Definition of the word begonia

The word "begonia" is derived from the Tupi-Guarani language, which was spoken by indigenous peoples in present-day Brazil in the 17th century. The Tupi-Guarani people called the plant "becoînia" or "begónia" in their language, which is thought to have originated from the Tupi words "bege" meaning "earth" and "onia" meaning "thing." The first European to encounter the plant was the French explorer and botanist Charles Plumier, who visited what is now Brazil in the early 18th century. Plumier learned the name of the plant from the local inhabitants and adopted it for scientific classification. He named the genus in honor of Michel Bégon, a French diplomat and patron of the arts, who had supported the Academie Royale des Sciences in Paris. In 1755, Plumier published the first formal description of Begonia in his work "Plantarum Omnium Genera", where he described the plant with its distinctive foliage and lobed leaves. The Latin name that Plumier bestowed upon the plant, Begonia, has since been used scientifically and commonly to refer to the varied and popular houseplants and garden ornamentals that are part of the Begoniaceae family today.