Opopanax is the commercial name of ''bisabol'' or ''bissabol'', the fragrant oleo- gum-

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

of '' Commiphora guidottii''. It has been a major export article from

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

since ancient times, and is called ''hebbakhade'', ''habaghadi'' or ''habak hadi'' (''habbak haddi'') in Somali. It is an important ingredient in

perfumery Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

and therefore known as scented myrrh, sweet myrrh, perfumed myrrh or perfumed bdellium. Sometimes the oleo-gum-resin of ''

Commiphora holtziana ''Commiphora'' is the most species-rich genus of flowering plants in the frankincense and myrrh family, Burseraceae. The genus contains approximately 190 species of shrubs and trees, which are distributed throughout the (sub-) tropical regions of A ...

'' (often treated as a synonym of ''C. erythraea'' or ''C. kataf''), called ''habak hagar'', ''habaq hagar ad'' or ''habbak harr'' in Somali, is also sold under the name of opopanax.

Etymology

"Opopanax" originally refers to the gum resin from plants of the genus ''

Opoponax Opopanax is the commercial name of ''bisabol'' or ''bissabol'', the fragrant oleo- gum-resin of '' Commiphora guidottii''. It has been a major export article from Somalia since ancient times, and is called ''hebbakhade'', ''habaghadi'' or ''habak ...

'' which is used in

herbal medicine Herbal medicine (also called herbalism, phytomedicine or phytotherapy) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. Scientific evidence for the effectiveness of many herbal treatments ...

rather than perfumery. In the early 20th century, the name "opopanax" was misapplied to bisabol in perfumery. Nowadays the true opopanax is seldom used and the commercial opopanax is almost exclusively bisabol. To distinguish bisabol from the true opoponax, it is often alternatively spelled opoponax, and sometimes referred to as the opopanax of perfumery or perfumery's opopanax. For example, opopanax of perfumery is used in many iconic perfumes, such as Shalimar by Guerlain, Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel, Poison by Dior and many others.

Botanical origin

The true botanical origin of perfumery's opopanax is a tree native to Somalia and

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

, '' Commiphora guidottii'' Chiov. ex Guid., known as ''hadi'' in Somali. It has been mistakenly believed that the opopanax of perfumery comes from ''

Commiphora erythraea ''Commiphora'' is the most species-rich genus of flowering plants in the frankincense and myrrh family, Burseraceae. The genus contains approximately 190 species of shrubs and trees, which are distributed throughout the (sub-) tropical regions of A ...

'' (Ehrenb.) Engl. or ''Commiphora kataf'' subsp. ''erythraea'' (Ehrenb.) J.B.Gillett, owing to historical misidentification. ''C. erythraea sensu stricto'' is narrowly distributed in the coastal region of the Red Sea, but ''C. erythraea sensu lato'' incorporates ''

'' Engl. which is widely distributed in East Africa, known as ''hagar ad'' or ''hagar'' in Somali. The oleo-gum-resin of ''hagar ad'' is sometimes sold under the name of opopanax or perfumed bdellium. This is not only because of historical misidentification, but also attributable to their similar scents. The oleo-gum-resin of ''hagar ad'' (''C. holtziana'' or ''C. erythraea'') is considered the second strongest-scented bdellium after that of ''hadi'' (''C. guidottii'').

Uses

A resinoid is prepared from the oleo-gum-resin by

solvent extraction A solvent (from the Latin language, Latin ''wikt:solvo#Latin, solvō'', "loosen, untie, solve") is a substance that dissolves a solute, resulting in a Solution (chemistry), solution. A solvent is usually a liquid but can also be a solid, a gas ...

Steam distillation Steam distillation is a separation process that consists of distilling water together with other volatile and non-volatile components. The steam from the boiling water carries the vapor of the volatiles to a condenser; both are cooled and retu ...

of the resin gives the

essential oil An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the ...

, which has a warm, sweet, balsamic odor. Opopanax oil and resinoid are used in perfumes with

oriental The Orient is a term referring to the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of the term ''Occident'', which refers to the Western world. In English, it is largely a meto ...

characteristics. An IFRA recommendation exists.{{citation , author=Karl-Georg Fahlbusch , contribution=Flavors and Fragrances , title=Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry , edition=7th , publisher=Wiley , year=2007 , pages=107–108, display-authors=etal, title-link=Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry

References

Resins Perfume ingredients Incense material

Etymology

Botanical origin

Uses

See also

References