poinsettia

Where does the word "poinsettia" come from? It comes from Nahuatl cuetlaxōchitl, and was adopted directly into English (1836).

Poinsettia’s story begins in Nahuatl: cuetlaxōchitl meant “the poinsettia flower.” The Aztecs grew the flower for red dye and medicine. It reached English by 1836 as poinsettia. Named after Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first US minister to Mexico, who sent cuttings home to South Carolina in 1828; 12 December, the day he died, is Poinsettia Day. Today, poinsettia means a Mexican shrub with large red bracts, popular at Christmas.

1. Stage 1 · Nahuatl · 1400s cuetlaxōchitl "the poinsettia flower", the Aztecs grew the flower for red dye and medicine.
2. Stage 2 · American English · 1836 poinsettia "Christmas flower", named after Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first US minister to Mexico, who sent cuttings home to South Carolina in 1828; 12 December, the day he died, is Poinsettia Day.