What are the alternative names for the lotus? A rundown of the common names for the lotus
The lotus is the general name for two species of plants in the genus Nelumbo, family Nelumbonaceae, order Proteales. It is a perennial aquatic herbaceous flower with many varieties, divided into two major categories, ornamental and edible. It originated in the tropical and temperate regions of Asia, and records of its cultivation in China date back as early as the Zhou Dynasty. It has always been one of the subjects celebrated and painted by poets and literati through the ages. Let us now take a look at what alternative names the lotus has!
What are the alternative names for the lotus?
Lotus, Fuqu, Fentuolihua, Shuizhi, Shuiyun, Shuimu, Zezhi, Shuihua, Handan, Shuidancao, Furong, Shuifurong, Yuhuan, Liuyuechun, Chinese lotus, June flower goddess, Ouhua, Lingcao, Yuzhi, Furong in the water, Shuigong Xianzi, Junzihua, Tianxianhua, Hongqu, Xike, Bihuan Bianrong, Bianqu, Jin Furong, Cao Furong, Jingke, Cuiqian, Hongyi, Gonglian, Fozuoxu, and so on.
The lotus's growing environment
The lotus is an aquatic plant. It likes relatively stable, calm shallow water; lakes, marshes, wetlands and ponds are its suitable habitats. Its water requirements depend on the variety. Large varieties such as Gudailian and Hongqianye need a relatively deeper water level, but it must not exceed 1.7 m. Small and medium varieties are only suited to a water depth of 20-60 cm. At the same time, the lotus is very sensitive to water loss. In summer, if it is not watered for just 3 hours, the lotus leaves planted in a water vat will wilt; if the water is cut off for one day, the edges of the lotus leaves will scorch and the flower buds will wither. The lotus is also very fond of light and needs a full-light environment during its growing period. It is extremely intolerant of shade, and when grown in half shade it will show a strong tendency to lean toward the light.
The origins of the lotus's alternative names
1. Lotus (Hehua): Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica explains: "The lotus stem bears leaves above, and the leaves bear flowers above, hence the name."
2. Furong: also called "Furong." The Han dictionary Erya explains: "Furong is the spreading of the cattail." In addition, the Shuowen Jiezi says: "Before it opens it is Handan; after it opens it is Furong." Li Shizhen also said that Furong means "the meaning of spreading beauty," no wonder the Han Dynasty writer Sima Xiangru compared his wife Zhuo Wenjun to a Furong emerging from the water.
3. Shuizhi, Shuihua, Shuiyun, Shuidan, Shuimu, Zezhi: because the lotus is a perennial root aquatic plant, the ancients classified it as a water grass, and the names given were mostly headed by the character "shui" (water). The Three Kingdoms writer Cao Zhi praised it in his Rhapsody on Furong: "Surveying the flourishing beauty of a hundred plants, none has the singular spirit of this flower," likening the lotus to the lingzhi of the water.
4. Junzihua, Lingbo Xianzi, Shuigong Xianzi, Yuhuan: according to the Beimeng Suoyan, during the Yuanhe period of the Tang Dynasty (806-820), Su Changyuan lived in Wuzhong (present-day Suzhou), where he encountered a young woman in plain clothes with a powdered face, who gave him a jade ring. Not long after, he discovered that lotuses were blooming in the pond in his courtyard, and in the flower's center there was also an identical jade ring, but "when broken, it broke off." From this, later generations also called the lotus Yuhuan.
5. June flower goddess: in the ancient Jiangnan custom, the 24th day of the sixth lunar month was the lotus's birthday, and so the lotus also has the elegant title "June flower goddess."
6. Jin Furong, Cao Furong: to express admiration for the lotus's noble and pure form, Jin Furong and Cao Furong were used to liken the rarity of the lotus's character.
7. Xike, Jingke, Cuiqian, Hongyi, Gonglian, Fozuoxu: Xike and Jingke emphasize the lotus's growing environment and its quiet, refined state; Cuiqian is an elegant name for the new lotus; Hongyi is another name for lotus petals; Gonglian is a laudatory name for lotus petals; and Fozuoxu is another name for the lotus stamen.