![]() ![]() Sugar remained relatively unimportant until the Indians discovered methods of turning sugarcane juice into granulated crystals that were easier to store and to transport. Its varieties, synonyms and characteristics are defined in nighaṇṭus such as the Bhāvaprakāśa (1.6.23, group of sugarcanes). ![]() In the tradition of Indian medicine ( āyurveda), the sugarcane is known by the name Ikṣu and the sugarcane juice is known as Phāṇita. One of the earliest historical references to sugarcane is in Chinese manuscripts dating to 8th century BCE, which state that the use of sugarcane originated in India. ![]() Different species seem to have originated from different locations with Saccharum barberi originating in India and S. Sugarcane is native of tropical areas such as the Indian subcontinent (South Asia) and Southeast Asia. Even after refined sugarcane became more widely available during the colonial era, palm sugar was preferred in Java and other sugar producing parts of southeast Asia, and along with coconut sugar, is still used locally to make desserts today. Originally, people chewed raw sugarcane to extract its sweetness. It was not plentiful or cheap in early times, and in most parts of the world, honey was more often used for sweetening. ![]() Sugar has been produced in the Indian subcontinent since ancient times and its cultivation spread from there into modern-day Afghanistan through the Khyber Pass. The English word jaggery, a coarse brown sugar made from date palm sap or sugarcane juice, has a similar etymological origin: Portuguese jágara from the Malayalam cakkarā, which is from the Sanskrit śarkarā. From Sanskrit ( śarkarā), meaning "ground or candied sugar", came Persian shakar, then to 12th century French sucre and the English sugar. The etymology reflects the spread of the commodity.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |