虞美人花名来源考

A Study on the Origin of the Name “Yu Meiren” (Corn Poppy)

摘要: 本文聚焦“虞美人”与植物的关联及名称演变，先考其名源起。从北宋《贾氏谈录》中记载的闻歌起舞、“大而无花、叶相对”的虞美人草，到唐宋时期丽春花(即现今虞美人花)的明确记载及与罂粟的区分，再到宋后因战乱、政权更迭导致的记载中断，以及明代对罂粟科植物的混淆，阐述“虞美人”之名从虞姬代称，经草名、双鱼儿花雅称，逐步与丽春花关联的演变过程。进而梳理其在历史文献中的认知变迁，从宋代的清晰辨识，到清代民间的普遍混淆，展现不同时期对这一植物的认知差异与时代背景的关联。

Abstract: This paper focuses on the connection between “Yu Meiren” and plants as well as the evolution of its name, first examining the origin of the name. It elaborates on the evolution process of the name “Yu Meiren” from a substitute name for Yu Ji, through the name of a grass and the elegant name “Shuang Yuer Hua” (Two Fish Flower), to its gradual association with the corn poppy. This is traced from the records in Jia Shi Tan Lu (Jia’s Talks) of the Northern Song Dynasty, which describes the “Yu Meiren Grass” that dances at the sound of songs and has “large size without flowers and opposite leaves”, to the clear records of the corn poppy (i.e., the present-day Yu Meiren flower) and its distinction from opium poppy in the Tang and Song dynasties, then to the interruption of records due to wars and regime changes after the Song Dynasty, and the confusion of Papaveraceae plants in the Ming Dynasty. Furthermore, it sorts out the cognitive changes in historical documents, from the clear identification in the Song Dynasty to the widespread confusion among the people in the Qing Dynasty, showing the cognitive differences of this plant in different periods and their connection with the historical background.