palm 
leaves of the palm-tree to the outspread hand ; 
< iiiiliiin, the palm of the hand: Bee jiiilin^. The 
(ir. name of the date-palm was <tavif: see plie- 
iiij-.] 1. A tree or shrub of the order l'nlni;i . 
The palms form ;i natural plant-group of great Interest, 
in appraniiifi- lustily pictui-fsi|in.- anil often i-h'Kant, and 
in list-fulness surpassnl by no family except the grasses. 
Thi- pulpy fruit of some species, most notably of the date, 
ami the xrfd-kiTnel of other*, preeminently the cocoa- 
nut, are edible. 1)11 is yiflik-il liy the fruit-pulp of some 
(oil-palm) and by the seeds of others (cocoanut, bacaba, 
etc.). The pith of the sago-palms is farinaceous, and the 
large terminal bud of the cabbage palm serves as a vege- 
table, as do the young seedlings of the palmyra. The sap 
of the wild date-tree and other species yields palm-sugar 
or jaggery ; that of the coqulto, palm-honey. The juice of 
various species becomes toddy or palm-wine, which in fer- 
menting serves as yeast, and distilled affords a spirituous 
liquor. Aside from food and drink, the betel-nut, a kind 
of ratechu, and a kind of dragon's-blood are palm-pro- 
ducts: a candle- wax exudes from Ceroxylim; vegetable 
ivory is the nut of the ivory-palm. Palm-wood is useful 
for building (date-palm, palmyra, etc.), for flue work (por- 
cupine-wood), for piles (pahnettoX an " for flexible articles 
(ratan). The leaves of many species serve for thatching 
(husau-palm, royal palmetto, palmyra, etc.X f r making 
hats, baskets, and fans, and in place of paper (palmetto, 
talipot, etc.). The leafstalks of some (kittul, piassava) 
furnish an Important fiber, as also does the husk of the 
cocoanut. There are many other uses. The cocoanut-, 
date-, and palmyra-palms lead In importance. The palm 
of the Bible is the date-palm. (For symbolic use. see def. 
2.) As ornamental plants in temperate regions the palms 
are Indispensable where sufficient hothouse room can be 
had. 
The palme eke nowe men setteth forth to stande. 
Palladiui, Husbondrie (B. E. T. 8.X p. 152. 
Breadths of tropic shade and palmi In cluster, knots of 
Paradise. Tennyson, Locksley HalL 
2. A branch, properly a leaf, of the palm-tree, 
anciently borne or worn as a symbol of victory or 
triumph; hence, superiority; victory; triumph; 
honor ; prize. The palm was adopted as an emblem of 
victory. It Is said, because the tree is so elastic as, when 
pressed, to rise and recover its correct position. The Jews 
carried palm-branches on festal occasions, and the Roman 
Catholic and Oreek churches have preserved this usage 
in celebrating the entry of Christ into Jerusalem. See 
Palm Sunday. See also def. 3. 
And come to the place where ye aungell of our Lord 
brought a palme vnto our blessydLady, shewyng vnto her 
ye daye of her dethe. Sir R. Quylforde, Pylgrymage, p. 82, 
It doth amaze me 
A man of such a feeble temper should 
So get the start of the majestic world. 
And bear the palm alone. Shot., J. 0., I. 2. 131. 
For his true use of translating men. 
It still hath been a work of as much palm, 
In clearest judgments, as to invent or make. 
B. Jonson, Poetaster, v. 1. 
3. One of several other plants, popularly so 
called as resembling in some way the palm, or, 
especially, as substituted for it in church usage. 
Among plants so designated are, in Great Britain, chiefly 
the great sallow or goat-willow, Ralix Caprea, at the time 
when its catkins are out, and the common yew (the latter 
Is universally so called in Ireland); in Europe also the 
olive, holly, box, and another willow ; and in the northern 
United States the hemlock-spruce. 
In colour like the satin -shin Ing palm 
On sallows in the windy gleams of March. 
Tumiis'in. Merlin and Vivien. 
Alexandra palm, Ptychospenna Alexandra, a feather- 
palm named after Alexandra, Princess of Wales. Bam- 
boo-palm, an African species, Raphia vinifera. Its leaf- 
stalks and leaves are variously useful, and It is one of the 
wine-palms. Bangalow palm, the Australian Ptycho- 
uperma el-'ffanf. Seefeathcr-palin, below. Blowing-cane 
palm. Heelriartella. Bourbon palm, " ' 
4247 
(Kenlirt) mnnrtstarhya of Australia. Z&nor& palm. Same 
as I'ashiuba palm. 
palma (pal'mii), .; ill. pitlimr (-me). [L. : see 
/"I/in 1 .\ 1. The palm of the hand of man, or 
the eorresponding part of the manus of other 
iinimalH. In a bird It Is the under side of the pinion ; 
In a quadruped, the under side of the fore foot, exclusive 
of the part represented by the digits. 
2. Ill entom. : (a) The enlarged first joint of the 
front tarsus of a bee, the remaining joints be- 
ing called digiti, or fingers, (ft) The tarsus of 
an insect when it is dilated and densely covered 
with hairs beneath, as in many Coleoptera. 
Palmaceae (pal-ma'se-), . pi. [NL. (Lindley, 
1835), fern. pi. of "palmaceus: see palmaceous.] 
Same as Patnite'i. 
palmaceous (pal-raa'shius), a. [< NL. palma- 
ceus, < L. palma, palm : see palm'*.] Of or per- 
taining to the rn/in;i . or palm family. 
palma Christ! (pal'ma kris'ti). [Formerly 
jxilnie-crist; = B\ Pg. It. palma-chriti = 8p. 
palma-cristi,<.NIj.palmaCnri8ti, hand of Christ: 
see palnft and Christ.'] The castor-oil plant, 
Ricinus communis. See cut under castor-oil. 
The green leaues of Palma ChriiK, pound with parched 
Barley meale, do mitigate and asswage the Inflammation 
and swelling sorenesse of the eyes. 
Lyte's Herbal, p. 412, quoted in Wright's Bib. Word-Book. 
palmacitfl(parma-sit),n. [< li.palma, palm (see 
palm 2 ), + -c- + -j'te 2 .] A name used by Bron- 
gniart, under which are included various fossil 
remains of vegetation supposed to be related to 
the living Palmacete. The specimens thus designated 
are chiefly fragments of trunks of trees, both with and 
without the marks of leaf-bases, spines, etc. The palms 
are first seen in the upper part of the Cretaceous. 
palmae 1 , n. Plural of palma. 
Palm2(p a rme),n. pi. [NL. (Linnwus, 1737), 
pi. of L. palma, a palm.] The palm family, an 
order of monocotyledonous plants of the series 
Calycina, characterized by the one- to three- 
celled free ovarVj solitary ovules, and small 
embryo immersed in a little hollow near the out- 
side of the hard or oily albumen. About 1,100 spe- 
cies are known, classed in 129 genera, 7 tribes, and 18 sub- 
tribes. They are mainly tropical, especially American, and 
are most abundant on coasts and islands ; fewer in Asia and 
Australia ; fewest in Africa ; reaching lat . 44* N . In Europe, 
30 In America, 34" In Asia. The species are usually local, 
excepting the cocoanut and four or five others. They are 
trees or shrubs, mostly unbranched, generally perennial, 
and continued only by a terminal and sometimes edible 
bud. Their large leaves are pinnatelyor radiately parallel- 
veined, undivided and plaited In the bud, divided slightly 
or completely on expansion. The flowers are small, regu- 
lar, often rigid or fleshy, often dioecious, usually with six 
stamens, borne on a branching spadix, with several or many 
sheathing bract-like or woody spathes. The fruit Is a 
berry or drupe or dry fruit, the outside commonly flbrous, 
within membranous, crustaceous, woody, or stony. See 
palmZ, and cuts under Corypha, Piassava, nervation, cocoa, 
and Ceroxylim. Also called Palmacrx. 
palmar (pal'mar), a. and n. [= F. palmaire = 
Sp. Pg. palmar = It. palmare, < L. palmaris, 
belonging to the palm of the hand, < palma, 
the palm of the hand : see palm 1 .] I. a. Per- 
taining or relating to the palma or palm of the 
hand, or to the corresponding part of the fore 
foot of a quadruped. The epithet is chiefly technical, 
in anatomy and zoology, and is correlated with plantar ; 
with reference to the hand, palmar is the opposite of dorsal. 
Palmar arch, (a) Deep: the continuation of the radial 
artery, placed deeply in the palm of the hand, toward the 
palmate 
Palmar cutaneous nerves. See nrrrr. Palmar fas- 
cia, (a) S'tjierjicial : the extension of the supernctal fascia 
nl tin fun arni in the palm. (It) Deep: a somewhat pedal- 
ized sheet of fascia into which the tendon of the palmari* 
longiis expands in the palm, continuous with the fascia! 
sheaths of the ringers, confining the subjacent muscles, 
etc., and serving as a flexor tendon. See cuts under mus 
de. Palmar folds, the wrinkles of the palm of the hand. 
Palmar InterOBseus. See inUnmrus. 
II. n. 1. An anatomical structure, as a mus- 
cle, contained in or connected with the palm : 
as, the long and short palmary. See palmar i*. 
2. InrooV., one of the joints or ossicles of the 
branches of a crinoid which succeed the bra- 
cbials ; one of the joints of the fourth order, or 
of a division of the brachials; a palmare. 
palmare (pal-ma're), n. ; pi. palmaria (-ri-8). 
[NL.,neut.of L.paJmarw, palmar: see;>aZiar.] 
Same as palmar, 2. Huxley, Anat. Invert., p. 500. 
palmaris (pal-ma'ris), n.; pi. palmarcs (-r6z). 
[NL. (sc. musculus), < li.palmari, pertaining to 
the palm of the hand: wv palmar.) 1. A muscle 
which acts upon the palm of the hand, or the 
corresponding part of the fore paw of a quadru- 
ped; a palmar. 2. A palmar nerve Palmaris 
brevis, a thin subcutaneous muscle at the Inner part of 
the palm of the hand. Palmaris cutaneus. Same as 
palmaris brevis. Palmaris longus, a superficial muscle 
of the forearm, arising In man chiefly from the internal 
condyle of the humerus, and Inserted into the palmar 
fascia. See cuts under muscle. Palmaris lOQgus bl- 
caudatus, that form of palmaris longus which has two 
tendons of Insertion. Palmaris magnus. Same as 
flexor carpi radialis (which see, under jVaror). Palmar! B 
minimus. Same as jxilmaris longu*. Palmaris pro- 
fundus, palmaris superflcialls. See palmar cutaneous 
nerves, under ttfrve. 
palmary 1 (pal'ma-ri), a. [<L.;i/w/n>, palmar: 
see palmar.] Same as palmar. [Rare.] 
palmary- (pal'ma-ri), a. [< L. palmarius, of 
or belonging to palms, neut. palmarium, that 
which deserves the palm, a masterpiece, also an 
advocate's fee, < palma, the palm: see palm'*.] 
Worthy of receiving the palm; preeminent; 
chief; conspicuous. 
Sentences proceeding from the pen of "the flrst philoso- 
pher of the age " in his palmary and capital work. 
Bp. Home, On the Apology for Hume's Life and Writings. 
Lord Macanlay, In his most unfair Essay on Horace 
Walpole, gives, as a palmary sample of bis Gallicisms : 
"It will now be seen whether he or they are most patriot." 
F. Hall, Mod. Eng., p. 317. 
Palmataet (pal-ma'te), n. pi. [NL., fern. pi. of 
L. iinl mil lux. marked with the palm of the hand : 
see palmate*.] i n ornith., the palmate or web- 
footed birds collectively, considered as a major 
group of aquatic birds ; the swimming as distin- 
guished from the wading or grallatorial birds. 
In Nitzsch's classification (1829) the group 
consisted of the Longipennes, Nasvtte, Vngui- 
rostres, Steqano- 
podes, and Py- 
gopodes. 
palmate (par- 
mat), a. [= F. 
sis(Latania Bnrbanica). Broom -palm, Attalea /untfera 
and Thrinax argentea: so named from the use made of 
their leaves or leafstalks. Carana-palm, Mauritia Ca- 
rana. --Catechu palm, Areca Catechu. See catechu and 
Areca. Chuaan palm, the Chinese hemp palm. See 
hemp-palm. Club-palm, the palm-lily. See Cordyline. 
Cohune palm. See Attalea. Desert-palm. See 
Wathinytoma. Dragon's-blood palm, Calamia Draco. 
European palm, Chamarops hitmilix. Fan-leafed 
palm. snme:is/Rii-jOT/i. Feather-palm, speclfloaWLi 
palm of the genus Ptychoitperma, but also any palm with 
plume-like leaves. Fern-palm, (a) A name of Cycas re- 
voluta and other species of the genus, on account of their 
resemblance both to ferns and to palms. (&) See Macro- 
zamia. Qebang palm, Carypha Oebanga, a Javan spe- 
cies, whose leaves serve for thatching, etc., and whose 
Mortem or moriche palm, Same as ita-pafm.Sew 
Zealand palm. Same as nitau-palm. Nipa-palm. See 
Nipa. Order Of the Palm, a German society founded 
at Weimar in 1617 for the preservation and culture of the 
(iennan language. It disappeared after 1IISO. Also called 
Fruit- Brintfing Society. Pashiuba palm, Iriartea (Ce- 
if>rjrfo)orrAiia. Patawa palm, tKnocarpus Pataua, 
an oil-yielding species in Brazil. Plnang palm, thebetel- 
nut palm, Areca Catechu. See Areca, 3. Plndova palm, 
Attalfa compta, a species with leaves useful for match- 
ing, etc., and edible seeds. Royal palm, (treodoxa rema 
of the West Indies an i Florida. San Diego palm. See 
Waihinijtonia. Tallera palm, tara palm, Corypha Ta- 
liera. Tucum palm, tucuma palm, Attrocarymn Tit- 
cuma. See Astrocaryum. Umbrella palm, HtdyKrpe 
(Keniia) Caiiterburyana of Lord Ilowe's Island. N ew Si >ut h 
wales : HO called from its dense head of long pinnate 
leaves. Walking-stick or whip-stick palm, Bactdaria 
Palmate Antlers of a Moose. 
Palmar Arches. 
wrist, its branches supplying the deep muscles. (6) Super- 
in-ui! : the continuation of the ulnar artery in the palm, 
forming an arch opposite the anterior border of the 
thumb, convex distauy. It gives off the digital arteries. 
Palmar arteries, the arteries of the palmar arches. 
meatlo = Pg.pal- 
mado = It. pal- 
mato, < L. pal- 
matun, marked 
with the palm of 
the hand (NL. 
palmate), < pal- 
ma, the palm of 
the hand : see 
palm*-. ] i.Like 
an open palm; 
resembling a hand with the fingers extended. 
The term is specifically applied to the antlers of certain 
deer, as the elk of Europe and the 
moose of America, which are broad 
and flat, like a palm, with project- 
ing finger-like or digitate points. 
2. Web-footed, as a bird; 
palmiped; webbed; specifi- 
cally, of or pertaining to the 
Palmata. Compare seminal- 
mate, tottpalmate. 3. In oof. , 
originally, having five lobes, 
with the midribs diverging 
from a common center; by 
later botanists extended to 
leaves that are 
lobed or divid- 
ed so that the sinuses point to or 
reach the apex of 
the petiole, some- 
what irrespective 
of the number of 
lobes. See digi- 
tate, and cuts un- 
Palmate Foot of a 
Sea-duck. 
antenn*, In 
antennae which 
