barometz
|ba-ro-metz|
🇺🇸
/bəˈrɑmɛts/
🇬🇧
/bəˈrɒmɛts/
a plant associated with a lamb-like creature
Etymology
'barometz' originates from Russian, specifically the word 'баромец' (barometz), where the term was used to refer to the legendary plant-lamb.
'barometz' entered English from medieval and early modern travel and natural history accounts (via Russian and European languages) describing the 'vegetable lamb of Tartary'; the name was later used in botanical Latin for Cibotium barometz.
Initially, it referred to the legendary plant-animal (the vegetable lamb); over time the name was also applied to the real fern Cibotium barometz associated with that legend.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a legendary 'vegetable lamb' — a mythical plant-animal said to produce a lamb-like creature that grazes around the plant; also called the Scythian lamb or lamb of Tartary.
Medieval travelers told stories of a barometz that grazed like a living lamb.
Synonyms
Noun 2
the fern Cibotium barometz, commonly called barometz or woolly fern, noted for its woolly, golden-brown rhizome; the plant associated with the legend.
The botanist examined a specimen of Cibotium barometz, often referred to simply as the barometz.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2026/01/18 02:48