Citron: Difference between revisions

The '''citron''' ('''''Citrus medica'''''), historically '''cedrate''',<ref>{{cite web |title=Cedrate |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/cedrate |website=Collins English Dictionary}}</ref> is a large fragrant [[citrus]] fruit with a thick [[Peel (fruit)|rind]]. It is said to resemble a 'huge, rough lemon'.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Davidson |first=Alan |author-link=Alan Davidson (food writer) |title-link=The Oxford Companion to Food |title=The Oxford Companion to Food |date=2014 |editor=Tom Jaine |others=Illustrated by Soun Vannithone |isbn=978-0-19-967733-7 |edition=3rd |publisher=Oxford University Press |oclc=890807357 |page=191}}</ref> It is one of the [[Citrus taxonomy#Citrons|original citrus fruits]] from which all other citrus types developed through natural [[hybrid speciation]] or artificial [[Hybrid (biology)|hybridization]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Klein, J. |date=2014 |title= Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the Middle-East |chapter= Citron Cultivation, Production and Uses in the Mediterranean Region |publisher=Springer Netherlands |editor1=Z. Yaniv |editor2=N. Dudai |pages= 199–214|volume=2 |doi=10.1007/978-94-017-9276-9_10 |series=Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the World |isbn=978-94-017-9275-2 }}</ref> Though citron cultivars take on a wide variety of physical forms, they are all closely related genetically. It is used in Asian and Mediterranean cuisine, traditional medicines, perfume, and religious rituals and offerings. Hybrids of citrons with other citrus are commercially more prominent, notably [[lemon]]s and many [[Lime (fruit)|limes]].

A source of confusion is that ''[[:wikt:citron|<nowiki/>'citron]]''<nowiki/>' in French and English are [[false friend]]s, as the French word ''<nowiki/>'citron'<nowiki/>'' refers to thewhat in English is a [[lemon]],; whilewhereas the EnglishFrench word isfor translatedthe citron is ''<nowiki/>'cédrat'''. Indeed, into the 16th century, the English nameterm ''citron'' included the lemon and perhaps the lime as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oed.com/ |title=Home : Oxford English Dictionary|publisher=oed.com}}</ref>{{failed verification|date=November 2016|reason=link to home page instead of entry}} Other languages that use variants of ''citron'' to refer to the lemon include Armenian, Czech, Dutch, Finnish, German, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Esperanto, Polish and the Scandinavian languages.

In [[Indo-Iranian languages]], it is called {{transl|fa|turunj}}, as against {{transl|fa|naranj}} ('bitter orange'). Both names were borrowed into [[Arabic]] and introduced into Spain and Portugal after their occupation by [[Muslims]] in AD 711, whence the latter became the source of the name ''[[Orange (fruit)|orange]]'' through [[rebracketing]] (and the former of 'toronja' and 'toranja', which today describe the [[grapefruit]] in [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] respectively).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.plantlives.com/docs/C/Citrus_medica.pdf |title=Citrus medica |date=2 October 2021 |publisher=plantlives.com}}</ref>

Dutch merchants seasonally import {{langr|id|Sukade}} for baked goods; a thick, light green colouredcolored commercially candied half peeling from Indonesia and other countries (''{{lang|id|sukade''}} – Indonesian word for love, ''Citrus médica'' variety 'Macrocárpa'), which can reach 2.5 kilograms mass. A bitter taste is removed by salt treatment before processing into confectionery.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hvass |first1=Else |title=Nuttige Planten In Kleur |date=1965 |publisher=Mousault |location=Amsterdam |isbn=9789022610220 |pages=76, 161 |edition=nedersland |url=https://www.deslegte.com/nuttige-planten-in-kleur-118498/}}</ref>

The citron is an old and original citrus species. In the 19th century it was widely grown in Northern [[Iran]].<ref name=Chambers>{{cite book|last=Chambers|first=William and Robert|title=Chambers's Encyclopedia: A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge for the People|year=1862|publisher=W. and R. Chambers|location=London|page=55, vol. 3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8gTj2h8cFM4C&dq=oil+of+cedrate&pg=PA55}}</ref>

There is molecular evidence that most cultivated citrus species arose by [[Hybrid (biology)#Hybrid plants|hybridization]] of a small number of ancestral types;: the citron, [[pomelo]], [[Mandarin orange|mandarin]] and, to a lesser extent, [[Papeda (citrus)|papedas]] and [[kumquat]]. The citron is usually [[fertilized]] by [[self-pollination]], which results in their displaying a high degree of genetic [[zygosity|homozygosity]]. It is the male parent of any citrus hybrid rather than a female one.<ref name="HortScience 2005" /><ref>{{cite journal |author=E. Nicolosi |author2=Z. N. Deng |author3=A. Gentile |author4=S. La Malfa |author5=G. Continella |author6=E. Tribulato |title=Citrus phylogeny and genetic origin of important species as investigated by molecular markers |journal=Theoretical and Applied Genetics |date=June 2000 |volume=100 |issue=8 |pages=1155–1166 |doi=10.1007/s001220051419|s2cid=24057066 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Noelle A. Barkley |author2=Mikeal L. Roose |author3=Robert R. Krueger |author4=Claire T. Federici |title=Assessing genetic diversity and population structure in a citrus germplasm collection utilizing simple sequence repeat markers (SSRs) |journal=Theoretical and Applied Genetics |date=May 2006 |volume=112 |issue=8 |pages=1519–1531 |doi=10.1007/s00122-006-0255-9 |pmid=16699791 |s2cid=7667126 |url=https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=11065&content=PDF |access-date=2018-12-04 |archive-date=2021-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309064039/https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=11065&content=PDF |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Asad Asadi Abkenar |author2=Shiro Isshiki |author3=Yosuke Tashiro |title=Phylogenetic relationships in the 'true citrus fruit trees' revealed by PCR-RFLP analysis of cpDNA |journal=Scientia Horticulturae |volume=102 |issue=2 |date=1 November 2004 |pages=233–242 |doi=10.1016/j.scienta.2004.01.003}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=C. A. Krug |title=Chromosome Numbers in the Subfamily Aurantioideae with Special Reference to the Genus ''Citrus'' |journal=Botanical Gazette |volume=104 |number=4 |date=June 1943 |pages=602–611 |jstor=2472147 |doi=10.1086/335173|s2cid=84015769 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=R. Carvalho |author2=W. S. Soares Filho |author3=A. C. Brasileiro-Vidal |author4=M. Guerra |title=The relationships among lemons, limes and citron: a chromosomal comparison |journal=Cytogenetic and Genome Research |volume=109 |issue=1–3 |date=March 2005 |doi=10.1159/000082410 |pages=276–282 |pmid=15753587|s2cid=26046238 }}</ref><ref name="Talon">{{cite journal|title=Genomics of the origin and evolution of ''Citrus'' | last1=Wu | first1=Guohong Albert | last2=Terol | first2=Javier | last3=Ibanez | first3=Victoria | last4=López-García | first4=Antonio | last5=Pérez-Román | first5=Estela | last6=Borredá | first6=Carles | last7=Domingo | first7=Concha | last8=Tadeo | first8=Francisco R | last9=Carbonell-Caballero | first9=Jose | last10=Alonso | first10=Roberto | last11=Curk | first11=Franck | last12=Du | first12=Dongliang | last13=Ollitrault | first13=Patrick | last14=Roose | first14=Mikeal L. Roose | last15=Dopazo | first15=Joaquin | last16=Gmitter Jr | first16=Frederick G. | last17=Rokhsar | first17=Daniel | last18=Talon | first18=Manuel | journal=Nature | year = 2018 | volume=554 | issue=7692 | pages=311–316 | doi=10.1038/nature25447 | pmid=29414943| bibcode=2018Natur.554..311W | doi-access=free | hdl=20.500.11939/5741 | hdl-access=free }}</ref>

Archaeological evidence for citrus fruits has been limited, as neither seeds nor pollen are likely to be routinely recovered in archaeology.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fuller |first1=Dorian Q. |last2=Castillo |first2=Cristina |last3=Kingwell-Banham |first3=Eleanor |last4=Qin |first4=Ling |last5=Weisskopf |first5=Alison |titlechapter=Charred pummelo peel, historical linguistics and other tree crops: Approaches to framing the historical context of early Citrus cultivation in East, South and Southeast Asia |chapter-url=https://books.openedition.org/pcjb/2173?lang=en#ftn2 |websitetitle=AGRUMED: Archaeology and history of citrus fruit in the Mediterranean : Acclimatization, diversifications, uses |series=Collection du Centre Jean Bérard |publisher=Publications du Centre Jean Bérard |language=en |date=15 January 2018 |isbn=9782918887775 }}</ref> The citron is thought to have been native to [[India]],<ref name="Talon" /> in valleys at the foothills of the eastern [[Himalayas]]. It is thought that by the 4th century BC, when [[Theophrastus]] mentions the "Median apple." Despite its scientific designation, which is an adaptation of the old name in classical Greek sources “Median pome”, this fruit was not indigenous to Media or ancient Media <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/citrus-fruits- | title=Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica }}</ref> <ref>''Inquiry into Plants'' 4.iv.2.</ref> the citron was mostly cultivated in the [[Caspian Sea]] (north of Mazandarn and Gilan) on its way to the [[Mediterranean basin]], where it was cultivated during the later centuries in different areas as described by Erich Isaac.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Erich Isaac |title=The Citron in the Mediterranean: a study in religious influences |journal=Economic Geography |volume=35 |issue=1 |date=January 1959 |pages=71–78 |doi=10.2307/142080 |jstor=142080}}</ref> Many mention the role of [[Alexander the Great]] and his armies as they attacked [[Achaemenid Empire|Iran]] and what is today [[Pakistan]], as being responsible for the spread of the citron westward, reaching the [[Europe]]an countries such as [[Greece]] and [[Italy]].<ref name="Purdue Citron" /><ref name="Simoons p.200">{{cite book |author=Frederick J. Simoons |title=Food in China: a cultural and historical inquiry |publisher=CRC Press |year=1990 |isbn=9780849388040 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fo087ZxohA4C&q=alexander+the+great+citron&pg=PA200 |page=200}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.citrusvariety.ucr.edu/citrus/ethrog.html|title=ethrog|publisher=University of California, Riverside|access-date=2008-05-04|archive-date=2015-06-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150608215246/http://www.citrusvariety.ucr.edu/citrus/ethrog.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Marion Eugene Ensminger |author2=Audrey H. Ensminger |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o3UD2iL4sAAC&q=Alexander+the+great+citron&pg=PA424 |title=Foods & Nutrition Encyclopedia |edition=2nd |volume=1 |publisher=CRC Press |year=1993 |isbn=9780849389818 |page=424}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Francesco Calabrese |chapter=Origin and history |editor=Giovanni Dugo |editor2=Angelo Di Giacomo |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OLaykfpqSaYC&q=alexander+the+great+citron&pg=PA4 |title=Citrus: The Citrus Genus |publisher=CRC Press |date=2003 |page=4 |isbn=9780203216613}}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=SmRJnd73dbYC&dq=alexander+the+great+citron&pg=PA7 Biology of Citrus]{{dead link|date=November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=H. Harold Hume |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WP3ohzxbRxgC&q=alexander+the+great+citron&pg=PA59 |title=Citrus Fruits and Their Culture |publisher=Read Books |year=2007 |isbn=9781406781564 |page=59}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Emmanuel Bonavia|author-link=Emmanuel Bonavia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tsNBAAAAIAAJ&q=alexander%20the%20great%20citron&pg=PA255 |title=The Cultivated Oranges and Lemons, Etc. of India and Ceylon |publisher=W. H. Allen |year=1888 |page=255}}</ref>

Leviticus mentions the "fruit of the beautiful ('hadar') tree" as being required for ritual use during the [[Feast of Tabernacles]] ([http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt0323.htm Lev. 23:40]). According to Jewish Rabbinical tradition, the "fruit of the tree hadar" refers to the citron. [[Sukkah (Talmud)|Mishna Sukkah]], {{Circa|2nd century AD}}, deals with [[halakhic]] aspects of the citron.

<blockquote>In the east and south there are special plants ... i.e. in Media(Perhaps they mistakenly called it Mad because it was located in the east of Parthia and south and the tree grows in the question of Caspian sea, Mazandaran, Gilan , not Mad<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/citrus-fruits- | title=Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Scientific Committee, March 28, 1893: The Antiquity of the Citron in Egypt |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=21oCAAAAYAAJ&q=citron+persian+gulf&pg=RA3-PR20 |journal=Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society |volume=16|last1=Britain) |first1=Royal Horticultural Society (Great |year=1894 }}</ref> ) and Persia there are many types of fruit, between them there is a fruit called Median or Persian Apple. The tree has a leaf similar to and almost identical with that of the ''andrachn'' (''[[Arbutus andrachne]]'' L.), but has [[Thorns, spines, and prickles|thorns]] like those of the ''[[apios]]'' (the wild [[pear]], ''Pyrus amygdaliformis'' Vill.) or the [[firethorn]] (''Cotoneaster pyracantha'' Spach.), except that they are white, smooth, sharp and strong. The fruit is not eaten, but is very fragrant, as is also the [[leaf]] of the tree; and the fruit is put among [[clothes]], it keeps them from being [[moth]]-eaten. It is also useful when one has drunk deadly poison, for when it is administered in [[wine]]; it upsets the [[stomach]] and brings up the poison. It is also useful to improve the [[breath]], for if one boils the inner part of the fruit in a dish or squeezes it into the mouth in some other medium, it makes the breath more pleasant.

The citron tree, called the Assyrian, and by some the Median or Persian apple, is an antidote against poisons. The leaf is similar to that of the [[Arbutus|arbute]], except that it has small prickles running across it. As to the fruit, it is never eaten, but it is remarkable for its extremely powerful smell, which is the case, also, with the leaves; indeed, the odour is so strong, that it will penetrate clothes, when they are once impregnated with it, and hence it is very useful in repelling the attacks of noxious insects.

The tree bears fruit at all seasons of the year; while some is falling off, other fruit is ripening, and other, again, just bursting into birth. Various nations have attempted to naturalize this tree among them, for the sake of its medicalmedica or Persian properties, by planting it in pots of clay, with holes drilled in them, for the purpose of introducing the air to the roots; and I would here remark, once for all, that it is as well to remember that the best plan is to pack all slips of trees that have to be carried to any distance, as close together as they can possibly be placed.

It has been found, however, that this tree will grow nowhere except in Media or Persia. It is this fruit, the pips of which, as we have already mentioned, the [[Parthia]]n grandees employ in seasoning their [[ragout]]s, as being peculiarly conducive to the sweetening of the breath. We find no other tree very highly commended that is produced in Media.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0137%3Abook%3D12%3Achapter%3D7|title=Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Book XII. The Natural History of Trees, Chap. 7. (3.)—How the Citron Is Planted.|publisher=Tufts University}}</ref>

Most citron varieties contain a large number of [[monoembryonic]] seeds. The seeds are white with dark innercoatsinner coats and red-purplish [[chalazal spot]]s for the acidic varieties, and colorless for the sweet ones. Some citron varieties have persistent [[carpel|styles]] which do not fall off after fecundation. Those are usually preferred for ritual ''[[etrog]]'' use in [[Judaism]].

While the [[lemon]] and [[Orange (fruit)|orange]] are primarily peeled to consume their pulpy and [[juice|juicy]] [[flavedo|segments]], the citron's pulp is dry, containing a small quantity of juice, if any. The main content of a citron fruit is its thick white rind, which adheres to the segments and cannot easily be separated from them. The citron gets halved and depulped, then its rind (the thicker the better) is cut into pieces. Those are cooked in sugar syrup and used as a [[spoon sweet]] known in Greek as "kitrokítro glykoglykó" (κίτρο γλυκό), or diced and candied with sugar and used as a confection in cakes. In Italy, a soft drink called "Cedrata" is made from the fruit.

In Iran, the citron's thick white rind is used to make jam; in [[Pakistan]] the fruit is used to make jam but is also pickled; in [[South Indian cuisine]], some varieties of citron (collectively referred to as "Narthangai" in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and "Heralikayi" in [[Kannada]]) are widely used in pickles and preserves. In [[Karnataka]], heralikayi (citron) is usesused to make lemon rice. In [[Kutch]], Gujarat, it is used to make pickle, wherein entire slices of fruits are salted, dried and mixed with [[jaggery]] and spices to make sweet spicy pickle.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bijora Pickle |url=http://www.jainworld.com/jainfoodrecipes/pic_bijora.asp |publisher=Jain World |access-date=2016-08-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220073239/http://www.jainworld.com/jainfoodrecipes/pic_bijora.asp |archive-date=2016-12-20 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In the United States, citron is an important ingredient in holiday [[fruitcakes]].

The citron (the word for which in Hebrew is ''[[etrog]]'') is used by Jews for a religious [[ritual]] during the Jewish harvest holiday of [[Sukkot]], the [[Feast of Tabernacles]]; therefore, it is considered to be a Jewish symbol, one found on various Hebrew antiques and archaeological findings.<ref>See [[Etrog]]</ref>[[File:Buddhahand2.jpg|thumb|[[Fingered citron]]]]

In [[Nepal]], the citron ({{Lang-ne|बिमिरो|translit=bimiro}}) is worshipped during the [[Bhai Tika]] ceremony induring [[Tihar (festival)|Tihar]] festival.<ref>{{Cite web |title=बिमिरो पूजासँगै खाउँ पनि! |url=https://shikshakmasik.com/3599/esewa.com.np |access-date=2022-10-26 |website=shikshakmasik.com |language=ne}}</ref> The worship is thought to stem from the belief that it is a favorite of [[Yama]], Hindu god of death, and his sister [[Yamuna in Hinduism|Yami]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nasana |date=2016-10-29 |title=Decoding Bhai Tika symbols |url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/lifestyle/decoding-bhai-tika-symbols-tihar-festival |access-date=2024-03-05 |website=The Himalayan Times |language=en}}</ref>

For many centuries, citron's fragrant essential oil ('''oil of cedrate''') has been used in perfumery, the same oil that was used medicinally for its antibiotic properties. Its major constituent is [[limonene]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Inouye, S. |author2=Takizawa, T. |author3=Yamaguchi, H. |year=2001 |title=Antibacterial activity of essential oils and their major constituents against respiratory tract pathogens by gaseous contact |journal=Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy |volume=47 |issue=5 |pages=565–573 |doi=10.1093/jac/47.5.565 |pmid=11328766|doi-access=free }}</ref>

File:Bijora.jpg|Bijora - Citron fruit for sale at Bhujpur, [[Kutch district|Kutch]], [[Gujarat]], [[India]]