Meaning & History
This is the name of the star Beta Cygni.The origin of this name according to Wikipedia:The system's traditional name Albireo is a result of misunderstanding and mistranslation. It is thought that it originated in the Greek name ornis for the constellation of Cygnus, which became urnis in Arabic. When translated into Latin, this name was thought to refer to the Greek name Erysimon for the plant called Hedge Mustard (Sisymbrium officinale, which in Latin is ireo), and so was described in Latin in the Arabo-Latin Almagest of 1515 as 'Eurisim: et est volans; et jam vocatur gallina. et dicitur eurisim quasi redolens ut lilium ab ireo' ('Eurisim: and it is the flyer, and now it is called the hen, and it is called Eurisim, as if redolent like the lily from the 'ireo''), via a confusion between ireo and the scented flower Iris florentina. This was variously miscopied, until 'ab ireo' was treated as a miscopy of an Arabic term and changed into al-bireo.