The herball or Generall historie of plantes. Gathered by Iohn Gerarde of London Master in Chirurgerie very much enlarged and amended by Thomas Iohnson citizen and apothecarye of London

¶ The Names.

It is called in Greeke 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 it is named of Apuleius, Absinthium rusticum, countrey Wormwood,

or pesants Wormewood: we haue named it Absinthium latifolium, broad leafed Wormewood, that it may differ from the rest: the Interpretors of the Arabians call the better sort, which Dioscorides nameth Ponticke Wormwood, Romanum Absinthium, Roman Wormwood: and after these, the bar∣barous Physitions of the later age: the Italians name Wormwood Assenso: the Spaniards, Axen∣xios, Assensios, most of them Donzell: the Portingales, Alosna: in high Dutch, 〈◊〉〈◊〉, 〈◊〉〈◊〉: in French, Aluyne: in English, common VVormwood.

Victor 〈◊〉〈◊〉, a singular Physition, in his practise tooke it for Absinthium 〈◊〉〈◊〉.

2 This is commonly called Absinthium Romanum: and in low Dutch, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 〈◊〉〈◊〉: by which name it is knowne to very many Physitions and Apothecaries, who vse this in stead of 〈◊〉〈◊〉 wormwood: furthermore it hath a leafe and floure far lesse than the other wormwoods: likewise the smell of this is not onely pleasant, but it yeeldeth also a spicie sent, wheras all the rest haue a strong and lothsome smell: and this Ponticke Wormwood doth differ from that which Dioscorides com∣mendeth: for Dioscorides his Pontick wormwood is accounted among them of the first kinde, or of broad leased wormwood, which thing also Galen affirmeth in his sixt booke of the Faculties of me∣dicines, in the chapter of Sothernwood. There be three kinds of Wormwood (saith he) wherof they vse to call one by the generall name, and that is especially Pontick: whereby it is manifest that Ga∣len in this place hath referred Ponticke to no other than to the first wormwood; and therefore ma∣ny not without cause maruell, that Galen hath written in his booke of the Method of curing, how Pontick wormwood is lesse in floure and leafe: many excuse him, and lay the fault vpon the cor∣ruption of the booke, and in his 9. booke of Method, the lesser they would haue the longer: there∣sore this wormwood with the lesser leafe is not the right Pontick wormewood, neither againe the Arabians Romane wormewood, who haue no other Romane than Ponticke of the Grecians. Also many beleeue that this is called Santonicum, but this is not to be sought for in Mysia, Thracia, or other countries Eastward, but in France beyond the Alps, if we may beleeue Dioscorides his 〈◊〉〈◊〉 there be that would haue it grow not beyond the Alps of Italy, but in Galatia a countrie in Asia, & in the region of the Sardines, which is in the lesser Asia; whereupon it was called in Greeke 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 which was changed into the name Santonicum through the errour of the translators: Dioscorides his copies keep the word Sardonium, & Galens copies Santonicum, which came to posterity as it seemeth. iscalled in English, Romane Wormewood, garden or Cypres Wormewood, and French Worm∣wood.