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Nobilis

/NOH-bih-lis/
🏷️ Taxonomy●● Intermediate

Also known as: nobile

An aesthetic and quality epithet meaning the plant is considered noble, distinguished, or of superior quality — one of the finest representatives of its kind. Applied with genuine admiration by naming botanists, it implies a plant worthy of cultivation and attention. Appears as nobilis (both genders).

Etymology

From Latin nobilis, meaning "well-known," "noble," or "of high birth," from noscere (to know).

Example

Laurus nobilis (bay laurel) — the laurel of poets and emperors, whose leaves crown victors to this day — and Abies nobilis (noble fir) are two of the most distinguished plants bearing this distinguished epithet.