Cypress is a common name for species in several genera in the family Cupressaceae. They grow in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America.

The word cypress is derived from Old French cipres, which was imported from Latin cypressus, the latinisation of the Greek κυπάρισσος (kyparissos). The name derives from Cyparissus, a mythological figure who was turned into a cypress tree after killing a stag.

Description

Cypresses are trees or shrubs reaching heights of , exceptionally (in Cupressus austrotibetica) . Many exhibit a conical to columnar form, particularly in their youth, but some are prostrate, irregular, or shrubby. They are characterised by their scale-like, evergreen foliage and globose seed cones. Some species develop flattened, spreading crowns at maturity. The bark of cypress trees varies, with some species having smooth surfaces, while most exhibit bark that separates into thin plates or strips, often shedding over time. The leaves of young cypress seedlings are spreading and awl-shaped, becoming small, scale-like leaves that tightly adhere to older branches when the seedlings are more than one to five years old, with glandular pits on the outer surface, and cover the stem in opposite pairs, giving the branchlet a four-sided appearance. It is native to the eastern Mediterranean region to Iran.

  • Cupressus torulosa (West Himalayan cypress), western Himalaya
  • Callitropsis (often included in Cupressus):
  • Callitropsis nootkatensis (Nootka cypress), western North America
  • Hesperocyparis (often included in Cupressus):
  • Hesperocyparis arizonica (Rough-barked Arizona cypress), Arizona, southwest New Mexico, northern Mexico
  • Hesperocyparis bakeri (Modoc cypress), California, southwestern Oregon
  • Hesperocyparis glabra (Smooth Arizona cypress), Arizona
  • Hesperocyparis goveniana (Gowen's cypress), California
  • Hesperocyparis lusitanica, (Mexican cypress), Mexico and Central America.
  • Hesperocyparis macnabiana (MacNab's cypress), California
  • Hesperocyparis macrocarpa (Monterey cypress), California
  • Hesperocyparis pygmaea (Mendocino cypress), California
  • Hesperocyparis sargentii (Sargent's cypress), California
  • Xanthocyparis (often included in Cupressus):
  • Xanthocyparis vietnamensis (Vietnamese golden cypress), Vietnam, extreme southern China
  • Chamaecyparis: eastern Asia and North America.
  • Chamaecyparis formosensis (Formosan cypress), Taiwan
  • Chamaecyparis lawsoniana (Lawson's cypress). This is a native species to Oregon and northwestern California.
  • Microbiota
  • Microbiota decussata (Siberian cypress), Sikhote-alin, Russian far east
  • Taxodium:
  • Taxodium ascendens (pond cypress), southeastern United States. and native to North America.
  • Taxodium distichum (bald cypress), southeastern United States.
  • Taxodium mucronatum (Montezuma cypress or Montezuma bald cypress), Mexico, Guatemala, and southern-central United States.
  • Glyptostrobus
  • Chinese swamp cypress (Glyptostrobus pensilis), Vietnam, critically endangered
  • Austrocedrus
  • Austrocedrus chilensis (Cordilleran cypress), native to Chile and Argentina and Tierra del Fuego
  • Actinostrobus (often included in Callitris) – (cypress-pines), southwestern Australia
  • Callitris (cypress-pines), 16 species native to Australia and New Caledonia

<gallery mode="packed" widths="140px" heights="140px">

File:Actinostrobos arenarius fruits murchison.JPG|Actinostrobus arenarius

File:Austrocedrus chilensis por pabloendemico - 001.jpg|Austrocedrus chilensis

File:Slender Cypress-pine.jpg|Callitris preissii

File:Lone Cypress Sunset.JPG|Cupressus macrocarpa, Monterey Peninsula, California

File:Nootka Cypress.jpg|Cupressus nootkatensis

File:Fokienia hodginsii - Kunming Botanical Garden - DSC03140.JPG|Fokienia hodginsii

File:Fitzroya cupressoides (da Silvio Rossi).jpg|Fitzroya cupressoides

File:Glyptostrobus pensilis 2007.06.28 10.10.35-p6280031.jpg|Glyptostrobus pensilis foliage

File:Pilgerodendron uviferum.jpg|Pilgerodendron uviferum

File:Taxodium ascendens in the Black Water, Okefenokee.jpg|Taxodium ascendens, Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia (USA)

File:Widdringtonia whytei Mulanje Malawi.jpg|Widdringtonia whytei, Malawi

</gallery>

Association with mourning

In Greek mythology, Cyparissos, Cyparissus or Kyparissos (Ancient Greek: Κυπάρισσος, "cypress") was a male lover of Apollo, as well as other deities in other versions of mythology.

In the most prevalent version of the story, Cyparissus receives a stag as a gift from Apollo, which he accidentally kills with a spear while hunting in the forest. Cyparissus is overwhelmed by pain and sorrow, and asks Apollo to allow his tears to flow for eternity. Apollo transforms Cyparissus into a cypress tree, and the sap that typically drips down the tree's trunk represents Cyparissus' tears.

Consequently, the cypress emerged as a symbol of mourning, sadness, and loss in classical mythology, thereby serving an aetiological purpose in explaining its cultural significance.