Food Resources and their Transformation - Food Culture and Health in Pre-Modern Islamic Societies - page 192

The name can be derived from Akkadian
amaammu , which became on the one
hand Greek σήσαμον , on the other Ara-
bic sumsum and the more usual simsim via
Hebrew umōn and Aramaic umā
(and variants). An often-used synonym
is ululān , wrongly interpreted by some
authors as coriander ( kuzbara ). The greasy
oil of sesame is indicated as duhn al-all
( sic, al-all is wrong), as alī ululān or
īra (Persian īra ). The small, angular,
yellow-white to black seeds are kept in
elongated capsules which develop from
the blossoms of the plant. In many coun-
tries, sesame is an important foodstuff. In
India sesame flour is boiled into pulp, in
Asia Minor and in Egypt bread and pas-
try are flavoured with sesame. If pressed
when cold, sesame oil is liquid, odourless
and of a pleasant taste. Like olive oil, it
has served at all times as a valuable salad
oil, and also as a substitute for butter fat
( samn ).
In medicine, sesame belongs to the
softening and resolving remedies. When
grilled and eaten with linseed ( bar
al-kattān ), it increases virility. It is quite
efficient against breathing difficulties and
asthma, as well as against coughing and
hoarseness. Sesame may harm the stom-
ach, but this can be avoided or alleviated
if it is taken together with honey. Sesame
herb boiled in wine is efficient against
inflammation of the eye. Its oil is a remedy
against raw and chapped skin and brings
ulcers to ripening. Mixed with attar, it
soothes headaches originating from sun-
burn ( irā al-ams) . It is also used in cos-
metics. In the bazaars of Cairo, sesame is
sold in great quantities, but, in pursuit of
profit, lotus seeds ( nīlūfar ) are often deceit-
fully passed off as ululān mirī , and the
seeds of the black poppy ( aā aswad )
as ululān al-abaa . Finally, there were
also “sesame-like” plants ( sisāmuwīdā ,
σησαμοειδές ), a large one and a small

one, which were considered as classes of
a wild sesame ( simsim barrī ).

(A. Dietrich)

Fig

Tīn (Ar.) is the common fig ( ficus carica )
and, after Lane, the tree of the balas ; or, the
tree and the fruit itself. Another tree and
fruit resembling the tīn is called ummayz ,
the sycamore fig, a name included in some
lists of simples and treated along with tīn .
Widespread throughout the Mediterra-
nean from antiquity, it is mentioned in
both the Hebrew Bible and the urān
(together with the olive, XCV, 1). There
are dozens of species and hundreds of
varieties, both cultivated and wild, cover-
ing a wide spectrum of flavour, sweetness,
size and colour. The common fig needs
no pollination and is seedless, while other
varieties which produce seeds (e.g. Smyrna
figs) require pollination with the aid of a
species of small wasp. Figs are described
as hot and dry, and any ill effects to the
stomach may be avoided by washing out
the mouth after eating them and drinking
sakanabīn (the classical oxymel ). Apart
from their known laxative property, they
are said to dissolve phlegm, purify the
kidneys and open obstructions in the
liver and spleen. The juice of cooked figs
(together with other ingredients) appears
in several medical recipes mentioned by
Abū Alā Zuhr (d. 525/1130). The fruit
was apparently eaten most commonly
unaccompanied, fresh or dried. One culi-
nary preparation recommends how the
dried fruit, filled with honey and saffron
and steamed in a sieve over boiling water,
creates the effect of a freshly tree-picked
fig.

(D. Waines)