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Cumin Etymology

(Source - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumin)

The English "cumin" derives from the French "cumin", which was borrowed indirectly from Arabic "كمون"Kammūn via Spanish comino during the Arab rule in Spain in the 15th century. The spice is native to Arabic-speaking Syria where cumin thrives in its hot and arid lands. Cumin seeds have been found in some ancient Syrian archeological sites. The word found its way from Syria to neighbouring Turkey and nearby Greece most likely before it found its way to Spain. Like many other Arabic words in the English language, cumin was acquired by Western Europe via Spain rather than the Grecian route. Some suggest that the word is derived from the Latin cuminum and Greek κύμινον. The Greek term itself has been borrowed from Arabic. Forms of this word are attested in several ancient Semitic languages, including kamūnu inAkkadian.^[2] The ultimate source is believed to be the Sumerian word gamun.^[3]

A folk etymology connects the word with the Persian city Kerman where, the story goes, most of ancient Persia's cumin was produced. For the Persians the expression "carrying cumin to Kerman" has the same meaning as the English language phrase "carrying coals to Newcastle". Kerman, locally called "Kermun", would have become "Kumun" and finally "cumin" in the European languages.

In Northern India and Nepal, cumin is known as jeera (Devanagari जीरा) or jira, while in Iran and Pakistan it is known as zeera (Persian زيره); in Southern India it is called Jeerige ( ಜೀರಿಗೆ in ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)) or jeeragam or seeragam (Tamil (ஜீரகம்/சீரகம்)) or jilakarra (Telugu); in Sri Lanka it is known as duru, the white variety being suduru and the large variety, maduru; in Iran and Central Asia, cumin is known as zireh; inTurkey, cumin is known as kimyon; in northwestern China, cumin is known as ziran (孜然). In Arabic, it is known as al-kamuwn (الكمون). Cumin is called kemun in Ethiopian, and is one of the ingredients in the spice mix berbere.

[edit]Description

Cumin is the dried seed of the herb Cuminum cyminum, a member of the parsley family. The cumin plant grows to 30-50 cm (1-2 ft) tall and is harvested by hand.

Cumin seeds resemble caraway seeds, being oblong in shape, longitudinally ridged, and yellow-brown in colour, like other members of the Umbelliferae family such as caraway, parsley and dill.