A Grammatical Dictionary of Botanical Latin

call-, calli-, callo-; also cal-, cali-, calo- [see note]: -callis, gen.sg. -callidis (s.f.III): in Gk. comp., beautiful, elegant, fine; blessed; adorned, as with beautiful things or attributes [> Gk. calli-, in Gk. comps. “gives the additional idea of beautiful to the simple word” (Liddel & Scott); > Gk. kallos,-eos (s.n.III), beauty, a beautiful object, also kalon, (s.n.II) > kalos,-E,-on (adj.) beautiful, fair; = Lat. pulcher,-ra,-rum (adj.A).

NOTE: the superlative of the Gk. adjective is kallistos,-E,-on > callistos.

NOTE: in compounds with the double ‘ell’ (call-): typically if both elements in a compound are Greek, then the notion is ‘beautiful.’ If both are Latin, then the notion of ‘thick, hardened, callose, callous’ is intended [> callus,-i (s.m.II), q.v., a callus or hardening]. Latin does not have a word ‘call-‘ or ‘cal-‘ meaning ‘beautiful.’

- callianthus, with beautiful flowers; callibotryus, with beautiful clusters; callicarpus, with beautiful fruits; callichromus or callichrous, beautifully colored.

NOTE: cal-, cali-, calo-: in Gk. comp.: kalli- is “the first part in compounds, where the notion of ‘beautiful’ is added to the simple notion: kalo- is later and less common: sometimes “like a mere adj. with its substantive, as kallipais = kalE pais.” (Liddell & Scott);

- calochromus, beautifully colored; caloneurus, beautifully nerved; calophlebius, beautifully veined; calophyllus, with beautiful leaves.

Caladenia, R. Brown. From kalos, beautiful, and aden, a gland ; in reference to the disc of the labellum being finely beset with glands (Paxton).

Calamintha, -ae (s.f.I): the “old generic name meaning ‘beautiful mint’” (Fernald, 1950, now Satureja calamintha (L.) Scheele).

Calochortus,-i (s.m.II) Pursh. From kalos, handsome, and chortus, grass. Liliacece. This is a splendid genus of plants. (Paxton).

Calonyction. The circumstance of the flowers opening at night has suggested the derivation of the generic name, from kalos, beautiful, and nyx, night. (Paxton).

Calopogon,-onis (s.m.III) R. Br., > Gk. calos, beautiful + pogon, beard; Ptychostomum calophyllum, > Gk. calos, beautiful + phyllum, leaf.

Calothrix,-icis (s.f.III)”The name applies to the beauty of the filaments; and is taken from kalos, beautiful, and thrix, a hair” (Paxton).

Ptychostomum calophyllum, a species of moss with vivid red leaf borders and costa.

NOTE: in compounds with the double ‘ell’ (call-): typically if both elements in a compound are Greek, then the notion is ‘beautiful.’ If both are Latin, then the notion of ‘thick, hardened, callose, callous’ is intended [> callus,-i (s.m.II), q.v., a callus or hardening]. Latin does not have a word ‘call-‘ or ‘cal-‘ meaning ‘beautiful.’

Nouns ending in -callis,-idis (s.f.III):

Drymocallis (s.f.III), abl. sg.. Drymocallide, Wood beauty. Fom Gk. drymos, woods, and callos, beauty.

Hemerocallis (s.f.III), abl. sg. Hemerocalle. From hemera, a day, and callos, beauty; alluding to the beauty and duration of the flowers(Paxton); from the large flowers "collapsing and decaying after expending for a single day" (Fernald 1950).

Hymenocallis (s.f.III) Salisb. (the epithets have feminine endings) from Gk. hymen, a membrane and callos, beauty, from the delicate texture of the perianth; from the "beautiful membrane which connects the filaments;” “It refers to the curious shape of the flowers, which consist of six narrow, curved petals attached to a shallow cup that is formed from the fused stamens. The effect is of a spidery daffodil or lily, thus explaining the common name “spider lily” (Wikipedia “Hymenocallis” June 2017)

Petrocallis (s.f.III), abl. sg. Petrocalle. > Gk. petros, rock + kallis, beauty; “from the habitat and the beauty of the flowers” (Stearn 1996); Petrocallis. From petros, a rock, and calos, beautiful; the plant adorns the rocks on which it grows. (Paxton).

NOTE: the following passages indicate the genitive sg. in compounds in -callis,-idis. This is a feminine noun suffix;

- [Draba] semina biseriata, immarginata, funiculis setaceis (in Petrocallide septo adnatis) (B&H), seeds in two rows, lacking a border, with the funiculus bristle-like (in Petrocallis adnate to the septum).

- [fungi] praeamare videtur scapos foliaque plantarum Liliacearum exaridarum, v. c. Hemerocallidis fulvae (S&A), it seems to love above all the dried out scapes and leaves of Liliaceous plants, for example, Hemmerocallis fulva.

- Habitus omnino Petrocallidis pyrenaicae (Boissier), the habit is completely that of Petrocallis pyrenaica.

Callicarpa,-ae L. (s.f.I), Beauty-berry, from Gk. callos, beauty and carpos, fruit;

Callicladium,-i Crum (s.n.II), a pleurocarpous moss with beautiful (calli-) branches (-cladium);

Callirhoe Nutt. (s.f.I) (Malvaceae): [> Gk. kallirroos,-ov (adj.), also kalliroos ‘beautiful-flowing,’ a metaphore of the flute; KallirroE was a spring at Athens (Liddell & Scott).

Callistemon,-onis (s.m.III). The name refers to the beautiful scarlet colour of the stamens of some species; and is derived from kallistos, beautiful, and stemon, a stamen. (Paxton).

Callistemma,-atis (s.n.III). The name refers to the beautiful flowers; and is derived from callistos, prettiest, and stemma, a, crown (Paxton),

Callistachys,-ydis (s.f.III). The name is expressive of the fine spikes of flowers; and is derived from kalos, beautiful, and stachys, a spike (Paxton).

Callithaume,-ae (s.f.I). From kalos, beautiful, and thauma, a thing to be admired. (Paxton).

Callitriche,-ae (s.f.I) > Gk. callos, beautiful, and thrix, hair, in allusion to the slender stems.

call-, calli-: in L. comp. thick, hardened, callose, callous [> L. callum,-i (s.n.II), the thick, tough or hardened skin of animal bodies; hardness (Lewis & Short];

- foliolis utrinque fere 80 confertis angusto-linearibus inferne subtetragonis superne canaliculatis basi vix calligeris (F. Mueller), with the leaflets on both sides almost 80, close together, narrowly linear, below nearly 4-angled, above canaliculate, scarcely callus-bearing at the base.

Callicostella, a genus of mosses with a robust, double costa in the leaves, “nervis callosis,” with thick nerves.

NOTE: not to be confused with Gk. call-, calli-, ‘beautiful. In compounds with the double ‘ell’ (call-): typically if both elements in a compound are Greek, then the notion is ‘beautiful.’ If both are Latin, then the notion of ‘thick, hardened, callose, callous’ is intended [> callus,-i (s.m.II), q.v., a callus or hardening]. Latin does not have a word ‘call-‘ or ‘cal-‘ meaning ‘beautiful.’