Nerium oleander L., a circum-Mediterranean study of the etymological, ecological, historical, mythological, and ethnobotanical roots of its vernacular names

Dafni, Amots;Kleinberger, Aharon Geva;Khatib, Salekh Aqil;Petanidou, Theodora;Natale, Antonino De;Cortis, Pierluigi;Kozuharova, Ekaterina;Aytaç, Bedrettin;Blanché, Cèsar;Benítez, Guillermo

2026-01-01

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Nerium oleander is one of the most famous poisonous and horticultural plants of the Mediterranean, as well as in other regions of its distribution. In many cultures, oleander is associated with poisoning, simultaneously symbolizing beauty and evil. Due to its unique properties and large showy flowers, this plant has many names in various languages. METHODS: This paper presents an attempt to reconstruct the historical, ethnobotanical, and etymological roots in 23 languages of 180 vernacular names of Nerium oleander around the Mediterranean. We used the plant 's morphological data, myths and legends about it, its chemical properties and uses, as well as historical evidence and ethnobotanical data, to explain the meaning, origin, migration, and history of the plant 's names. RESULTS: The languages with the highest number of names are Turkish (30), followed by Italian (21), Greek (20), Catalan (16), Arabic (15), Spanish (14), and French (13). The remaining 14 languages collectively account for 51 names. These names were categorized as follows: Derivatives of 'generic' names: Nerium, oleander, and difla / arodafne (25 names in 14 languages); names referring to morphological characteristics, color, and odor (11 names in 5 languages); names referring to similarity to other plants (51 in 14 languages); names related to taste, chemical constituents, and their uses and effects (53 in 16 languages); names related to religion and local saints (12 in 7 languages); names related to habitat and places (11 in 8 languages); names falling outside the above categories or unexplained (16 in 8 languages). CONCLUSIONS: The distribution of these names across languages and categories reflects Nerium oleander 's toxicity, similarity to other plants, historical distribution, and to a lesser extent-its specific habitat and traces of cultural migrations. Some names preserve evidence of extinct past uses.