Look closely at a castor leaf and you’ll see it: a broad palm, fingers spread wide, reaching outward. Centuries ago, that shape gave the plant one of the most beautiful names in botany. Palma Christi. The palm of Christ.
A Name Rooted in the Leaf
In medieval Europe, the castor plant became known as Palma Christi for its large, deeply lobed leaves, which open like an outstretched hand. The name carried a second layer of meaning, too. Castor oil held a restorative reputation among healers of the time, and calling it the palm of Christ spoke to the reverence people felt for it.
Medieval writers sometimes used the same name for other plants with hand-like features, including a type of orchid, so historians can’t always be sure which plant an old text meant. For the castor plant, though, the name stuck, and it has followed the plant into modern times.
Older Than the Name Itself
By the time Palma Christi appeared in European herbals, castor oil already had a long history behind it.
- Ancient Egypt: castor oil appears in the Ebers Papyrus, an Egyptian medical text from around 1550 BCE, and the Greek historian Herodotus wrote that Egyptians burned it in their lamps.
- Ancient Greece: the physician Dioscorides described the plant in the first century and called it kiki and kroton.
- India: Ayurvedic tradition has long made castor oil part of massage and daily self-care.
- Medieval Europe: in the 13th century, the scholar Albertus Magnus wrote of an arbor mirabilis, a “wonderful tree,” which has been identified as the castor plant.
Even its scientific name has a story. Ricinus is Latin for “tick,” because the speckled castor seed looks remarkably like one.
Why We Keep the Name Close
When we designed Elham’s, Palma Christi found its way into our logo. To us, it captures what this oil has always been: something passed from hand to hand and home to home, offered as an act of care. Every night when you pour, wrap and rest, you’re taking part in a ritual that has traveled through thousands of years to reach you.
Begin Your Own Ritual
Explore our organic castor oil, or read our guide on how to use a castor oil pack.