1858.] HISTORY OF THE HOUSELEEK. 489 



and in the second it was, or some similar plant was, used as a 

 condiment. One of the Sedums, viz. S. acre, is named to this 

 day, in Germany, Wall-Pepper. Sedum was formerly one of the 

 synonyms of Houseleek. The Houseleek was so called because 

 it was always as green as a Leek, and also because it or some of 

 its congeners (relatives) were used as condiments. 



We have still another series of synonyms to compare and con- 

 sider. It has been already stated that Houseleek bore also the 

 more formidable name of Barba Jovis or Herba Jovis ; for it is 

 possible that the former may be a corruption of the latter of 

 these two expressions. In the Westphalian Glossary, already 

 quoted, Donderloek appears as a synonym or equivalent of House- 

 leek. Also, in Bosworth's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, we find Thu- 

 nor-wyrt, Tonitrui herba, Sedum majus, Barba Jovis, all expla- 

 natory of the Anglo-Saxon name of the plant, Hamivyrt. The 

 term Thunderwort implies its supposed efficacy in preserving 

 the house or building whereon it grew from the terrible conse- 

 quences of thunder ; and it appears that this belief or supersti- 

 tion descended from ancient times through the middle ages, and 

 is perpetuated in the modern names of the plant. Among the 

 Latins the Houseleek was dedicated to Jupiter, the god of thun- 

 der. The Teutonic nations, who worshipped Thor, also conse- 

 crated this to his honour, and doubtless believed that they and 

 their habitations were safe while they dwelt under Thor's beard. 



Arnoldus Villa Nova, who wrote a treatise on herbs in the 

 fifteenth century, informs'us that " Semperviva (the Latin name of 

 Houseleek) est herba sic dicta quia semper viridis. Nascitur in 

 locis sedificatis ex lateribus : quidam faciunt earn nasci in domibus 

 suis supra tectum.^' Turner, who wrote his treatise on herbs in 

 the sixteenth century, says, " Houseleek hath the name of Semper- 

 vivum in Latin and of Aeizoon in Greek, wherefore me thynketh 

 that ayegreene, as I said before, is a better name for it than 

 singreene?^ This opinion of Master Turner's is quoted, not to 

 show that he was a greater botanist than an etymologist, but ra- 

 ther to introduce another synonym of the plant, a name descrip- 

 tive of one of its most prominent qualities, ayegreene (or f al- 

 ways green'), as a correct iiendering oi semperviridis : it does not 

 exactly convey the full sense of sempervivum, or semperviva, as 

 Arnoldus writes it. But we have already seen that a famous 

 modern scholar and botanist, Bil'.erbeek, in bis ' Flora Cl-assica/ 



N, S, VOL, ir. 3 R 



