57 



Tender, soft, clustered, waving ; 

 Thou wilt be dressed in the spring 

 When the rest are hiding in the bud. 



The Irish name soghradhach (Shaw), means amiable, lovely, 

 acceptable. The Gaelic names have the same meaning. Sohh 

 or subh, pleasure, delight, joy. Soradh, soirigh, are contractions ; 

 also samhanan. Irish : saiuharcain {sam/ias, delight, pleasure). 



"Am bi na samln-aicheaii s" neoinean fann." — Old Song. 

 " Gu trie anns' na bhuinn sinn a t' sòracli." — MuNRO. 

 Often we gathered there the pyimrcse. 



Welsh : briollu, — briol, dignified ; alhvedd, key. " The queenly 

 flower that opens the lock to let in summer " (Brockie). 



P. veris — Cowslip. Gaelic: miiisean^ the low rascal, the 

 devil. "^ choire mhuiseaiiaich,^^ a dell full of cowslips. Cattle 

 refuse to eat it, therefore farmers dislike it. Brog na cnbhaig 

 (M'Kenzie), the cuckoo's shoe. Irish : scickeariaji, seicheirghin , 

 seicheirghlan, from seiche, hide or skin. It was formerly boiled, 

 and " an ointment or distilled water was made from it, which 

 addeth much to beauty, and taketh away spots and wrinkles of 

 the skin, sun-burnings and freckles, and adds beauty exceed- 

 ingly." The name means the "skin-purifier." Baine bo bhuie, 

 the yellow cow's milk. Baine bo bleachf, the milk-cow's milk. 



P. auricula — Auricula. Gaelic : lits na bann-righ, the queen's 

 flower. 



P. Polyanthus — Winter primrose. Gaelic : Sobhrach ghcainh- 

 raidh. 



Cyclamen hedersefolia — Sow-bread. Gaelic : culurin (perhaps 

 from ciil or citUacJi, a boar, and aran, bread), the boar's bread. 



Lysimachia (from Greek Atio-w and iLayoixai, I fight). 



L. vulgaris — Loose-strife. Gaelic and Irish : Ins na sithchaine, 

 the herb of peace {siih, peace, rest, ease ; cáin, state of). Con- 

 aire, the keeper of friendship. The termination ^'- aire'' denotes 

 an agent ; and conall, friendship, love. An seileachan buidlie, the 

 yellow willow herb. 



L. nemorum — Wood loose-strife; yellow pimpernel. Gaelic 

 and Irish: scainhair Alhnire {seamhair, seam/i, gentle, sweet, and 

 feur, grass ; seamhrog (shamrock), generally applied to the tre- 

 foils and wood-sorrel. (See Oxalis.) Mhuire of Mary ; Maire, 

 Mary. This form is especially applied to the Blessed Virgin 

 Mary. In the Mid-Highlands more frequently called Sammaii 

 (Stewart). Lus Cholum-cille, the wort of St Columba, the apostle 

 H 



