noun
African violet
Common houseplant with fuzzy leaves and purple, pink, or white flowers; the standard Japanese name for Saintpaulia species.
窓辺にアフリカスミレを置いている。
I keep an African violet on the windowsill.
Katakana spelling is standard for this plant name; usually written in kana.
Kanji spelling exists but is rarely used; the katakana form is strongly preferred.
From English 'African violet', adapted into Japanese as アフリカスミレ (Afurika sumire). The kanji 菫 means 'violet' and is used in the rare kanji spelling.