‖ camas, camash, cammas
variant forms of quamash (Camassia esculenta), a liliaceous plant, whose bulbs are eaten by North American Indians.
| 1837 W. Irving Capt. Bonneville II. 221 The Indians..come to it in the summer time to dig the camash root. 1884 Joaquin Miller Mem. & Rime 83 The camas blossom..all Oregon in the early spring. |
Hence camas rat (see quot.).
| 1868 Wood Homes without H. i. 35 The Camas Rat (Pseudostoma borealis)..The name is derived from its food, which consists chiefly of quamash root. |