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The damson () or damson plum (''Prunus domestica'' subsp. ''insititia'', or sometimes ''Prunus insititia''),〔M. H. Porcher ("Sorting ''Prunus'' names ), in "Multilingual multiscript plant names database, University of Melbourne. Plantnames.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved on 2012-01-01.〕 also archaically called the "damascene"〔Samuel Johnson equates "damascene" and "damson" and for "damask plum" simply states "see Plum" (''A Dictionary of the English Language'', 1755, p.532). Later expanded editions also distinguish between "damascene" and "damson", the latter being described as "smaller and () a peculiar bitter or roughness".〕 is an edible drupaceous fruit, a subspecies of the plum tree. Varieties of ''insititia'' are found across Europe, but the name "damson" is derived from and most commonly applied to forms which are native to Ireland and Great Britain.〔Woldring, H. "On the origin of plums: a study of sloe, damson, cherry plums, domestic plums and their intermediate forms", in ''Palaeohistoria'', 39,40 (1997-1998): Institute of Archaeology, Groningen, 538〕 Damsons are relatively small plum-like fruit with a distinctive, somewhat astringent taste, and are widely used for culinary purposes, particularly in fruit preserves or jam. In South and Southeast Asia, the term "damson plum" sometimes refers to Jambul, the fruit from a tree in the Myrtaceae family.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=Purdue University )〕 The name "Mountain Damson" or "Bitter Damson" was also formerly applied in Jamaica to the tree ''Simarouba amara''.〔Bowerbank, "The Commercial Quassia, or Bitterwood", ''The Technologist'', II (1862), 251〕 ==History== The name damson derives from the earlier term "damascene", and ultimately from the Latin ''prunum damascenum'', "plum of Damascus". One commonly stated theory is that damsons were first cultivated in antiquity in the area around the ancient city of Damascus, capital of modern-day Syria, and were introduced into England by the Romans. The historical link between the Roman-era ''damascenum'' and the north and west European damson is rather tenuous despite the adoption of the older name, particularly as the ''damascenum'' described by the Roman authors has more of the character of a sweet dessert plum.〔Dalby, A. ''Food in the Ancient World,, Routledge, 2003, p.264〕 Nevertheless, remnants of damsons are sometimes found during archaeological digs of ancient Roman camps across England, and they have clearly been cultivated, and consumed, for centuries. Damson stones have been found in the fosse at the Hungate, York, and dated to the late period of Anglo-Saxon England.〔Godwin, Sir H. ''The History of the British Flora'', Cambridge University Press, 1984, p.197〕 The exact origin of ''Prunus domestica'' subsp. ''insititia'' is still extremely debatable: it is often thought to have arisen in wild crosses, possibly in Asia Minor, between the sloe, ''Prunus spinosa'', and ''prunus cerasifera'', the cherry plum.〔Woldring, 1997, 535〕 Despite this, tests on cherry plums and damsons have indicated that it is possible that the damson developed directly from forms of sloe, perhaps via the round-fruited varieties known as bullaces, and that the cherry plum did not play a role in its parentage.〔Woldring, 1997, 535〕 ''Insititia'' plums of various sorts, such as the German ''Krieche'' or Dutch ''kroosjes'', occur across Europe and the word "damson" is sometimes used to refer to them in English, but many of the English varieties from which the name "damson" was originally taken have both a different typical flavour and pear-shaped (pyriform) appearance compared with continental forms.〔 Hogg commented that "the Damson seems to be a fruit peculiar to England. We do not meet with it abroad, nor is any mention of it made in any of the pomological works or nurseryman's catalogues on the Continent".〔Hogg, R. ''The fruit manual: a guide to the fruits and fruit trees of Great Britain'', 1884, p.695〕 As time progressed, a distinction developed between the varieties known as "damascenes" and the (usually smaller) types called "damsons", to the degree that by 1891 they were the subject of a lawsuit when a Nottinghamshire grocer complained about being supplied one when he had ordered the other.〔Ayto, J. ''The Glutton's Glossary: A Dictionary of Food and Drink Terms'', Routledge, 1990, p.94〕 In addition to providing fruit, the damson makes a tough hedge or windbreak, and it became the favoured hedging tree in certain parts of the country such as Shropshire and Kent.〔''The Common Ground book of orchards: conservation, culture and community'', Common Ground, 2000, p.32〕 Elsewhere damsons were used in orchards to protect less hardy trees, though orchards entirely composed of damson trees were a feature of some areas, notably the Lyth Valley of Westmorland and the Teme Valley in the Malverns, and indeed damsons were the only plum planted commercially north of Norfolk.〔"Plums and Cherries", ''Bulletin of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries'' v119, (1948), HMSO, 4〕 There is a body of anecdotal evidence that damsons were used in the British dye and cloth manufacturing industries in the 18th and 19th centuries, with examples occurring in every major damson-growing area (Buckinghamshire, Cheshire, Westmorland, Shropshire and Worcestershire).〔Stephens, B. "(Damsons & Dyeing )" (report for English Nature), 2005, in ''Wyre Forest Study Group Review'', 2006, 52〕 Stories that damsons were used to dye khaki army uniforms are particularly common. However, a 2005 report for conservancy body English Nature could find no documentary evidence within the dyeing industry that damsons were ever a source of dye, noting that use of natural dyes declined rapidly after the 1850s,〔Stephens, 2005, p.55〕 and concluded that "there seems no evidence that damsons were used extensively or techniques (using them ) developed".〔Stephens, 2005, p.53〕 The main recorded use of damsons in the industrial era was in commercial jam-making, and orchards were widespread until the Second World War, after which changing tastes, the effect of wartime sugar rationing, and the relatively high cost of British-grown fruit caused a steep decline. The damson was introduced into the American colonies by English settlers before the American Revolution. It was regarded as thriving better in the continental United States than other European plum varieties; many of the earliest references to European plums in American gardens concern the damson.〔Hatch, P. ''The Fruits and Fruit Trees of Monticello'', University of Virginia Press, 1998, p.108〕 A favourite of early colonists, the tree has escaped from gardens and can be found growing wild in states such as Idaho.〔Johnson, F. D. ''Wild trees of Idaho'', UIP, 1995, p.78〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Damson」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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