Made in Arabic
alembic
الإنْبيق
A copper pot over a stove, crowned with many flasks into which rose steam rises and condenses as scented water. Al-Zahrawi described it in his al-Taṣrīf in tenth-century al-Andalus. The head of the still is al-anbīq in Arabic; Latin took it as alembicus, English as alembic, and for centuries it remained the name of the still in Europe's books of chemistry.
- Instrument
- a rose-water still, after al-Zahrawi's description
The path between languagesambix → al-anbīq → alembicus → alembic
أ.د. عبد العزيز الحميد، متحف جامعة الإمام
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Sources
- Merriam-Webster: alembic, from Arabic al-anbīq, from Greek ambix
- بطاقة المتحف: «جهاز لتقطير ماء الورد… في كتاب التصريف للزهراوي»
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