herb (n.)

"植物"，古英语 wyrt"根，草本，蔬菜，植物，香料"，源自于原始日耳曼语 *wurtiz（也指古萨克森语 wurt 、古挪威语、丹麦语 urt 、古高地德语 wurz 、德语 Wurz 、哥特语 waurts 、古挪威语 rot "根"），源自于 PIE 根 *wrād- "树枝，根"。St. John's wort 于15世纪被发现。

约公元1300年， herber，“草药园，花园”，源自古法语 erbier “田野，草地； 菜园”，源自拉丁语 herba “草，草本植物”（见 herb）。后来指“草地”（14世纪中叶，古法语中也有这个意思），“阴凉的角落，由树木、灌木或藤蔓交织而成的凉亭”（14世纪中叶）。它可能不是来自拉丁语 arbor “树木”（见 arbor（n.2）），尽管也许那个词影响了它的拼写：

[O]riginally signifying a place for the cultivation of herbs, a pleasure-ground, garden, subsequently applied to the bower or rustic shelter which commonly occupied the most conspicuous situation in the garden ; and thus the etymological reference to herbs being no longer apparent, the spelling was probably accommodated to the notion of being sheltered by trees or shrubs (arbor). [Hensleigh Wedgwood, "A Dictionary of English Etymology," 1859]

[O]riginally signifying a place for the cultivation of herbs, a pleasure-ground, garden, subsequently applied to the bower or rustic shelter which commonly occupied the most conspicuous situation in the garden ; and thus the etymological reference to herbs being no longer apparent, the spelling was probably accommodated to the notion of being sheltered by trees or shrubs (arbor). [Hensleigh Wedgwood, "A Dictionary of English Etymology," 1859]

但是，在中古英语中，在辅音前从 er- 变为 ar- 的变化也反映了发音的变化：比较 farm 来自 ferme， harbor 来自古英语 herebeorg。