Editing Centaurea (section)

==Common names==
Common names for this genus are '''centaury''', '''centory''', '''starthistles''', '''knapweeds''', '''centaureas''' and the more ambiguous "'''bluets'''"; a vernacular name used for these plants in parts of England is "'''loggerheads'''" ([[common knapweed]]). The ''Plectocephalus'' group &ndash; possibly a distinct genus &ndash; is known as '''basketflowers'''. '''"Cornflower"''' is used for a few species, but that term more often specifically means either ''[[Centaurea cyanus|C. cyanus]]'' (the annual cornflower) or ''[[Centaurea montana]]'' (the perennial cornflower). The common name "'''centaury'''" is sometimes used, although this also refers to the unrelated plant genus ''[[Centaurium]]''.<ref name=kko2006>Keil (2006), Keil & Ochsmann (2006).</ref>

The name is said to be in reference to [[Chiron]], the centaur of [[Greek mythology]] who discovered medicinal uses of a plant eventually called "centaury".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Blackwell |first=Laird R. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/61461560 |title=Great Basin Wildflowers: A Guide to Common Wildflowers of the High Deserts of Nevada, Utah, and Oregon (A Falcon Guide) |publisher=[[Morris Book Publishing, LLC]] |year=2006 |isbn=0-7627-3805-7 |edition=1st |location=Guilford, Conn. |pages=57 |oclc=61461560}}</ref>