hollyhock

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

hollyhock
    n 1: any of various plants of the genus Althaea; similar to but
         having smaller flowers than genus Alcea [syn: {althea},
         {althaea}, {hollyhock}]
    2: any of various tall plants of the genus Alcea; native to the
       Middle East but widely naturalized and cultivated for its
       very large variously colored flowers

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Hollyhock \Hol"ly*hock\, n. [OE. holihoc; holi holy + hoc
   mallow, AS. hoc; cf. W. hocys mallows, hocys bendigaid
   hollyhock, lit., blessed mallow. Prob. so named because
   brought from the Holy Land. See {Holy}.] (Bot.)
   A species of {Alth[ae]a} ({Alth[ae]a rosea}), bearing flowers
   of various colors; -- called also {rose mallow}.

   Note: Rose mallow is listed as a variety of Hibiscus, not
         Hollyhock in several Web pages. Name change???
         [1913 Webster +PJC]