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Northern Ontario Plant Database |
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Common Names
Common names, also called vernacular names, are considered easier to learn by the general
public, so why don't we use common names all the time? The answer is that common names
pose a real communication problem for scientists from different areas since these names usually
differ from region to region. For example, the mountain cranberry of Ontario, Vaccinium vitis-idaea, is known as the partridgeberry in Newfoundland, while Mitchella repens is called
partridgeberry in Ontario and twinberry in Newfoundland. To confuse things more,
Vaccinium vitis-idaea is known in other regions of North America and northern Europe by a
variety of common English names, including foxberry, cowberry, red whortleberry,
whimberry, lingonberry, or tytebær. Similarly, Mitchella repens also is known as deerberry
or squawvine. Another example is the genus Amelanchier, which is known in various parts of
Canada by the English common names of serviceberry, Juneberry, shadbush, chuckleypear,
wild plum, and sugar plum. When considering French common names in North America, there
seems to be less variation amongst the names, plus many common names in French are literal
translations of the scientific name. For example, ronce hispide is the French common name for
Rubus hispidus L., while in English, this plant is known as hispid blackberry, trailing blackberry,
or swamp dewberry.
To say the least, names can be very confusing, whether you use scientific or common names.
Therefore, lists of names, called checklists, are often developed for various regions. These
publications include the scientific names and usually one or more common names of the species
found in the described area. This website includes a checklist of the plants in northern Ontario.
Known English and French common names have been included. In the future, we plan to add
Cree and Ojibway common names to the list.
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