Names for Cannabis

As a popular recreational drug, cannabis is well known –most commonly as weed, pot or marijuana. Because it was an illegal drug for many years, cannabis has garnered many slang names over time.

As a popular recreational drug, cannabis is well known –most commonly as weed, pot or marijuana. Because it was an illegal drug for many years, cannabis has garnered many slang names over time.  Because cannabis is a drug that is sold and used worldwide, the dispersion of it further lends to the large array of slang names. These terms can relate to many things: the effect of the drug, the language the term originated from, the quality of the product, strain name, form used or others code words.

Now, as cannabis has become legal for purchase in some states, the list of names for the drug includes both street names and industry trade names that identify the brand.

Given the many different types of weed, the entire list of names for cannabis is said to include over 1,200 terms and can be very complicated to figure out.

Scientific Latin Names

Cannabis indica – a broad-leafed plant, cultivated to produce charas (a form of hashish) and typically grown in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Cannabis ruderalis – a small but large-leafed plant with thin, fibrous stems, this variety is a low-THC species native to Russia, as well as to Eastern and Central Europe.

Cannabis sativa – an annual flowering plant grown for use as a recreational drug deriving from the leaves, buds and oil from the seeds.

Traditional and Slang Names for Cannabis

In the list below, terms with a country or language designation are considered to be the traditional word used for cannabis in that country or language. All other terms in the list are considered to be slang words for the drug. When slang names are known among people who use cannabis to have specific connotations (strain, form, quality, trade name, etc.), they have been indicated in brackets following the name.

• 2 long [cannabis cigarette]
• 420
• Acapulco Gold [strain name]
• Ace
• Afghan [strain name]
• African [strain name]
• Airplane [cannabis cigarette]
• AK-47 [industry trade name]
• Alfalfa
• Alice B. Toklas
• Alligator Cigarette [cannabis cigarette]
• Amnesia [good quality] [industry trade name]
• Amnesia Haze [industry trade name]
• Asparagus
• Astro Turf
• Aunt Mary
• Baby
• Bag of Bones
• Bammies [poor quality]
• Bhang (from Sanskrit “Bhaṅgā” or Swahili “Bhangi”)
• Bhenbin (Myanmar)
• Blaze
• Blonde
• Blue Dream [industry trade name]
• Blue Sage
• Blueberry [industry trade name]
• Blunt [cannabis cigarette]
• Broccoli
• Bruce Banner [strain name/controversial]
• Bubba Kush [industry trade name]
• Bubblegum [industry trade name]
• Bud [good quality]
• Buddha [good quality]
• Cabbage [poor quality]
• Cambodian Red [strain name]
• Cannon
• Catnip
• Chamba (Malawi)
• Chanvre (French)
• Charlotte’s Web [strain name/controversial]
• Christmas Tree
• Chronic [good quality]
• Climb
• Columbian [strain name]
• Crazy Weed
• Critical Mass [industry trade name]
• Dagga (Afrikaans)
• Da Kine
• Dank [good quality]
• Diamba (Sierra Leone)
• Dirt Grass [poor quality]
• Ditch Weed [poor quality]
• Dona Juanita (“Lady Jane” in Spanish)
• Doobie [cannabis cigarette]
• Dope
• Durban Poison [industry trade name]
• Endo
• Esrar (Turkish)
• Fatty [cannabis cigarette]
• Flower
• Gandia (Mauritius)
• Ganja (Hindi) [good quality]
• Ganjika (Sanskrit)
• Garbage [poor quality]
• Girl Scout Cookies [strain name/controversial]
• Good Giggles
• Good Stuff [good quality]
• Gorilla Glue [strain name/controversial]
• Grape Ape [strain name/controversial]
• Grass
• Green [poor quality]
• Green Goddess
• Hanf (German)
• Happy Cigarette [cannabis cigarette]
• Hashish
• Hawaiin [strain name]
• Haze [industry trade name]
• Hemp
• Herb
• Hindu Kush [industry trade name]
• Homegrown
• Houdini
• Hydro [good quality]
• Injaga (Rwanda)
• Jack Herer [industry trade name]
• Jamaican Gold [strain name]
• Jay [cannabis cigarette]
• Jive
• Joint [cannabis cigarette]
• Kan-jac (Panama)
• Kief [good quality]
• Kind Bud [good quality]
• Kush
• L Pape [cannabis cigarette]
• Left-handed Cigarette [cannabis cigarette]
• Loco Weed
• Love Weed
• Ma (Chinese)
• Maconha (Portuguese)
• Magic Dragon [cannabis cigarette]
• Magic Smoke
• Marijuana (or Marihuana) [poor quality]
• Mary Jane
• Maui-Wowie [good quality]
• Maui Waui [industry trade name]
• Mbanje (Zimbabwe)
• Mexican Red [strain name]
• Mota
• Muggle
• Nixon [poor quality]
• Northern Lights [industry trade name]
• Nug [good quality]
• OG Kush [industry trade name]
• Pakalolo (Hawaiian)
• Panama Red [strain name]
• Phatty [cannabis cigarette]
• Pinner [cannabis cigarette]
• Pot (from Spanish “Potiguaya”)
• Purple Haze [industry trade name]
• Ragweed [poor quality]
• Rainy Day Woman
• Reefer [cannabis cigarette]
• Righteous Bush [good quality]
• Roach
• Rope
• Salad
• Sam-gwa (Korean)
• Shake [poor quality]
• Sinsemilla [good quality]
• Skunk [industry trade name]
• Soruma (Mozambique)
• Sour Diesel [industry trade name]
• Spak Brus (Papua New Guinea)
• Spliff [cannabis cigarette]
• Stash
• Sticky Icky
• Stink Weed
• Stogie [cannabis cigarette]
• Strawberry Cough [industry trade name]
• Swag [poor quality]
• Taima (Japanese)
• Tea
• Thai Stick [strain name]
• Thirteen
• Trees
• Uluwangula (Zambia)
• Weed
• Whacky Tabacky
• White Widow [industry trade name]
• Willie Nelson [industry trade name]
• Yamba (Senegal)