Do you know why the yellow meadow flower was called buttercup?

One day, while walking in a meadow not far from our house, I met a little boy. He asked: "Do you know why the yellow meadow flower was called a buttercup?" Then I noticed the little yellow flowers that covered the meadow completely, and I thought. I could not answer this question.

Buttercup is familiar to everyone from early childhood. In nature, there are a large number of its species. At us the most widespread kind - a buttercup acrid. This herbaceous perennial plant, in height reaching one meter, naked or slightly pubescent, with a straight stem. Its flowers in diameter reach two centimeters, they have five golden-yellow petals. The plant blooms in late spring and during the summer. Buttercote acrid grows in meadows, glades, in light forests and as a weed plant in the fields. There is a variety with double petals, which is grown as an ornamental plant.

Few of those people who admire the beautiful sun stars on the meadow, know why the yellow meadow flower was called buttercup.

All plants are called not by chance. Therefore, any plant name can tell an interesting story about its owner. So it happened with the buttercup.

Absolutely all of its parts are poisonous. Therefore, it is impossible that the juice of the plant gets into wounds, cuts and scratches. In addition, that the flower is poisonous, it is also a medicinal plant. In folk medicine is used to treat gout, rheumatism, neuralgic and headaches.

... After that meeting in the meadow passed many years. During this time, I read a large number of books about plants, articles from newspapers and magazines, which tells about the names of plants. And now I can say with certainty why the yellow meadow flower was called buttercup.

So, the name arose precisely because of its burning and poisonous juice. "Burning" in the traditional way means "fierce". In Russian it entered in a diminutive manner for the small size and beauty of the flowers. So there was a kind word "buttercup".

In some parts of Russia, the plant is also called night blindness. According to the beliefs, these chickens are blinded by chickens, and people, wiping their eyes with juicy buttercup, inadvertently stop seeing for a while.

In Italy, because of the bright yellow shiny petals, this plant is called "golden buttons".

In the people there is a tradition in Holy Week during the Lent of yellow buttercups to entrust the Virgin Mary. According to one of the legends, Jesus Christ decided to show flowers as a sign of love and respect for his Mother. To do this, he turned the stars from the sky into small florets - buttercups.

There is another version of the origin of this plant name. It could come to us from the Latin language, where the word "luteum" means yellow.

In the scientific genus buttercup is called Ranunculus. This Latin name appeared a long time ago, and in Russian it is translated as a "little frog", as buttercups growing in the wild, like frogs, prefer to settle in damp but warm and sunny places. Whatever the answer to the question of why the yellow meadow flower was called buttercup, this plant is always associated with us in summer and the sun.