Lupins Are Named After the Wolf
A lupin is a tall garden flower. Its Latin name means wolfish, from a mistaken belief about what it did to the soil.
A lupin is a tall garden plant with a spike of densely packed flowers. Its Latin name *lupinus* means wolfish, apparently because the plant was thought to ravage the soil like a wolf. The belief was exactly backwards: lupins are legumes that fix nitrogen and improve soil rather than exhausting it. Lupin seeds are edible after long soaking to remove bitter alkaloids, and are a recognised allergen in the European Union.
- A tall flowering plant. *A border of lupins.*
- Lupine — the American spelling. *A field of lupine.*
- Legume — its plant family. *A legume.*
- Nitrogen fixing — what it actually does. *Nitrogen-fixing roots.*
- Latin — *lupus*, wolf. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun (UK) | lupin | A blue lupin. |
| Noun (US) | lupine | Lupine. |
| Plural | lupins | Tall lupins. |
| Latin | lupinus | Wolfish. |
| Latin | lupus | Wolf. |
- The lupins flowered in June.Garden.
- Lupins fix nitrogen in the soil.Botany.
- The wolf name reflects a mistaken belief.Etymology.
Plants named after animals
- Lupin — from the wolf
- Dandelion — from French *dent de lion*, lion's tooth
- Snapdragon — from the flower's hinged mouth
- Foxglove — possibly from folk's glove, meaning fairies
- Cowslip — from an Old English word for cow dung
Latin *lupinus*, wolfish, from *lupus*, wolf, apparently from a belief that the plant exhausted the soil.
Do lupins damage the soil?
No, the opposite. They are legumes that fix nitrogen and improve soil fertility, so the wolf name is based on a mistake.
Are lupin seeds edible?
Some varieties are, after long soaking to remove bitter alkaloids. Lupin is a declared allergen in the EU.