Amaryllidaceae
/ˌæməˌrɪlɪˈdeɪsi.iː/noun
A family of flowering plants that includes daffodils, snowdrops, and amaryllis.
Did you know?Amaryllidaceae is named from the classical Greek literary flower-name Amaryllis, a poetic name that later became the basis for a real plant family, showing how myth and botany can fuse into scientific Latin.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
Ἀμαρυλλίς (Amaryllis)
“A literary pastoral name used for a shepherdess in Greek poetry, later associated with a flower name.”
Classical Latin
Latin
Amaryllis
“A borrowed poetic plant name used in learned writing and botanical naming.”
18th Century
New Latin
Amaryllis
“A genus name applied in botanical classification to certain bulbous flowering plants.”
19th Century
Latinized botanical
Amaryllidaceae
“The plant family name formed from the genus Amaryllis plus the standard family suffix -aceae.”
Modern English
English
Amaryllidaceae
“The botanical family of amaryllis-like flowering plants.”