Floruit facts for kids

Floruit, often shortened to fl. (or sometimes flor.), is a Latin word that means "he/she flourished." It's used to show a time or period when a person was known to be alive or very active. In English, you can also use "floruit" as a noun to describe that peak time in someone's life.

What Floruit Means and How We Use It

The word floruit comes from the Latin verb flōreō, which means "to bloom, flower, or flourish." It's like saying someone was "blooming" or at their best during a certain time.

Historians and people who study genealogy (family history) use floruit a lot. They use it when they don't know the exact birth or death dates of a person. For example, if old records show that someone named John Jones signed important papers in 1204 and 1229, and there's also a record of his marriage in 1197, a historian might write about him as "John Jones (fl. 1197–1229)." This tells us that he was active and alive between those years.

In art history, floruit is often used to talk about when an artist was most active in their career. It marks the period when they were creating most of their art. So, if you see "Artist X (fl. 1750–1780)," it means that artist was busy making art during those years.

Sometimes, instead of using floruit, you might see phrases like "active between [date] and [date]." This means the same thing and is used when there's enough space or if it fits the writing style better.