英语词汇ginseng的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

ginseng. Ginseng, which can cost up to $32 an ounce or $512 a pound for a piece of “heaven grade root,” has surpassed the cost of even the truffle as a reputed aphrodisiac. In the past it has been sold at $300 an ounce or $4,800 a pound, which is probably the all-time record for a food. One Chinese emperor reputedly paid $10,000 for a perfect man-figure ginseng root, or at least so the story goes. Similarly, it’s said that Chairman Mao drank a ginseng tea made from $100-an-ounce ginseng root at least three times a week. At any rate, the herb still sells briskly in Asian markets for $200 a pound and despite the pro- tests of modern pharmacologists, lovers throughout the world cling to the mystique of its so-called super powers. Lovers have been fascinated by the “Man Plant” for more than 5,500 years. The most potent ginseng roots are said to be shaped like a man’s body (in fact, the plant takes its name from the Chinese jen shen, “man herb”) and supposedly even better results are obtained when the root is dug up at midnight during a full moon. The Chinese call ginseng, or goo-lai-san, the “elixir of life,” “the herb that fills the heart with hilarity,” and the “medi- cine of medicines.” An American species of ginseng (Panax quinquefolium) is grown and gathered in this country, especial- ly in the Ozarks and Appalachia. Diggers can earn $33 to $44 per pound of dried root, and our largest domestic dealer ex- ports some 70,000 pounds of the herb annually. Such profits are nothing new, however; it is a matter of record that the first American ship to reach China in 1784, Major Samuel Shaw’s Emperor of China, carried a cargo of the ginseng so dear to Chinese lovers. See mandrake.

词汇	ginseng
词源	ginseng. Ginseng, which can cost up to $32 an ounce or $512 a pound for a piece of “heaven grade root,” has surpassed the cost of even the truffle as a reputed aphrodisiac. In the past it has been sold at $300 an ounce or $4,800 a pound, which is probably the all-time record for a food. One Chinese emperor reputedly paid $10,000 for a perfect man-figure ginseng root, or at least so the story goes. Similarly, it’s said that Chairman Mao drank a ginseng tea made from $100-an-ounce ginseng root at least three times a week. At any rate, the herb still sells briskly in Asian markets for $200 a pound and despite the pro- tests of modern pharmacologists, lovers throughout the world cling to the mystique of its so-called super powers. Lovers have been fascinated by the “Man Plant” for more than 5,500 years. The most potent ginseng roots are said to be shaped like a man’s body (in fact, the plant takes its name from the Chinese jen shen, “man herb”) and supposedly even better results are obtained when the root is dug up at midnight during a full moon. The Chinese call ginseng, or goo-lai-san, the “elixir of life,” “the herb that fills the heart with hilarity,” and the “medi- cine of medicines.” An American species of ginseng (Panax quinquefolium) is grown and gathered in this country, especial- ly in the Ozarks and Appalachia. Diggers can earn $33 to $44 per pound of dried root, and our largest domestic dealer ex- ports some 70,000 pounds of the herb annually. Such profits are nothing new, however; it is a matter of record that the first American ship to reach China in 1784, Major Samuel Shaw’s Emperor of China, carried a cargo of the ginseng so dear to Chinese lovers. See mandrake.
随便看	big a big as old cuffey big bang theory big bellies big ben big bertha big brass big brother is watching you big butter-and-egg man big cheese big chill big city rhythm big daddy big ditch big doolie big easy big enchilada big eyes big fleas have little fleas bigfoot big galoot biggest bribe big gooseberry season big h big house