Flag for Taxon: Alaska yellow cedar (Callitropsis nootkatensis)
| Flagger | Content Author | Content | Reason | Flag Created | Resolved by | Resolution |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| jdmore | jdmore | Alaska yellow cedar (Callitropsis nootkatensis) |
default English name in dispute |
Dec. 29, 2023 22:18:16 +0000 | Not Resolved |
Comments
So, the argument is between "Nootka cypress" and "yellow-cedar" (or, to get more specific, "Alaska yellow-cedar").
"Nootka cypress" reflects the fact that it's in the cypress family, and Nootka is a place/people-name from the part of the world where this plant is most common.
However, most people (at least in Oregon and Washington) call it "yellow-cedar" — presumably to distinguish it from the similar western red-cedar (which is also in Cupressaceae but no one ever calls it a cypress).
For the record, here are the numbers of results of a Google search for the common names, with "nootkatensis" excluded so as to remove scientific stuff:
"Nootka cypress" -nootkatensis: 19,000
"Alaska yellow-cedar" -nootkatensis: 22,000
"Alaskan yellow-cedar" -nootkatensis: 83,000 — the vast majority of these are about lumber and woodworking
In my experience with both popular and academic literature on this species, the common name when discussing its occurrence in habitat is almost always "Alaska yellow cedar" (or a variant); the name "Nootka cypress", although used in its initial description, has since the late 19th century almost always been applied in a horticultural context, usually by British writers. For instance, a glance at 11 different field guides published from 1907 to 2010, describing the species in habitat, all use some variant of the AYC name: Alaska cedar, yellow cedar, Alaska cypress, yellow cypress, etc. Not one uses the name "Nootka cypress" or any variant of it.
Interesting; well, can't argue with that!
I have also seen the hyphens removed and the words run together, as western redcedar and Alaska yellowcedar, presumably as a means of retaining the commonly used names while acknowledging that these are not true cedars.
I like the hyphens; they make the name easier to read while subtly acknowledging that something is a little off: poison-oak, death-camas, red-cedar, marsh-marigold, desert-holly, ground-cherry...
Yellow-cedar or yellow cedar seems to be used basically exclusively in Canada (at least in my experience), both at an official level (https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/library/documents/treebook/yellowcedar.htm), when referring to the tree in less formal settings (https://www.centralcoastbiodiversity.org/yellow-cedar-bull-xanthocyparis-nootkatensis.html) and when describing the timber (https://www.naturallywood.com/species/yellow-cedar/). I've never heard nootka cypress used, nor have I heard Alaska yellow cedar used, which I guess makes sense given it's found along the entire BC coast. For BC at least yellow-cedar or yellow cedar seem perfectly acceptable, Alaksa yellow cedar and nootka cypress are essentially unused and I'm not incredibly keen on them.
I'm pretty sure that could work in this case. We need to keep the name western red-cedar to distinguish it from eastern red-cedar (which isn't even in the same genus -- it's a juniper!), and of course maintain the distinction between northern vs. Atlantic white-cedar. But I don't know of any other tree called yellow-cedar, so probably the "Alaska" designator is not needed.
Just to second what @gwark was saying in the prior discussion, here in Southeast Alaska where it's an important tree, everyone I know calls this species "yellow cedar." If you were to say "Nootka cypress" they would probably not understand. I understand that "Nootka cypress" is a nicer, more accurate name, and perhaps it is in common use somewhere else. Perhaps someone who lives in Washington state can comment further.
Based on the discussion so far, I went ahead and added "Alaska yellow cedar" as the working default.
There is Taiwan yellow cedar (Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana), so I think the "Alaska" modifier lwould be helpful. If that's unpopular in some jurisdictions, we can always add geographic restrictions to the locally preferred names.
"yellow-cedar" or "yellowcedar" are only necessary if you consider "cedar" to be a taxonomic name. But it's an English name with no taxonomic meaning, so I don't see any need to make special typographic accommodations.
Would you be willing to remove the "Alaksa" from the name for Canada? Not much chance of a range overlap with Taiwan Yellow cedar, so shouldn't become an issue. The general default can still definitely be Alaska yellow cedar, but it's not a great (or used, as far as I know) name in British columbia where it's a common tree along the entire coastline. I've never heard Alaska tacked onto the name in Canada, only in American guides/lumber descriptions.
Done. You may have to refresh and/or clear cache before the difference becomes visible for Canada.
Awesome. Thanks so much. All looks good on my end.
Please see previous comments below, but please keep further comments in this flag.
https://www.inaturalist.org/flags/297920 (scroll to bottom)
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxon_swaps/44108 (scroll to bottom)