![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
prettygoodwordpaulownia - n., a Japanese tree, Paulownia tomentosa, of the begonia family that has showy clusters of pale violet flowers in early spring; any other tree of the genus Paulownia, native to China.
P. tomentosa is also known as the princess tree in the U.S., where it has become something of an invasive species in the Southeast after being introduced for decorative purposes. Wikipedia has more about the species and genus, including a picture of the seal of the government of Japan depicting one of its leaves. The Western name for the tree is after Anna Pavlovna, daughter of Paul I of Russia and queen of William II of the Netherlands, who died in 1865 -- using the Latin form of her patronymic, some time around 1840.
---L.
P. tomentosa is also known as the princess tree in the U.S., where it has become something of an invasive species in the Southeast after being introduced for decorative purposes. Wikipedia has more about the species and genus, including a picture of the seal of the government of Japan depicting one of its leaves. The Western name for the tree is after Anna Pavlovna, daughter of Paul I of Russia and queen of William II of the Netherlands, who died in 1865 -- using the Latin form of her patronymic, some time around 1840.
---L.
