''Clitoria'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

of mainly tropical and subtropical,

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pa ...

-pollinated flowering pea vines.

Taxonomy

Naming of the genus

This genus was named after the human

clitoris The clitoris ( or ) is a female sex organ present in mammals, ostriches and a limited number of other animals. In humans, the visible portion – the glans – is at the front junction of the labia minora (inner lips), above the op ...

, for the flowers bear a resemblance to the

vulva The vulva (plural: vulvas or vulvae; derived from Latin for wrapper or covering) consists of the external female sex organs. The vulva includes the mons pubis (or mons veneris), labia majora, labia minora, clitoris, vestibular bulbs, vulv ...

. The first reference to the genus, which includes an illustration of the plant, was made in 1678 by Jakób Breyne, a Polish naturalist, who described it as ''Flos clitoridis ternatensibus'', meaning ' Ternatean flower of the clitoris'. Many vernacular names of these flowers in different languages are similarly based on references to female external genitalia. Controversies existed in the past among botanists regarding the

good taste "Good Taste" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It first appeared in a limited edition book of the same name by Apocalypse Press in 1976. It subsequently appeared in ''Asimov's Science Fiction'' (Fall 1977) and in th ...

of the naming of the genus. The analogy drew sharp criticism from botanists such as James Edward Smith in 1807, Amos Eaton in 1817, Michel Étienne Descourtilz in 1826, and Eaton and

Wright Wright is an occupational surname originating in England. The term 'Wright' comes from the circa 700 AD Old English word 'wryhta' or 'wyrhta', meaning worker or shaper of wood. Later it became any occupational worker (for example, a shipwright i ...

in 1840. Some less explicit alternatives, like ''Vexillaria'' (Eaton 1817) and ''Nauchea'' (Descourtilz 1826), were proposed, but they failed to prosper, and the name ''Clitoria'' has survived to this day.

Species

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

accepted the following species: *'' Clitoria amazonum'' Mart. ex Benth. *'' Clitoria andrei'' Fantz *'' Clitoria annua'' J.Graham *'' Clitoria arborea'' Benth. *'' Clitoria arborescens'' R.Br. *'' Clitoria australis'' Benth. *'' Clitoria brachycalyx'' Harms *'' Clitoria brachystegia'' Benth. *'' Clitoria canescens'' Pittier ex Fantz *'' Clitoria cavalcantei'' Fantz *'' Clitoria cearensis'' Huber *'' Clitoria chanondii'' Chuakul *'' Clitoria cordiformis'' Fantz *'' Clitoria cordobensis'' Burkart *''

Clitoria coriacea ''Clitoria'' is a genus of mainly tropical and subtropical, insect-pollinated flowering Faboideae, pea vines. Taxonomy Naming of the genus This genus was named after the human clitoris, for the flowers bear a resemblance to the vulva. The firs ...

'' Schery *'' Clitoria dendrina'' Pittier *'' Clitoria densiflora'' (Benth.) Benth. *'' Clitoria epetiolata'' Burkart *'' Clitoria fairchildiana'' R.A.Howard *'' Clitoria falcata'' Lam. *'' Clitoria flagellaris'' (Benth.) Benth. *'' Clitoria flexuosa'' Fantz *''

Clitoria fragrans ''Clitoria fragrans'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name pigeon wings, or sweet-scented pigeon wings. It is endemic to Central Florida, where it was known most recently from 62 occurrences,

Clitoria ternatea ''Clitoria ternatea'', commonly known as Asian pigeonwings, bluebellvine, blue pea, butterfly pea, cordofan pea or Darwin pea is a plant species belonging to the family Fabaceae, endemic and native to the Indonesian island of Ternate. In India, ...

'' L. *'' Clitoria triflora'' S.Watson *'' Clitoria tunuhiensis'' Fantz *'' Clitoria woytkowskii'' Fantz

Distribution

These plants are native to tropical, subtropical and temperate areas of the world, from western North America east to Australia.

Uses

The most widely known species of the genus is ''

'', also known as butterfly pea. It is used as an herbal medicine, and it is used as food, as well. Its roots are used in

ayurveda Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population rep ...

Hindu medicine.

Gallery

Image:Clitoria MS4124.JPG, The shape of the ''Clitoria'' flowers has inspired the name of the genus File:Clitoria (447419053).jpg, '' Clitoria mariana'' flower File:Neel Aporajita (Clitoria ternatea) in Shantinagar, Dhaka.jpg, ''

'', known as ''Neel Aporajita'' in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...

File:Khao tom-dok anchan53.JPG, Thai ''

Khao tom ''Khao tom'' ( lo, ເຂົ້າຕົ້ມ; th, ข้าวต้ม, ; also spelled ''kao tom''), or ''Khao tom mat'' ( th, ข้าวต้มมัด, ) is a Southeast Asian dessert eaten by Laotian and Thai people, consisting of ...

'' sweet colored blue with ''Clitoria ternatea'' flowers File:Blue tea.jpg, Clitoria tea

Taxonomy

Naming of the genus

Species

Distribution

Uses

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading