5 ms·

Thanks for digging it up. I can shed more light on the meaning of the original word for Saffron. The article mentions Saffron comes from Arabic az-za’faran. Tha

by falaki 3y ago

Thanks for digging it up. I can shed more light on the meaning of the original word for Saffron. The article mentions Saffron comes from Arabic az-za’faran. That word is the Arabicized version of an older Persian word: Za-paran (Zayesh-paran), which means "causes abortion" (zaa/zayesh --> birth). The most common source of Saffron in Iran is area in southern Khorasan called Ghohistan (from Kohistan) meaning mountainous. Both of these facts corroborate the Akkadian sources.

pazimzadeh 3y ago
Yeah something tells me there is more to why Iran is a huge producer of Saffron than what the article says: > Today, most saffron is grown in countries where workers are paid less than their Western European counterparts would need to be. The primary producers are Iran, India, and Greece.
thisislife2 3y ago
Does that mean Saffron is dangerous for pregnant women?
- cess11 3y ago
  If the dose is sufficiently large, possibly. In the doses commonly used in the Occident, not likely. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6235659/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6235659/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0254629922001612 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S02546... https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-0029-1234792 https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/1...
- falaki 3y ago
  In Iran, pregnant women are advised to significantly reduce Saffron consumption. Note that the base level consumption is much higher in that country.
perihelions 3y ago
Thanks for those insights. It's fun to follow the the links in the Wiktionary etymology sections: I found myself on the page زعتر (za'atar, the herb) [0,1], which is apparently similar to Akkadian words found written in cuneiform, and possibly descends from them! [0] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/زعتر#Etymology https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/زعتر#Etymology [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Za'atar#Etymology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Za'atar#Etymology - "However the oldest forms seem to be found in Akkadian 𒌑𒍝𒋼𒊒 (U2.za-te-ru / zateru, ṣateru /, “savory and the Origanum family”) found in lexical lists connected to Akkadian 𒌑𒈛𒈥𒌅 (U2.LUḪ.MAR.TU / šibburratu /, “an aromatic herb”) and Akkadian 𒍝𒄠𒁍𒊒𒊬 (za-am-bu-ruSAR / zambūru /, “thyme”)." - "Of further curiosity is the possible attestation of the /ʕ/ preserved in cuneiform; it is common for the zero reflex of /ʕ/, to only be detectable in Akkadian by the e-coloring of an adjacent *a. The distance between Arabic and Akkadian and the lack of its presence in their likely intermediaries, possibly suggests a form of further common origin, albeit with a metathesis of /ʕ/ and /t/, and a retention of that form in Arabic, but not so in other Semitic tongues. "

by falaki 3y ago

pazimzadeh 3y ago

Yeah something tells me there is more to why Iran is a huge producer of Saffron than what the article says: > Today, most saffron is grown in countries where workers are paid less than their Western European counterparts would need to be. The primary producers are Iran, India, and Greece.

thisislife2 3y ago

Does that mean Saffron is dangerous for pregnant women?

cess11 3y ago
If the dose is sufficiently large, possibly. In the doses commonly used in the Occident, not likely. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6235659/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6235659/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0254629922001612 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S02546... https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-0029-1234792 https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/1...
falaki 3y ago
In Iran, pregnant women are advised to significantly reduce Saffron consumption. Note that the base level consumption is much higher in that country.

perihelions 3y ago

Thanks for those insights. It's fun to follow the the links in the Wiktionary etymology sections: I found myself on the page زعتر (za'atar, the herb) [0,1], which is apparently similar to Akkadian words found written in cuneiform, and possibly descends from them! [0] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/زعتر#Etymology https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/زعتر#Etymology [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Za'atar#Etymology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Za'atar#Etymology - "However the oldest forms seem to be found in Akkadian 𒌑𒍝𒋼𒊒 (U2.za-te-ru / zateru, ṣateru /, “savory and the Origanum family”) found in lexical lists connected to Akkadian 𒌑𒈛𒈥𒌅 (U2.LUḪ.MAR.TU / šibburratu /, “an aromatic herb”) and Akkadian 𒍝𒄠𒁍𒊒𒊬 (za-am-bu-ruSAR / zambūru /, “thyme”)." - "Of further curiosity is the possible attestation of the /ʕ/ preserved in cuneiform; it is common for the zero reflex of /ʕ/, to only be detectable in Akkadian by the e-coloring of an adjacent *a. The distance between Arabic and Akkadian and the lack of its presence in their likely intermediaries, possibly suggests a form of further common origin, albeit with a metathesis of /ʕ/ and /t/, and a retention of that form in Arabic, but not so in other Semitic tongues. "