Basic Guidelines For English Spellings
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Originally: (more fully "Canadian yellowroot") the plant goldenseal, Hydrastis canadensis, of Canada and the northern United States; the yellow rhizome of this plant, used medicinally and as the source of a yellow dye. In later use also: (more fully "shrub yellowroot") a shrub of eastern North America, Xanthorhiza simplicissima (family Ranunculaceae), having pinnate leaves, racemes of purplish flowers, and a yellow root.
Mid 18th century; earliest use found in John Bartram (1699–1777), botanist and explorer in America. From yellow + root.