Nonea is a genus of about 45 flowering plant species in the borage family, Boraginaceae, placed in the order Boraginales. The genus was described by Friedrich Kasimir Medikus and published in Philosophische Botanik (1789). Plants in this genus are commonly known as monkswort.
Members of Nonea are herbaceous perennials or annuals. They are characterised by dense, bristly or soft hairs covering the stems, leaves, and calyx, giving the plants a grayish-green appearance. The leaves are simple and alternate. Flowers are tubular to funnel-shaped, borne in coiling cymes typical of the borage family; flower colour varies across species from yellow and white to pink, red, and purple-brown. The fruit consists of smooth or wrinkled nutlets, a diagnostic feature used to distinguish species within the genus.
The genus ranges widely across Europe, western and central Asia, and North Africa, with many species adapted to dry, disturbed, or stony habitats. Nonea is closely related to Anchusa and Alkanna within Boraginaceae.
Etymology
The genus name Nonea was established by Friedrich Kasimir Medikus and published in Philosophische Botanik in 1789. The common name "monkswort" is sometimes applied to plants in this genus, though its precise origin is not documented in available sources.
Distribution
Nonea species are native to Europe, Asia, and Africa. The genus is particularly diverse in the Mediterranean region, western and central Asia, and the Middle East, where species such as Nonea persica and Nonea lutea occur. Many species favour open, dry, and disturbed ground.
