セイヨウニンジン

Meanings

American ginseng

usually written using kana alone

Refers specifically to Panax quinquefolius, a herbaceous perennial plant native to North America, used in traditional medicine.

セイヨウニンジンは、アメリカ人にん参じんとも呼よばれる薬やく用よう植しょく物ぶつです。
American ginseng is a medicinal plant also called アメリカ人参.

noun

Western carrot cultivars

usually written using kana alone

Used to distinguish Western carrot varieties from the Eastern/Asian carrot (人参). The cross-reference to 人参 sense 1 indicates this is a contrasting term.

Kanji

西west, Spain
洋ocean, sea, foreign
人person
参nonplussed, three (in documents), going

Related words

人にん参じん
人参 usually refers to the common carrot or, in traditional contexts, to Asian ginseng. セイヨウニンジン specifically denotes American ginseng or Western carrot cultivars, adding a geographical distinction.
アメリカ人にん参じん
アメリカ人参 is a synonym for American ginseng, often used interchangeably with セイヨウニンジン in the medicinal sense.

Built from

西せい洋よう+人にん参じん

Written forms

せいようにんじん
Hiragana spelling is also used, especially in less formal contexts.
西せい洋よう人にん参じん
Kanji spelling is possible but uncommon; usually written in kana.

Etymology

Compound of 西洋 (seiyō, 'Western') and 人参 (ninjin, 'carrot' or 'ginseng'). The term was coined to distinguish Western varieties of ginseng and carrot from their Asian counterparts.