[158:1] "Solsequium vel heliotropium; Solsece vel sigel-hwerfe" (i.e., sun-seeker or sun-turner).—Ælfric's Vocabulary.
"Marigolde; solsequium, sponsa solis."—Catholicon Anglicum.
In a note Mr. Herttage says, "the oldest name for the plant was ymbglidegold, that which moves round with the sun."
MARJORAM.
| (1) | Perdita. | Here's flowers for you; Hot Lavender, Mints, Savory, Marjoram. |
| Winter's Tale, act iv, sc. 4 (103). | ||
| (2) | Lear. | Give the word. |
| Edgar. | Sweet Marjoram. | |
| Lear. | Pass. | |
| King Lear, act iv, sc. 6 (93). | ||
| (3) | The Lily I condemned for thy hand, And buds of Marjoram had stolen thy hair. | |
| Sonnet xcix. | ||
| (4) | Clown. | Indeed, sir, she was the sweet Marjoram of theSalad, or rather the Herb-of-grace. |
| All's Well that Ends Well, act iv, sc. 5 (17). | ||
In Shakespeare's time several species of Marjoram were grown, especially the Common Marjoram (Origanum vulgare), a British plant, the Sweet Marjoram (O. Marjorana), a plant of the South of Europe, from which the English name comes,[159:1] and the Winter Marjoram (O. Horacleoticum). They were all favourite pot herbs, so that Lyte calls the common one "a delicate and tender herb," "a noble and odoriferous plant;" but, like so many of the old herbs, they have now fallen into disrepute. The comparison of a man's hair to the buds of Marjoram is not very intelligible, but probably it was a way of saying that the hair was golden.