Rosemary has nothing to do with roses or Mary — it's Latin for "dew of the sea," reshaped by English folk etymology into two familiar words.
An aromatic evergreen shrub of the mint family, native to the Mediterranean, with narrow leaves used as a culinary herb and in traditional medicine.
From Latin ros marinus ('dew of the sea'), because the plant thrives in coastal Mediterranean environments. The English spelling was influenced by folk etymology, reshaped to suggest 'rose' and 'Mary' (perhaps associated with the Virgin Mary), though it has nothing to do with either. Key roots: ros (Latin: "dew, moisture"), marinus (Latin: "of the sea
Rosemary has nothing to do with roses or the name Mary. It's a folk etymology — English speakers reshaped Latin ros marinus ("dew of the sea") into something that sounded like two familiar English words. The Latin name was poetic and accurate: rosemary grows wild on Mediterranean sea cliffs