Latin roots - workshop handout

Latin roots and cognates: many of these are cognates (words that look, sound and mean similarly, in Latin and among the romance languages). The following list is not comprehensive, but includes many common species names that describe various attributes of a plant. Most appear as “species epithets” (the second part of a plant name), some occasionally as genus names.  In the following list, a hyphen following the root means that the root is usually used in combination with another root, e.g. “Erythr-onium” . This list provides a few common names and translations. All others can easily be found in references; most are natives, and all of those can be found in Pojar and MacKinnon.

Color: each group of words below describes a particular color or range of colors. For a more detailed list, see Hearn in references.

alba, glauca, leuco-, pallidum, albidum                        nigrescens, nigra, melano-                        grise, cinereum

rubra, rubescens, coccinea, cardinalis, rosea, sanguineum, incarnata, erythr-

aurea, lutea, chrys-, sulfureum, ochro-                                                ferruginea, hepaticus, cinnamomeus

cyanum, caerulea, coelestis, azureus, violaceus                                    viridis, viridescens, olivaceus                                   

purpurea, purpurascens

PNW native exs:       Sambucus caerulea, Ribes sanguineum, Alnus rubra, Saxifraga ferruginea

Vegetative characteristics  (leaves, etc.)

Hairy:     pubescens, hispidula, hirsutus, ciliatum, ciliosa, hirta, villosa, tomentosa, lasio-, erio-, lanatum

Lonicera hispidula, L. ciliosa, Potentilla villosa, Rudbeckia hirta

Redundant native: Eriophyllum lanatum

Leaf markings:   maculata, punctata, striata, picta, nervosa, reticulata

Corallorhiza maculata, C. striata, Iris reticulata (not native, but a well-know rock garden iris with reticulate markings on the petals)

Leaf surface:  Ceanothus velutinus (velvety), Potentilla glandulosa

Leaf variability:          heterophylla, diversiloba, diversifolia                        Tsuga heterophylla                                 

Involucrata- refers to a prominent involucre (bracts just under flower and fruit): Lonicera involucrata

imbricatus – refers to a shingle-like arrangement, often in an involucre or inflorescence

unifolium, trifolium, triphylla – number of leaflets              Trifolium spp.         Achlys triphylla

Tiarella trifoliata var. unifoliata

Leaf/stem relationship (phyllotaxis):

Claytonia perfoliata – stem seems to perforate the leaves

Streptopus amplexifolius (Twisted Stalk: twist+foot around+leaf)           Saxifraga oppositifolium

Leaf shape and size: most below are obvious cognates

rotundifolium, longifolium, macrophyllum, angustifolium (narrow), latifolium (wide), oblongifolia, triangularis, cordata (heart-shaped), spathulifolium (spoon-shaped), lanceolatum, integrifolia (simple leaf, not compound), sagittata (arrowhead shaped), hastata, deltoidea, ovalifolium, ovatum, palmatum, dissectum, reniformis (kidney shaped), brevifolia

tenuifolia, filifolia, linearifolia, linearis, capillaris- all refer to narrow/slender plants, leaves, or petals

Leaf margins: crispa (curly), serrulata, serrata, dentata, laciniatus

(Note: the syllable “ul” is a diminutive that appears in many descriptive species names and also in many Latin-derived words for e.g. plant parts.)

Native exs: Campanula rotundifolia, Rhododendron macrophyllum, Acer macrophyllum, Epilobium angustifolium, Penstemon serrulata, Sedum spathulifolium, Sedum lanceolatum, Vaccinium ovatum, Anemone deltoidea, Synthyris reniformis

Balsamorhiza (Balsamroot): B. sagittata, B. deltoidea, B. macrophylla, B. serrata, and B. hirsuta. 

Non-natives: Acer palmatum, Acer palmatum var. dissectum  (note: often, in popular horticultural plants with a distinctive subspecies or variety, the species name may be dropped, e.g. Acer dissectum, Filipendula (palmata) rubra

Native: Snowberry    Sym phori carpos (with+carry+fruit) : S. mollis (short), S. albus

Maianthemum stellatum (star-shaped), M. racemosum (flowers in a raceme), M. dilatatum (leaves broad and flat on ground:dilated),

Tenax (= stiff), rigida, sinuata                 Xerophyllum tenax, Iris tenax

Flowers/inflorescences

grandiflora, parviflora, minutum, uniflora, platypetala (flat), cernuum, revolutum, acuminatum (of leaves or petals, constricted to a point at the end), stellata, reflexa, laxiflorum, hexandra

Rubus parviflorus, Allium cernuum, Allium acuminatum, Erythronium revolutum, Vancouveria hexandra

capitata, paniculata, racemosa, diffusa, coronaria, secunda, microcephala, macrocephala          

Urtica dioica, Arucus dioicus  (=dioecious, having male and female plants)

Seed/fruit

gymnocarpa, trichocarpa, physocarpus (naked, hairy, inflated)

Sambucus racemosa ssp pubens var melanocarpa

Corylus cornuta, (beaked hazelnut: cornuta = horned)     Rosa gymnocarpa

Habit, plant size

mollis, modesta, pumila, humilis, horizontalis, repens, prostrata, procumbens     (low, trailing)   

gracilis, tenuissima, stricta- narrow, slender

cespitosa (cespitose=clumping)                      contorta                     size:  major, minor, media, grandis, procera

Abies grandis, Abies procera, Rubus procera, Potentilla gracilis. Deschampsia cespitosa, Mahonia repens, Pinus contorta, Gaultheria procumbens, Whippleya modesta

Fragrance

odora, odoratum, fragrantissima, pungens, foetidissima

Life cycle                                                                                                Ethnobotany

annua, biennis, sempervirens                                                            officinalis, edulis/edule, esculentus, deliciosum, sativum

Ecology

campestris, arvensis, palustris         littoralis, maritima      arcticus, borealis             alpinum, monticola, alpestris           

Sidalcea campestris, Armeria maritima, Linnaea borealis

Subjective qualities

speciosa, bellis, spectabilis, formosa, pulcherimmum,      amoena, amabile  

(Aesclepias speciosa, Rubus spectabilis, Abies amabilis, Aquilegia formosa, Clarkia amoena)

Oplopanax horridus, Tribulus terrestris

Similarity to other plants:

-oides        Hypericum anagalloides

alnifolium, asarifolium, aquifolium  etc.             

Mahonia aquifolium, Amelanchier alnifolium, Oemleria cerasiformis (cherry-like) 

Common weed: Capsella bursa-pastoris (=little box + purse-shepherd)     native:     Athyrium filix-femina