Officinalis
/oh-fis-ih-NAH-lis/🏷️ Taxonomy●● Intermediate
Also known as: officinale
A specific epithet meaning the plant was officially recognized for medicinal or herbal use and was sold in apothecary shops. It signals a long history of human use for healing purposes. Appearing as officinale, officinalis, or officinarum depending on grammatical gender.
Etymology
From Latin officina, meaning "workshop" or "apothecary shop," from opus (work) + facere (to make).
Example
“Salvia officinalis (common sage) and Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) both bear this epithet for their centuries-old medicinal use.”