Varietät

Varietät is a German noun meaning variety or diversity. In scientific use, the term designates a rank below species and is most common in botany. A variety (varietas, abbreviated var.) refers to a naturally occurring, heritable deviation within a species that shows minor, stable differences in morphology, physiology, or ecology. Varieties are typically geographically or ecologically distinct yet capable of interbreeding with other members of the species. The rank var. is recognized in the nomenclature of algae, fungi, and plants (ICN).

Historically, zoological usage also employed the term variety, but in modern classification it is not an official rank; differences within animal species are usually described as subspecies or forms rather than varieties.

In horticulture and agriculture, Varietät has been used for naturally occurring variants within cultivated species. Contemporary practice often distinguishes between varieties arising without deliberate human selection and cultivated varieties or cultivars (Sorten, cultivars) created or stabilized through breeding. Cultivars have formal, human-defined traits and are given special cultivar names, whereas natural varieties may retain a more general, taxonomic designation.

In German culture, Varietät also denotes a type of entertainment known as a variety show (Varieté), featuring a sequence of diverse acts. This sense is distinct from the biological usage and reflects a different linguistic domain.

Etymologically, Varietät derives from French variété, which in turn comes from Latin varietas, meaning diversity or difference. The term thus captures the idea of a distinct or characteristic form within a broader whole.