Taxonomic history
1753: Linnaeus described this species as Crocus sativus in Species Plantarum, 1st ed., p. 36 of Ray Society 1957 facsimile.
Today: The current name for this species is Crocus sativus L.
original Latin diagnosis
Crocus spatha univalvi radicali, corollae tubo longissimo.
English translation
Crocus with a spathe one-valved [and] arising from the root; [and] of the corolla with a tube very long.
| Crocus | Crocus |
| with a spathe | spatha - ablative singular of first declension feminine noun spatha, -ae |
| one-valved | univalvi - ablative singular feminine of group B adjective univalvis, -is, -e; modifies spatha |
| [and] | [added for smoother reading] |
| arising from the root; | radicali - ablative singular feminine of group B adjective radicalis, -is, -e; modifies spatha |
| [and] | [added for smoother reading] |
| of the corolla | corollae - genitive singular of first declension feminine noun corolla, -ae |
| with a tube | tubo - ablative singular of second declension masculine noun tubus, -i |
| very long. | longissimo - ablative singular of superlative degree of group A adjective longus, -a, -um |