Gēn'tian, n.

(jēn'shān), n. [Lat. gentiana, so called after the Illyrian king Gentius, who is said to have first discovered the properties of this plant; Fr. gentiane, Pr. genciana, gensana, Sp. & Pg. genciana, It. genziana.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Gentianus. The officinal gentian (G. lutea) is found in the Alpine meadows of Middle Europe, and has a bright yellow flower. Its root has a yellowish-brown color, and a very bitter taste, and is used as an ingredient in stomachic bitters; — called also felwort. There are several other species, one of which, having a beautiful fringed corolla of a sky-blue color, is the G. crinita, or the fringed gentian.