Plants & CreaturesGreek → English
Dianthus
/daɪˈænθəs/noun
The genus of pinks, carnations and sweet williams, with fringed petals and a clove scent.
The Greek roots
Διός
Diós
of Zeus
ἄνθος
ánthos
flower
Literally: “flower of Zeus”
The story of the word
Theophrastus called the plant Dios anthos, and Linnaeus kept it as the genus name in 1753. The English name pink came from the frayed petal edge, the same sense as pinking shears, and the colour was named after the flower rather than the other way round. Carnation is a separate puzzle, probably from coronation, for the garlands the flowers were woven into.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
- First recorded
- 18th century
Same family
anthologyanthozoanchrysanthemumZeus
In a sentence
A row of dianthus edged the gravel path and smelled faintly of cloves.
She grows dianthus in poor chalky soil, which suits them.