Cambium
/ˈkæm.bi.əm/noun
A thin layer of actively dividing cells in plants that produces new xylem and phloem.
Did you know?The word comes from medieval Latin cambium, meaning an exchange or change, from the same root that gave English words like change and exchange.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kemb-
“to bend, turn, or exchange”
Late Latin
Latin
cambium
“an exchange, barter, or change”
Medieval Latin
Latin
cambium
“an exchange; also used in learned botanical Latin”
17th Century
English
cambium
“the growing layer between wood and bark in plants”
Modern English
English
cambium
“the thin layer of dividing cells that forms new plant tissue”