Basil
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Ocimum
Species
O. basilicum
O. campechianum
O. canum
O. gratissimum
O. kilimandscharicum
O. tenuiflorum
Ref: ITIS 32626 2002-08-03
Basil (Ocimum basilicum) (also known as Albahaca, American Dittany, Our Herb, St. Joseph's Wort, Sweet Basil and Witches' Herb) is a tender annual herb. The most commonly used varieties are sweet basil and Thai basil. Other varieties include Purple Ruffles, Mammoth, Cinnamon, Lemon, Globe, and African Blue. The original variety is from Tropical Asia, and is known in India as the Holy Basil or Tulasi (Ocimum sanctum = O. tenuiflorum). This is camphoric and rarely used in the kitchen. Basil is very sensitive to cold.

Basil is a low-growing annual. It has light green silky leaves and tastes somewhat like cloves, with a strong, pungent, sweet smell.

The word basil (fr. Gk basileus, king) means "royal". The Oxford English Dictionary quotes speculation that basil may have been used in "some royal unguent, bath, or medicine".

Cultural aspects

The name basil may derive from the basilisk (also fr. Gk basileus), a legendary monster, because the plant was said to be a cure for its poison. Indeed, A Modern Herbal, by Mrs. M. Grieve, tells us: "The seeds have been reckoned efficacious against the poison of serpents..."

The plant has frequently been considered poisonous itself, while African legend claims it protects against scorpions. European lore sometimes claims that basil is a symbol of Satan, though in other places, like India, the plant is highly revered. Similarly, it is a symbol of love in present-day Italy, but represented hatred in ancient Greece.

In Boccaccio's Decameron a memorably morbid tale (novella V) tells of Lisabetta, whose brothers slay her lover. He appears to her in a dream and shows her where he is buried. She secretly disinters the head, and sets it in a pot of basil, which she waters with her daily tears. The pot being taken from her by her brothers, she dies of her grief not long after.

See also Basil of Caesarea.