from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Thuja \Thu"ja\ (th[=u]"j[.a]), n. [NL., from Gr. qyi`a an
African tree with sweet-smelling wood.] (Bot.)
A genus of evergreen trees, thickly branched, remarkable for
the distichous arrangement of their branches, and having
scalelike, closely imbricated, or compressed leaves. [Written
also {thuya}.] See {Thyine wood}.
[1913 Webster]
Note: {Thuja occidentalis} is the {Arbor vitae} of the
Eastern and Northern United States. {Thuja gigantea} of
North-western America is a very large tree, there
called {red cedar}, and {canoe cedar}, and furnishes a
useful timber.
[1913 Webster]