ISHS Acta Horticulturae 850: III International Symposium on Saffron: Forthcoming Challenges in Cultivation, Research and Economics
ETYMOLOGY, HISTORY AND APPLICATION OF SAFFRON (CROCUS SATIVUS L.) IN ANCIENT IRAN |
| Author: | G. Sharifi |
| Keywords: | achaemenian, ancient languages, kurkum, Sassanian |
| Abstract:
According to cultural and geographical evidence, the Old Persian and Pahlavi name of this plant is “Karkam” which has been derived from dialects of Iran. In the Median era, probably its pronunciation had similarity to the word “Karkam” or “Kurkum”. Later on the word has been transformed and used according to phonetic rules of other tribes. For example in Aramaic: “Karkema”, in Hebrew: “Karkom”, in Arabic “Kurkum”, in Sanskrit, “Kunkuma” and in Greek Crocus that Homer registered as “Krokus”. The most ancient documents of its edible uses are registered by Polyen, the Greek military author, in his dissertation entitled “Stratagemes” within a list of foods consumed by the Achaemenian court. According to Pliny/Plinius’ writings the kings and magi used a kind of fragrant cream of saffron. In the Seleucid era foods consumed by the Iranians were also the same as the foods used by the Achaemenian people. In the “Parian” and “Sassanian” eras saffron was amongst the food colourings which they made use of to give a good scent to the food. As deduced from the “pahlavi” text Khosrow Kawātān va rēdak, Sassanians had a variety of foods and pastries and made use of saffron in preparing foods, pastries and desserts which had also been used till the Islamic era. During the reign of Khosroparviz it had also been used in medicine and dyeing in addition to cooking. | |
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