THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 123 



derived from all countries and from all languages. They 

 have been given by philosopher and peasant, physician and 

 farmer, civilian and savage, soldier and statesman. Learning 

 has given us names derived from classic sources ; ignorance 

 has mispronounced and misapplied these names and coined 

 others. As a result, the vernacular names present many puz- 

 zling problems which stand as a challenge to our ability, but 

 the possibility of their solution adds zest to the study. More- 

 over, a wealth of tradition, poetry, folklore, fancy, custom, 

 religion and other phases of life lie embedded in these names 

 like jewels in the mine, and any extensive investigation is sure 

 to be rewarded. Some of these names are older than the sci- 

 ence of Botany itself ; others are even now in the making. 



It is manifestly impossible for any single individual to 

 satisfactorily cover the whole field of plant names, but if any 

 progress is to ensue, a beginning must be made, and it is pur- 

 posed to set down here some observations on the subject which 

 we trust will call out from others the additions, corrections, 

 and further suggestions that the subject merits. 



A good place to begin our studies is at that group of 

 common, showy, and often poisonous species that long stood 

 first in the botanical Manuals and is known as the Ranuncu- 

 laceae. This word is only part of the title of the group. It 

 should really be Plantae Ranunculaceae; that is, Ranunculns- 

 like plants. As usually written, however, the names of plant 

 families leave off the first word. Inquiring into the meaning 

 of Ranunculus, we find that the word is derived from an ani- 

 mal rather than from a plant, Rana is the Latin word for a 

 little frog and, because many plants of this group grow in 

 marshy places where frogs abound, the old naturalist Pliny 

 gave the name Ranunculus to one of the typical genera. From 

 this name came the designation for the family and also for the 

 order Ranales which includes, besides the Ranunculaceae, the 

 Magnoliaceae, the Anonaceae, the Berberidaceae, the Laur- 

 aceae, and several others. 



