Definition
A plant of the borage family whose roots yield a red dye, also known as alkanet. The dye has been used for coloring cosmetics, food, and textiles.
Etymology
From Arabic al-ḥinnāʾ, literally 'the henna', with the Arabic definite article al- attached. The word entered English via Medieval Latin alcanna in the 16th century. European traders encountered this dye plant through Arabic merchants who had developed its commercial uses.
Kelly Says
Alkanna is literally Arabic for 'the henna,' but it's actually a completely different plant that just happens to produce red dye! This naming confusion shows how medieval European traders often relied on Arabic intermediaries to understand exotic products.
Translations
BNবাংলা
আলকান্না
Ālakānnā
CACatalà
alcanne
/alˈkan.ə/
CSČeština
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
DADansk
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
DEDeutsch
Alkanna
/alˈkana/
ELΕλληνικά
αλκάννα
alkánna
ESEspañol
alcanne
al.ˈkan.e
FISuomi
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
FRFrançais
alcanne
/al.kan/
HUMagyar
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
IDBahasa Indonesia
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
ITItaliano
alchanna
/alˈkanna/
KMKM
អាល់កាន់ណា
ʼAalkaannā
MSBahasa Melayu
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
MYမြန်မာ
အယ်လ်ကန္နာ
ʼAilʼ kan.nā
NLNederlands
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
NONorsk
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
PLPolski
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
PTPortuguês
alcana
/alˈkɐ.nɐ/
RORomână
alcană
/alˈka.nə/
RUРусский
алканна
alkanna
SVSvenska
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
SWKiswahili
alkanna
/alˈka.na/
THไทย
อัลคันนา
Xal.khan.nā
TRTürkçe
alkana
/alˈka.na/
UKУкраїнська
алканна
alkanna
VITiếng Việt
alkanna
/alˈka.na/