The Names Of Plants.pdf

Glossary
Ruscus. The significance of this generic name lies in the fact that dry fruits are more
typical in members of the box family than fleshy ones.
From this example, we see that names can be constructed from adjectives or
adjectival nouns to which prefixes or suffixes can be added, thus giving them
further qualification. As a general rule, epithets which are formed in this way have
an acceptable interpretation when ‘-ed’ is added to the English translation; this
would render ruscifolia as ‘butcher’s-broom-leaved’.
Since Sarcococca has a feminine ending (-a), ruscifolia takes the same gender.
However, if the generic name had been of the masculine gender the epithet would
have become ruscifolius, and if of the neuter gender then it would have become ruscifolium.
For this reason the entries in the glossary are given all three endings
which, as pointed out earlier, mostly take the form -us -a -um or -is -is -e.
Where there is the possibility that a prefix which is listed could lead to the incorrect
translation of some epithet, the epithet in question is listed close to the prefix
and to an example of an epithet in which the prefix is employed. Examples are:
aer-, meaning air- or mist-, gives aerius -a -um, meaning airy or lofty;
aeratus -a -um, however, means bronzed (classically, made of bronze).
caeno-, from the Greek kainoj, means new- or fresh-, but
caenosus -a -um is from the Latin caenum and means mud or filth.
Examples will be found of words which have several fairly disparate meanings.
A few happen to reflect differences in meaning of closely similar Greek and Latin
source words, as in the example above, and others reflect what is to be found in literature,
in which other authors have suggested meanings of their own. Similarly,
variations in spelling are given for some names and these are also to be found in the
literature, although not all of them are strictly permissible for nomenclatural purposes.
Their inclusion emphasizes the need for uniformity in the ways in which
names are constructed and provides a small warning that there are in print many
deviant names, some intentional and some accidental. Many of the epithets which
may cause confusion are either classical geographic names or terms which retain a
meaning closer to that of the classical languages. There are many more such epithets
than are listed in this glossary.
31