Jan 8, 2011 18:19
13 yrs ago
French term
France
licmi
French to English
Science
Botany
From a description of the plants growing in the gardens of Versailles. Help???
On y voit des *licmis*, des pivoines, des flocs, des cléomes, ce sont des plantes qui étaient typiques des plantations du temps de Louis XV.
On y voit des *licmis*, des pivoines, des flocs, des cléomes, ce sont des plantes qui étaient typiques des plantations du temps de Louis XV.
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +2 | lychnis |
SJLD
|
| 2 | lychnis |
Rachel Fell
|
References
| licmis |
Travelin Ann
|
Proposed translations
+2
5 mins
Selected
lychnis
Maltese/Jerusalem cross
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Note added at 10 mins (2011-01-08 18:29:22 GMT)
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although it's probably Lychnis coronaria - Rose campion - I have 100s of these all over my garden
Jerusalem cross is Lycnis chalcedonica
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Note added at 15 hrs (2011-01-09 09:19:48 GMT)
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Yes, the French common names are much closer to the botanical names than in English. However, I'm not sure whether this is referring to rose campion or Maltese cross. They both could well have been present in a 16th century garden.
Careful, there are other campions in the Silene genus e.g. red campion is a related wildflower species http://www.english-country-garden.com/flowers/red-campion.ht...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silene
Pinks are dianthus, quite a different flower.
Cleome is spider flower.
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Note added at 15 hrs (2011-01-09 09:56:05 GMT)
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I recommend the Royal Horticultural Society website - plant finder
Here, for Lychnis chalcedonica:
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/horticulturaldatabase/hortdatabase.as...
Common name(s)
Maltese cross, Jerusalem cross, common rose campion, Constantinople campion, cross of Jerusalem, fireball, flower of Bristow, flower of Constantinople, gardener's delight, gardener's eye, great candlestick, knight's cross, London pride, meadow campion, none-such, red Robin, scarlet lightning, scarlet lychnis, tears of Christ
I do wonder about the "common rose campion" though, since this is the usual common name for L. coronaria.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 10 mins (2011-01-08 18:29:22 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
although it's probably Lychnis coronaria - Rose campion - I have 100s of these all over my garden
Jerusalem cross is Lycnis chalcedonica
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 15 hrs (2011-01-09 09:19:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Yes, the French common names are much closer to the botanical names than in English. However, I'm not sure whether this is referring to rose campion or Maltese cross. They both could well have been present in a 16th century garden.
Careful, there are other campions in the Silene genus e.g. red campion is a related wildflower species http://www.english-country-garden.com/flowers/red-campion.ht...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silene
Pinks are dianthus, quite a different flower.
Cleome is spider flower.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 15 hrs (2011-01-09 09:56:05 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
I recommend the Royal Horticultural Society website - plant finder
Here, for Lychnis chalcedonica:
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/horticulturaldatabase/hortdatabase.as...
Common name(s)
Maltese cross, Jerusalem cross, common rose campion, Constantinople campion, cross of Jerusalem, fireball, flower of Bristow, flower of Constantinople, gardener's delight, gardener's eye, great candlestick, knight's cross, London pride, meadow campion, none-such, red Robin, scarlet lightning, scarlet lychnis, tears of Christ
I do wonder about the "common rose campion" though, since this is the usual common name for L. coronaria.
Note from asker:
| THANK YOU, very helpful!! Do you think I could use 'campions' as my translation (or possibly 'pinks'??) I want to be accurate, but don't think 'lychnis' is a word the audience will understand. |
| Thanks for your advice! It's frustrating for me not to have the visuals which go with the text I'm translating (commentary for a documentary film) as that would resolve the issue. Will avoid 'pinks' and think about campions some more!! |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Rachel Fell
: !
1 min
|
|
ha!
|
|
| agree |
Alison Sabedoria (X)
: sounds likely
1 hr
|
|
thanks :-)
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "I truly appreciate all of your help with this, and did go for 'lychnis' in the end to preserve accuracy, especially since the text went on to describe the King's love of botany (making a botanical term sound more appropriate to me)."
7 mins
Rachel Fell
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
Thorough, knowledgeable and resourceful
Native in: English (Variant: UK) 
Works in: French to English, Spanish to English, Italian to English, and 4 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
36
lychnis
not sure, just a possibility
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Note added at 17 hrs (2011-01-09 11:31:42 GMT)
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commenting here, as more room:
In general, I'd avoid using "common names" here - sometimes these can be confusing, as usage varies from place to place and may also be unknown to many; could be one or more of several garden varieties of lychnis; in any case, it's always safer to include the scientific name or part of it, as in cleome (I don't know them as spider flowers)
Lychnis
Lych'nis noun [ Latin , a kind of red flower, Greek lychni`s ; confer ly`chnos a lamp.] (Botany) A genus of Old World plants belonging to the Pink family ( Caryophyllaceæ ). Most of the species have brilliantly colored flowers and cottony leaves, which may have anciently answered as wicks for lamps. The botanical name is in common use for the garden species. T …
Found on http://www.encyclo.co.uk/webster/L/72
http://www.encyclo.co.uk/define/Lychnis
Pinks are dianthus, as SJLD says, and related to carnations - http://www.allwoods.net/ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/7652632/Top-ten-dianthu...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 17 hrs (2011-01-09 11:31:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
commenting here, as more room:
In general, I'd avoid using "common names" here - sometimes these can be confusing, as usage varies from place to place and may also be unknown to many; could be one or more of several garden varieties of lychnis; in any case, it's always safer to include the scientific name or part of it, as in cleome (I don't know them as spider flowers)
Lychnis
Lych'nis noun [ Latin , a kind of red flower, Greek lychni`s ; confer ly`chnos a lamp.] (Botany) A genus of Old World plants belonging to the Pink family ( Caryophyllaceæ ). Most of the species have brilliantly colored flowers and cottony leaves, which may have anciently answered as wicks for lamps. The botanical name is in common use for the garden species. T …
Found on http://www.encyclo.co.uk/webster/L/72
http://www.encyclo.co.uk/define/Lychnis
Pinks are dianthus, as SJLD says, and related to carnations - http://www.allwoods.net/ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/7652632/Top-ten-dianthu...
Note from asker:
| Thank you, Rachel: looks like I will have to stick to the botanical names in the interests of accuracy (I take your point about common names varying by region). Again, very helpful references here; you are such a great source!! |
Reference comments
6 mins
Travelin Ann
Native in English
Timely translations
Native in: English
Works in: French to English, English, English to French
Reference:
licmis
From a tree species list:
Licmis Licaria misantlae (Brandegee)Kosterm Lauraceae Tree LS002338
Licmis Licaria misantlae (Brandegee)Kosterm Lauraceae Tree LS002338
Discussion
Of course you need to have the Latin name, which is easy enough when the French is spelt correctly!
Re common names - I agree with Rachel that since they are not universal, they are best avoided. I don't know most of the British ones myself since I'm not British and I garden in French :-) Always remember too that an English language text is not necessarily for people with English mother tongue. If the visitors are interested in plants, they will perhaps be more familiar with the botanical names. If not, many will probably not even know the common names.