holly

1. 1. Any of numerous trees or shrubs of the genus Ilex, usually having bright red berries and glossy evergreen leaves with spiny margins.
   2. Branches of these plants, traditionally used for Christmas decoration.
2. Any of various similar or related plants.

[Middle English holin, holi, from Old English holen.]

(click to enlarge)
American holly (Ilex opaca). (credit: © Noble Proctor — The National Audubon Society Collection/Photo Researchers)

Any of approximately 400 species of red- or black-berried ornamental shrubs and trees that make up the genus Ilex (family Aquifoliaceae), including the popular Christmas hollies. English holly (I. aquifolium) bears shiny, spiny, dark, evergreen leaves; American holly (I. opaca) has oblong, prickly leaves; both have usually red fruits. There are spineless and yellow-fruited forms of both species.

For more information on holly, visit Britannica.com.

The American species of holly (Ilex opaca) has evergreen leaves. It grows naturally in the eastern and southeastern United States close to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, in the Mississippi Valley, and westward to Oklahoma and Missouri. It is best known for its bright red berries. The heartwood takes a high polish and is used for cabinet work and musical instruments; because it resembles ivory, it is sometimes used for keys for pianos and organs.

The English holly (I. aquifolium) is cultivated extensively in the extreme northwestern United States, but is not hardy in the northeastern states. Its spiny leaves are glossier than those of the American holly and have wavier margins.

Without doubt the most popular plant for Christmas decorations, the holly has several associated traditions, most of which are positive. It is sometimes stated, however, that it is unlucky to bring holly into the house at times other than Christmas, and Vickery reports some households which will not allow the plant indoors at any time. Nevertheless, in Worcestershire and Herefordshire, a small piece of holly which had adorned a church at Christmas time was regarded as very lucky to hang up in your house, even though the domestic decorations had to be burnt as usual (N&Q 5s: 11 (1879), 206). The two types—prickly and smooth—have been the focus for a minor domestic battle of the sexes—if the prickly holly was brought in first, the man would rule, but if smooth holly preceded it, the wife would be master (N&Q 11s:6 (1912), 486, also 11s:4 (1911), 526).

Holly trees were believed to be generally protective against witches and other evils, and were thus planted near churches and houses, as noticed by John Aubrey (1686: 189). In particular they were a good place to shelter in a storm because they were never struck by lightning. It is still considered unlucky by many to cut down a holly bush or tree, a belief which dates back at least to the 15th century. A good crop of berries on the holly is still said to betoken a hard winter on the way. Because of its connection with Christmas, ‘green holly’ has long been the emblem of mirth and jollity for poets and playwrights (see N&Q 12s:5 (1919), 319; 12s:6 (1920), 21-2, 52 for examples). A practical use for holly, so far recorded only in the 19th and 20th centuries, is for curing chilblains by thrashing them with the spiked leaves or, in some cases, rubbing them with powdered holly berries or their ashes. Holly could also be used in love divination.

Bibliography
The full bibliography list is available here.

• Opie and Tatem, 1989: 199-201
• Vickery, 1995: 179-82
• Henderson, 1879: 99-100

This name is probably a corruption of the word holy since this plant has been used from time immemorial as a protection against evil influence. It was hung around or planted near houses as a protection against lightning. Its common use at Christmas apparently originated in an ancient Roman festival in which holly was dedicated to the god Saturn. While the Romans were holding this feast—which occurred about the time of the winter solstice—they decked the outsides of their houses with holly. At the same time the Christians were quietly celebrating the birth of Christ, and to avoid detection they outwardly followed the custom of their heathen neighbors and decked their houses with holly as well. In this way holly came to be connected with Christmas customs. The plant was also regarded as a symbol of the Resurrection.

The use of mistletoe along with holly probably came from the notion that in winter the fairies took shelter under its leaves and that they protected all who sheltered the plant. The origin of kissing under the mistletoe is considered to have come from Saxon ancestors of the British, who regarded this plant as dedicated to Freya, the goddess of love.

Tutor's tip: Note: Something "holey: contains holes. "Holly" is a plant with bright red berries. To be "holy" is to be religious. "Wholly" means altogether.

The symbol of Christmas cheer decorating the fireplace hearth, holly represents memories of friends, family, and the nurturing feelings associated with childhood and the holiday season.

"Ilex" redirects here. For other uses, see Ilex (disambiguation).

This article is about the plant. For other uses, see Holly (disambiguation).

Holly
European Holly (Ilex aquifolium) leaves and fruit
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukarya
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Aquifoliales
Family:	Aquifoliaceae DC. ex A.Rich.
Genus:	Ilex L.
Species
About 600, see text

Holly (Ilex, pronounced /ˈaɪlɛks/)^[1] is a genus of approximately 600 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family.

Contents 1 Description and ecology 2 Selected species 3 Etymology 4 Uses 5 References

Description and ecology

Hollies (here, Ilex aquifolium) are dioecious: (above) shoot with flowers from male plant; (top right) male flower enlarged from female plant; (lower right) female flower enlarged, showing stamen and reduced, sterile stamens with no pollen.

A holly bush with a lone red berry in winter.

Holly berries are mildly toxic and will cause vomiting and/or diarrhea when ingested by people. However they are extremely important food for numerous species of birds, and also are eaten by other wild animals. In the fall and early winter the berries are hard and apparently unpalatable. After being frozen or frosted several times, the berries soften, and become milder in taste. During winter storms, birds often take refuge in hollies, which provide shelter, protection from predators (by the spiny leaves), and food. The flowers are sometimes eaten by the larva of the Double-striped Pug moth (Gymnoscelis rufifasciata). Other Lepidoptera whose larvae feed on holly include Bucculatrix ilecella (which feeds exclusively on hollies) and The Engrailed (Ectropis crepuscularia). Holly is commonly referenced at Christmas time.

Having evolved numerous species that are endemic to islands and small mountain ranges, and being highly useful plants, many hollies are now becoming rare. Tropical species are especially often threatened by habitat destruction and overexploitation, and at least two have become extinct, with numerous others barely surviving.^[2]

Selected species

Ilex abscondita Ilex acutidenticulata Ilex affinis Ilex × altaclarensis Ilex altiplana Ilex amara – Caachira Ilex ambigua – Sand Holly Ilex amelanchier – Swamp Holly Ilex anomala Hook. & Arn. – Kāwaʻu (Hawaiʻi)[3] Ilex anonoides Ilex aquifolium – European Holly, English Holly, Christ's Thorn Ilex aracamuniana Ilex argentina Ilex arisanensis Ilex bioritsensis Ilex brachyphylla Ilex brasiliensis Ilex brevicuspis Ilex brevipedicellata Ilex buergeri Ilex canariensis – Small-leaved Holly, Acebino Ilex caniensis Ilex cassine – Dahoon Holly, Cassena Ilex centrochinensis Ilex cerasifolia Ilex chamædryfolia Ilex chapaensis Ilex chengkouensis Ilex chinensis Ilex chuniana Ilex ciliolata Ilex ciliospinosa Ilex cognata Ilex colchica Ilex collina Ilex conocarpa Ilex cookii – Cook's Holly (Puerto Rico) Ilex corallina Ilex coriacea – Gallberry Ilex cornuta – Chinese Holly, Horned Holly Ilex costaricensis Ilex cowanii Ilex crenata – Japanese Holly, Box-leaved Holly, inutsuge (Japanese) Ilex crepitans Ilex cyrtura Ilex dabieshanensis Ilex davidsei Ilex decidua Walter – Possumhaw (Eastern United States, Northeastern Mexico) Ilex dehongensis Ilex dimorphophylla Ilex diospyroides Ilex dipyrena – Himalayan Holly Ilex dumosa Ilex ericoides Ilex euryoides Ilex fargesii Ilex fengqingensis Ilex fertilis Ilex florifera Ilex gardneriana (extinct: 20th century?) Ilex geniculata Ilex georgei Ilex gigantea Ilex glabella Ilex glabra L. A.Gray – Evergreen Winterberry, Bitter Gallberry, Inkberry (Eastern North America)

Ilex gleasoniana Ilex goshiensis Ilex graciliflora Ilex grandiflora Ilex guaiquinimae Ilex guayusa – Guayusa Ilex guianensis Ilex harrisii Ilex holstii Ilex huachamacariana Ilex humboldtiana Ilex ignicola Ilex illustris Ilex integerrima Ilex integra – Mochi Tree, Nepal Holly Ilex intricata Ilex jamaicana Proctor (Jamaica) Ilex jauaensis Ilex jelskii Ilex karuaiana Ilex khasiana Ilex kingiana Ilex kudingcha Ilex kusanoi Ilex lævigata – Smooth Winterberry Ilex lasseri Ilex latifolia – Tarajo Holly, tarayō (Japanese) Ilex lechleri Ilex leucoclada Ilex longipes Ilex longzhouensis Ilex machilifolia Ilex maclurei Ilex macoucoua Ilex macrocarpa Ilex macropoda Ilex magnifructa Ilex maingayi Ilex marahuacae Ilex marginata Ilex margratesavage Ilex mathewsii Ilex × meserveae Ilex microdonta Ilex mitis Ilex montana Torrey & A.Gray – Mountain Winterberry (Eastern United States) Ilex mucronata (L.) M.Powell, Savol., & S.Andrews – Mountain Holly, Catberry (Eastern North America) Ilex myrtifolia – Myrtle Holly, Myrtle Dahoon Ilex neblinensis Ilex nothofagifolia Ilex oblonga Ilex occulta Ilex opaca – American Holly (Eastern United States) Ilex ovalifolia Ilex palawanica Ilex pallida Ilex paraguariensis – Maté, yerba maté, erva-mate (Portuguese) Ilex parvifructa Ilex patens Ilex pauciflora Ilex paujiensis Ilex pedunculosa Ilex peiradena Ilex perado – Madeiran Holly Ilex perlata Ilex pernyi – Perny's Holly Ilex polita Ilex praetermissa

Ilex pringlei Ilex pseudobuxus Ilex puberula Ilex pubescens Ilex pubiflora Ilex purpurea Ilex qianlingshanensis Ilex quercetorum Ilex quercifolia Ilex rarasanensis Ilex reticulata Ilex rotunda Ilex rugosa Ilex sclerophylla Ilex serrata – Japanese Winterberry Ilex sessilifructa Ilex shimeica Ilex sikkimensis Ilex sintenisii (Urban) Britt. – Sintenis' Holly (Puerto Rico) Ilex sipapoana Ilex socorroensis Ilex spinigera Ilex spruceana Ilex steyermarkii Ilex subrotundifolia Ilex subtriflora Ilex sugerokii Ilex sulcata Ilex syzygiophylla Ilex tahanensis Ilex tateana Ilex taubertiana Ilex ternatiflora (extinct: 20th century?) Ilex theezans Ilex tiricae Ilex tolucana Ilex trachyphylla Ilex trichocarpa Ilex tugitakayamensis Ilex uraiensis Ilex vaccinoides Ilex venezuelensis Ilex venulosa Ilex verticillata (L.) A.Gray American Winterberry (Eastern North America) Ilex vomitoria – Yaupon Holly, casseena (Spanish) Ilex vulcanicola Ilex wenchowensis Ilex williamsii Ilex wilsonii Ilex yunnanensis Ilex wugonshanensis Ilex yuiana[4]

Etymology

The origin of the word "holly" is Old English holegn, which is related to Old High German hulis. The French word for holly, houx, derives from the Old High German word, as do Low German/Low Franconian terms like Hülse or hulst. These Germanic words appear to be related to words for holly in Celtic languages, such as Welsh celyn and Irish cuilleann.

The botanical name ilex was the original Latin name for the Holm Oak (Quercus ilex), which has similar foliage to common holly, and is occasionally confused with it.

Holly is also used as a name for females.

Uses

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Trunk and leaves of a variegated holly bush.

A 'Highclere' holly variety.

In many western cultures, holly is a traditional Christmas decoration, used especially in wreaths. The wood is heavy, hard and whitish; one traditional use is for chess pieces, with holly for the white pieces, and ebony for the black. Other uses include turnery, inlay work and as firewood. Looms in the 1800s used holly for the spinning rod. Because holly is dense and can be sanded very smooth, the rod was less likely than other woods to snag threads being used to make cloth. Peter Carl Faberge used holly for cases for Faberge eggs as well as small objects such as hand seals.

Many of the hollies are widely used as ornamental plants in gardens and parks. Several hybrids and numerous cultivars have been developed for garden use, among them the very popular Ilex × altaclerensis (I. aquifolium × I. perado) and Ilex × meserveae (I. aquifolium × I. rugosa).^[5] Hollies are often used for hedges; the spiny leaves make them difficult to penetrate, and they take well to pruning and shaping. ^[6] In Heraldry, holly is used to symbolise truth.

Between the thirteenth and eighteenth century, before the introduction of turnips, holly was cultivated for use as winter fodder for cattle and sheep.^[7] Less spiny varieties of holly were preferred, and in practice the leaves growing near the top of the tree have far fewer spines making them more suitable for fodder.

Several holly species are used to make caffeine-rich herbal teas. The South American Yerba Mate (I. paraguariensis) is boiled for the popular revigorating drinks Mate, and Chimarrão, and steeped in water for the cold Tereré. Guayusa (I. guayusa) is used both as a stimulant and as an admixture to the entheogenic tea ayahuasca; its leaves have the highest known caffeine content of any plant. In North and Central America, Yaupon (I. vomitoria), was used by southeastern Native Americans as a ceremonial stimulant and emetic known as "the black drink"^[8]. As the name suggests, the tea's purgative properties were one of its main uses, most often ritually. Gallberry (Appalachian Tea, I. glabra) is a milder substitute for Yaupon and does not have caffeine. In China, the young leaf buds of I. kudingcha are processed in a method similar to green tea to make a tisane called kǔdīng chá (苦丁茶, roughly "bitter spikeleaf tea").

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ilex

Look up ilex in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

1. ^ Sunset Western Garden Book, 1995:606–607
2. ^ International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) (2007): 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Ilex
3. ^ Little Jr., Elbert L.; Roger G. Skolmen (1989) (PDF). Kāwaʻu, Hawaiian holly. United States Forest Service. http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/forestry/data/CommonTreesHI/CFT_Ilex_anomala.pdf. 
4. ^ Ulloa Ulloa & Jørgensen (1993), eFloras.org (2007a, b), IUCN (2007), RBGE (2007), USDA (2007a, b)
5. ^ Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.
6. ^ Northumbria Police: Security starts at the Garden Gate
7. ^ Spray, M. (1981). Holly as a Fodder in England. Agricultural History Review 29 (2): 97. Available online (pdf file). British Agricultural History Society.
8. ^ Cherokee: Gvnega adatasti (ᎬᏁᎦ ᎠᏓᏔᏍᏘ), Asi (ᎠᏏ).

Ilex anomala	Ilex chinensis	Ilex pedunculosa	Ilex rotunda
Ilex verticillata	Ilex yunnanensis	A contorted hedgehog holly.	Ilex anomala
Ilex chinensis	Ilex pedunculosa	Ilex rotunda	Ilex yunnanensis

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - kristtjørn

Nederlands (Dutch)
hulst, steeneik

Français (French)
n. - houx

Deutsch (German)
n. - Stechpalme

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (φυτολ.) αρκουδοπούρναρο, λιόπρινο, ου

Italiano (Italian)
agrifoglio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - azevinho (m) (Bot.)

Русский (Russian)
падуб, остролист

Español (Spanish)
n. - acebo

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - järnek, kristtorn

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
冬青树

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 冬青樹

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 서양호랑가시나무

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 柊, セイヨウヒイラギ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) البهشيه أو الايلكس, نبات ذو ورق صقيل شائك الأطراف وزهر صغير ضارب إلى البياض‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮צינית (שיח ירוק-עד)‬

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