NOMENCLATURE. 165 



Generic Names. The substantive names of genera have been 

 and are still formed very arbitrarily, and without any generally 

 recognized principle. 



All those which have been identified as known to the ancients are 

 called by their classic names, such as Prunus, Myrtus, Quercus, Thymus, 

 &c., the etymology of which is more or less obscure in various cases. A 

 very large proportion of modern generic names are founded upon com- 

 binations of Latin and, more particularly, Greek words indicating some 

 obvious external peculiarity, or some property possessed, or supposed to 

 be possessed, by the plants ; but the application of this principle has often 

 been carried out without accurate knowledge and without happiness in 

 selection, so that many such names are but little characteristic, and would 

 often apply more correctly to other genera. Those, on the contrary, 

 which are well chosen afford a certain assistance to the memory ; exam- 

 ples of such names, founded on structure, occur in : Lithospermum, so 

 called from its stony fruit (or supposed seed) ; Campanula, from its bell- 

 shaped corolla ; Sayittaria, from its arrow-shaped leaves, &c. : on quali- 

 ties, in Glycyrrhiza (Liquorice), from its sweet rhizome ; Rubia (Madder), 

 from yielding a red dye; Lactuca (Lettuce), from its milky juice, &c. : or 

 on accustomed station, as Arenaria, Eptdendrwn, &c. : others have 

 derived their names from supposed medicinal powers, such as Pulmonaria, 

 Scropkularia, &c. 



Another large class of generic names is founded on proper names 

 either of mythological or real personages, more especially distinguished 

 botanists, to whom the genera are dedicated. Linnreus drew largely 

 upon classical mythology and legendary history as a ready source of 

 diverse names for the many newly defined genera he had to deal with ; 

 and the names Iris, Artemisia, Amaryllis, Narcissus, &c. stand out 

 strongly in their euphony from most of those founded on modern names; 

 such names, however, as Linncea, Lobelia, Dioscorea, Magnolia go far 

 to rescue the principle of naming genera after botanists and their 

 patrons from the opprobrium brought upon it by such as Schumacheria, 

 Schweyckherta, Razoumowskia, Eschscholtzia, and the like, and will pro- 

 bably be preferred by most persons even to such " characteristic " names 

 as Pleuroschismatypm, Oxystvphyllum, Pachypterygium, Glischrocaryon, 

 &c. 



In face of these last, the pseudo-Latin barbarisms Thea, Coffcea, Bam- 

 busa, which preserve the original native names of plants, become no 

 longer uncouth. 



Specific names are always either adjectives, or substantives used 

 adjectively. When they are adjectives, they must of course be 

 made to agree with the substantive; and it may be recalled to 

 recollection that in Latin all names of trees are feminine, whatever 

 may be the termination. 



In the majority of cases, the specific names are selected on similar 

 grounds to the generic. Attempts are very commonly made to render 

 the name characteristic, a proceeding which in many cases affords a 

 certain advantage j but when, on the contrary, it is carried out in im- 



