''Rhus coriaria'', commonly called Sicilian sumac, tanner's sumach, or elm-leaved sumach, is a deciduous shrub to small tree in the cashew family Anacardiaceae. It is native to southern Europe and western Asia. The dried fruits are used as a spice, particularly in combination with other spices in the mixture called za'atar.

Etymology

The word originally comes from Aramaic ''summāqā'' 'red', via Arabic, Latin, and French.'' Oxford English Dictionary'', 3rd edition, September 2019
''s.v.''
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Distribution and habitat

''Rhus coriaria'' is native to the

Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to communi ...

, Crimea, Caucasus and northern Iran, but is now naturalized in most of the

Mediterranean Basin In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and w ...

as well as Macaronesia.

Cultivation

The plant will grow in any type of soil that is deep and well-drained.Plants for a Future database
accessed August 2010

Uses

The fruit has a sour taste; dried and crushed, it is a popular spice in the Middle East. Immature fruits and seeds are also eaten. Mature fruits were also known well before lemons to the Europeans since the times of the ancient Romans, who appreciated its sourness and used it in vinaigrettes like lemons in modern times. It is traditionally used and also clinically investigated for lipid lowering effects. The leaves and the bark were traditionally used in leather tanning and contain tannic acid. Dyes of various colours, red, yellow, black, and brown, can be made from different parts of the plant. Oil extracted from the seeds can be used to make candles. It has been reported that the plant has significant antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticancer and DNA protective activity.

Images

Image:ZUMAQUES.jpg, Cultivated ''R. coriaria'', with olive trees, in Spain Image:Sumac.jpg, Spice (ground fruit) for sale in Istanbul Image:Sumak.jpg, Spice, close-up

References

coriaria Spices Flora of Europe Flora of Western Asia Flora of Central Asia Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Anacardiaceae-stub