, G-. L. 137
Koeleria 137
Koniga 137

Lactuea 137
Ladanum 129
Lady-fern 107
Lady's slipper 121
Lagurus 137
Lamium 137
Lanceolata 153
Lantana 178
Lappa 105
Lapsana 137
Lastrea 137
Lathrsea 138
Lathyris 127
Lathyrus 138

Latin writers 5
Laureola 121
Lavater, the Brothers 138
Lavatera 138
Leers, J. D. 138
Leersia 138
Lelamer 30
Lemna 138
Leontodon 138
Leonurus 138
Leopai'd's bane 123
Lepidium 139
Lepturus 139
Leucanthemum 117
Leucojum 139
Ligusticum 139
Ligustrum, 139
Lilium 139
Limnanthemum 139
Limoniiim 170
Limosella 139
Linacre 30
Liu aria 139
Lindley, John 66, 77,80,

228
ling 111
Lingua 158, 165
Liunaia 140
Linnean canons 64
Linneus 60
Linosyris 140
Linum 140
Liparis 140
Lister, Martin 140
Listera 140
Lithospermum 140
Littorella 140
Lloyd, Edward 140
Llovdia 140
Lobel 40
Lobelia 140
Loiseleurea 140
Lolium 140
Lomaria 140
Lonchitis 106
Lonicer 38
Lonicera 140
Loo-e-strife 142
Lotus 141
Lueullus 156
Ludwig, C. G. 141
Ludwigia 141
Lumpers 88
Lunaria 110
Lupulus 134
Luteola 159
Lychnis 141
Lychnitis 177

INDEX.

233

Lycopodium 142, 166
Lycopsis 142
Lycopus 142
Lysimachia 142
Lyte, Henry 40
Lythrum 142

Macer 6

Macer's Herbal 30
Madder 160
Maecenas 5
Magnol 54
Maianthenum 142
Maiden-hair fern 99
Maiden-hair spleenwort

106
Malachium 143
Malaxis 143
Male fern 106
Malik, al- 26
Mains 157
Malva 143
Mamum, al- 18
Mansur, al- 21
Mansur Ben Abul Fadhl

Ben Ali 26
Marianus 113
Mariscus 118, 165
Marrubium 143
Marsh mallow 102
Masterwort 151
Matricaria 143
Matthiola 143
Matthiolus 4, 37
May flower 141
Meadow-sweet 170
Meconopsis 143
Medicago 143
Medicine and Botany 79
Melampyrum 143
Meleagris 129
Melica 143
Melilotus 143
Melissa 144
Melissophyllum 144
Melittis 144
Mentha 144
Menyanthes 144
Menzies, A. 144
Menziesia 144
Mercurialis 144
Mertens, F. C. 144
Mertensia 144
Mespilus 144
Mesne the elder 19
Mesne the younger 22
Meum 144
Mezereum 121

IMilium 145
MiUefolium 98
MiUegrana 157
Mimulus 145
Misenum 9
Mistletoe 180
Moench, Conrad 145
Moenchia 145
Mohammedan authors 20
Molina, J. J. 145
Molinia 145
Mollugo 130
Moneses 145
Money-wort 142
Monorchis 133
Monotropa 145
Monti, Guiseppe 145
Montia 145
Morio 149
Morsus-ranse 135
Motasim, al- 19
Motewekkil, al- 19, 20
Mountain fern 106
Mulgedium 145
Mullein 177
Muscari 145
Myosotis 145
Myosurus 145
Myrica 145
Myriophyllum 146
Myrrhis 146
Myrsinites 162
Myrtillus 177

Naias 146
Names : —

barbarous 67, 68

character, from spe-
cific 71

classes, of 70

colour of flowers, from
72

countries, from 71

fanciful 69

four quarters of the
globe, from the 71

long 73

people, from names of
73

places, from 71

sarcastic 69

substantive or generic
64

subtantive, old used as
specific 89

trivial 71

unmeaning 67
Napellus 98

Napus 110
Narcissus 146
Nardus 146
Narthecium 146
Nasturtium 146
NathaH, al- 23
Natural system 73
Navel-wort 119, 139
Neotinea 146
Nepeta 111, 147
Nephrodium 147
Nicander 179
Nicol 15
Nidus-avis 140
Nissole, M. G. 138
Nissolia 138
Noli-me-tangere 136
Nuh Ben Mansur 23
Nummularia 142
Nuphar 147
Nymphsea 147

Oak fern 154
Obier 179
Obione 147
Odontites 108
(Eil de bone 164
(Enanthe 147
OEnothera 148
Olusatrum 169
Onobrychis 148
Ononis 148
Onopordum 148
Ophioglossum 148
Ophrys 148
Ople tree 179
Opulus 179
Orchis 149
Oreopteris 106
Origanum 149
Omithogalum 149
Omithopus 149
Orobanche 149
Orobus 179
Orontium 104
Osiris 10
Osmunda 149
Ostruthium 151
Otites 167
Our Lady 121
Ovid 6
Owler 159
OxaHs 149
Oxyacantha 120
Oxycoccos 149, 177
Oxyria 149
Oxytropis 149

3b

234

INDEX.

Padus 15G
Pffion 149
Paeonia 149
Panax coloni 44
Panic grass 125
Panicum 150
Paralias 127
Pardaliancbes 123
Parietaria 150
Paris 150

Parkinson, John 50, 222
Parnassia 150
Parthenium 143
Pap aver 150
Pastinaca 150
Paulus 12
Pear ti'ee 157
Pecten 1G4
Pedicularis 150
Pennywort 139
Peplis 127, 150
Peplus 127
Pera-pastoris 112
Periclvmenum 140
Periwinkle 179
Persicaria 154
Persil noir 169
Petasites 151
Petroselinum 151
Peucedanum 151
Phalaris 151
Pbegopteris 154
Phellandrium 147
Phleum 151
Phragmites 152
Phyllodoce 152
Physic gardens 31
Physospermum 152
Phyteuma 152
Picris 152 ,
PiloseUa 133
Pilularia 152
PimpineUa 152
Pinguicula 152
Pinus 152
Plantago 101, 152
Plautus 5
Pliny 7
Plumier 55
Plum tree 156
Pneumonanthe 131
Poa 153
Pocock 15
Podagraria 99
Polemon 153
Polemoniurn 153
Polycarpon 153
Polygala 153

Polygonatum 153
Polygonum 153
Polypodium 154
Polypogon 154
Polystichum 154
Pompeii 9
Poor man's weather glass

103
Populus 154
Potamogeton 154
Potentilla 155
Poterium 156
Priest, Dr. 43
Primula 156
Pronunciation of names

91
Prosper Alpinus 42
Prunella 156
Prunus 156
Psamma 157
Pseud-acorus 136
Pseudo-cyperus 113
Pseudo-narcissus 146
Pseudo-platanus 98
Ptarmica 98
Pteris 157
Pudentilla 10
Pulegium 144
Pulicaria 182
Pulmonaria 157
Pulsatilla 103
PjTola 157
Pyrus 157

Quercus 157

Eadiola 157

Eampion 112

Kam's Little Dodeon 40,

216
Pianunculus 157
Rapa 110

Eaphanistrum 158
Eaphanus ].58
Eapunculus 112
Eay, John 52
Eazi, al- 20
Eegina prati 170
Eeiske 15
Eeseda 158
Ehaeas 150
Ehamnus 159
Ellin an til us 159
Ehodia radix 166
Ehynchospora 159
Eibes 159
Eivinus 55

Sage 162
Sagina 160
Sagittaria 161
Salad burnet 156
Salicaria 142
Salicornia 161
Salix 161
Salsola 162
Salvia 162
Sambucus 162
Samolus 163
Sanctuary 126
Sacguisorba 156, 163
Sanicula 163
Saponaria 163
Sarsaparilla 168
Saussure, H. B. de 164
Saussurea 164
Scabiosa 114, 164
Scale fern 115
Scandix 164
Scheuchzer, the
Brothers 69, 164
Scheuchzeria 164
Schoenoprasum 101
Schcenus 164
SciUa 165
Scirpus 165
Scleranthus 165
Sclerochloa 165
Scolopendriura 165
Scordium 173
Scorodonia 165, 173
Scorodoprasum 101
Scrophularia 165
Sea lavender 170
Sea onion 165
Sedum 165
Selaginella 166
Selago 142
Sempervivum 166
Senebier, J. 166
Senebiera 166
Senecio 166
Septfoil 155
Septifolium 155
Serapion the elder 22

,, the younger 24
Serpyllum 174
Serratula 166
Seseli 166
Sesler, L. 166
Sesleria 166
Setaria 166
Shakespeare 38
Shepherd's purse 112
Sherards, the 60, 166, 167
Sherardia 166

INDEX.

235

Sibbald, K. 167

Sibbaldia 167

Sibthorp, Dr. H, 167

Sibthorpia 167

Silaus 167

Silene 167

Silva, Evelyn's 56, 226

Silver weed 155

Silybum 167

Simethis 168

Simples 25

Sinapis 168

Sison 168

Sisymbrium 168
Sisyrinchinm 168

Sium 168

Smilacina 168

Smilax 168

Smith, Sir J. E, 68, 69,
75, 227

Smyrnium 169

Sneezewort 98

Solanum 169

Soldanella 111

Solidago 169

Solomon 1

Sonehus 169

Sophia chirurgorum 168

Sow bread 139

Sowerby's English Bo-
tany 77, 227

Sparganium 169

Spartina 169

Specularia 170

Spergula 170

Spergularia 170

Sphondylium 133

Spicant 109

Spica-venti 100

Spiraea 170

Spiranthes 170

Splitters 88

Spoon-wort 118

Spurges 127

Squinancy-wort 106

Squirting cucumber 136

Stachys 170

Statice 170

Stellaria 170

Stramomium 122

Stratiotes 170

Strawberry 128

Strawberry tree 104

Strigil 8

Strumarium 180

Struthion 151

SuEeda 171

Subularia 171

Succisa 164
' Symphytum 171

Tamarix 171
Tamus 172
Tanacetum 172
Taraxacum 138, 172
Tatula 122
Taxus 172
Teesdale, E. 172
TeesdaHa 172
Telephium 166
Telmateia 125
Temperature of plants 33
Terminations of L. ad-
jectives 90
Tetrahit 130
Teucrium 173
Thalictrum 173
Thapsus 177
Thelypteris 106
Theophrastus 3
Thesium 173
Thlaspi 173
Thorn-apple 122
Thrift 105
Thrincia 173
Throat-wort 113
Thymus 173
TiHa 174
Tillfea 174
Tilli, M. A. 174
Toad-flax 139
Tofield 174
Tofieldia 174
Tordylium 174
Torilis 174
Tormentilla 155
Tournefort 55
Trachelium 112
Tragapogon 174
Tragus 39

Triehomanes 107, 174
Trichonema 175
TrientaUs 175
Trifolium 175
Triglochin 175
Trigonella 175
Trinia 175

Trinius, K. B. von 175
Triodia 175
Tripolium 107
Trisetum 175
Triticum 175
TroUius 175
Trollflower 175
Tulipa 175
Turner, William 37, 213

Turrita 104
Turritis 176
Tussilago 176
Typha 176

Ulex 176
Ulmaria 170
Ulmus 176
Unedo 104
Uniformity, act of 53
Urtica 176
Utricularia 176
Uva-crispa 159
Uva-ursi 105

Vaccinium 177
Valerian, Greek 153
Valerian, Spur 114
Valeriana 177
Valerianella 177
Varieties 87
Varro 5

Venus' comb 164
Verbascum 177
Verbena 178
Veronica 178
Vesuvius 9
Viburnum 178
Vicia 179
Villarsia 179
Vinca 179
Viola 72, 179, 227
Viper's Bugloss 124
Virgil 5

Virgin Mary 121
Viscaria 141
Viscum 180
Vitalba 118
Vitis-idsea 177

Wahlenberg, G. 180
Wahlenbergia 180
Wallflower 115
Wall rue 107
Water dock 160
Water milfoil 171
Water soldier 170
Wayfaring tree 178
Wheat 175
Wild thyme 174
WiUow herb 142
Willow tree 161
Winter green 170
Wolff", J. F. 180
Wolffia 180

Wood dog, for biting of
a 34

236 INDEX.

Woods, J. 180 Xanthium 180 Yew tree 172

Woodsia 180 Zannichelli, J. J. 180

Woundwort, clown's 44 Yah ya Ben Maseweih 19 Zannichellia 180

Wiirstenfeld 15 Yah ya Ebn Serapion 22 Zostera 181

9

E. NEWMAN, PRINTER, 32, BOTOLPH LANK, EASTCHEAP, E.G.

6

\ (.

QK11 .A35 gen

Alcock, Randal Hibb/Botanical names for

III

3 5185 00000 7128