noun
water shield (Brasenia schreberi)
An aquatic plant with mucilaginous young shoots, used in Japanese cuisine. The more common name is 蓴菜 (じゅんさい). This reading ぬなわ is archaic or literary.
See also: 蓴菜
古い文献では、沼縄は蓴菜の古名として記されている。
In old texts, 沼縄 (ぬなわ) is recorded as an ancient name for water shield.
The modern standard name for the same plant. ぬなわ is its archaic or literary synonym.
The derivation of ぬなわ is uncertain. The kanji 沼縄 literally mean 'marsh rope', possibly describing the plant's long, rope-like stems in marshy water.