What does aquilegia mean?
An aquilegia is any member of a genus of perennial flowering plants in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, familiar to gardeners under the common name columbine. The plants are prized for their unusual flowers, in which each petal tapers into a long, nectar-bearing spur that gives the bloom a distinctive, almost sculptural appearance. Colours range from deep purple and blue to pink, red, yellow, and white, and many species hybridise freely, so garden forms are extraordinarily varied. Native largely to meadows and woodlands of the Northern Hemisphere, aquilegias thrive in partial shade and readily self-seed, making them a low-maintenance staple of cottage gardens. The name itself is Latin in origin, traditionally linked either to aquila, meaning eagle, whose talons the spurs were said to resemble, or to words for drawing water. Whether called aquilegia, columbine, or granny's bonnet, the plant carries strong associations with old-fashioned, informal gardens.
nounAny plant of the genus Aquilegia, comprising perennial flowering herbs of the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae), known for their distinctive spurred petals and commonly called columbines.
- A perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Aquilegia, bearing distinctive flowers with five spurred petals, widely grown in gardens.
"The aquilegia self-seeded throughout the cottage garden, its nodding spurred blooms appearing in shades of purple and cream."
"She planted aquilegia along the shady border, where its delicate spurred flowers bloomed in late spring."
"The meadow was scattered with wild aquilegia, their nodding violet-and-white heads swaying above the grass."
The standard English plural simply adds -s. In strict botanical writing, generic names such as Aquilegia are often left unitalicised in prose but treated as singular when referring to the genus as a whole.
"Several aquilegias had seeded themselves between the flagstones by the greenhouse door."
The aquilegia's common name 'columbine' comes from the Latin columba — dove — because its five spurred petals were thought to resemble a ring of nesting doves.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of aquilegia
Aquilegia comes directly from the Latin aquilegia, the name recorded by Pliny for this plant. The origin of the Latin word itself is debated: one tradition derives it from aquila, 'eagle', because the flower's spurs were likened to an eagle's talons, while another links it to aquilegus, 'drawer of water', referring to the nectar held in the spurs. The word entered English botanical usage in the sixteenth century alongside the study of classical herbals, and it remains the formal scientific name of the genus today.
How aquilegia is actually used
Aquilegia is a botanical term used mainly in gardening, horticulture, and botanical writing. In everyday speech the common name 'columbine' is more frequent, especially in North America, while 'granny's bonnet' is a traditional British folk name. The word is always treated as a countable noun; botanically it may refer to the genus as a whole or to individual plants.
Easily confused with aquilegia
Aquamarine is a blue-green gemstone and colour whose name also derives from Latin aqua ('water'), whereas an aquilegia is a flowering plant.