Genesis 30:37

poplar R.V. marg. storax tree. The Hebrew name is libneh, and is probably connected with the word laban, meaning "white." By some it is identified with the styrax officinalis.

plane tree In the Hebrew -armon, i.e. "naked," a name derived from the annual scaling of the bark of the tree. The platanus orientaliswas held in high veneration in the East. Cf. Ezekiel 31:8.

white strakes Jacob's trick turns upon the whitenessof the rods; and this supplies a play upon the name "Laban" ("white"), who is outwitted by Jacob. The device is said to be well known to shepherds. "Strake" is Old English for "streak"; cf. Leviticus 14:37.