A South American shrub or small tree with aromatic leaves and dark berries, related to the myrtle family.
From Spanish 'arrayan,' derived from Arabic 'rayhan' (plant or fragrance). The term traveled from North Africa through Spain to the Americas, describing similar aromatic shrubs.
This plant demonstrates how the Arabic spice trade vocabulary followed Spanish conquistadors to the New World—the same linguistic root for 'fragrant plants' crossed two continents and several centuries!
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