Ceratistes

Ceratistes Labour., ()
🌵 Author(s)
🌵 Type not cited
Etymology

Greek keratistēs ‘one that butts’. Presumably for the thick, horn-like spines. Labouret (Monogr. Cact.: 246. 1853) listed Ceratistes verus hort. Paris and Ceratistes copiapensis as synonyms of Echinocactus ceratistes (= Eriosyce aurata) and Echinocactus copiapensis, respectively. According to Fred Kattermann (Eriosyce (Cactac.) gen. revis. & ampl.: 131. 1994) these names “may have been abbreviations [of Echinocactus ceratistes verus and Echinocactus ceratistes copiapensis] omitting the generic name Echinocactus“. Salm-Dyck corrected the epithet of Echinocactus ceratistes to ceratitis (Greek keratitis ‘horned’).


How to cite

Maarten H.J. van der Meer (2023 May 31). Ceratistes. Dictionary of Cactus Names. Retrieved from https://www.cactusnames.org/ceratistes

Pronunciation
[Ceratístes]

Helmut Genaust (1996): Etymologisches Wörterbuch der botanischen Pflanzennamen, 3. Auflage

“Botanical Latin is essentially a written language, but the scientific names of plants often occur in speech. How they are pronounced really matters little provided they sound pleasant and are understood by all concerned.”

William T. Stearn (1983): Botanical Latin, 3rd Edition: 53