Property:Etymology

String

Usage2265

A

Andromeda +

For Greek mythological daughter of Cepheus and Cassiope, married to Perseus +

Androsace +

Greek, andros, male, and sakos, shield, alluding to anther shape +

Androstephium +

Greek andros, stamen, and stephanos, crown, alluding to the apical appendages of the united filaments +

Anelsonia +

For Aven Nelson, 1859–1952, American botanist who studied the flora of Wyoming and neighboring states +

Anemia +

Greek aneimon, without clothing, referring to the absence of blade protection for the sporangia +

Anemone +

etymology not clear: probably Greek anemos, wind +, possibly from Naaman, Se for Adonis, whose blood, according to myth, produced Anemone coronaria +

Anemopsis +

Greek anemone, the windflower, and opsis, appearance +

Angelonia +

Latin rendering of Venezuelan common name angelon +

Anisocarpus +

Greek anisos, unequal or dissimilar, and karpos, fruit, alluding to contrasting ray (fertile) and disc (sterile) ovaries in type species +

Anisocoma +

Greek anisos, unequal, and coma, hair, alluding to pappus +

Annona +

native Hispaniolan anon or hanon, given to A. muricata +

Anoda +

Ceylonese vernacular name for a species of Abutilon +

Anoectangium +

Greek anoiktos, opened, and angos, container, alluding to wide-mouthed capsule +

Anomobryum +

Greek anomos, lawless or different, and bryon, moss, alluding to somewhat hypnaceous distal laminal cells +

Anomodon +

Greek, anomalos, abnormal, and odon, tooth, alluding to reduced peristome +

Anredera +

for Anreder, about whom nothing else is known +

Antennaria +

Latin antenna, and aria, connection to or possession of, alluding to similarity of clavate pappus bristles in staminate florets to antennae of some insects +

Anthemis +

Greek anthemon, flower +

Antigonon +

etymology uncertain +, perhaps Greek anti- , against, and gony, knee, alluding to angled stems, or Greek anti- , in place of, and genus Polygonum, alluding to affinity +

Antirrhinum +

Greek anti, like or resembling, and rhinos, nose, alluding to shape of corolla +

Antitrichia +

Greek anti, opposite, and thrix, hair, alluding to endostome segments opposite exostome teeth +

Anulocaulis +

Latin anulus, ring, and caule, stem, in reference to the sticky internodal rings +

Aongstroemia +

For Johan Ångström, 1813–1879, Swedish bryologist +

Apacheria +

For Apache Indians +

Aphanes +

Greek aphanes, unseen, invisible, alluding to inconspicuous nature of plants and/or flowers +

Aphanisma +

Greek aphanes, obscure or inconspicuous +

Aphanorrhegma +

Greek, aphanes, invisible,and rhegma, fracture, alluding to inconspicuous line of capsule dehiscence +

Aphanostephus +

Greek aphanes, obscure, and stephanos, crown, apparently alluding to low coronal pappus of some species +

Aphragmus +

Greek a-, not or without, and phragma, septum, alluding to its lack in fruit of some species +

Aplectrum +

Greek a, without, and plectron, spur +

Aplodon +

Greek haplo- , single, and odon, tooth, alluding to single layer of peristome teeth +

Apodanthera +

Greek a- , without, podos, foot, and anthera, anther, alluding to sessile anthers +

Aponogeton +

Greek, from aquatic habitat +

Aptenia +

Greek a- , not, and pt enos, winged, in reference to the lack of wings on the capsules +

Apteria +

Greek a, without, and pteron, wing +

Aquilegia +

derivation disputed +, possibly Greek aqua, water, and legere, to draw or collect, because of the wet habitat of some species or quantity of liquid nectar borne in spurs, or Latin aquila, eagle, because of similarity in shape of curved spurs of some European species to an eagle's talons +

Arabidopsis +

Genus Arabis and Greek opsis, resembling +

Arabis +

Latin Arabia +

Arachniodes +

Greek arachnion, spider's web, and -odes, having the form or nature of +, it has been suggested that Blume saw fungal hyphae or spider webs on his original material +

Arbutus +

Classical Latin name for European strawberry tree, A. unedo Linnaeus +

Arceuthobium +

Greek arceuthos, juniper, and bios, life, alluding to A. oxycedri, which parasitizes that host +

Archidium +

Greek arche, primitive form or nature, alluding to small, simple plants and cleistocarpous capsule +

Arctanthemum +

Greek arktos, northern, and anthemon, flower, alluding to arctic range +

Arctium +

Greek arktion, from arktos, bear, perhaps alluding to rough involucre +

Arctoa +

Greek arktos, bear, alluding to an arctic or northern distribution +

Arctomecon +

Greek arktos, bear, alluding to the long-pilose pubescence, and mekon, poppy +

Arctostaphylos +

Greek arktos, bear, and staphyle, bunch of grapes, alluding to common name for A. uva-ursi +

Arctotheca +

Greek arktos, brown bear, and theke, case, capsule, container, alluding to dense, woolly tomentum of cypselae of some species +

Arctotis +

Greek arktos, brown bear, and ous, otos, ear, perhaps alluding to shape of pappus scales +

Arctous +

Greek arktous, northern, alluding to distribution +

Ardisia +

Greek ardis, point of arrow or spear, alluding to anthers and/or corolla lobes +

Arenaria +

Latin arena, sand, a common habitat +

Arethusa +

Greek Arethusa, mythical river nymph +

Argemone +

a poppylike herb mentioned by Pliny +

Argyranthemum +

Greek argyros, silver, and anthemon, flower +, allusion unclear +

Argyrochosma +

Greek argyros, silver, and chosma, powder, referring to whitish farina covering the abaxial surface of leaf blades in most species +

Argythamnia +

Greek argyros, silver-white, and thamnos, shrub, alluding to trunk and branches covered with whitish bark +

Arida +

Latin aridus, dry, alluding to xeric habitat typical of members +

Ariocarpus +

The genus Aria and Greek karpos, fruit, referring to the Aria -like fruit +

Arisaema +

Greek aris, plant name used by Pliny, and haima, blood, in reference to the red-spotted leaves of some species +

Aristocapsa +

Latin arista, awn, and capsa, box, alluding to awned involucres +

Aristolochia +

Greek aristolocheia, birthwort, from aristos, best, and lochia, delivery, in reference to ancient use of herb as aid in childbirth +

Arivela +

Origin obscure +

Armeria +

Celtic ar mor, at seaside, alluding to habitat +

Armoracia +

Ancient Greek name for horseradish, or perhaps Celtic ar, near, mor, sea, and rich, against, alluding to habitat +

Arnica +

Ancient Latin or Greek plant name +

Arnoglossum +

Greek arnos, lamb, and glossum, tongue +, ancient name for some species of Plantago +

Arnoseris +

Greek arnos, sheep, and seris, a kind of endive +, allusion unclear +

Aronia +

Greek Aria, name for whitebeam (formerly a species of Sorbus), alluding to resemblance to chokeberry fruit +

Arrhenopterum +

Greek, arrhen, strong, and pteron, feather or wing, possibly alluding to featherlike evenness of leaf arrangement +

Artemisia +

Greek Artemis, goddess of the hunt and namesake of Artemisia, Queen of Anatolia +

Arthrocnemum +

Greek arthro- , jointed, and cneme, leg, between knee and ankle, internode, referring to the jointed appearance of the branches +

Aruncus +

Greek arunkos, goat’s beard, alluding to showy fingerlike clusters forming feathery flowers +

Asanthus +

Asa, honoring American botanist Asa Gray, 1810–1888, and Greek anthos, flower +

Asarum +

Ancient Greek asaron, name of an unknown plant +

Aschisma +

Greek, a-, not or without, and schisma, split, alluding to indehiscent capsule +

Asemeia +

Greek a, absence, and semion, sign or flag, alluding to distinctness from Polygala in absence of vexillum +

Asimina +

American Indian assimin through French asiminier +

Asparagus +

Greek asparasso, to rip, alluding to the spiny leaves of some species +

Asphodelus +

Greek asphodelos, flower of Hades and the dead +

Aspicarpa +

Greek aspis, shield, and karpos, fruit, alluding to shape of nutlet of A. hirtella in abaxial view +

Aspidotis +

Greek aspidotes, shield-bearer, for the shieldlike false indusia +

Asplenium +

Greek splen, spleen +, thought by Dioscorides to be useful for treating spleen diseases +

Aster +

Latin aster, star, alluding to heads as seen from above +

Astilbe +

Greek a-, without, and stilbo, sheen, alluding to foliage otherwise resembling that of Aruncus +

Astraea +

For Greek mythological Astraea (star maiden), daughter of Zeus and Themis +

Astranthium +

Greek astron, star, and anthos, flower, alluding to head as seen from above +

Astrolepis +

Greek astro, star, and lepis, scale, in reference to the starlike scales on the adaxial blade surface +

Astrophytum +

Greek asteros, star, in reference to the star-shaped stem cross section of the type species, and phyton, plant +

Atamisquea +

For Atamisco region of Chile +

Athyrium +

Greek athyros, doorless +, the sporangia only tardily push back the outer edge of the indusium +

Athysanus +

Greek a- , without, and thysanos, fringe, alluding to fruit margin +

Atrichoseris +

Greek a- , without, trichos, hair, and seris, chicory, alluding to lack of pappus +

Atrichum +

Greek a-, without, and trichos, hair, alluding to calyptra +

Atriplex +

ancient Latin name +

Aubrieta +

For Claude Aubriet, 1663–1743, French artist +

Aucuba +

Latinized Japanese name aokiba +

Aulacomnium +

Greek aulax, furrow, and mnion, moss, alluding to sulcate capsules +

Aureolaria +

Latin aureolus, golden, and -arius, possession, alluding to corolla +

Aurinia +

Latin aurum, gold, and -inia, colored, alluding to flower +