A Grammatical Dictionary of Botanical Latin

Giant: enormitas,-atis (s.f.III), enormitate, enormity of size, vastness, hugeness; gigas,-gantis (s.m.III, both a Gk. and L. word), abl. sg. gigante; a giant; nom. & acc. plur. gigantes [> L. gigas,-antis (s.m.III), the Gigantes, sons of Terra, who stormed the heavens, killed by Jupiter's lightning}; titan, gen.sg. titanis (s.m.III), q.v., abl.sg. titane, gen.pl. titanum: titan, a titan; see gigas; see monster;

- ut cum Titanis, ita cum Gigantibus, as with the Titans, so with the Giants.

Peloria,-ae (s.f.I),q.v., abl.sg. peloria: peloria, an abnormal regularity or symmetricity in a normally irregular flower [> Gk. pelOros, monstrous > pelOr, portent, monster: pelOr (s.n.III), portent, prodigy, monster; also pelOron (s.n.II), “of the Gorgon; of the offspring of the earth; of the enchanted animals of Circe; as adj. pelOros,-E,-on, “monstrous, prodigious, huge [as of huge animals], with the collateral notion of ‘terrible” (Liddell & Scott)]

NOTE: jagus “A gardener’s corruption of gigas” (Stearn 1996).

Amorphophallus titanum, ‘of the Titans;’ the Titan Arum (Araceae), with the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world.

Cyrotopodium gigas; Dracula gigas; Epidendrum gigas; Habenaria gigas, the epithets all nouns in apposition; Cynorkis gigas, a species that once had the largest flowers in the genus. Orchidaceae.

Titanoboa,-ae (s.f.I): Titanoboa cerrejonensis, ‘Titanic Boa’ a large fossil snake.

giant-: see giga-; gigant-, giganto-: in L. & Gk. comp.