Ziziphus lotus
| Ziziphus lotus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rhamnaceae |
| Genus: | Ziziphus |
| Species: | Z. lotus |
| Binomial name | |
| Ziziphus lotus (L.) Lam. | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Ziziphus lotus (jujube) is a deciduous shrub in the buckthorn family Rhamnaceae, native to the Mediterranean region, including the Sahara in Morocco. It is closely related to Ziziphus jujuba (jujube).
Description
Ziziphus lotus can reach a height of 2–5 metres (6.6–16.4 ft), with shiny green leaves about 5 cm long. The edible fruit is a globose dark yellow drupe 1–1.5 cm diameter.
Vernacular names
The fruit is called a nabk. Common names in Arabic are sidr, rubeida ("after its crouch-shaped treetop"), nbeg in Tunisia and annab in Lebanon.[2] The name of the plant in Cyprus is palloura (Greek: παλλούρα) or konnarka (Greek: κονναρκά).[3]
Cultural and religious references
Ziziphus lotus is often regarded as the lotus tree of Greek mythology.[4] It is thought to be referenced in the Odyssey, consumed by the Lotus-Eaters as a narcotic to induce peaceful apathy.
A sacred lotus tree planted near the temple of Vulcan in Rome was said to have been planted by Romulus; it was still standing in the time of Pliny the Elder.[5]
In Arabic-speaking regions the Ziziphus lotus and alternatively the jujube are closely associated with the lote-trees (sidr) which are mentioned in the Quran,[6][7] while in Palestine it is rather the Ziziphus spina-christi that is called sidr.[8]
See also
References
- ↑ The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species, retrieved 30 January 2016
- ↑ Amots Dafni; Shay Levy; Efraim Lev (2005). "The ethnobotany of Christ's Thorn Jujube (Ziziphus spina-christi) in Israel". Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 1 (8): 8. doi:10.1186/1746-4269-1-8. PMC 1277088
. PMID 16270941. Retrieved 2010-06-05. - ↑ Μεγάλη Κυπριακή Εγκυκλοπαίδεια (Great Cyprian Encyclopedia) (1990), volume 11, pp. 47-48.
- ↑ Herodotus, Histories, Book IV, 177.
- ↑
Smith, William, ed. (1870). "Vulcanus". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
- ↑ Abdullah, Yusuf Ali (1946) The Holy Qur-an. Text, Translation and Commentary, Qatar National Printing Press.p.1139,n.3814
- ↑ Stephen Lambden. "The Sidrah (Lote-Tree) and the Sidrat al-Muntaha (Lote-Tree of the Extremity): Some Apects of their Islamic and Bābī-Bahā'ī Iintepretations.". Retrieved 9 December 2015.
This is apparently the wild jujube or zizyphus spina-christi (Christ's thorn), a tall, stout, tropical tree (see image above) with dense prickly branches which produces a sweet reddish fruit similar to that of the jujube (the `unnāb = zizyphus vulgaris / fruit)
- ↑ Easton, M.G., M.A., D.D. (1893). Illustrated Bible Dictionary and Treasury of Biblical History, Biography, Geography, Doctrine, and Literature. London, Edinburgh and New York: T. Nelson and Sons. p. 688.