The earliest example of אתרג used in the context of the "four species" is found in the Aramaic Bar Kokhba letters.
Interesting. Do you have a cite for an article - preferably online - about that?
Sent me your e-mail address and I'll sent you a file.
את קא ידעת היכא מצית לאשכוחן אלא מיבעי לך לאיגלויי לי
I have a link on the sidebar called "Questions, Suggestions, Comments? Email me!" - you can reach me there.
You wrote: "The same root is apparently found in the Persian word "naranga" (source of "naranja" in Spanish and hence "orange" in French and English),"
'Narinj' in Syrian Arabic, is 'Civille Orange (sp?).' It looks like orange, but bitter taste and thick skin, it is used to make marmalade. Many streets in Morrocan cities are lined with this tree. I attended a siminar by a chiristian missionary person about his trip to Morocco. He showed slides of streets lined with this orange- looking bearing trees. He said "don't think the people are that honest to leave the oranges on the trees, these are bitter oranges."
There is another fruit I rarely see. It is similar to grapefruit, the skin is yellow and about 1 cm thick. I am not sure of the name.
I think you mean the Seville Orange:
http://www.answers.com/seville+o...lle+orange&
r=67
As a matter of fact, I remember visiting Seville, Spain as a kid, and noticing the oranges there.
I have often wondered whether the origin of the phrase "to be sold a lemon" was someone who one year paid for an Etrog but afterwards discovered that he had (literally) been sold a lemon instead?
Any thoughts?
Interesting idea, but I don't think it's likely:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.....php?
term=lemon
That sense of the word only appears in English at the beginning of the 20th century - I'm guessing Jews didn't have too much influence on it.
Commenting by HaloScan
