Anyone know what carrot leaves or carrots were called in the Talmud.
Carrots were certainly in wide use at the time of the Talmud. The should be mentioned somewhere.

Aryeh Shore

B"H

Aryeh,

There is something that resembles a carrot, as far as its roots are concerned, and is called in Arabic, "baqdunis." It has a more yellowish root; not the bright orange colour associated with ordinary carrots. The word "baqdunis" is traditionally translated as "parsley," although it appears to be different from our ordinary "parsley" which is served up on the dinner table. Perhaps it is only because we are accustomed to seeing them without their roots. Rambam in Mishnah Sheviit translates נץ חלב as baqdunis/maqdunis.

In the Jerusalem Talmud, we find that it uses the word כרפס נהרות to describe parsley (petroselinum). So, if "netz chalav" is parsley according to Rambam, then what is "karpas?" Since the Jerusalem Talmud brings down the Greek word "petroselinom" = "parsley" for "karpas," it stands to reason that "netz chalav" was something different. Some say that "netz chalav" means "asphodel."

But this is all speculative, isn't it? The Arabic word for "carrot" is "jizer," a word similar to our own. Our word for carrot (gezer) is actually an Arabic loan-word.

David

quote:

The word "baqdunis" is traditionally translated as "parsley," although it appears to be different from our ordinary "parsley" which is served up on the dinner table. Perhaps it is only because we are accustomed to seeing them without their roots.

Parsley root is white and we have it in soups in my family. Not to be confused with parsnip, which is more commonly available in vegetable stores.

There may also be something called white carrot, but I think it may have been refering to parsley root when I heard that term used.

In his medical books, the Rambam gives jazar, persian astophenol. Duku (Daucus is the modern name for the species), is a form of jazar.
The Rambam identifies karpas hanaharot as petracillium.
Wild carrot root is not orange. The orange variety started in Europe in middle ages.
However, hemlock is also from the carrot family
and it is not recommended to pick wild carrot. Personally it is not very tasty and I don't use it for salads I made when camping.

Aryeh Shore

quote:

However, hemlock is also from the carrot family
and it is not recommended to pick wild carrot. Personally it is not very tasty and I don't use it for salads I made when camping.

I hear - thanks for the earful of hemlock information.

(apparently I'm wrong but I thought that it was activated by pouring into the ear canal, not drinking)

There's also this:

http://socrates.clarke.edu/aplg0503.htm

Apparently the poison hemlock looks like wild parsley.

quote:

Originally posted by laurence shore:
Thanks for the description of the temani seder.
What happen to putting the matzeh in a sack over the shoulder and reenacting the crossing of the red sea they did at the last temani seder I went to??

Aryeh Shore

Laurence, I was about to ask the same question when I first read the description.

Reb David, can you share with us the customs during Maggid and other unique minhagim of the Yeminites?

Is there any realtionship between the Temani word for Charoset Daka and the world for carrot daku??

A.S.

B"H

Aryeh, Hag Sameach!

As to your question, if there is a connection between the Yemenite word for "Charoseth" which they call "Dukeh," and the botanical name used to describe carrots, I would definitely think there is no connection.

The Yemenite word "Dukeh" (Heb. דוכה) is actually a Hebrew word found in the Jerusalem Talmud, Leiden Manuscript (Pesahim), ch. 10. There it says about the "charoseth" - "Why is it called 'Dukeh?' Because she pounds it [in the mortar] with him."

למה נקרא שמו דּוּכֵּה. מפני שהיא דכה עמו

Taxonomic names are derived mainly from Greek and Latin words. Besides, carrots were NOT part of the recipe used in making the "charoseth."

Sincerely,
David