| Common name | Rainbow smelt |
| Language | English |
| Type | Vernacular |
| Official trade name | No |
| Rank | 2 - (Preferred common name (unique)) |
| Country | Alaska |
| Locality | |
| Ref. | Morrow, J.E., 1980 |
| Life stage | juveniles and adults |
| Sex | females and males |
| Core | taste/smell |
| 1st modifier | color pattern(s) |
| 2nd modifier | |
| Remarks | 'Rainbow', i.e., probably referring to the color pattern of this species; 'smelt', i.e., used to refer to any of the salmonid species of the genus Osmerus with delicate oily flesh, distinctive oder and taste (p. 1113 from Ref. 11978); etymologically, 'smelt' from Old English 'melt' borrowed from Middle Low German 'melt-' from Indo-European 'meld-, mold-, mld-' (p. 344 in Ref. 11979). |