A fragrant essential oil, typically made from rose petals or other flowers, used in perfumery and aromatherapy. It is particularly associated with Middle Eastern and South Asian perfume traditions.
From Arabic ʿiṭr meaning 'fragrance' or 'perfume', derived from the root ʿ-ṭ-r relating to pleasant scents. The word entered English via Persian and Urdu in the 18th century through British colonial contact with Indian perfumers. Attar production was refined into an art form in the Islamic world.
Making true rose attar requires distilling 60,000 rose petals to produce just one ounce of oil—no wonder it was called 'liquid gold'! The Arabic perfumers who developed this process created the foundation for modern essential oil extraction techniques.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.