Why Plant Names Matter
Roses would still smell the same even if they were not called roses. Shakespeare’s famous quote in Romeo and Juliet is referring to a lover and not flowers. Roses still smell sweet regardless of what you call them. People have been naming plants as long as they have been communicating with each other. Common names are way easier to remember and easier to say and spell. However, many plants have the same common name which can lead to trouble and confusion when discussing them with others.
There are many examples of plants with similar common names. A lime tree could be referring to a Citrus or Tilia botanical. This could mean a tropical fruit tree or a European tree in the mallow family. There are many flowers called daises and roses. The same plant can also have many different names. Corn and maize are both Zea mays. This is why there is a systematic process to naming plants.
Using Latin to name plants started with Swedish botanist, Carl Linnaeus. In his Species Plantarum, binomial names were given to describe the organisms he encountered in his travels. Latin is a dead language and thus doesn’t show favoritism to any one group of people. This binomial nomenclature gives creatures official characteristic names despite the location or language. The binomial name consists of an organism’s genus and species. The two pieces of the name are the generic name and specific epithet. An example is Texas bluebonnet, Lupinus texensis. The generic name is Lupinus and the species is texensis.
Binomial names often describe a key characteristic of the organism, the location where the it lives, or even the person who named it. Organisms in the same genus have the same generic name, but different specific epithets. Specific epithets can be used to describe different generic names. The one common specific epithet, officinalis, described botanicals with medicinal properties and were found in old pharmacopeias. Many botanicals with the officinalis specific epithet have been renamed to better describe the botanical. Rosemary was once Rosmarinus officinalis and is now Salvia rosmarinus.
These binomial names are sometimes referred to as a plant’s botanical or scientific name. It is important to refer to a plant by this name to ensure that you are discussing the same plant. This prevents mistakes of using common names. The proper way to write a botanical name includes the generic and specific epithet names. The genus name always has the first letter capitalized. The specific epithet is not capitalized. When typing, a botanical name should be in italics. And when handwriting, a name is underlined instead of italicized. This helps to identify the name as its accepted botanical name. In more formal writing, the person who named the species, if available, follows the binomial name. Initials or abbreviations of the persons name are used, but are often left off on well-established names or for simplicity. This is mostly used in official or technical writing.
You may come across some other abbreviations in scientific names. If several species in the genus are being referred to, the abbreviation “spp.” may follow the genus name. The use of “sp.” refers to a single species. Many times, these abbreviations are used because the specific species is unknown. Also, if the particular species is not important to the discussion. The genus remains capitalized and italicized, but the abbreviations are not italicized. Some plants are difficult to identify down to the species level, so this abbreviation helps partially identify the plant. Generic names can be abbreviated if many species in the same genus are being discussed. The genus name is abbreviated as the capitalized 1st letter of the genus with each specific epithet spelled out. An example with spearmint (Mentha spicata) and pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium). Both M. spicata and M. pulegium are in the same genus.
Plants are also unique with subspecies, varieties, and cultivars that may follow the botanical name. These abbreviations follow the specific epithet and are “subsp.” for subspecies, “var.” for variety and “cv.” for cultivar. These abbreviations are not italicized, but the subspecies name that follows the specific epithet is italicized with no capital letters. Variety names are written the same as subspecies. When listing the cultivar name the “cv.” abbreviation is used and the name is not italicized. The “cv.” abbreviation can be omitted, but the cultivar name follow the specific epithet in single quotes and is not italicized. The following are examples:
Subspecies: Oryza sativa subsp. japonica
Variety: Prunus persica var. nucipersica
Cultivar: Malus pumila ‘Honeycrisp’ or Malus pumila cv. Honeycrisp
Botanicals used in cosmetics and personal care products have names listed in the International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient (INCI) list. The INCI name includes the scientific name, but also includes plant part, like leaf or root. Some common names for botanicals are included in INCI names to help consumers identify that botanical. It is common with well-known plants. An example is coconut oil, which is the oil from Cocos nucifera, but its INCI name is Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil. Notice the specific epithet is also capitalized and the name is not italicized.
Plant names are important to communicate the proper use of the plant. Botanicals in culinary, herbal, medicinal, and cosmetic formulas are chosen for the specific activity, influence, or flavor the phytochemicals the plant possess. Depending on the use, the species may be critical for the desired activity. Many members of plant families share similar characteristics and phytochemicals, so the identification at the species level may not be as critical. A food example would be cinnamon. There are several botanicals that impart a cinnamon-like flavor. In the global market, there are 4 cinnamon species utilized. They are Ceylon cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum), Chinese cinnamon (C. aromaticaum), Indonesian cinnamon (C. burmannii), and Saigon cinnamon (C. loureiroi). If you are baking cinnamon rolls from scratch, any one of these will work in your recipe.
You probably won’t see many botanical names on food items however. Food labeling rules and regulations are different for every botanical. Often the common name is required to simplify the consumers understanding of the botanical. Also, if many species are used for the product, it might be difficult to identify them all. Most people just want a blueberry and don’t care if it is a Southern Highbush (Vaccinium darrowii) or Rabbiteye (V. ashei) blueberry.
Plants have many names and local cultures will always have their own specific common names, but it is important to communicate with the botanical name. Whether it is called a rose, airtafae (Arabic), růže (Czech), or triantáfyllo (Greek), it still smells just as sweet. Now which rose smells the sweetest, is up for discussion.
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