I was recently thumbing through a seed catalog and found myself wondering why so many plant names end in ‘wort.’ Lungwort, St. John’s wort, and bladderwort are just a few examples that come to mind. Having so many plant names end in ‘wort,’ it seems there should be a wort plant family. Yet, lungwort is a type of borage, spiderwort belongs to the Commelinaceae family, and sleepwort is a type of fern. They are totally unrelated plants. So, what does ‘wort’ mean?
Before Carolus Linnaeus developed the classification system we use today, plants were grouped differently. The suffix ‘wort’ was given to plants that were considered beneficial. The opposite of a ‘wort’ was a ‘weed’ – such as ragweed, knotweed, or milkweed. Just like today, ‘weeds’ referred to undesirable plants (or at least ones that had no medicinal or household use known to that culture).
The suffix originates from Proto-Germanic wurtiz and shares a common origin with the Old Norse urt which means ‘plant’ or ‘herb.’ In Old English, this evolved into wyrt. According to the Oxford English Dictionary’s Ask Oxford website, “It was often used in the names of herbs and plants that had medicinal uses, the first part of the word denoting the complaint against which it might be specially efficacious.”
Stemming as it does from Middle English, the ‘wort’ suffix is attached to many plants that are not native to the United States. Nevertheless, as botanists explored America, they found some plants that are native and yet are of the same species as non-native plants whose common name includes the suffix ‘wort.’ In the early days of our country’s exploration and settlement, traditional medicine was often the only option for treating illness or injury.
One of my favorite ‘worts’ to share with folks is soapwort. If you are at the Salt Bay Nature Center in late June or early July, you will likely see its light-pink blossoms near the back door. Feel free to pick some flowers and rub them between your hands with a bit of water, and enjoy the sudsy froth from the saponins – which really do act as a gentle detergent.
