| Peyote | |
|---|---|
| |
| Peyote in the wild | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Cactaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cactoideae |
| Genus: | Lophophora |
| Species: | L. williamsii
|
| Binomial name | |
| Lophophora williamsii (Lem. ex J.F.Cels) J.M.Coult.
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Echinocactus williamsii Lemaire ex Salm-Dyck | |
The peyote (/peɪˈoʊti/; Lophophora williamsii /ləˈfɒfərə wɪliˈæmziaɪ/) is a small, spineless cactus which contains psychoactive alkaloids,[2] particularly mescaline (see also: cactus alkaloids).[3] Peyote is a Spanish word derived from the Nahuatl peyōtl ([ˈpejoːt͡ɬ]), meaning "caterpillar cocoon", from a root peyōni, "to glisten".[4][5][6] Peyote is native to Mexico and southwestern Texas. It is found primarily in the Sierra Madre Occidental, the Chihuahuan Desert and in the states of Nayarit, Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, and San Luis Potosí among scrub. It flowers from March to May, and sometimes as late as September. The flowers are pink, with thigmotactic anthers (like Opuntia).
Known for its psychoactive properties when ingested, peyote has at least 5,500 years of entheogenic and medicinal use by indigenous North Americans.[7]
- ^ Terry, M. (2017). "Lophophora williamsii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T151962A121515326. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T151962A121515326.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ Bauer, Barbara E. (2021-11-01). "The Compounds in Psychedelic Cacti". Psychedelic Science Review. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
- ^ Salak, Kira. "Lost Souls of the Peyote Trail (published in National Geographic Adventure)". Kira Salak. Kira Salak, KiraSalak.com. Retrieved 2013-09-12.
- ^ Other sources, apparently incorrectly, translate the Nahuatl word as "divine messenger". Anderson, Edward F. (2001). The Cactus Family. Pentland, Oregon: Timber Press. ISBN 978-0-88192-498-5. p. 396.
- ^ "Peyote". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. 2020.
- ^ Andrews, J. Richard (2003). Workbook for Introduction to Classical Nahuatl, Revised Edition. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0-8061-3453-6. p. 246. See peyotl in Wiktionary.
- ^ Johnson, Jon (24 June 2020). "What to know about peyote".