Francisco Noronha facts for kids
Father Francisco Noronha (also known as Francisco Noroña) was a Spanish doctor and plant expert (a botanist). He was born in Seville, Spain, in 1748 and passed away on January 12, 1788, in Mauritius.
Noronha spent time in Manila, Luzon, Philippines. There, he worked hard to set up the Royal Botanic Garden. He filled it with many important and valuable plants.
His Work as a Botanist
Francisco Noronha was a very skilled botanist. He made many detailed water-colour drawings of plants from Java. Three sets of these drawings still exist today. One set has 108 numbered drawings.
Some experts describe him as a Spanish doctor and botanist who visited Madagascar. Others say he was a talented botanist from Manila. In 1786, he took charge of the museum of the Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences in Java. This shows how important his work was in studying plants.
Plants Named After Him
Francisco Noronha's work is remembered in the world of plants. A group of plants, called a genus, was named after him: Noronhia. This genus belongs to the Oleaceae family, which includes olive trees.
Dutch botanists Carl Ludwig Blume and Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt named this plant group. One plant in this group is the Noronhia emarginata, also known as the Madagascar olive. Another plant, Crepis noronhaea, found in Madeira, was also named in his honor.
See also
In Spanish: Francisco Noroña para niños
