A Horticulture Information article from the Wisconsin Master Gardener website, posted 26 Nov 2007

What’s In A Name?
Understanding Botanical or Latin Names
All living organisms are classified into various groups with different degrees of relatedness. In the plant
kingdom, the various levels of classification include class, order, family, genus and species. The genus
and species names together comprise the scientific name that every plant (and animal, too) is given
when first described by a scientist. These species names are recognized by botanists, horticulturists
and gardeners no matter where you go in the world.

A botanical name consists of two words, and is therefore

referred to as a “binomial.” By convention, the name is
printed in italics. The first word represents the larger group
the plant belongs to, the genus (plural genera, NOT ge-
nuses), and the first letter is always capitalized. The sec-
ond word is the species (both singular and plural; specie
is not a word in botany) and is always lowercase. There
can not be more than one identical species name in each
genus. The species name is often (but not always) descrip-
tive of some aspect of the plant. For example, splendid
scarlet sage is Salvia splendens, northern red oak is Quer-
cus rubra, and the hawthorn Crataegus missouriensis was
named after the state of Missouri.

The genus name can be used alone when discussing a

group of plants, but the specific epithet is NEVER used by Salvia splendens (red flowers) with castor bean
itself. (Ricinus communis) and Alternanthera.

Once the genus has been used in a paragraph, or is understood, it can be abbreviated, such as S.
splendens. An unspecified (or unknown) species in the genus Salvia would be written as Salvia sp. To
denote more than one species in the genus, it is written Salvia spp., with two p’s.

In more technical publications there may also be a person’s name

after the genus and species — the last name of the person that
described the plant. Carolus Linnaeus, the Swedish naturalist who
first invented the binomial system of nomenclature in 1753, de-
scribed and named thousands of species of plants and animals; if
he described the species, the author name is typically just the ab-
breviation “L.”, but any other name is spelled out. If another scientist
later decided that plant really belongs in another genus, then the
original author’s name is placed in parentheses and the person who
changed the classification follows. For example, Linneaus originally
named the common morning glory Convolvulus purpureus in 1762,
but it was renamed numerous times by taxonomists in the nine-
Common morning glory, Ipomoea teenth and twentieth centuries, with Albrecht Roth finally assigning
purpurea. it the currently accepted name Ipomoea purpurea (L.) Roth. When
the name change is relatively recent and/or a large genus with many familiar members, both names
may be written to clue the reader to the revision: Ipomoea (=Convolvulus) purpureus.
Other additions to the basic binomial name include subspecies, varieties and cultivars. A subspecies
(preceded by the abbreviation “subsp.”) is a geographically separate population within a species that
is almost, but not quite, a separate species. A botanical variety (preceded by “var.”) is a distinct variant
occurring in the same populations as ordinary examples of a species. A cultivar (CULTIvated VARiety),
or selection, is a type that is maintained in cultivation (is not naturally occurring). Cultivar names are a
word or words in a modern language (NOT Latin) set off in single quotes and capitalized, but not itali-
cized, such as S. splendens ‘Bonfire’.

Hybrids, or crosses between different species, are given unique names that are preceded with an x,
indicating that this plant is a hybrid between two species — but, unfortunately, it doesn’t tell us which
two species. For example, you’d never know that the common garden perennial Salvia xsuperba is a
hybrid of S. sylvestris and S. villicaulis, unless you look up that relationship somewhere. Sometimes
that “x” inadvertently gets dropped along the way; this plant is often listed as S. superba.

Changing Times

When botanists make taxonomic name changes as a result

of advances in botanical knowledge (e.g. the Chrysanthe-
mum genus was recently split into eight different genera, in-
cluding Dendranthema, Tanacetum, and Leucanthemum) it
may take years for the horticultural industry to adopt them.
New names generally become widely accepted in botanical
literature and serious garden writing but many catalogues
and seed packets stick to the old names, resulting in incon-
sistencies in the names of plants.

Many nurseries offer trademarked products (a trademark is

legally defined as a word(s) or symbol which identifies the
Chrysanthemum or another genus now?
place of origin of a product, designated ® or TM) that can
not be sold as such without permission (cultivar names must
remain free for everyone to use). These were first devised as a marketing tool to sell good plants that
had bad cultivar names. Sometimes trademark names are misused as cultivar names, even though this
violates both trademark specifications and nomenclatural rules. For example, Acer rubrum Red Sun-
set® is ‘Franksred’, but it is sometimes incorrectly designated in catalogs as ‘Red Sunset.’ And some
nurseries have intentionally given new introductions poor cultivar names and great trademarked names
to make it harder for their competition to market the same plant. To complicate things further, certain
cultivars are marketed under different trademark names: Rosa ‘Korlanum’ is marketed under the three
different trademark names Surrey, Sommerwind, and Vente D’ete. The end result is people end up as-
sociating the trade name with a particular plant name rather than the cultivar name. No wonder even
the experts can get mixed up over which is a cultivar name and which is simply a marketing name!

Common Confusion

While it’s quite appropriate to use common names when everyone knows what you mean, often it’s
much better to use the proper botanical name. By their very nature, common names are only given
to common plants. But common where? Plants common in one place aren’t common in another. Also,
many plants have more than one common name. In England the white waterlily (Nymphaea alba) has
15 common names, and if you include the common German, French, and Dutch names, it has over 240
names!
 Some common names are used to refer to several different
species. A plant in Georgia called ironweed is in the genus
Sidai, whereas in the Midwest ironweed refers to a plant in the
genus Vernonia. And what’s a bluebell? This common name
refers to several plants belonging to completely different fami-
lies, including Boraginaceae, Campanulaceae and Liliaceae.

Using a general name doesn’t provide a lot of information about

that plant. Ask for a sage plant — is that a culinary one, an an-
nual ornamental or a perennial; which of about 400 species of
Salvia do you mean? Common names also may be misleading.
Yellow flag is an Iris; Spanish flag isn’t (it’s Mina (=Ipomoea)
Abutilon: flowering maple isn’t a maple.
lobata, related to sweet potato). Flowering maple (Abutilon sp.)
isn’t a maple, but is related to Hibiscus (and velvetleaf). And
creeping gloxinia isn’t a gloxinia (it’s Asarina erubescens, family Scrophulariaceae, while true Gloxinia
is in the family Gesneriaceae) — even the misnamed “Gloxinia” of the florist industry are really hybrids
of Sinningia speciosa, and unrelated to this genus.

And finally, some plants, especially those that are rare, don’t have common names. Therefore common
names are not as reliable as botanical names for identification purposes.

Learning Latin

Latin is the international language used by scientists all over the world to name plants and animals.
That’s because when Linnaeus devised his system for classifying plants, he wanted to use a language
that would be understandable to the largest number of people, and Latin was a language that most
educated people knew in the 18th century. You don’t have to know Latin to grow beautiful plants, but it
can be quite helpful to know a little bit about plant names when discussing with others, reading about,
or shopping for a plant.

Since the specific epithet describes some characteristic of the

plant, botanical names often give clues about what to expect from
the plant (but these references may be rather cryptic). The name
may indicate the color of the flowers, the height of the plant, wheth-
er the leaves are long and thin or short and fat, whether the plant is
prickly, geographically where it comes from (which often is related
to how hardy it is), the habitat it occurs in naturally, whether it’s a
creeper or climber, is deciduous, has a bulb, is edible, or some-
thing else noteworthy about it. If aurea is in the name, the foliage
or flowers or are probably yellow. Something named canadensis is
likely to survive our winters.

The table on the next page lists many commonly used descriptive
terms. (To simplify things, mainly feminine endings are included;
the same word, but ending in -us or -um, means the same thing.
Like many other languages, Latin assigns genders to all its nouns,
and adjectives have to agree with the gender of the noun they
Goldenrod, Solidago canadensis.
describe. In plant names, therefore, those that are deemed mas-
culine end in -us, while those that are feminine end in -a, and those
that are neuter end in -um. And plurals end in -i.
 What Does That Mean?
acaulis stemless micrantha small flowered
alba white microphylla with small leaves
angustifolia narrow-leaved millefolia with many (thousands of) leaves
annua annual montana from mountains
argentea silvery multiflora many flowers
arvensis of the field nana small
aurantiaca orange officinalis with herbal uses
aurea golden, yellow pallida cream
australis from the south (not necessarily palustris from marshes
Australia)
autumnalis of autumn parviflora small flowered
azurea blue parvifolia with small leaves
caerulea blue pauciflora few-flowered
caespitosa dense paucifolia with few leaves
campanulata campanulate, like a bell pendula hanging
campestris of the field perennis perennial
canadensis from Canada pinnata with pinnate leaves
capensis from the Cape, South Africa polyphylla with many leaves, leafy
chinensis from China praecox early, of spring
chrysantha yellow prostrata prostrate
coccinea red pumila small
compacta compact punica red
decidua deciduous purpurea deep pink
densiflora dense-flowered pygmaea small
digitata (leaves) like a hand, with 5 lobes quercifolia oak-leaved
esculenta edible rosea rose pink
farinosa floury, powdery rotundifolia round-leaved
flava yellow rubra red
flora plena with double flowers rupestris of hills
foetida with an unpleasant smell sanguinea blood-red
glabra smooth sativa cultivated
grandiflora large-flowered saxatilis of rocks
hirsuta hairy semperviva perennial
humilis short sibirica from Siberia
japonica from Japan spicata spiked
lanceolata lance-shaped (leaves) spinosa spiny
latifolia wide-leaved stellata starry
longiflora with long flowers suphurea yellow
longifolia with long leaves sylvestris of woods
lutea yellow tenuifolia with thin, narrow leaves
macrantha large flowered umbellata flowers in an umbel
macrophylla with large leaves vernalis of spring
macrorrhiza with large roots villosa hairy
maculata spotted viridis green
majus bigger vulgaris common
maritima near the sea
Learning and using Latin names seems to intimidate a lot of people, but it really shouldn’t. In fact, you
already use many Latin names: Begonia, Clematis, Crocus, Delphinium, Forsythia, Gardenia, Gerani-
um (the hardy one, not Pelargonium), Ginkgo, Hibiscus, Hosta, and Iris — or ones that are really close
to the scientific name, such as Heliotrope (Heliotropium), peony (Paeonia), or rose (Rosa).

Think about it like learning the name of a new friend. Just like people,
plants have two names (not counting cultivars, etc.), but their last name
comes first (just like in the telephone book). The genus is kind of like
our family name and the species the given name. So, the plant com-
monly called red maple, is maple, red in Latin — Acer rubrum. In the
same “family” (equivalent to people families, not botanically speaking)
are paperbark maple (Acer griseum), Japanese maple (Acer palma-
tum), sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and about 115 other species.

You can gradually learn botanical names by reading them in plant

books or seed catalogues, where the Latin name and common name Leaves of Japanese maple, one of
are side by side. Try to interchange one for the other at times, espe- many plants in the genus Acer.
cially at nurseries or in public gardens where the plants are labeled.
Try to only do business with seed and plant companies that provide you with the botanical name of the
plant. If they don’t know what they are selling how are you supposed to know what you are growing?

When first learning botanical names, don’t worry about what the names mean (plant names don’t al-
ways tell you something useful about the plant anyway). Just add these words to your vocabulary and
use them when you can, just like any other word. You wouldn’t worry about what “Joe Smith” means
— you just remember his name and what he looks like.

Don’t be too concerned about the endings of the adjective words; remember the root of the word, and
you can figure out the other part by comparing it to the ending of the genus. For example, sibirica, sibiri-
cum and sibiricus mean the same thing (from Siberia), but are applied to the feminine, masculine and
neuter genera, respectively: Achillea sibirica, Geranium sibiricum, Leonotis sibiricus.

As you’re memorizing these names, keep in mind that every botanical name refers to one and only one
plant. When you use these word combinations, other gardeners will generally understand what you
mean, even if you don’t get the name exactly right.

Whad Ya Say?

Now we come to the issue of pronunciation, which probably scares more people away from the use of
botanical names than anything else. Everyone feels unsure, or possibly embarrassed at times, trying to
pronounce botanical names in the company of others — especially if the other(s) is perceived as more
knowledgeable. (If you think Latin is difficult to pronounce, try English. How is ‘ough’ pronounced? As
in thought? Through? Enough?) But you really shouldn’t worry so much about it.

After all, Latin is a dead language, and we don’t have any ancient Romans around to correct us! Just
proclaim it with confidence. If the person you’re talking with understands what plant you mean, your
pronunciation is good enough.

Most languages evolve over time, so there really can’t be any truly ‘correct’ pronunciation, just differ-
ent pronunciations at different times (and places). And with an increasingly mobile and global society,
interactions with other cultures influence the way we speak. Thirty years ago, few Americans would
 say “CLEM-atis,” but now so many have heard English garden lecturers
say it that way, that they reject “cle-MAT-is” as substandard – despite the
fact Americans have been saying that for 150 years. There are “official”
ways to say Latin words. You can read the rules, but memorizing them
may end up being more work than it’s worth. (For a quick and easy lesson
by a Maryland MG, see the web article “Latin for Gardeners: a Brief Pro-
nunciation Guide” at www.emmitsburg.net/gardens/articles/adams/2002/
latin_for_gardeners.htm)

Clematis – a pretty flower no For gardeners, I think the most important rule is to pronounce every letter
matter how it’s pronounced. and in the correct order. Unlike English, with all those silent vowels and
dipthongs and whatnot, just separate the word into syllables and say it like
it sounds. You might want to say each syllable separately, then string them together so you don’t leave
anything out or mix up the sounds (as people do when they pronounce “anemone” as “anenome”). As
long as you say all the letters, the listener should be able to figure out what you mean, even if your
pronunciation differs from theirs. They might even think you know something they don’t!

Of course, there are a few exceptions to the rules. Names that are commemorative in derivation (named
in honor of a person) should be pronounced the way the person’s proper name is spoken. For example,
Halesia, a genus of small trees with white pendulous flowers, was named after Dr. Stephen Hales. Thus
the pronunciation should be “Hales - EE - ah” not “Ha - LEE - see - ah” like you’d think. This becomes
difficult when those commemorative names are Russian or Chinese – or you don’t realize the word is
someone’s name – so all you can do is try your best.

Also, even if you’re following the rules of Latin pronunciation, be aware of what the word might sound
like. I doubt many Americans would pronounce the genus for pine (Pinus) as “Pee - nus” — even
though this is technically the correct pronunciation in Latin — for the embarrassing coincidence with
male anatomy. So sound it out, use some common sense, and start saying those botanical names!

– Susan Mahr, University of Wisconsin - Madison

Additional Information on Taxonomy:

For botanical taxonomy, the ultimate authority is the International Association for Plant Taxonomy
(IAPT) and their International Code of Botanical Nomenclature at www.bgbm.org/iapt/nomencla-
ture/code/default.htm.
The last word on horticultural taxonomy comes from the International Cultivar Registration Authori-
ties. Their book 7th Edition of the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants, pub-
lished in February 2004 (ISBN 90 6605 527 8), includes the rules for naming plants in cultivation,
as well as a comprehensive glossary of terms used in nomenclature.

Click & Hear: Audio Botanical Pronunciations

Illinois Best Plants — click on the speaker icon to the left of the scientific plant name if it is high-
lighted to hear the correct pronunciation. At bestplants.chicago-botanic.org/
University of Connecticut Plant Database of Trees, Shrubs, and Vines — click on the icon next to
each plant’s scientific name. At www.hort.uconn.edu/plants/
Encarta Dictionary — just type in a word, and then click on the audio file icon to listen to the word.
At dictionary.msn.com/
On-Line Glossary of Technical Terms in Plant Pathology — gives pronunciations of various scien-
tific words, but few names. At ppathw3.cals.cornell.edu/glossary/Glossary.htm