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saffron ( IPA : [ˈsæf.ɹən] / [ˈsæf.ɹɒn] ) is a spice derived from the flower of the saffron crocus ( Crocus sativus ), a species of crocus in the family Iridaceae . A C. sativus flower bears three stigmas , each the distal end of a carpel . Together with their styles —stalks connecting stigmas to their host plant—stigmas are dried and used in cooking as a seasoning and colouring agent. Saffron, for decades the world's most expensive spice by weight, [ 1 ] [ 2 ] is native to Southwest Asia . [ 2 ] [ 3 ]
Saffron is marked by a bitter taste and an iodoform - or hay -like fragrance; these result from the chemicals picrocrocin and safranal . [ 4 ] [ 5 ] A carotenoid dye, crocin , allows saffron to impart a rich golden-yellow hue to dishes and textiles. Saffron has further medicinal applications.
The word saffron stems from the Latin word safranum via the 12th-century Old French term safran . Safranum is related to the Italian zafferano and Spanish azafrán . [ 6 ] Safranum derives from the Arabic word aṣfar ( أَصْفَر ), which means " yellow ," via the Persian paronymous zaʻfar¨?n ( زَعْفَرَان ).