A rose by any other name

The roses are in bloom, which made me think of the phrase, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet".

The actual quote is from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and is found in Act 2 Scene 2, the famous scene at Juliet's window.

JULIET

'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What's Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name which is no part of thee
Take all myself.

Some people think that the phrase was also a jab at the neighboring Rose Theater. Apparently, the sanitation at the Rose left much to be desired...hence the phrase, "would smell as sweet". I don't know if that is true, but it makes a great story.