Who discovered cilantro?

Answer 1

Cilantro (Coriandrum sativum), or coriander, is in the same family (Apiaceae) as parsley, parsnip, celery, dill, and carrots. It is native to the Mediterranean and Asia Minor (now Turkey), and it has been used since at least 5,000 BC.

Ancient herbalists used the crushed seeds and leaves in poultices and salves and considered them to be an aphrodesiac. The ancient Egyptians used coriander tea to treat ailments such as urinary tract infections and headaches, and coriander seeds were found in King Tut's tomb.

The word coriander comes from koris, the Greek word for bedbug, because the unripened seeds as well as the leaves are said to smell like bedbugs. (We now know that the aroma of cilantro comes from several substances, most of which are modified fragments of fat molecules called aldehydes. The same or similar aldehydes are also found in soaps, lotions, and the bug family of insects.) The early physicians, including Hippocrates, used cilantro for its medicinal properties, including as an aromatic stimulant.

The ancient Israelites were also familiar with coriander. "The house of Israel called the name therof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey." (Exodus 17:31). Coriander is also mentioned in One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of West and South Asian stories and folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age (8th century-1258 AD). In one of the stories, it was part of a mixture that supposedly helped a childless man to have children.

The Romans spread cilantro to Asia, and the Chinese have used cilantro ever since. The Chinese believed it to be an aphrodisiac and to produce immortality. The Romans also took cilantro with them to Britain.

Cilantro was one of the first herbs (along with dandelions) to be brought to the Americas from Europe: The Spanish conquistadors introduced it to Mexico and Peru in the 1500s, and the British introduced it to North America in 1670. It was grown in many places, including the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Today, cilantro is used for both culinary and medicinal purposes from the Southwest U.S. through Central and South America, and in India, China, and Thailand, and it is widely employed in particularly savory dishes of many cultures both in modern as well as traditional cuisines.

Answer 2

Cilantro originated in the Mediterranean basin, as did many other of today's popular herbs.

Answer 3

Cilantro is leaf of the coriander plant. No one "invented" it.

Answer 4

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