Rose water, or rosewater, is a flavoured water created by

steeping Steeping is the soaking of an organic solid, such as leaves, in a liquid (usually water) to extract flavours or to soften it. The specific process of teas being prepared for drinking by leaving the leaves in heated water to release the flavour ...

rose petals in water. It is typically made as a

by-product A by-product or byproduct is a secondary product derived from a production process, manufacturing process or chemical reaction; it is not the primary product or service being produced. A by-product can be useful and marketable or it can be cons ...

during the distillation of rose petals to create

rose oil Rose oil (rose otto, attar of rose, attar of roses, or rose essence) is an essential oil that is extracted from the petals of various types of rose. ''Rose ottos'' are extracted through steam distillation, while ''rose absolutes'' are obtained t ...

for

perfumes 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 ...

. Rose water is widely utilized to flavour culinary dishes and enhance cosmetic products, and it is significant in religious rituals throughout

Eurasia Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

is a major producer, supplying around 90% of the world's rose water demand. Central Iran is home to the annual Golabgiri festival each spring. Thousands of tourists visit the area to celebrate the rose harvest for the production of rosewater.

History

Since ancient times, roses have been used medicinally, nutritionally, and as a source of perfume. Rose perfumes are made from rose oil, also called "

attar Attar, also known as ittar, is an essential oil derived from botanical or other natural sources. Most commonly these oils are extracted via hydrodistillation or steam distillation. Attar can also be expressed by chemical means but generally n ...

of roses", which is a mixture of volatile

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 ...

s obtained by steam-distilling the crushed petals of roses. Rose water is a by-product of this process. Before the development of the technique of distilling rose water, rose petals were already used in Persian cuisine to perfume and flavour dishes. Rose water likely originated in Persia, where it is known as ''gulāb'' (), from ''gul'' ( rose) and ''ab'' ( water). The term was adopted into

Medieval Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic; Greek: ) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the ...

as ''zoulápin''. The process of creating rose water through steam distillation was refined by Arab and Persian chemists in the medieval Islamic world, which led to more efficient and economic uses for perfume industries.

Uses

Food

Rose water is often added to water to mask unpleasant odours and flavours. In

South Asian cuisine South Asian cuisine includes the traditional cuisines from the modern-day South Asian republics of Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, also sometimes including the kingdom of Bhutan and the emirate of Afghanistan. Also som ...

, it is a common ingredient in sweets such as

laddu ''Laddu'' or ''laddoo'' is a spherical sweet from the Indian subcontinent made of various ingredients and sugar syrup or jaggery. It has been described as "perhaps the most universal and ancient of Indian sweets." ''Laddus'' are often serv ...

gulab jamun Gulab jamun is a sweet confectionery or dessert, originating in the Indian subcontinent, and a type of mithai popular in India, Pakistan, Nepal, the Maldives and Bangladesh, as well as Myanmar. It is also common in nations with substantial popu ...

, and

peda Peda () or Pera is an Indian sweet that originated in the city of Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India. Traditionally prepared as thick, semi-soft round balls, its main ingredients are khoa, sugar and traditional flavourings including cardamom seeds. ...

. It is also used to flavour milk,

lassi Lassi () is a Dahi (curd), yogurt–based beverage with a smoothie-like consistency. It has been called "the most popular and traditional yogurt-based drink" in India. It has also been described as the form in which yogurt "is most cherished ...

rice pudding Rice pudding is a dish made from rice mixed with water or milk and commonly other ingredients such as sweeteners, spices, flavourings and sometimes eggs. Variants are used for either desserts or dinners. When used as a dessert, it is commonly c ...

, and other dairy dishes. In

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

, sweet, red-tinted rose water is mixed with milk, producing a pink drink called

bandung Bandung is the capital city of the West Java province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, the city is the List of Indonesian cities by population, fourth-most populous city and fourth largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta, Surabay ...

. Rose water is used in various dishes, especially in sweets such as

Turkish delight Turkish delight, or lokum () is a family of confectionery, confections based on a gel of starch and sugar. Premium varieties consist largely of chopped dates, pistachios, hazelnuts or walnuts bound by the gel; traditional varieties are often fl ...

, nougat, and

baklava Baklava (, or ; ) is a layered pastry dessert made of filo pastry, filled with chopped nuts, and sweetened with syrup or honey. It was one of the most popular sweet pastries of Ottoman cuisine. There are several theories for the origin of th ...

Marzipan Marzipan is a confectionery, confection consisting primarily of sugar and almond meal (ground almonds), sometimes augmented with almond oil or extract. It is often made into Confectionery, sweets; common uses are chocolate-covered marzipan and ...

has long been flavoured with rose water. In

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

, it is used to flavour a number of different desserts, including the local version of muhallebi. It is also frequently used as a

halal ''Halal'' (; ) is an Arabic word that translates to in English. Although the term ''halal'' is often associated with Islamic dietary laws, particularly meat that is slaughtered according to Islamic guidelines, it also governs ethical practices ...

substitute for red wine and other alcohols in cooking. The

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

, Bahrain Grand Prix, and Abu Dhabi Grand Prix offer a rose water-based beverage as an alternative for

champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

when awarding Muslim players.

Cosmetics

medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

, rose water was used to wash hands during feasts.

Religion

Rose water is used in religious ceremonies in

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

(in the

Byzantine Rite The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, is a liturgical rite that is identified with the wide range of cultural, devotional, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christianity, Eastern Chri ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and in the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zoroaster, Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, ...

, and the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

(in ''Kitab-i-Aqdas'' 1:76).

Chemical composition

Depending on the origin and manufacturing method, rose water is obtained from the

sepals A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

and

petals Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''coroll ...

of ''

Rosa × damascena ''Rosa'' × ''damascena'' (Latin for damascene rose), more commonly known as the Damask rose, or sometimes as the Iranian Rose, Bulgarian rose, Taif rose & "Emirati rose", Ispahan rose, Castile rose, and Đulbešećerka (Bosnia and Herzegovina ...

'' through steam distillation. The following monoterpenoid and

alkane In organic chemistry, an alkane, or paraffin (a historical trivial name that also has other meanings), is an acyclic saturated hydrocarbon. In other words, an alkane consists of hydrogen and carbon atoms arranged in a tree structure in whi ...

components can be identified with

gas chromatography Gas chromatography (GC) is a common type of chromatography used in analytical chemistry for Separation process, separating and analyzing compounds that can be vaporized without Chemical decomposition, decomposition. Typical uses of GC include t ...

: mostly citronellol,

nonadecane Nonadecane is an alkane hydrocarbon with the chemical formula CH3(CH2)17CH3, simplified to carbon, C19hydrogen, H40. Occurrence in nature Nonadecane is found in ''Rosa × damascena'' (8%-15%), ''Rosa × alba'' (7%-13%) and n-Paraffin rich high a ...

geraniol Geraniol is a monoterpenoid and an alcohol. It is the primary component of citronella oil and is a primary component of rose oil and palmarosa oil. It is a colorless oil, although commercial samples can appear yellow. It has low solubility i ...

, and phenylethyl alcohol, and also henicosane,

, eicosane,

linalool Linalool () refers to two enantiomers of a naturally occurring terpene alcohol found in many flowers and spice plants. Together with geraniol, nerol, and citronellol, linalool is one of the rose alcohols. Linalool has multiple commercial app ...

, citronellyl acetate, methyleugenol, heptadecane, pentadecane, docosane, nerol, disiloxane,

octadecane Octadecane is an alkane hydrocarbon with the chemical formula CH3(CH2)16CH3. Properties Octadecane is distinguished by being the alkane In organic chemistry, an alkane, or paraffin (a historical trivial name that also has other meanings), ...

, and pentacosane. Usually, phenylethyl alcohol is responsible for the typical odour of rose water but is not always present in derivative products.

Gallery

Golab being make in Meymand - Fars 11.jpg, Bags of rose petals being unloaded in preparation for steeping Golab being make in Qamsar - Kashan 18.jpg, Water being poured into a container of rose petals Golab being make in Meymand - Fars 08.jpg, A container being filled using a hose Golab being make in Qamsar - Kashan 09.jpg, Containers of petals awaiting steeping, with one on the left closed and being heated to boil the water inside.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Ancient Greek cuisine Arab cuisine Food ingredients Middle Eastern cuisine Roses Syrup Herbal distillates Azerbaijani cuisine Ark of Taste foods Iranian cuisine Indian cuisine Turkish cuisine