In a Narcissus post last week I mentioned that in Sweden we use different names for the yellow ones (middle picture in this collage) and the white ones. (‘Easter Lily’ vs ‘Pentecost Lily’)
Hmm… Since then, just on my recent walks in the neighbourhood of where I live, I’ve realized that the distinction is not always as easy to make as it may seem at first glance…
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The last one on the left is my favorite. It is also in your collage, which is stunning! These look so much like daffodils that I Googled them, and found out that daffodils is the nickname we call them. But then there are jonquils, which look just like both, and they say how to tell the difference, but I don't know how they fit into all this!!
I never heard of jonquils until you and Sandra mentioned them. (Maybe the name 'jonquil' is used more in the US than in England?) After some googling I found this:
"What exactly is the difference between a daffodil, a narcissus, and a jonquil? The simple answer is nothing, or "it depends". All three terms are used as common names in many cases and used incorrectly. Narcissus is technically the only correct scientific name identifying the genus of this group of plants. It is not a common name, though some use it as such. Daffodil is typically used as a collective name for all these plants, but is more often used to describe the larger flowered types. Jonquil is a name sometimes used for this group as well, but actually only applies to a very small subgroup, Narcissus jonquilla and related hybrids, which typically have several small, fragrant flowers on each stem with flat petals. The foliage is very narrow and reed-like, according to the American Daffodil Society (ADS)"
http://web.extension.illinois.edu/macon/palette/060326.html
When I read the word "daffodil" in an English novel etc, in my mind I've always seen the yellow one which we associate with Ester. Now I was beginning to wonder if I've been wrong...?
I consulted my Concise Oxford Dictionary:
daffodil yellow-flowered narcissus; this as Welsh national emblem; pale-yellow colour.
(This is the one we associate with Easter in Sweden.)
narcissus bulbous plant of genus Narcissus, esp N. poeticus bearing heavily scented single white spring flower with undivided corona edged with crimson and yellow
(That's the one we associate with Pentecost in Sweden)
jonquil species of narcissus with rush-like leaves and clusters of fragrant white and yellow flowers
this is so fun! thanks for the difference in them. I think we in the southern US call all of them Jonquils, we only had yellow ones so they were actaully daffodils. I wonder if they are victims of Narcissism? when I saw the word, i thought of that word, don't ask me why.
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