barberry

English

Berberis thunbergii shoot with fruit

common barberry, Berberis vulgaris

Etymology

From Middle English berberie, from Medieval Latin berberis, on which see Arabic بَرْبَارِيس‎ (barbārīs). Doublet of berberis.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈbɑɹbɛɹi/
Audio (UK) (file)

Noun

barberry (plural barberries)

Any of the thorny shrubs of genus Berberis, which bear yellow flowers and red or blue-black berries.
- 1624, Philip Barrough [i.e., Philip Barrow], “Of Making Bolus”, in The Method of Physick, Contaning^[sic] the Cavses, Signes, and Cvres of Inward Diseases in Mans Body, from the Head to the Foote. Whereunto is Added, The Forme and Rule of Making Remedies and Medicines, which Our Physitions Commonly Vse at this Day, with the Proportion, Quantity, and Names of Each Medicine, book VII, 6th edition, London: Imprinted by Richard Field, dwelling in great Woodstreete, OCLC 79430651, page 397:
  Bolvs in Engliſh is called a morſell. It is a medicine laxatiue, in forme and faſhion it is meanely whole, and it is ſwallowed by little gobbets. […] ℞ Medulla Caſſiæ fiſtulæ [n]ewly drawne, ℥. j. or ʒ. x. the graines, that is, the kernels, of Barberies, ℈. ß and with Sugar roſet [sugar compounded with rose petals], make a bole.

Derived terms

creeping barberry
holly barberry
holly-leaved barberry
Magellan barberry

Translations

Berberis

Abkhaz: акаҵахәыр (akʼacʼaxʷər)
Adyghe: please add this translation if you can
Arabic: بَرْبَارِيس‎ m (barbārīs), زِرِشْك‎ m (zirišk)
Gulf Arabic: زرشك‎ m (zirišk)
Armenian: կծոխուր (hy) (kcoxur), ծոր (hy) (cor), զրիշկ (hy) (zrišk)
Azerbaijani: zirinc (az), zirişk
Basque: please add this translation if you can
Bulgarian: барбари́с m (barbarís)
Catalan: coralet m
Chechen: please add this translation if you can
Chinese:
Mandarin: 小檗 (xiǎobò)
Esperanto: berberiso
Finnish: happomarja (fi)
French: épine-vinette (fr) f
Galician: please add this translation if you can
Georgian: კოწახური (ḳoc̣axuri)
German: Berberitze (de) f, Sauerdorn (de) m, Essigbeere f
Hungarian: borbolya (hu)
Ido: berberiso (io)
Irish: barbróg f
Italian: crespino (it) m
Japanese: メギ (megi)
Kabardian: please add this translation if you can
Kazakh: бөріқарақат (börıqaraqat)
Korean: 매자나무 (maejanamu)
Kurdish:
Central Kurdish: زِریشک‎ (zirîşk)
Latin: berberis, -is f, oxyacanthus, -ī f, oxyacantha, -ae f, spīna acida f (all Medieval Latin and New Latin)
Laz: კაწახური (ǩaǯaxuri)
Macedonian: жолтика f (žoltika)
Mazanderani: please add this translation if you can
Mingrelian: კორწოხული (ḳorc̣oxuli)
Navajo: shashdą́ą́ʼ
Norman: èpinne-vinnette f (Jersey)
Ottoman Turkish: قادین طوزلغی‎ (kadın tuzluğu)
Persian: زرشک‎ (fa) (zerešk)
Polish: berberys (pl) m, kwaśnica (pl) f
Portuguese: bérberis f, uva-espim (pt) f
Punjabi: زِرِشْک‎ m (ziriśk)
Romanian: dracilă (ro) f
Russian: барбари́с (ru) m (barbarís)
Scots: guil-tree
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: жу̀тика f, чѐсмина
Latin: žùtika (sh) f, čèsmina (sh)
Slovak: dráč m
Slovene: česmína f, česmȋn m
Spanish: agracejo (es) m (the European type species), alarguez (es) m (archaic, dialectal), michay (es) m (Chile, Argentine, the respective species), calafate (es) m (Chile, Argentine, the respective species)
Svan: გოწხირ (goc̣xir), გვაწხირ (gvac̣xir)
Tocharian B: śkwaśko
Turkish: sarıçalı (tr), kadıntuzluğu
Ukrainian: барбари́с (uk) m (barbarýs)
Urdu: زِرِشْک‎ m (ziriśk)
Welsh: eurddraenen f

References

Berberis on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Berberis on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
Berberis on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons
barberry at USDA Plants database