Re: Re Nuptial Trees
Cali - OK, so *not* my last word....
>Tim, the confusion is built in. The "common" name for Eriobotrya japonica
>IS "Japanese medlar". I think "loquat" is just used for the fruit. I've
>never hear of a "loquat-tree."
'Common' name??! Well, if you say so. Hands up those who've heard or
used it! And I just looked up loquat in the dictionary and find that
it's from the Chinese, luh quat - that is, it's the Chinese name for
the tree, not the fruit! So, when we call the fruit 'loquat,' we're in
fact wrong. We should call it 'loquat fruit' - or something snappier!
but not just loquat. On the other hand, if we call the tree loquat,
we're right. And, on the third hand, if we call the tree 'Japanese
medlar,' we're just being deliberately and maliciously confusing!
Tim Longville
