What’s in a Name?

When I met my husband oh so long ago, he said his name was Chris, and he gave me the slip of paper that was his nonresident short-term fishing license from the State of Minnesota, because it had his address on it–and he promised to write back if I wrote him a letter.  He was headed back to Missouri from Minnesota with a stop in South Dakota for the night.  I was in the right place at just the right time for him to ask me to dance.  The brown-eyed handsome man named Chris captured my heart.  Later I learned that his family and friends called him Mick.  Many times over the years he asked me to call him Mick, and even though I tried, it felt awkward saying it to him.

A walk through our yard and woods at this time of year is an exploration of blooming flowers!  I know most of them by their common names and often Chris will tell me their Scientific names.  Both names give clues about the flowering plant or tell a story about its history.

Perennial Blue Flax–Linum lewisii–named in honor of Meriwether Lewis of Lewis and Clark who discovered this blue beauty on their expedition across the Plains.  (And speaking of names, Meriwether!)

Variegated Solomon’s Seal–Polygonatum odoratum var. pluriflorum ‘Variegatum’–poly meaning ‘many’, gonu meaning ‘knee joints’ referring to the jointed plant rhizomes; pluriflorum meaning ‘many flowered’; Solomon’s Seal for the wound sealing properties of the plant.

Wild Geranium–Geranium maculatum–large flowering (relatively speaking, since this flower is 1 inch or more compared to others of under half an inch.)

Leopard’s Bane–Doronicum orientale–all in this genus were once thought to be poisonous to animals.

Carpet Bugle–Ajuga reptans–a groundcover that spreads across the ground like a carpet.

Foam Flower–Tiarella cordifolia–Tiarella meaning ‘small crown’ from the shape of the fruit; fluffy, airy flowers.

Bleeding Heart–Dicentra spectabilis–Dicentra meaning ‘two spurs’, spectabilis meaning ‘spectacular’; Bleeding Heart by the shape of the flower.

Lily of the Valley–Convallaria majalis–majalis meaning ‘that which belongs to May.’

Lungwort–Pulmonaria spp.–herbalists long ago thought the spotted leaves looked like diseased lungs and used it to treat lung ailments; ‘wort’ meaning ‘to heal or cure.’

Sweet Woodruff–Galium odoratum–fragrant leaves and flowers; Woodruff is Old English for ‘wood that unravels’ meaning the creeping rootstock; another common name is Sweet Scented Bedstraw as the dried leaves were used to stuff mattresses.

Flowering plant names, both Scientific and common, often describe or tell a story about the plant.  Our given names are carefully chosen by our parents–name books are consulted and brainstorming with lists of names are ‘tried on’ and discarded or ‘liked’ by our mothers and fathers until the list of ‘likes’ is whittled down to the perfect name for that child.  We can honor parents, grandparents and other relatives by giving their name to our child, and in the course of a lifetime, the child may come to know the honor of carrying that name.  Nicknames usually have a story about how they came to be, and once a person is lovingly known by that name, it is difficult to say otherwise.  I call my husband Mick when I talk to his family, though there is still a fraction of a hesitation before doing so.  But the man I fell in love with is and will always be Chris on my tongue and in my heart.  It is a particular and all-encompassing blessing when we are called by our name.