Vanilla #
Illustration of Vanilla planifolia Jacks. ex Andrews from Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen (1887)
Vanilla (Vanilla planifolia Jacks. ex Andrews) is a culinary spice from the Orchidaceae family,1 originating in the region(s) of Tropical America.2 It is used for its fruit, primarily for flavouring; baking; desserts; perfumery; aromatherapy. Its aroma is described as fragrant, sweet, delicious, with a heat index of 1.3
| English | Arabic | Chinese | Hungarian |
|---|---|---|---|
| vanilla | فانيليا | 香草 | vanília |
Overview #
| id | vanilla |
|---|---|
| species name | Vanilla planifolia Jacks. ex Andrews |
| family | Orchidaceae |
| part used | fruit |
| macroarea | Americas |
| region of origin | Tropical America |
| cultivation | Madagascar; Indonesia; Mexico; Papua New Guinea; China |
| color | dark brown pod; creamy white extract |
| botanical database | POWO |
Etymologies #
English vanilla , 1662 < Spanish vainilla ‘id.’ [little sheath, little pod ], from vaina/vaína ‘scabbard, sheath; pod, husk’ + -illa diminutive suffix, 1555 < Latin vāgīna ‘scabbard, sheath; covering, holder of anything’, esp. husks that enclose an ear of grain; also by anatomical figurative sense, origin of vagina
Arabic فانيليا، فانيلا fānīliyā, fānīllā ‘vanilla’, (no /v/ sound in arabic, rendered with /f/ or /w/) < French vanilia ‘vanilla’
Mandarin Chinese 香草 xiāngcǎo ‘vanilla’ [fragrant-grass ], (also Cantonese 雲呢拿 wan4 nei1 laa4-2)
Names #
English #
| term | source |
|---|---|
| vanilla | OED |
| Bourbon vanilla | Wikipedia |
| Tahitian vanilla | Wikipedia |
| French vanilla | Wikipedia |
Arabic #
| script | term | literal | source |
|---|---|---|---|
| فانيليا | fānīliyā | Baalbaki, 1995 | |
| ونيلية | wanīliyya | Baalbaki, 1995 |
Chinese #
| script | term | literal | source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 香草 | xiāngcǎo | fragrant-grass/herb | Defrancis, 2003 |
POWO. (2022). Plants of the World Online (Botanical Database). Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org/ ↩︎
van Wyk, B.-E. (2014). Culinary Herbs and Spices of the World. University of Chicago Press, joint publication with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226091839.001.0001 ↩︎
Medicinal Spices Exhibit. (2002). UCLA Biomedical Library: History & Special Collections. https://unitproj.library.ucla.edu/biomed/spice/index.cfm?spicefilename=taste.txt&itemsuppress=yes&displayswitch=0 ↩︎