Myosotis is a genus of flowering plants named from the Greek for “mouse’s ear”, presumably because of the shape of the leaf. Its common name is borrowed from the French (ne m’oubliez pas) and first used in English around 1532, with several variations.
A German legend relates the story that when God named all the plants on the Earth, a tiny unnamed flower cried out, “Forget me not, O Lord!” and thusly God replied, “That shall be your name”. In 15th century Germany, it was thought that the wearer of this little flower would never be forgotten by their lover.
