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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Bay Laurel
| image = Laurus-nobilis-flowers.JPG
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Bay Laurel (''Laurus nobilis'') flowers and leaves
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Laurales]]
| familia = [[Lauraceae]]
| genus = ''[[Laurus]]''
| species = '''''L. nobilis'''''
| binomial = ''Laurus nobilis''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
The '''Bay Laurel''' (''Laurus nobilis'', [[Lauraceae]]), also known as '''True Laurel''', '''Sweet Bay''', '''Grecian Laurel''', '''Laurel''', or '''Bay Tree''', is an aromatic [[evergreen]] [[tree]] or large [[shrub]] reaching 10–18 [[metre|m]] tall, native to the [[Mediterranean region]].
The [[leaf|leaves]] are 6–12 [[centimeter|cm]] long and 2–4 cm broad, with a characteristic finely serrated and wrinkled margin. It is [[plant sexuality|dioecious]], with male and female [[flower]]s on separate plants; each flower is pale yellow-green, about 1 cm diameter, borne in pairs together beside a leaf. The [[fruit]] is a small black berry about 1 cm long, containing a single [[seed]].
==Uses and symbolism==
Bay Laurel is the source of the [[Bay leaf|bay leaves]] which are used for their flavour in cooking. It was also the source of the [[laurel wreath]] of ancient [[Greece]], and therefore the expression of "resting on one's laurels". A wreath of bay laurels was given as the prize at the [[Pythian Games]] because the games were in honor of [[Apollo]] and the laurel was one of his symbols ever since his unsuccessful pursuit of [[Apollo and Daphne|Daphne]]. In the Bible, the sweet-bay is often an emblem of prosperity and fame. In Christianity it is said to symbolize the Resurrection of Christ and the triumph of Humanity thereby. It is also the source of the word ''[[baccalaureate]]'' (laurel berry), and of ''[[poet laureate]]''.
Some evidence from the medical literature supports Bay Laurel having these uses:
* Antioxidative: [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12946729&query_hl=20&itool=pubmed_docsum ''Fitoterapia''. 2003 Sep;74(6):613-6.]
* Analgesic and anti-inflammatory: [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12916069&query_hl=20&itool=pubmed_docsum ''Phytother Res''. 2003 Aug;17(7):733-6.]
* Anticonvulsant (antiepileptic): [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12046861&query_hl=20&itool=pubmed_docsum ''Phytomedicine''. 2002 Apr;9(3):212-6.]
In [[Chinese folklore]] there is a great laurel tree on the moon, and the [[Chinese language|Chinese]] name for the laurel, 月桂, literally translates to "moon-laurel". This is the subject of a story of [[Wu Gang]], a man who aspired to immortality and neglected his work. When the deities discovered this they sentenced Wu Gang to fell the laurel tree, whereupon he could join the ranks of the deities; however, since the laurel regenerated immediately when cut, it could never be felled. The phrase 吴刚伐木 ("Wu Gang felling the tree") is sometimes used to refer to endless toil, analogous to [[Sisyphus]] in Greek mythology.
It is also widely cultivated as an [[ornamental plant]] in regions with [[mediterranean climate|mediterranean]] or [[oceanic climate]]s, and as an indoor plant in colder regions.
Bay leaves are eaten by the [[caterpillar]]s of some [[Lepidoptera]], for example the [[Eastern tiger swallowtail]] (''Papilio glaucus'').
<gallery>
Image:20050515-007-laurus-nobilis.jpg|Bay Laurel grown in a kitchen for [[bay leaf|bay leaves]]
Image:Koeh-086.jpg|[[19th century]] illustration
</gallery>
==Trivia==
{{Trivia|date=September 2007}}
*Bay laurel leaves are used in the design of the [[10 yen coin]] in [[Japan]].
*In [[Greek mythology]], the tree was first formed when the [[nymph]] Daphne changed into it to escape the lustful pursuit of the Olympian god Apollo; see [[Apollo and Daphne]]. Daphne is the Greek name for the tree.
*The [[National Emblem of Greece]] consists of a blue escutcheon with a white cross totally surrounded by two '''laurel''' branches.
== External links ==
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=68027442&dopt=Full MeSH]: Laurus - ''Laurus nobilis'' (Bay Laurel)
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=68027422&dopt=Full MeSH]: Umbellularia - ''Umbellularia californica'' (California Bay Laurel)
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=67488485&dopt=Full MeSH]: 3-oxo-eudesma-1,4(15),11(13)triene-12,6alpha-olide [Substance Name]
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=67488484&dopt=Full MeSH]: anhydroperoxycostunolide [Substance Name]
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=67417229&dopt=Full MeSH]: magnolialide [Substance Name]
*[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=PureSearch&db=pubmed&details_term=%22Laurus%22%5BMAJR%5D PubMed search]: "Laurus"[MAJR]
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=PureSearch&db=pubmed&details_term=%22anhydroperoxycostunolide%22%5BAll%20Fields%5D%20OR%20%22magnolialide%22%5BAll%20Fields%5D%20OR%20%223-oxo-eudesma-1%2C4%2815%29%2C11%2813%29triene-12%2C6alpha-olide%22%5BAll%20Fields%5D PubMed search]: "anhydroperoxycostunolide" OR "magnolialide" OR "3-oxo-eudesma-1,4(15),11(13)triene-12,6alpha-olide"
{{Commons|Laurus nobilis}}
[[Category:Laurales]]
[[Category:Herbs]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Greece]]
| color = lightgreen
| name = Bay Laurel
| image = Laurus-nobilis-flowers.JPG
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Bay Laurel (''Laurus nobilis'') flowers and leaves
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Laurales]]
| familia = [[Lauraceae]]
| genus = ''[[Laurus]]''
| species = '''''L. nobilis'''''
| binomial = ''Laurus nobilis''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
The '''Bay Laurel''' (''Laurus nobilis'', [[Lauraceae]]), also known as '''True Laurel''', '''Sweet Bay''', '''Grecian Laurel''', '''Laurel''', or '''Bay Tree''', is an aromatic [[evergreen]] [[tree]] or large [[shrub]] reaching 10–18 [[metre|m]] tall, native to the [[Mediterranean region]].
The [[leaf|leaves]] are 6–12 [[centimeter|cm]] long and 2–4 cm broad, with a characteristic finely serrated and wrinkled margin. It is [[plant sexuality|dioecious]], with male and female [[flower]]s on separate plants; each flower is pale yellow-green, about 1 cm diameter, borne in pairs together beside a leaf. The [[fruit]] is a small black berry about 1 cm long, containing a single [[seed]].
==Uses and symbolism==
Bay Laurel is the source of the [[Bay leaf|bay leaves]] which are used for their flavour in cooking. It was also the source of the [[laurel wreath]] of ancient [[Greece]], and therefore the expression of "resting on one's laurels". A wreath of bay laurels was given as the prize at the [[Pythian Games]] because the games were in honor of [[Apollo]] and the laurel was one of his symbols ever since his unsuccessful pursuit of [[Apollo and Daphne|Daphne]]. In the Bible, the sweet-bay is often an emblem of prosperity and fame. In Christianity it is said to symbolize the Resurrection of Christ and the triumph of Humanity thereby. It is also the source of the word ''[[baccalaureate]]'' (laurel berry), and of ''[[poet laureate]]''.
Some evidence from the medical literature supports Bay Laurel having these uses:
* Antioxidative: [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12946729&query_hl=20&itool=pubmed_docsum ''Fitoterapia''. 2003 Sep;74(6):613-6.]
* Analgesic and anti-inflammatory: [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12916069&query_hl=20&itool=pubmed_docsum ''Phytother Res''. 2003 Aug;17(7):733-6.]
* Anticonvulsant (antiepileptic): [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12046861&query_hl=20&itool=pubmed_docsum ''Phytomedicine''. 2002 Apr;9(3):212-6.]
In [[Chinese folklore]] there is a great laurel tree on the moon, and the [[Chinese language|Chinese]] name for the laurel, 月桂, literally translates to "moon-laurel". This is the subject of a story of [[Wu Gang]], a man who aspired to immortality and neglected his work. When the deities discovered this they sentenced Wu Gang to fell the laurel tree, whereupon he could join the ranks of the deities; however, since the laurel regenerated immediately when cut, it could never be felled. The phrase 吴刚伐木 ("Wu Gang felling the tree") is sometimes used to refer to endless toil, analogous to [[Sisyphus]] in Greek mythology.
It is also widely cultivated as an [[ornamental plant]] in regions with [[mediterranean climate|mediterranean]] or [[oceanic climate]]s, and as an indoor plant in colder regions.
Bay leaves are eaten by the [[caterpillar]]s of some [[Lepidoptera]], for example the [[Eastern tiger swallowtail]] (''Papilio glaucus'').
<gallery>
Image:20050515-007-laurus-nobilis.jpg|Bay Laurel grown in a kitchen for [[bay leaf|bay leaves]]
Image:Koeh-086.jpg|[[19th century]] illustration
</gallery>
==Trivia==
{{Trivia|date=September 2007}}
*Bay laurel leaves are used in the design of the [[10 yen coin]] in [[Japan]].
*In [[Greek mythology]], the tree was first formed when the [[nymph]] Daphne changed into it to escape the lustful pursuit of the Olympian god Apollo; see [[Apollo and Daphne]]. Daphne is the Greek name for the tree.
*The [[National Emblem of Greece]] consists of a blue escutcheon with a white cross totally surrounded by two '''laurel''' branches.
== External links ==
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=68027442&dopt=Full MeSH]: Laurus - ''Laurus nobilis'' (Bay Laurel)
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=68027422&dopt=Full MeSH]: Umbellularia - ''Umbellularia californica'' (California Bay Laurel)
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=67488485&dopt=Full MeSH]: 3-oxo-eudesma-1,4(15),11(13)triene-12,6alpha-olide [Substance Name]
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=67488484&dopt=Full MeSH]: anhydroperoxycostunolide [Substance Name]
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=mesh&list_uids=67417229&dopt=Full MeSH]: magnolialide [Substance Name]
*[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=PureSearch&db=pubmed&details_term=%22Laurus%22%5BMAJR%5D PubMed search]: "Laurus"[MAJR]
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=PureSearch&db=pubmed&details_term=%22anhydroperoxycostunolide%22%5BAll%20Fields%5D%20OR%20%22magnolialide%22%5BAll%20Fields%5D%20OR%20%223-oxo-eudesma-1%2C4%2815%29%2C11%2813%29triene-12%2C6alpha-olide%22%5BAll%20Fields%5D PubMed search]: "anhydroperoxycostunolide" OR "magnolialide" OR "3-oxo-eudesma-1,4(15),11(13)triene-12,6alpha-olide"
{{Commons|Laurus nobilis}}
[[Category:Laurales]]
[[Category:Herbs]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Greece]]
