October 30, 2006

COME TO ME, FRANGIPANI.

And speaking of family names, I love this excerpt from They Call Me Naughty Lola, a collection of "witty and eccentric lonely hearts ads from the London Review of Books " (reviewed here—thanks, Nick!):

Stroganoff. Boysenberry. Frangipani. Words with their origins in people's names. If your name has produced its own entry in the OED then I'll make love to you. If it hasn't, I probably will anyway, but I'll only want you for your body. Man of too few distractions, 32.
I dunno, though: the OED says only "said to be from Frangipani, the name of the inventor" (emphasis added); this guy could get his heart broken by an imposter.

Update. The County Clerk has done a thorough investigation of all things frangipani/plumeria-related along with various enjoyable divagations, such as a long description of Septimus Piesse's odophone. Visit and revel!

Posted by languagehat at October 30, 2006 01:17 PM
Comments

Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!

Posted by: John Cowan at October 30, 2006 01:44 PM

OK, open call to LH readers: Can anyone help me out by accounting for the reason why both a form of almond and pear tart and the flowering tree Plumeria spp. are known as "frangipani?" Out here we say "plumeria" but people in mainland US and elsewhere look at me like I have two heads when I call it that.

(Interesting to find out that it's not indigenous to Hawai'i, either, since it's so darn common.)

The Wikipedia entry on the Frangipani family claims that the marchese Frangipani invented a plumeria-based perfume. This is plausible enough, but doesn't account for the tart. The family name is said to mean "bread breakers" but I am not sure how you get from that to a particular pastry. Let them eat cake??

I know you people are up for this. Let's hear it.

Thanks!

Posted by: xiaolongnu at October 30, 2006 03:17 PM

Xiaolongnu

Wikpedia may have it backwards. I remember reading somewhere that the frangipani tree is so named because the fragrance of the flowers is reminiscent of the perfume invented by Frangipani, rather than the perfume being created from the flower. The perfume came first, and the tree is named after it. Or so I read - somewhere!

Posted by: Missy at October 31, 2006 06:33 AM

Damn, I missed an opportunity there. I guess I really should subscribe to the LRB after all....

Posted by: Vance Maverick at October 31, 2006 08:04 PM

I'm working on an answer. Give me an hour or two. The perfume DEFINATELY came first... and it was probably Almond perfume of some sort. I'll post when I have it nailed.

Posted by: The County Clerk at October 31, 2006 08:36 PM

I have frangipani/plumeria info here

Posted by: The County Clerk at November 1, 2006 01:10 AM