MULTILINGUAL MULTISCRIPT PLANT NAME DATABASE

Proposed Chinese Names for some European / Australian Fruit Cultivars

IN PROGRESS

Most of the following is being done in response to a request from a Chinese colleague and to demonstrate to AusAID that such work is very necessary, urgent, and worthy of funding. With the exception of Prunus, most of the species below have not yet been "sorted" . We have mostly concentrated on Chinese and English names so we have not benefited from the experience of handling other languages in relation to the names below. We will stand by our choice of Chinese names anyhow, based on the notes below. We hope that we won't make any vital mistake. Please note that despite our high standards the usual disclaimer applies. Until proven otherwise names with a red tick ( v ) will be assumed correct and will remain our final choice.

A good example of name confusion, in this case as a consequence of careless import, is told by Jill Kellow from Burnley College, Australia, in her article "The Manchurian Mystery, The Story of two Leaves".

 

Prunus amygdalus Batsch

These two French names are rather difficult to translate. The homonym Peerless making it extra difficult so perhaps names based on the type of shell would be suitable ? Evidently not perfect.

Prunus amygdalus Batsch cv. 'Nonpareil'

CHINESE : Bao pi bian tao, Bao pi xing ren ?

ENGLISH : Nonpareil almond. (paper-thin shell type of almond. Name means "peerless" but Peerless refers to another cultivar in USA)

Photograph and description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Prunus amygdalus Batsch cv. 'Neplus Ultra'

CHINESE : Cu pi bian tao, Cu pi xing ren ?

ENGLISH : Neplus Ultra almond, Neplus almond (USA) (rough woody shell)

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Prunus amygdalus Batsch cv. 'Brandes Jordan'

CHINESE : Bu lan dai si qiao dan v , Da xing ren ?.

ENGLISH : Brandes Jordan almond.

 

Malus domestica Borkh.

 

Malus domestica Borkh. cv. 'Granny Smith'

CHINESE : Ao zhou qing ping v

ENGLISH : Granny Smith apple.

Malus domestica Borkh. cv. 'Granny Smith Red'

SYNONYM(S) : Malus domestica Borkh. cv. 'Lady Williams'

CHINESE : Ao zhou hong ping v

ENGLISH : Red Granny Smith apple.

 

Prunus armeniaca L.

Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Moorpark'

SYNONYM(S) : Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Anson's', Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Dunmore', Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Temple's'

CHINESE : Mo er kong yuan ?

ENGLISH : Moorpark apricot.

(multipurpose cultivar, not to be confused with Moorpack, a US cultivar)

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Moorpack'

ENGLISH : Moorpack apricot. (for eating fresh)

Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Divinity'

CHINESE : Sheng li ?

ENGLISH : Apricot 'Divinity'.

Prunus armeniaca L. cv. 'Trevatt'

CHINESE : Te lei wa te. v

ENGLISH : Trevatt apricot.

 

Prunus cerasus L.

Prunus cerasus L. cv. 'Black Boy'

CHINESE : Hei nan hai v

ENGLISH : Cherry 'Black Boy'.

Prunus cerasus L. cv. 'William's Favorite'

CHINESE : Wei lian si ai or xi hao (preferred = ?)

ENGLISH : Cherry 'William's Favorite'.

Vitis vinifera L.

CHINESE : Ou zhou zhong pu tao.

ENGLISH : European grape, European grapevine.

Vitis vinifera L. cv. 'Muscat'

CHINESE : Mei gui xiang pu tao.

ENGLISH : Muscat grape, Muscat grapevine.

Vitis vinifera L. cv. 'Black Muscat'

CHINESE : Hei mei gui. v

ENGLISH : Black Muscat, Black Muscat grape.

SPANISH : Moscatello Nero.

Vitis vinifera L. cv. 'Thompson Seedless'

CHINESE : Tang pu sen wu he v , Tang pu sen wu zi

ENGLISH : Thompson Seedless grape, Sultana Thompson Seedless, Sultana (ingredient, dried fruit).

Vitis vinifera L. cv. 'Waltham Cross'

SYNONYM(S) : Vitis vinifera L. cv. 'Dattier St. Vallier'

CHINESE : Wo er se mu za jiao. v

ENGLISH : Waltham Cross grape.

FRENCH : Raisin Dattier St. Vallier. (French/American cross)

 

Actinidia deliciosa (A.Chev.) C.F. Liang & A.R. Ferguson

Actinidia deliciosa (A.Chev.) C.F. Liang & A.R. Ferguson cv. 'Hayward'

CHINESE : Hai wo de. v

ENGLISH : Hayward kiwi fruit.

Actinidia deliciosa (A.Chev.) C.F. Liang & A.R. Ferguson cv. 'Male'

CHINESE : Xiong zhu.

ENGLISH : Male kiwi fruit.

Is this a cultivar name ? probably not !

Morus nigra L.

Morus nigra L. cv. 'Black Boy'

CHINESE : Hei nan hai v

ENGLISH : Mulberry 'Black Boy'.

Morus nigra L. cv. 'Hick's Fancy'

CHINESE : Xi ke si v

ENGLISH : Mulberry 'Hick's Fancy'.

Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. nectarina (Aiton) Maxim.

Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. nectarina (Aiton) Maxim. cv. 'Fairlane'

CHINESE : Qing lang. v

ENGLISH : Fairlane nectarine. (Yellow late nectarine, clingstone)

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. nectarina (Aiton) Maxim. cv. 'Flavourtop'

CHINESE : Mei wei. v

ENGLISH : Flavortop nectarine (USA), Flavourtop nectarine. (Yellow mid-season nectarine, freestone)

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. nectarina (Aiton) Maxim. cv. 'Goldmine'

CHINESE : Jin kuang. v (a better word could be worked out if necessary).

ENGLISH : Goldmine nectarine, Gold Mine nectarine. (White mid-season nectarine, freestone)

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

 

Pyrus communis L.

Pyrus communis L. cv.gr. Beurre cv. 'Beurre Bosc'

SYNONYM(S) : Pyrus communis L. cv.gr. Beurre cv. 'Beurré Bosc'

CHINESE : Bao shi ke. v

ENGLISH : Beurre Bosc pear.

FRENCH : Poire beurré bosc.

Photo of leaves, Photo of fruit from ARS - GRIN Database - Image Collection.

Photograph and description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Pyrus communis L. cv.gr. Bartlett cv. 'Williams Bon Chrétien'

SYNONYM(S) : Pyrus communis L. cv.gr. Bartlett cv. 'Duchess'

CHINESE : Wei lian si li v , Wei lian si v , Wei lian mu si v , Ba te li te v , Ba te li te li v .

ENGLISH : Bartlett pear (USA), Williams pear (UK, Aust.).

FRENCH : Poire Guillaume , Poire Williams, Poire Williams Bon Chrétien, Stair's Pear.

JAPANESE : Baatoretto.

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Pyrus communis L. cv.gr. Bartlett cv. 'Bartlett - Sensation Red'

CHINESE : Ao zhou hong wei lian si v / Ao zhou hong ba te li te v

ENGLISH : Pear 'Red Sensation', Sensation pear, Red bartlett, Red Williams.

FRENCH : Poire Williams rouge.

JAPANESE : Reddo baatoretto.

(origin Australia 1940, not to be confused with "Max Red", although the difference is not recognized by everybody).

Description from Sierra Gold Nurseries, USA.

Pyrus communis L. cv.gr. Bartlett cv. 'Bartlett - Max Red'

CHINESE : Mei zhou hong wei lian si v / Mei zhou hong ba te li te v .

ENGLISH : Pear 'Max Red', Max Red pear, Red bartlett.

JAPANESE : Reddo baatoretto.

FRENCH : Poire Williams rouge. (origin USA 1938)

Photo of leaves, Photo of fruit both from NCGR-Corvallis Germplasm Collections - Image Gallery.

 

Prunus domestica L. subsp. domestica L.

Prunus domestica L. subsp. domestica L. cv. 'Angelina'

SYNONYM(S) : Prunus domestica L. subsp. domestica L. cv. 'Angelina Burdett'

CHINESE : An ji li na. v

ENGLISH : Angelina plum, Angelina Burdett, Angelinna Burdett.

(early dark-skinned, yellow-green fleshed, medium size)

Prunus domestica L. subsp. domestica L. cv. 'President'

CHINESE : Zong tong v

ENGLISH : President plum. (Black late European plum)

Prunus salicina Lindl.

 

Burmosa (Blush very-early Japanese plum)

Narrabeen (Red mid Japanese plum)

Prunus salicina Lindl. cv. 'Santa Rosa'

CHINESE : Sheng luo sha v .

ENGLISH : Japanese plum "Santa Rosa", Santa Rosa plum.

JAPANESE : Santaroosa.

(Purple Japanese plum -golden flesh) . There can be 3 recognised Santa Rosa cultivars: an early (NZ), a mid-season, and a late Santa Rosa (USA), therefore the cultivar name 'Santa Rosa' on its own seems to lack precision.

Prunus salicina Lindl. cv. 'Santa Rosa - Early'

CHINESE : Zao shu sheng luo sha. v

JAPANESE : Santaroosa wase.

ENGLISH : Early Santa Rosa plum.

Prunus salicina Lindl. cv. 'Santa Rosa - Mid'

CHINESE : Zhong shu sheng luo sha. v

JAPANESE :

ENGLISH : Mid-season Santa Rosa plum.

Prunus salicina Lindl. cv. 'Santa Rosa - Late'

CHINESE : Wan shu sheng luo sha. v

JAPANESE :

ENGLISH : Late Santa Rosa plum.

Prunus salicina Lindl. cv. 'Laroda'

Laroda (Red mid Japanese plum)

Punica granatum L.

Punica granatum L. cv. 'Wonderful'

CHINESE : Hau ji le ?

ENGLISH : Pomegranate "Wonderful".

NOTES

As far as I understand there is no formal rule when translating / transliterating the known cultivar name of a plant from a language using Roman characters into another language using foreign characters such as Chinese, Hindi, Hebrew etc. If there is it is a well kept secret. The demand for this kind of work is rising and it is not surprising given the globalisation of agri-business. The ethical way to go about it is to, as faithfully as possible, translate the name, considering as many synonyms as possible and as many accurate descriptions as possible of various related cultivars, so that confusion with closely resembling names or varieties is avoïded. A good example of almost look-alike names would be the two apricot names Moorpark (a better known multipurpose cultivar) and Moorpack (a fresh-eating American cultivar). If translating these two names phonetically it is likely that one will come up with similar Chinese character sets creating confusion about two distinct cultivars.

One can contemplate three common ways of translating cultivar names ; Phonetically, literally or by constructing a descriptive name. Taking the above examples a literal translation would appear the most suitable for the names can be split into Moor - park and Moor - pack. This offers a faithfull translation and no possible confusion can occur in the new language. Descriptive names were adequate in the past when few Asian cultivars made their mark on western markets or when few European cultivars were introduced into Asia. Today however given the large numbers of cultivars traveling back and forth this method should be used as little as possible. An example of descriptive name is the Australian apple 'Granny Smith'. The original was of a characteristic green colour hence the Chinese name :

Ao zhou qing ping (meaning Australian green apple). Of course the temptation to call the red counterpart of this cultivar is too strong and after all logical : Ao zhou hong ping (meaning Australian red apple). The problem with this approach is that these names would probably apply to countless other cultivars as well so they can be misleading. The question is : should one compose more accurate synonyms ? Then again these are not problems specific to travelling cultivars. Within most agricultural regions of the world, given any one language, inaccurate or incomplete descriptive names abound creating confusion at the source. This has been commercially exploited for ever but in today's legal world, where biological pirating and cultivar patenting are common place, far more attention should be paid to these linguistic details .

Examples of phonetic transliteration can be found in names such as first names and some surnames. One must be aware of possible source of pre-translation confusion though. Any San, Santo (Italian / Spanish), Santa (Italian / Spanish), Saint (French / English), Sainte (French), St. (abbreviation for all previous) is basically translated in Chinese as (sheng). If there was say a Saint Xxxx and a Santa Xxxx, Santa could be differentiated from Saint by adding (ta - meaning "she", a coincidental added bonus). When pronounced in Chinese the resulting Shengta luosha imitates faithfully the sound of the Southern European name. It could turn out that Santa Rosa is indeed the name applied to the very same Sainte Rose cultivar. In that case the problem is minimised, the two names can be at worst considered synonyms or at best they could relate to different origins and express some subtle breeding variations. Again there would be a preferable way of indicating this if indeed there was some genetic difference. One could imagine for instance an Italian Santa Rosa and a Canadian Santa Rosa, an Early Santa Rosa and a Late Santa Rosa. In all these cases the "ta" can be dropped without any problem.

Sometimes a minute difference is already taken into consideration in most common dictionaries. For example William is Wei lian, whilst Williams is Wei lian si or Wei lian mu si. Examples incorporating whole botanical names and synonyms can be found on top of this page.

One thing I have learnt over the years is that one cannot fully trust most translations especially in the very specialised field of plant names. Computer translations are hopelessly unreliable. Humans are more reliable but they make mistakes, sometimes by neglect and sometimes simply due to their educational background, their culture. For example westerners translate English words into Chinese slightly differently from native Chinese people. All translations are "valid" but sometime the average Chinese person will prefer the all-Chinese translation. This is understandable but should be born in mind when working in this field. Two examples : a seedless grape will be expressed by a westerner as : wu zi pu tao whilst a Chinese scholar won't think twice about using : wu he pu tao . Following a related line of thinking ; a Chinese scholar will call a seedless kaki shui shi without hesitation, whilst a westerner will be tempted to use the expression wu zi shi (p808 Compiling Group's dictionary). Incidently I am told that when edible seeds are concerned the expression is wu zi (note that the romanization is the same - a source of many errors), is this always true ?. The final decision will be dictated by the translator's familiarity with the Chinese culture. I would personally mention both options as soon as I become aware of them.

 

REFERENCES for the SYNONYMS

 

de Siebenthal Jacques & Himmel Peter ,1999, International Fruit Variety Database
< http://www.fruitdb.com/ >

Hawkins Anthony J. , 1989, The Super Gigantic WWW Winegrape Glossary.
< http://www.speakeasy.org/~winepage/cellar/wgg.html >

H.S.C.A., 1999, Heritage Seed Curators Australia - Garden Variety Inventories
< http://www.ozmail.com.au/~hsca/Inv_pears1.html >
< http://www.ozmail.com.au/~hsca/Inv_pears2.html >
< http://www.ozmail.com.au/~hsca/Inv_apricots.html >

Lu, Gusun et al, 1989, The English-Chinese Dictionary (unabridged) in 2 volumes.(Ying Han da ci dian, Shanghai yi wen chu ban she : Xin hua shu dian jing xiao).

NCGR-Corvallis, 1999, Catalog of Pyrus cultivars of the world from Catalogs of Collections, NCGR-Corvallis, USA.
< http://www.ars-grin.gov/ars/PacWest/Corvallis/ncgr/catalogs/pyrcat.html >

Sierra Gold Nurseries, 1997 On-line Catalogue. Sierra Gold Nurseries, California, USA.
< http://www.sierragoldtrees.com/images/html/Varieties.htm >

Sugahara Tatsuyuki et al. 1992, New Edition of an Illustrated Encyclopedia of Japanese Ingredients, Kenpakusha. (Latin with authority names, Japanese-hiragana, Japanese-katakana , Japanese-kanji, text in Japanese).

USDA, ARS , 1999, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN). [Online Database] National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Available: www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/tax_search.pl? (1999). Search engine.

 

 

 

 

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Date created: 31 / 08 / 1999
Authorised by Glyn Rimmington
Last modified: 22 / 09 / 1999
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