Castanopsis cuspidata; Japanese chinquapin
A species of evergreen tree native to Japan and Korea, producing edible nuts. Botanical term; in everyday contexts often referred to simply as シイ or 椎.
Castanopsis cuspidata is one of the representative tree species of Japan's laurel forests.
There is a large Castanopsis cuspidata tree in this park.
Usually written in kana; katakana is common for plant names.
Kanji form; rarely used.
Irregular okurigana variant; very rare.
The name likely derives from 円ら (つぶら, 'round') + 椎 (しい, 'chinquapin'), referring to the tree's small, round nuts. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.