Camellia
/kəˈmiːliə/noun
A genus of evergreen shrubs and trees with glossy leaves and showy flowers, especially the ornamental tea plant and its relatives.
Did you know?Camellia was named by Carl Linnaeus after the Jesuit missionary and botanist Georg Joseph Kamel, whose Latinized surname was Camellus, showing how scientific names can immortalize people like botanical sigils.
Etymological Timeline
17th Century
Latinized Czech/Latin
Camellus
“The Latinized surname of Georg Joseph Kamel, a Jesuit botanist and missionary”
1753
New Latin
Camellia
“Linnaeus’s genus name for these ornamental plants, created in honor of Camellus”
18th Century
Latin
Camellia
“Used in scientific Latin as a botanical genus name”
Modern English
English
camellia
“A flowering shrub or tree of the tea family”