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0173 Sino-Iranica : vol.1
Sino-Iranica : vol.1 / Page 173 (Grayscale High Resolution Image)

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doi: 10.20676/00000248
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MANNA   347

from these trees, or the gum that exudes from them.' The Portuguese corrupted the word to siracost." The other kind he calls tiriam-jabim or trumgibim (Persian tär-ängubin). "They say that it is found among the thistles and in small pieces, somewhat of a red color. It is said that they are obtained by shaking the thistles with a stick, and that they are larger than a coriander-seed when dried, the color, as I said, between red and vermilion. The vulgar hold that it is a fruit, but I believe that it is a gum or resin. They think this is more wholesome than the kind we have, and it is much used in Persia and Ormuz." "Another kind comes in large pieces mixed with leaves. This is like that of Calabria, and is worth more money, coming by way of Baçora, a city of renown in Persia. Another kind is sometimes seen in Goa, liquid in leather bottles, which is like coagulated white honey. They sent this to me from Ormuz, for it corrupts quickly in our land, but the glass flasks preserve it. I do not know anything more about this medicine." JOHN FRYER2 speaks of the mellifluous dew a-nights turned into manna, which is white and granulated, and not inferior to the Calabrian. According to G. WATT,3 shirkhist is the name for the white granular masses found in Persia on the shrub Cotoneaster nummularia; white taranjabin (= tar-angubin) is obtained from the camel-thorn (Alhagi camelorum and A. snaurorum), growing in Persia, and consisting of a peculiar sugar called melezitose and cane-sugar. The former is chiefly brought from Herat, and is obtained also from Atraphaxis spinosa (Polygonaceae) .4

It is thus demonstrated also from a philological and historical point of view that the yan ts`e and k`ie-p`o-lo of the Chinese represent the species Alhagi camelorum.

Another Persian name for manna is xo.'kenjubin, which means "dry honey." An Arabic tradition explains it as a dew that falls on trees in the mountains of Persia; while another Arabic author says, "It is dry honey brought from the mountains of Persia. It has a detestable odor. It is warm and dry, warmer and dryer than honey. Its properties in general are more energetic than those of honey." s This product, called

1 Garcia's etymology is only partially correct. The Persian word is Sir-xest , which means "goat's milk." Hence Armenian .irixiüd, §irxe§d, Siraxu.g, or . iraxug (cf. E. SEIDEL, Mechithar, p. 210).

2 New Account of East India and Persia, Vol. II, p. 201.

3 Agricultural Ledger, 190o, No. 17, p. 188.

4 See FLÜCKIGER and HANBURY, Op. Cit., Q. 415. According to SCHLIMMER (Terminologie, p. 357), this manna comes from Herat, Khorasan, and the district Lor-gehrestanek.

5 L. LECLERC, Traité des simples, Vol. II, p. 32.