# Plants names from Native American languages **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 4, 2021, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362 "2021-05-04T10:52:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/1 "2021-05-04T10:52:56Z")
What plant names come from Native American languages? I’m looking for common English names of plants, not the scientific names. The names do not have to be borrowed directly from Native languages but could come via Spanish, French, Portuguese or some other language. I’ve made a preliminary list, but am sure it’s no where near complete: - camas – a lily whose root was a staple food of many Northwest tribes [Nez Perce] - hickory – [Virginian Algonquian] - maize – [Taino] (Taino was spoken on the Caribbean islands, so several common crop plant names come from it via Spanish) - pecan – [Illinois] - potato – [Taino] - quinoa – [Quechua] - saguero – [Ópata] - salal – edible berry native to the Northwest; still eaten but also a common ornamental [Lower Chinook] - sego – another lily with an edible root; early Mormon settlers learned of its edibility from the natives, which saved them in years when their crops failed. Because of that, it’s the state flower of Utah [Southern Paiute] - squash – [Narragansett] - tobacco – [Taino] - tomato – [Nahuatl] - tule – a bullrush native to California [Nahuatl] - tupelo – tree native to the southeast US [Creek] - wapato – edible tuber that grows in shallow water; native to the Northwest where it was a staple of Native American diets [Chinook Jargon] Besides these, there are several plant names that come from those of places or people, where the names of those are Native American: - habaero – Havana, Cuba - jalapeno – Xalapa (Jalapa), Mexico - lima beans – Lima, Peru - sequoia – [Sequoyah](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequoyah), inventor of the Cherokee writing system. So any additions to either list? ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/2 "2021-05-04T11:02:19Z")
More Nahuatl: - chocolate - cocoa - chili - chipotle - avocado - jicama - tamale And Taino: - maize - cassava - guava - potato ---
**Author:** ![Bayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bayaker/32/3454_2.png) [@Bayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/3 "2021-05-04T11:22:28Z")
Mesquite - Nahuatl Persimmon - Virginia Algonquian ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/4 "2021-05-04T11:26:49Z")
Well, that was fast. Thanks, Terminus. A few comments: Chocolate and cocoa are not actually the name of the plant, although I expect they’re frequently used as such. The plant is actually called cacao, which also comes from Nahuatl, so that’s a good addition. Chili is a collective name for a group of plants, each of which has its own name. So I’ll go with the individual names like jalapeno. Chipotle seems to be a name for jalapeno peppers when they’ve been dried. Avocado and jicama are good additions. Tamale is the name of a type of food that’s not a simple fruit or vegetable, so it’s out. I already had maize and potato, but cassava and guava are good additions. Thanks again. And Bayaker slips more in when I’m posting. Those two are good. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/5 "2021-05-04T11:47:00Z")
Asimina triloba, the American pawpaw is a fruit I love. I think the Latin name (Asimina) is taken from a Native American language (?) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/6 "2021-05-04T11:58:44Z")
_Asimina triloba_ is a scientific name, which I’m not interested in. However, my friends Merriam and Webster say pawpaw (also spelled papaw) is probably derived from papaya. Papaya, in turn, comes from an Indian language, although M-W don’t seem to know which one. So that’s two additions. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/7 "2021-05-04T12:45:59Z")
@dtilque - My expertise is limited to a backyard gardener’s vocabulary: Also consider Scuppernong grapes a type of muscadine grapes. Also Yucca, and Peyote If native Hawaiian Plant names are allowed, then the page will fill up soon. ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/8 "2021-05-04T13:36:40Z")
Chiltepin - another type of chili pepper Heck, just go down this list: [New World Crops](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_World_crops) ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/9 "2021-05-04T13:41:46Z")
**From Quechua:** arracacha cinchona tree (source of quinine) coca oca pampas grass ulluco quinoa yacón **From Taino:** maguey (another name in English for agave) yucca **From Catawba:** yaupon **From Nahuatl:** ahuehuete chia sapodilla tree (source of chicle) **From Tupi or related languages:** cashew and its English synonym acajou cayenne (pepper) guava ipecac jacaranda manioc **From Algonquian languages:** chinkapin and its synonym chinquapin hopniss katniss first element of possum haw ( _Ilex Decidua_) first element of opossum tree ( _Liquidambar styraciflua_) first element of possum pine ( _Pinus virginiana_) first element of possumwood ( _Diospyros virginiana_) first element of possum oak ( _Quercus nigra_) tamarack, tamarack larch, and tamarack pine (three different species) **From unknown Native American languages:** mashua mahogany **Plants that may be named after Native American tribes or place-names:** Modoc cypress Nootka cypress and Nootka false-cypress (two names for the same species) Osage-orange Pottawattami plum Siskiyou cypress Sitka alder, Sitka spruce, and Sitka cypress Washoe pine ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/10 "2021-05-04T14:00:53Z")
**Algonquian:** tuckahoe first element of skunk cabbage, skunk-weed, skunk-vine, skunk bush, skunk lily, and skunky monkeyflower first element of moose elm, moose maple poke, pokeweed, poke sallet ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/11 "2021-05-04T14:44:34Z")
I love me some saskatoon berry pie. The name of the [saskatoon berry](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelanchier_alnifolia) (which can refer either to the shrub itself or to the edible fruit it bears) comes from the Cree _misāskwatōmina_. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/12 "2021-05-04T14:52:07Z")
**Nahuatl:** mescal amole achiote chayote epazote nopal **Algonquian:** Puccoon pipsissewa hackmatack (another name for tamarack) **Taino or related:** guaiac mangrove (several species) **Tupi or related:** petunia (several species) **Creek:** coontie **Unknown Native American language:** catalpa _Libidibia coriaria_ goes by many different common names, most of them probably from Native American languages: divi-divi, cascalote, guaracabuya, guatapana, nacascol, and watapana. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/13 "2021-05-04T16:30:35Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > **From Algonquian languages:** > katniss Interesting … I thought Suzanne Collins coined this word to name her heroine. ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/14 "2021-05-04T16:49:08Z")
_Katniss_ is described in Northwest Passage (Kenneth Roberts book). ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/15 "2021-05-04T18:21:31Z")
Already on your list: - Cassava - Manioc Add: - Yuca (strong note: completely different than yucca) - Galibi Carib - Tapioca - Tupí via Portuguese, tapi’oka Fun fact: these are all the same plant, just tapioca is the processed form if you count that. ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/16 "2021-05-04T19:11:26Z")
Kinnikinnick is Algonquin for “smoking mixture” 🤨. Also known as Red Berry or Bear Berry in places. I’m not sure if the name was slang for whatever people smoked or if it only referenced a certain plant. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/17 "2021-05-04T20:07:27Z")
Sarsparilla, I assume, though I can’t find what language it’s from. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/18 "2021-05-04T20:43:20Z")
From [Spanish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_language) _[zarzaparrilla](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/zarzaparrilla#Spanish)_ . The first element may ultimately derive from [Basque](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basque_language); see [Spanish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_language) _[zarza](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/zarza#Spanish)_ (“blackberry bush”) for more. ---
**Author:** ![Vimp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vimp/32/4186_2.png) [@Vimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vimp)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/19 "2021-05-04T22:59:28Z")
Squash and pumpkin are both from Massachusett (Algonquin). Squash has similar variants in other native languages. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2021, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362/20 "2021-05-05T02:27:56Z")
> [@Vimp](#): > > Squash and pumpkin are both from Massachusett (Algonquin). I have squash in the OP, although from a related language. Pumpkin, according to my friends [Merriam & Webster](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pumpkin), actually goes back to Greek via Latin and French. Thanks everyone for all the contributions. I’m not in the least surprised that bibliophage is producing the most additions. Note that I’m not interested in things made from plants such as tapioca that someone suggested (succotash would also fall into this category). Furthermore names that are a compound of a Native-derived word or name plus another word are also not what I’m after. Those are not direct borrowings of a native name for a plant. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plants-names-from-native-american-languages/941362.md?page=2)