A tropical fruit tree or its fruit, related to the quince, bearing yellow seed vessels.
From Greek 'kydonion melon', named after Cydonia, an ancient city in Crete famous for these fruits. The word traveled through Latin and Old French into English, describing both the tree and its distinctive fruit.
Cydon fruits were so prized in ancient times that they appeared in Greek mythology and were associated with love and fertility! The word eventually evolved into our modern 'quince,' showing how fruit names traveled along ancient trade routes.
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