Holcus
/ˈhɒl.kəs/noun
A genus of grasses, including Yorkshire fog and creeping soft-grass.
Did you know?Carl Linnaeus formally used Holcus as a plant genus in 1753, preserving a Greek name for a kind of grass in modern scientific classification.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Antiquity
Ancient Greek
ὅλκος (hólkos)
“A kind of grass; the precise species meant by the ancient term is uncertain.”
Ancient Rome
Latin
holcus
“A botanical borrowing from Greek referring to a type of grass.”
1753
Scientific Latin
Holcus
“Linnaeus established Holcus as a formal plant genus in Species Plantarum.”
18th Century
Botanical English
Holcus
“The Latin genus name entered English botanical usage for soft grasses.”
Modern English
English
holcus
“A grass genus containing species commonly known as Yorkshire fog and related soft-grasses.”
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