Names and Etymology
The word Diospyros comes from the ancient Greek words "Dios" (διός) and "pyros" (πυρος). In context this means more or less "divine fruit", though its literal meaning is more like "Wheat of Zeus". It is however sufficiently confusing to have given rise to some curious interpretations such as "God's pear" and "Jove's fire"..
The word persimmon itself is derived from putchamin, pasiminan, or pessamin, from Powhatan, an Algonquian language of the eastern United States, meaning "a dry fruit".
Read more about this topic: Persimmon
Famous quotes containing the words names and/or etymology:
“All the names of good and evil are parables: they do not declare, but only hint. Whoever among you seeks knowledge of them is a fool!”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
—Giambattista Vico (1688–1744)