Anthocyanin
/ˌænθoʊˈsaɪ.ə.nɪn/noun
A plant pigment that produces red, purple, or blue colors in flowers, fruits, and leaves.
Did you know?Anthocyanin was coined in modern scientific Greek from anthos (“flower”) and kyanos (“dark blue”), so the word itself encodes the ancient idea that flowers can carry a blue, almost mystical darkness.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Gk
ánthos
“flower”
Ancient Greek
Gk
kyanós
“dark blue, deep blue”
1840s
French/German scientific Latin
anthocyan
“a blue plant pigment”
19th Century
English
anthocyanin
“the class of red-blue plant pigments”