I think it makes fair for everyone, rather then use modern language. Because let say if we use the largest language on the world then we would all have to learn mandarin names 🤷🏻♂️
@@alex0589 I think it was used by Carl Linnaeus who is a father of the modern taxonomy and (don't know about America) but over here in Europe, Latin was still widely used in 18th century
You know you got a good core audience when you whip out a white board in a static shot for 25 minutes and thousands still lean in and watch on the first day to learn a complex, dead language. It’s like first year at Hogwarts. “It’s leviosaaa, not leviosaaaa”
Well...plants are their own kind of magic, aren't they.☺ "It's leviooosa not leviosaaa"was also the first thought I had when reading the comments. Haha
I love using scientific names when referring to plants because it makes me look like a genius or an expert when in fact I know very little to nothing. 🤣 LOL
after you've gotten the hang of these basic rules, the interesting parts are the prefixes and suffixes!. it really tells you more about the species! like -ensis means 'native of' , or '-opsis' means 'appearance of' etc etc. (THANK U SUMMER for making this good intro video!)
This video was very needed for the youtuber plant enthusiasts community, because... well... there is a lot of confusion and erroneous spellings out there. Please, do another one with botanical concepts, which are often misunderstood. E.g. the other day I heard one popular youtuber call several times epiphyte a vine.
I do prefer latin names. sometimes when it comes to common names, when I'm trying to translate the name to my language, it turns out that several plants are sharing common name and they have nothing in common. besides, where I live, many plants that aren't you know, standard house plant since house plants became a thing, or standard garden plant since forever, we don't even have a common name, and we call them by latin names. it's really fun to see some older gentleman who barely knows how to tie his own shoelaces, selling plants on the farmers market, and calling them all by their long latin names cause they don't have other names here. it's super helpful too, cause when they tell me latin names, instead of common names (which also can be shared between several plants), I can easily find care tips in english, as there would hardly be any care tips in my native language for a plant that doesn't even have a name here
As I remember myself I allways wanted to learn the scientific names of them and then the common ones. Great information, Summer, one of your best videos, thank you for sharing.
Thank you for the video! I've been into plants for like 10 years now and it's always furstrating when people say "you're just using latin names to sound cool" when noo! Infact i am trying to be accurate with the name!The same name "money plant" is used in India for Epipremnum aureum, Pachira aquatica, Crassula ovata,Pilea peperimioides and a few other species. So knowing latin names helps. Now I can just show those people this video instead of fumbling 😭🤣. PS- i learnt most of this plant taxonomy in school. This video will help me in my exams! 😁 And actually for plants "division" is used in place of "phylum" ,phylum is used in case of animals and if i am not wrong, also with fungi. Thanks! 💚
This is so interesting I believed that summer shared by her experience for us to understand and explore the language of plant, she is intelligent by his sustainability and green minded thank you summer for sharing this opportunity for those whos don't have afford the plant class. Historically language perspective of the plant and organized by comparing the content each variety covers and details, I'm from Philippines and took tourism management and I'm planning to set sustainability for the world 🌎 thanks summer your my Plant mother ♥️🍃
I think it is interesting that depending on where you learned latin the pronunciation is taught differently. Like...French-taught Latin sounds different than from what people in Japan, Italy or and English country learned as correct pronunciation. Youcan notice this when you watch some of Summer Rayne 's fieldtrip episodes. The ones in Sweden for example. I learned Latin in Gemany so I'd pronounce it [mɔn'stɛʁa '?adanso:ni:?i:]....though I'm not even sure of the glottal stop is/was even a thing that existed in the Latin language.
I seem to be able to remember scientific names better than common names. I get upset when plant labels don’t include them. Common names don’t mean anything to me.
Oh goodness, just last week I ordered the book: The Gardener's Botanical: An Encyclopedia of Latin Plant Names - with More than 5,000 Entries by Ross Bayton, as a Christmas present to myself. This video is timed perfectly, and now I’m excited to check out your master class! Thank you 🙏🏻
My horticultural course every plant has to be in binomial system, it is hard to remember sometimes the correct spelling or pronunciation. But it really is about ensuring the plants get the correct conditions to flourish. I really don't like the name silver pothos even though in the same family as golden pothos not the same genus and creates a misconception they have the same care needs. Love that you have done this important video.
Mabuhay from the Philippines! Yes, we have our own common name for plants using our own language (Tagalog or Filipino) AND also have that name in our own dialect (Bicol in my case) for the same plant!😅
It's funny how you try to speak latin, I see many do it wrong but lucky me my mother tongue is Spanish and that makes it so much easier. It was a very nice useful video, almost no one cares for this details on UA-cam. Thanks your sharing!
Indeed! Spanish, Italian and Portuguese speakers have an advantage as the pronunciation of our languages are more similar to Latin's (since they all obviously come from Latin).
@@andreeawhatever Oh, I'm completely aware that Romanian derives from Latin as well but since I don't know it that well, I'm not sure if the pronunciation is similar to Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. :) For example, I haven't mentioned French since their pronunciation of words are very different from the ones I've mentioned! 😁
Nice try but there is no Monstera deliciosa var. variegata. It's quite the opposite being that it's cultivar 'Albovariegata' (your var. variegata aka 'Albo') or also 'Marmorata' (aka 'Aureovariegata'). Varieties are wild-occuring plants while cultivars are cultigenic or from gardens. Varieties (var.) are wild populations within a species but your example is actually a cultivar being not known in the wild. I can see why so many collectors kept using var. for cv. because of videos like this. Please, please leave botanical Latin master classes to those who are trained and know the codes. I know you mean well but this is really not helping.
I love using the Latin botanical names and use them while doing research. You will also come across information that was composed in other languages but can still find tons of useful info there. For instance, sometimes I look up plants botanical names and can find videos from people other countries. The videos may include plants in habitat or I can translate the language and see if any useful information was shared. Something I've wondered for a while is the meaning behind "williamsii". I see that it has been in tons of plant names (Calceolaria williamsii, Loph williamsii, Philodendron williamsii, Carmichaelia williamsii ect ect). What does this word mean? Was William a historical botanist?
For ages I would pronounce kalanchoe “ka-lan-cho” and then I heard someone (maybe even you) saying “ka-lan-ko-ee” and I was like oooooh. Felt a bit silly but like you said it’s just about exposure and education
speaking a Romance language gives you a pretty good idea of how to handle the vowels, plus knwoing the latin pronounciation rules, which aren't too many as far as I remember. Otherwise you get the same effect as if you would try to read French without knowing any French :)
Cool video, thanks. I remember reading a book once that suggested we replace "Kingdom" with "Kindom". It makes much more sense, seeing as everything is related, however tenuously.
What I thought would be a very boring video, turned out to be one of the most interesting I’ve watched in a long time. Thank you Summer Rayne for simplifying and explaining so well.
This was great. Love the gender explanation. I'm Greek (we also use three genders for all nouns and adjectives). I would love to see you mention plural, too! It sounds so weird when I hear words ending in -ums and -uses!
I feel the same! Although in my native language (Dutch) we don't have that. I always learned the plural of 'museum' is 'musea' f.e., 'because that's how it is in Latin'.
I did a 2 yr course in horticulture a while ago. Had to do an assignment on this and never got a proper lesson on the subject to help, so thanks this is a big help
What about a double “i” (“ii”). A UA-camr from Holland says it’s pronounced “ee”, and I notice America pronounces “I”. What is correct? 😊 Thank you for this.
Exactly. If you need to take one thing away from Latin pronunciation, is that "I" does not exist lol :P Also as a native speaker of a Romance language, I don't understand why you would have to 2 same letters next to each other but magically promote one to be something else :P
@@millenialcommotion9543 Can someone please tell the others they are pronouncing these names wrong 😊. It would save me trying to yell at my screen. No hate. All in good fun 🤩
Thank you so much for this video! I'm currently a PhD student in entomology and using Latin names is so normal, and jumping into the houseplant community where common names are the norm really drives me crazy!
When i started getting curious about plants, i got extremely confused at the 5-6 common names for EVERY damn plant, including mistakes, misnomers and uncorrected taxonomic revisions. I braced everytime i googled a new plant i just got.
Thank you so much for making this video, I've always wanted to learn more about botanical nomenclature, it was a great lead-in lesson with all the basics. It would be awesome if we can learn about cultivars as well, such as their origin, how they are selected and brought into the plant market etc. Thanks again for your fantastic channel content!
I know this is very, very basic information, but when you are almost a beginner in this area, it is so useful. Thank you! More info like this would be wonderful.
I find Latin names and their etymology very fascinating. I still remember that “vulgaris” was the first Latin word I learned what meant, and it was after that I understood that names can be a helpful tool in learning stuff about a species!
I knew 'vulgaris' in Latin names before I learned English (because my mother who was a plant-lover taught us Latin names), so when I learned English first I misunderstood 'vulgar'...
I am romanian and learning the latin names was never a problem. But it's harder to understand the english way of pronunciation latin name. If it's not also written it's sometimes hard to know what plant english speakers are talking about. But in a way sounds sweeter latin with enlgish accent.
I'm probably in a minority but I love plant binomials! I studied school-level Latin for 5yrs and was fairly hopeless with the grammar, but had a passion for the vocabulary. As Summer says Latin carries so much information about the plant that can be internationally understood. I have an old paperback edition (1996) of the 'Dictionary of Botany' compiled by George Usher, and published by Wordsworth Reference ~ I have have found it amazingly useful.
Hey Summer, you look well. Hope everything is working out for you in these crazy times. My '' official '' business plan was has been put on hold because of the stupid lockdown. Its hard to find a path to market ATM but she isnt giving up on me my mentor, she is really trying for me. Filling my nursery today, going to start my first batch of 400 spinach plants. Read an amazing book last night Magicians of the Gods by Graham Hancock. Its about Göbekli Tepe, and this man that went around founding art and advanced farming between 9 - 12,000 years ago. With his little bag.
I'm English and say Sinensis. We would also pronounce nomenclature differently to you. Having said that, we have a bird known as Green Plover, Lapwing, Peewit, Piewipe. All the same bird.
you have such a lovely handwriting! In Poland the name for Crassula ovata is Grubosz jajowaty, which means fatty and egg-shaped :D Also name for Hypoestes genus is Niedośpian in polish, and that means something like tired, didn't sleep enough! Loved the episode!
Hello, I’ve only recently started learning about plants and I’m really grateful that you do use the proper Latin names. I really dislike the whole « pothos » confusion. Thanks so much for sharing the knowledge ☺️🪴
Hi Summers, I'm currently doing research on Rhipsalis. I'm so confused about subspecies. I saw people random name for subspieces such ssp, ss,subs,f,sp. For example: Rhipsalis baccifera f. shaferi, some people also name them Rhipsalis baccifera ss shaferi Rhipsalis baccifera sp. shaferi Rhipsalis baccifera ssp. shaferi Rhipsalis baccifera subs. shaferi Do you think which one is correct way to name it? I'm so so confused.
Like lady Nicholas Turland u are. Definietly u are from botany background otherwise it is not so easy as u have explained. Lion's tail is also the common name of Leonotis nepetifolia. Leonurus= Leon Greek- Lion, oura- tail. Referred to its inflorescence which looks like Lion's tail. But in Leonotis= Leon-Lion, otis(auti)- ear
Fantastic video Summer! Recently I read that botanical Latin is not a spoken language so any pronunciation is correct. Sounds unlikely to me. You said the every vowel, consonant and dipthong is pronounced individually but that word you wrote with queruus was pronounced as a 2 syllable word. Would it not be 3 syllables? What about words that end in ii? Is it forget-ee-eye, or forget-ee?
As a kid I didn't like to use Latin names because I had only read them and never heard them pronounced. A high school Horticulture class changed that. You are right about having enough confidence to speak them and accept correction if needed...then you build a vocabulary to draw from when you learn a new one. Thanks for this mini-class. I enjoyed it very much. Happy growing Summer!
My mother was a plant-lover too (wild plants, nature). She taught me to use Latin names. The same reason you mention: the names people use can be very different in different regions (even in the same country/language). Here in the Netherlands our pronounciation of Latin names is 'as if it were Dutch', while in the USA and UK they're pronounced 'as if it were English'. But in written form the Latin names are identical.
Hi Summer, this is a good primer for people wishing to understand scientific names. The clarity by which you presented it is outstanding. I would like to add a few things, however. I am of the observation that the word 'variety' is currently the most misunderstood and misapplied word in horticulture. In 13:20, the correct word is 'forma' instead of "variety" as you said. Color forms have been given varietal status until quite recently but current standardization of usage has reserved the word 'variety' to entities that form natural populations but differing only in minor aspects to the nominate species. In comparison, 'formas' are random genetic quirks that do not form populations. However, I must add here that plants with 'forma' status do not warrant attention in taxonomy anymore because, well, these are just essentially color forms. This matter is especially crucial in conservation because albinistic or variegated plants just can't be conserved compared to entities that form populations, such as subspecies or varieties. These formas are better treated as 'cultivars' (cultivars can either be man-made or naturally occurring; there are a number of cultivars that were originally found in the wild and propagated for horticultural purposes) and is more relevant in horticulture than it is to botany. As for pronunciation, I remember watching a video of yours where Enid had a little issue pronouncing "gigas" (for Philodendron gigas) and you guys said something like 'for as long as it's being understood by the person you're talking to, then it's okay", and I was like "uhmmm..." Another frequently forgotten rule is that there is no 'J' sound in Latin. So a scientific name with a 'giganteum' on it would/should not sound like 'gigantic'. At 12:38, that is what is called 'declension'.
I totally agree. Latin names are a universal language for plants. Get the names wrong how ever things can go wrong. It also helps to understand Latin if you speak Spanish. I ordered the Madagascar travellers tree/palm yesterday and with the species name (madagascarensis) I know it's from Madagascar. Also let's go back to common names we all know snapdragons or Anthuriums right? My common name I used to name them was Tiger mouths but now I just use Anthurium (insert cultivar name here) so it's quite simple really!
Isn't diphtong really easy for English speakers? A lot of their of their vowels are pronounced as diphtongs after all... I mean they have single vowels like the o-sound in "daughter" or "mood" but it often sounds more like to sounds smooched together , like the a in "lady" or"day". Even loanwards like "entrée" or sometimes get "diphtong-ised". Haha
It's funny how Americans are pronouncing latin words. I'm becoming a gardener at a tree nursery in Germany right now and i think i'd be beat if i pronounced them like you :D I love all your Videos. You made me fall in love with tropical plants! Great to see you doing straight informational videos aswell! Keep it up!
Ficus indicates singular & masculine. Fica could be the singular & feminine as elastica is singular & feminine. Elasticus should be singular & masculine. Based on Summer’s lecture, it is only correct if this plant is named Ficus elasticus or maybe Fica elastica. Maybe there is some kind of exception to it? An explanation why it is called Ficus elastica? And also, Summer forget to mention that in scientific name, you’re not supposed to say the extra “i” (like in Peperomia curtisii or Dahlstedtii).
Great intro to nomenclature! Such a huge topic so perhaps a second episode later on? History (old man Carl Linnaeus) and types (holo, pseudo etc.) perhaps? Never heard of Lithops being called “kaatjiekloutjies” / cat paws in Afrikaans. I know them as beeskloutjies / cow hooves as they look like the underside of a cow’s hoove.
This episode is like a lecture but I like it! I wonder how we can know the specific meaning of the second part of a species name without a plant taxonomist around, particularly when it is not a place or the person who found/named this species. (Is this available in your masterclass?) I am curious about this because of this funny story happened just last week... I ordered an Alocasia lauterbachiana from online and the staff sent me Hoya lauterbachii. This mistake did make me laugh and try to find the features in common between Alocasia lauterbachiana and Hoya lauterbachii. Well, they just look so different!
The first reason is invalid because you can still have a scientific name in your native language, which people often do in different countries. For example the American Ornithological Society's North American Classification Committee is responsible for giving birds in NA its official English names.
In the Netherlands we call Leonorus Cardiaca “Hartgespan” and its used as a nutritional supplement and is advised not to use during pregnancy or while breastfeeding 😃 so it looks contradictory to whats its said to be used for in the US. Hmmmm... However I love to learn the latinnames its fascinating
I would like to point out that a lot of botanical names are actually greek, not latin. prime example being 'philodendron' meaning lover of trees , which when transliterated would be friend of trees. P.S. Greek is my first language, hence the explanation.
Common names are number one confusing like Philodendron lemon lime/neon leaf color, 'hederaceum' 'ceylon gold' 'moonlight' in Philippines. Scientific names are the best💯
Thank you for this because I noticed over the last year or two plant collectors saying wide, narrow, short and long form(m. adansonii and m.deliciosa to name a few) . So its a subset under species.
This video was soooooo good, I started to study biology and when you research plants and animals scientific names just make sense :D But it's true, you tend to pronounce latin names differently depending on your first language, mine is spanish and I always tend to cringe at people pronouncing latin names because I pronounce them so differently :/
knowing the scientific names for plants also give us more resources to learn and understand our plants; now i've read scientific articles/publications and searching on online botanical catalogues or inaturalist to see how the species of the plants i have live in the wild, esp. their native soil type, climate, temperature, and even altitude or symbiosis with other life forms. it gives better insight on taking care of my plants rather than relying on my instinctual 'green thumb'. and yeah, i'm also a nerd on latin names. there's something 'fancy' about it that makes it, but idk. i just love pronouncing 'em
social media has positively influenced plant lovers and sellers to use Latin names in Indonesia. Ironically, when you look for plants using Latin names in local sellers, the seller will quote higher price than if you use their local names. Perhaps they think if we are willing to learn more about plants, we are willing to pay more.. LOL
the fact that indonesia has so many endemic plant variety, and not so many put effort to even named it correctly, that make me super sad. bcz in the other part of the world, our endemic plants has been claimed as theirs. mostly, they bought the plant from here, collect, breed them then when the plant is ready to examinated, they give a new identity and introduce as theirs. most of the breeder here’s just thinking about the profit. with the current situation, when everyone get crazy about plants, so many hunter took the plant directly from the forest, without even breed them first. im concern our endemic plants will be gone in just couple of years if this keep happening 😢
I come here fresh out of college graduated in biology, I really liked your approach to the pronunciation of latin, I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone pronouncing it in perfect traditional or classical latin, nor is it necessary to communicate as scientists.
Lol I grew up Catholic and didn't understand or be able to pronunce it. I write it dow when you flash it and then add the comman name i know it by. Looking up how to care i put both in my question to google.
In school we were taught "Keep Ponds Clean Or Fish Get Sick" to remember the order they go in. Always thought that was cute
could you please elaborate more on it
@@marko7552
Kingdom - Keep
Phylum - Ponds
Class - Clean
Order - Or
Family - Fish
Genus - Get
Species - Sick
That's a great way to remember. This comment should be pinned.
thank you!
My science teacher in grade 8 taught us a more naughty version but boy it helped us remember LOL
“Benefit mother herb” sounds like someone trying to remember Benedict Cumberbatch’s name but is just naming things they see around the room
People who say “nobody’s perfect” obviously don’t know Summer Rayne Oakes
It’s ironic that a dead language is used to name living creatures.
Omg that's a fantastic realization 😂
It may be considered dead because it's not widely spoken, but it is not extinct.
I think it makes fair for everyone, rather then use modern language. Because let say if we use the largest language on the world then we would all have to learn mandarin names 🤷🏻♂️
That’s not what irony is.
It was used for taxonomy *because** no one was speaking it, making it universal.
@@alex0589 I think it was used by Carl Linnaeus who is a father of the modern taxonomy and (don't know about America) but over here in Europe, Latin was still widely used in 18th century
You know you got a good core audience when you whip out a white board in a static shot for 25 minutes and thousands still lean in and watch on the first day to learn a complex, dead language.
It’s like first year at Hogwarts.
“It’s leviosaaa, not leviosaaaa”
Well...plants are their own kind of magic, aren't they.☺
"It's leviooosa not leviosaaa"was also the first thought I had when reading the comments. Haha
I love using scientific names when referring to plants because it makes me look like a genius or an expert when in fact I know very little to nothing. 🤣 LOL
“SANSEVIERIA? Do you mean DRACAENA??” **whips hair back, hoping no one asks for further info**
@@alex0589 😂
@@paulcarl5370 guest: I like your cat.
me: you mean my felis catus
after you've gotten the hang of these basic rules, the interesting parts are the prefixes and suffixes!. it really tells you more about the species! like -ensis means 'native of' , or '-opsis' means 'appearance of' etc etc.
(THANK U SUMMER for making this good intro video!)
I had to learn this in plant taxonomy class XD
Ok I need to take this master class. The nerd in me is so excited about learning this stuff!!
saaame
This video was very needed for the youtuber plant enthusiasts community, because... well... there is a lot of confusion and erroneous spellings out there.
Please, do another one with botanical concepts, which are often misunderstood. E.g. the other day I heard one popular youtuber call several times epiphyte a vine.
I do prefer latin names. sometimes when it comes to common names, when I'm trying to translate the name to my language, it turns out that several plants are sharing common name and they have nothing in common. besides, where I live, many plants that aren't you know, standard house plant since house plants became a thing, or standard garden plant since forever, we don't even have a common name, and we call them by latin names. it's really fun to see some older gentleman who barely knows how to tie his own shoelaces, selling plants on the farmers market, and calling them all by their long latin names cause they don't have other names here. it's super helpful too, cause when they tell me latin names, instead of common names (which also can be shared between several plants), I can easily find care tips in english, as there would hardly be any care tips in my native language for a plant that doesn't even have a name here
For Chinese pronunciations, "c" is actually pronounced "ts" (as in "lets" or "gnats") so it would be pronounced "ts"ow = grass. But cool shout out!!
As I remember myself I allways wanted to learn the scientific names of them and then the common ones.
Great information, Summer, one of your best videos, thank you for sharing.
Thank you for the video! I've been into plants for like 10 years now and it's always furstrating when people say "you're just using latin names to sound cool" when noo! Infact i am trying to be accurate with the name!The same name "money plant" is used in India for Epipremnum aureum, Pachira aquatica, Crassula ovata,Pilea peperimioides and a few other species. So knowing latin names helps. Now I can just show those people this video instead of fumbling 😭🤣.
PS- i learnt most of this plant taxonomy in school. This video will help me in my exams! 😁 And actually for plants "division" is used in place of "phylum" ,phylum is used in case of animals and if i am not wrong, also with fungi.
Thanks! 💚
This is so interesting I believed that summer shared by her experience for us to understand and explore the language of plant, she is intelligent by his sustainability and green minded thank you summer for sharing this opportunity for those whos don't have afford the plant class. Historically language perspective of the plant and organized by comparing the content each variety covers and details, I'm from Philippines and took tourism management and I'm planning to set sustainability for the world 🌎 thanks summer your my Plant mother ♥️🍃
I would add one thing. When latin word ends 'ii' the is no [iai] sound. Just [i]. So no [Monstera Adansoniai] :D
I am not familiar with iai. Do you mean it is pronounced a-dan-sone-ee-eye or a-dan-sone-ee?
@@carolynallen597 a-dan-sone-ee :)
@@imyh thank you 💚
Way to throw an entire tree in our bicycle wheels!
I think it is interesting that depending on where you learned latin the pronunciation is taught differently.
Like...French-taught Latin sounds different than from what people in Japan, Italy or and English country learned as correct pronunciation.
Youcan notice this when you watch some of Summer Rayne 's fieldtrip episodes. The ones in Sweden for example.
I learned Latin in Gemany so I'd pronounce it [mɔn'stɛʁa '?adanso:ni:?i:]....though I'm not even sure of the glottal stop is/was even a thing that existed in the Latin language.
currently watching a netflix documentary in graphics class... this is much more interesting I must say !!!
I seem to be able to remember scientific names better than common names. I get upset when plant labels don’t include them. Common names don’t mean anything to me.
Common names don't do much but confuse people
Oh goodness, just last week I ordered the book:
The Gardener's Botanical: An Encyclopedia of Latin Plant Names - with More than 5,000 Entries by Ross Bayton, as a Christmas present to myself. This video is timed perfectly, and now I’m excited to check out your master class! Thank you 🙏🏻
My horticultural course every plant has to be in binomial system, it is hard to remember sometimes the correct spelling or pronunciation. But it really is about ensuring the plants get the correct conditions to flourish. I really don't like the name silver pothos even though in the same family as golden pothos not the same genus and creates a misconception they have the same care needs. Love that you have done this important video.
Mabuhay from the Philippines! Yes, we have our own common name for plants using our own language (Tagalog or Filipino) AND also have that name in our own dialect (Bicol in my case) for the same plant!😅
tips: Italicised for digital typing, Underlined for handwriting
It's funny how you try to speak latin, I see many do it wrong but lucky me my mother tongue is Spanish and that makes it so much easier. It was a very nice useful video, almost no one cares for this details on UA-cam. Thanks your sharing!
Indeed! Spanish, Italian and Portuguese speakers have an advantage as the pronunciation of our languages are more similar to Latin's (since they all obviously come from Latin).
@@leotoma Romanians too! Nobody remembers us :P
@@andreeawhatever Oh, I'm completely aware that Romanian derives from Latin as well but since I don't know it that well, I'm not sure if the pronunciation is similar to Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. :)
For example, I haven't mentioned French since their pronunciation of words are very different from the ones I've mentioned! 😁
Nice try but there is no Monstera deliciosa var. variegata. It's quite the opposite being that it's cultivar 'Albovariegata' (your var. variegata aka 'Albo') or also 'Marmorata' (aka 'Aureovariegata'). Varieties are wild-occuring plants while cultivars are cultigenic or from gardens. Varieties (var.) are wild populations within a species but your example is actually a cultivar being not known in the wild. I can see why so many collectors kept using var. for cv. because of videos like this. Please, please leave botanical Latin master classes to those who are trained and know the codes. I know you mean well but this is really not helping.
I love using the Latin botanical names and use them while doing research. You will also come across information that was composed in other languages but can still find tons of useful info there. For instance, sometimes I look up plants botanical names and can find videos from people other countries. The videos may include plants in habitat or I can translate the language and see if any useful information was shared.
Something I've wondered for a while is the meaning behind "williamsii". I see that it has been in tons of plant names (Calceolaria williamsii, Loph williamsii, Philodendron williamsii, Carmichaelia williamsii ect ect). What does this word mean? Was William a historical botanist?
I love the “nerdy” stuff! 💚💚💚 Thanks for the lesson 🙏
For ages I would pronounce kalanchoe “ka-lan-cho” and then I heard someone (maybe even you) saying “ka-lan-ko-ee” and I was like oooooh. Felt a bit silly but like you said it’s just about exposure and education
speaking a Romance language gives you a pretty good idea of how to handle the vowels, plus knwoing the latin pronounciation rules, which aren't too many as far as I remember. Otherwise you get the same effect as if you would try to read French without knowing any French :)
Me too!
Cool video, thanks. I remember reading a book once that suggested we replace "Kingdom" with "Kindom". It makes much more sense, seeing as everything is related, however tenuously.
What I thought would be a very boring video, turned out to be one of the most interesting I’ve watched in a long time.
Thank you Summer Rayne for simplifying and explaining so well.
Just realized how long it's been since I heard the word diphthong 🤭😆
Thanks Summer. I've started to put index cards with Latin names of my plants around the house. It's fun to learn. You got me going!
Funny, that's what I do too, plant pins with the official name of the plant on it near it in the planter ;-)
This was great. Love the gender explanation. I'm Greek (we also use three genders for all nouns and adjectives). I would love to see you mention plural, too! It sounds so weird when I hear words ending in -ums and -uses!
I feel the same! Although in my native language (Dutch) we don't have that. I always learned the plural of 'museum' is 'musea' f.e., 'because that's how it is in Latin'.
I did a 2 yr course in horticulture a while ago. Had to do an assignment on this and never got a proper lesson on the subject to help, so thanks this is a big help
Should Aloe technically be pronounced "alo-ey" then?
We pronounce it "alo-ey" in Romanian. But that's probably because Romanian is considered a Latin language so it has a close relation :)
Love your lesson! I’m a linguistic nerd🧐
I started hating common names when I got into plants! Scientific names are easier .
What about a double “i” (“ii”). A UA-camr from Holland says it’s pronounced “ee”, and I notice America pronounces “I”. What is correct? 😊 Thank you for this.
"e-e" (double "e") is a correct pronunciation :)
Latins pronounce "i" as English people "e" as in e.g. "leek"
Exactly. If you need to take one thing away from Latin pronunciation, is that "I" does not exist lol :P Also as a native speaker of a Romance language, I don't understand why you would have to 2 same letters next to each other but magically promote one to be something else :P
@@millenialcommotion9543 thank you.
@@millenialcommotion9543 Can someone please tell the others they are pronouncing these names wrong 😊. It would save me trying to yell at my screen. No hate. All in good fun 🤩
I love this type of content so much. Thanks a lot for sharing your knowledge!
Thank you so much for this video! I'm currently a PhD student in entomology and using Latin names is so normal, and jumping into the houseplant community where common names are the norm really drives me crazy!
When i started getting curious about plants, i got extremely confused at the 5-6 common names for EVERY damn plant, including mistakes, misnomers and uncorrected taxonomic revisions. I braced everytime i googled a new plant i just got.
Thank you so much for making this video, I've always wanted to learn more about botanical nomenclature, it was a great lead-in lesson with all the basics. It would be awesome if we can learn about cultivars as well, such as their origin, how they are selected and brought into the plant market etc. Thanks again for your fantastic channel content!
I know this is very, very basic information, but when you are almost a beginner in this area, it is so useful. Thank you! More info like this would be wonderful.
Thank you so so much for this information!!! Can’t get enough!
Please continue with these fabulous videos!
I find Latin names and their etymology very fascinating. I still remember that “vulgaris” was the first Latin word I learned what meant, and it was after that I understood that names can be a helpful tool in learning stuff about a species!
I love when the name represents the plants morphology too, and I can guess what it will look like before seeing it!! 😊😊
What a vulgar comment! (Am i doing this right?)
I knew 'vulgaris' in Latin names before I learned English (because my mother who was a plant-lover taught us Latin names), so when I learned English first I misunderstood 'vulgar'...
I am romanian and learning the latin names was never a problem. But it's harder to understand the english way of pronunciation latin name. If it's not also written it's sometimes hard to know what plant english speakers are talking about. But in a way sounds sweeter latin with enlgish accent.
@Chishiya - Cheshire i guess is because of the basis of the languages
Here early! Super excited whenever Summer releases a new video 🥰🥰
Does anyone know why we say “ficus elastica” instead of “ficus elasticus”?
That’s exactly what I was wondering as soon as this video began 😂 ficus elastica it’s my current plant obsession
Not sure if this is the reason, but it seems several genera were reclassified into the one genus of Ficus in the mid 1800s.
love this. please do more videos like this!
I maybe drop engineering because of this plant adiction. Hahaha goosebumps when you say Philippines
WOW really enjoyed n learned..Awesome video.
Stay cool N HAPPY n Healthy and ENJOY
With Love from SAM
Guwahati Assam INDIA
So informative!🤗💕
Hi Summer! ☺ I'm a subscriber since a long time ago. I love you soooo much! I'm from the Philippines! 🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭
I'm probably in a minority but I love plant binomials! I studied school-level Latin for 5yrs and was fairly hopeless with the grammar, but had a passion for the vocabulary. As Summer says Latin carries so much information about the plant that can be internationally understood. I have an old paperback edition (1996) of the 'Dictionary of Botany' compiled by George Usher, and published by Wordsworth Reference ~ I have have found it amazingly useful.
Hey Summer, you look well. Hope everything is working out for you in these crazy times. My '' official '' business plan was has been put on hold because of the stupid lockdown. Its hard to find a path to market ATM but she isnt giving up on me my mentor, she is really trying for me. Filling my nursery today, going to start my first batch of 400 spinach plants. Read an amazing book last night Magicians of the Gods by Graham Hancock. Its about Göbekli Tepe, and this man that went around founding art and advanced farming between 9 - 12,000 years ago. With his little bag.
I'm English and say Sinensis. We would also pronounce nomenclature differently to you. Having said that, we have a bird known as Green Plover, Lapwing, Peewit, Piewipe. All the same bird.
Thank you for this Video. I'm from germany and have been confused by spiderplant, which is call Green lily in germany. LAT. Chlorophytum comosum
you have such a lovely handwriting! In Poland the name for Crassula ovata is Grubosz jajowaty, which means fatty and egg-shaped :D Also name for Hypoestes genus is Niedośpian in polish, and that means something like tired, didn't sleep enough! Loved the episode!
Hello, I’ve only recently started learning about plants and I’m really grateful that you do use the proper Latin names. I really dislike the whole « pothos » confusion. Thanks so much for sharing the knowledge ☺️🪴
Hi Summers, I'm currently doing research on Rhipsalis. I'm so confused about subspecies. I saw people random name for subspieces such ssp, ss,subs,f,sp. For example: Rhipsalis baccifera f. shaferi, some people also name them
Rhipsalis baccifera ss shaferi
Rhipsalis baccifera sp. shaferi
Rhipsalis baccifera ssp. shaferi
Rhipsalis baccifera subs. shaferi
Do you think which one is correct way to name it? I'm so so confused.
Like lady Nicholas Turland u are.
Definietly u are from botany background otherwise it is not so easy as u have explained.
Lion's tail is also the common name of Leonotis nepetifolia.
Leonurus= Leon Greek- Lion, oura- tail.
Referred to its inflorescence which looks like Lion's tail.
But in Leonotis= Leon-Lion, otis(auti)- ear
Fantastic video Summer! Recently I read that botanical Latin is not a spoken language so any pronunciation is correct. Sounds unlikely to me. You said the every vowel, consonant and dipthong is pronounced individually but that word you wrote with queruus was pronounced as a 2 syllable word. Would it not be 3 syllables? What about words that end in ii? Is it forget-ee-eye, or forget-ee?
As a kid I didn't like to use Latin names because I had only read them and never heard them pronounced. A high school Horticulture class changed that. You are right about having enough confidence to speak them and accept correction if needed...then you build a vocabulary to draw from when you learn a new one. Thanks for this mini-class. I enjoyed it very much. Happy growing Summer!
My mother was a plant-lover too (wild plants, nature). She taught me to use Latin names. The same reason you mention: the names people use can be very different in different regions (even in the same country/language).
Here in the Netherlands our pronounciation of Latin names is 'as if it were Dutch', while in the USA and UK they're pronounced 'as if it were English'. But in written form the Latin names are identical.
Hi Summer, this is a good primer for people wishing to understand scientific names. The clarity by which you presented it is outstanding. I would like to add a few things, however. I am of the observation that the word 'variety' is currently the most misunderstood and misapplied word in horticulture. In 13:20, the correct word is 'forma' instead of "variety" as you said. Color forms have been given varietal status until quite recently but current standardization of usage has reserved the word 'variety' to entities that form natural populations but differing only in minor aspects to the nominate species. In comparison, 'formas' are random genetic quirks that do not form populations. However, I must add here that plants with 'forma' status do not warrant attention in taxonomy anymore because, well, these are just essentially color forms. This matter is especially crucial in conservation because albinistic or variegated plants just can't be conserved compared to entities that form populations, such as subspecies or varieties. These formas are better treated as 'cultivars' (cultivars can either be man-made or naturally occurring; there are a number of cultivars that were originally found in the wild and propagated for horticultural purposes) and is more relevant in horticulture than it is to botany. As for pronunciation, I remember watching a video of yours where Enid had a little issue pronouncing "gigas" (for Philodendron gigas) and you guys said something like 'for as long as it's being understood by the person you're talking to, then it's okay", and I was like "uhmmm..." Another frequently forgotten rule is that there is no 'J' sound in Latin. So a scientific name with a 'giganteum' on it would/should not sound like 'gigantic'. At 12:38, that is what is called 'declension'.
I totally agree. Latin names are a universal language for plants. Get the names wrong how ever things can go wrong. It also helps to understand Latin if you speak Spanish. I ordered the Madagascar travellers tree/palm yesterday and with the species name (madagascarensis) I know it's from Madagascar. Also let's go back to common names we all know snapdragons or Anthuriums right? My common name I used to name them was Tiger mouths but now I just use Anthurium (insert cultivar name here) so it's quite simple really!
Isn't diphtong really easy for English speakers?
A lot of their of their vowels are pronounced as diphtongs after all... I mean they have single vowels like the o-sound in "daughter" or "mood" but it often sounds more like to sounds smooched together , like the a in "lady" or"day". Even loanwards like "entrée" or sometimes get "diphtong-ised". Haha
It's funny how Americans are pronouncing latin words.
I'm becoming a gardener at a tree nursery in Germany right now and i think i'd be beat if i pronounced them like you :D
I love all your Videos. You made me fall in love with tropical plants! Great to see you doing straight informational videos aswell! Keep it up!
Ficus indicates singular & masculine. Fica could be the singular & feminine as elastica is singular & feminine. Elasticus should be singular & masculine.
Based on Summer’s lecture, it is only correct if this plant is named Ficus elasticus or maybe Fica elastica. Maybe there is some kind of exception to it? An explanation why it is called Ficus elastica?
And also, Summer forget to mention that in scientific name, you’re not supposed to say the extra “i” (like in Peperomia curtisii or Dahlstedtii).
Great intro to nomenclature! Such a huge topic so perhaps a second episode later on? History (old man Carl Linnaeus) and types (holo, pseudo etc.) perhaps?
Never heard of Lithops being called “kaatjiekloutjies” / cat paws in Afrikaans. I know them as beeskloutjies / cow hooves as they look like the underside of a cow’s hoove.
Reading the dictionary was the best part of this :-)
This episode is like a lecture but I like it! I wonder how we can know the specific meaning of the second part of a species name without a plant taxonomist around, particularly when it is not a place or the person who found/named this species. (Is this available in your masterclass?) I am curious about this because of this funny story happened just last week...
I ordered an Alocasia lauterbachiana from online and the staff sent me Hoya lauterbachii. This mistake did make me laugh and try to find the features in common between Alocasia lauterbachiana and Hoya lauterbachii. Well, they just look so different!
The first reason is invalid because you can still have a scientific name in your native language, which people often do in different countries. For example the American Ornithological Society's North American Classification Committee is responsible for giving birds in NA its official English names.
This is something I truly want to learn. Thank you for this video. One of the best for me. I finally getting it so I can retain it👏👏👏👏✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
Thank you for doing this video it’s incredibly helpful. Awesome! 😀
In the Netherlands we call Leonorus Cardiaca “Hartgespan” and its used as a nutritional supplement and is advised not to use during pregnancy or while breastfeeding 😃 so it looks contradictory to whats its said to be used for in the US. Hmmmm...
However I love to learn the latinnames its fascinating
I would like to point out that a lot of botanical names are actually greek, not latin.
prime example being 'philodendron' meaning lover of trees , which when transliterated would be friend of trees.
P.S. Greek is my first language, hence the explanation.
Common names are number one confusing like Philodendron lemon lime/neon leaf color, 'hederaceum' 'ceylon gold' 'moonlight' in Philippines. Scientific names are the best💯
Thank you for this because I noticed over the last year or two plant collectors saying wide, narrow, short and long form(m. adansonii and m.deliciosa to name a few) . So its a subset under species.
I had to pay $179 for this type of information... 🤨 *cough, cough*
Buyers remorse is real!
This video was soooooo good, I started to study biology and when you research plants and animals scientific names just make sense :D But it's true, you tend to pronounce latin names differently depending on your first language, mine is spanish and I always tend to cringe at people pronouncing latin names because I pronounce them so differently :/
Fasicinating and informative video, one of you best so far. God I wish I was taught by you growing up. I would have paid more attention!
knowing the scientific names for plants also give us more resources to learn and understand our plants; now i've read scientific articles/publications and searching on online botanical catalogues or inaturalist to see how the species of the plants i have live in the wild, esp. their native soil type, climate, temperature, and even altitude or symbiosis with other life forms. it gives better insight on taking care of my plants rather than relying on my instinctual 'green thumb'.
and yeah, i'm also a nerd on latin names. there's something 'fancy' about it that makes it, but idk. i just love pronouncing 'em
Right or wrong pronunciation of a "dead" language like Latin, I commend you for using scientific names and spreading knowledge 😉. You go girl 👏
Please make a video about growing indoors Eucalyptus, Melaleuca and Acacia dealbata. 🙏
social media has positively influenced plant lovers and sellers to use Latin names in Indonesia. Ironically, when you look for plants using Latin names in local sellers, the seller will quote higher price than if you use their local names. Perhaps they think if we are willing to learn more about plants, we are willing to pay more.. LOL
What about Monstera Adansonii. The variety ends in ‘I’ instead of ‘a’. Anyone?
Interesting question! I think, in this case it refers to the genitive case. So it would be like Adanson's monstera.
@@gabrielabanita6891 You’re right! Thanks a lot
the fact that indonesia has so many endemic plant variety, and not so many put effort to even named it correctly, that make me super sad. bcz in the other part of the world, our endemic plants has been claimed as theirs. mostly, they bought the plant from here, collect, breed them then when the plant is ready to examinated, they give a new identity and introduce as theirs. most of the breeder here’s just thinking about the profit. with the current situation, when everyone get crazy about plants, so many hunter took the plant directly from the forest, without even breed them first. im concern our endemic plants will be gone in just couple of years if this keep happening 😢
Thanks for education plants Miss Summer i love your channel from philippines i love Hoya plants you have one of your contents
Hello From "BANGLADESH"
You were my first inspiration to start the garden !!
I come here fresh out of college graduated in biology, I really liked your approach to the pronunciation of latin, I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone pronouncing it in perfect traditional or classical latin, nor is it necessary to communicate as scientists.
I love this education, but I cringe each time the marker hits the paper. On-screen text might work just as well.
Lol I grew up Catholic and didn't understand or be able to pronunce it. I write it dow when you flash it and then add the comman name i know it by. Looking up how to care i put both in my question to google.
Thank you Summer! It is thanks to you that I know more about plants and it’s scientific names 😀 nowadays 🤩
this is intresting vlog im your #1 fan from Philippines! keep it up! God bless!
If anyone is interested in the Chinese name of Leonurus cardiaca mentioned at 3:33, it's 益母草 (yì mǔ cǎo).
Wow 🤩 love this so much! Such fascinating info. Lots of great points made!
Waww... I will watch this episode twice or more. Thank you. Love it.
i just checked the ISHS Site that you mentioned. But i don’t know how to use it to search plant names. Can you make a video about that?
SUPER interesting!! Thank you.
I'd totally yell at a baby for saying sgetti instead of spaghetti. You don't know me!!
Why do you pronounce 'scindapsus' without letter 'c'..?