Cardamom likely entered Greek from a lost Dravidian word — and Vikings carried it to Scandinavia, where it became more popular than in most of Europe.
An aromatic spice made from the seed pods of plants in the ginger family, used in cooking, baking, and beverages. Native to southern India and widely used in South Asian and Middle Eastern cuisines.
From Latin cardamomum, from Greek kardamomon, probably from a Dravidian source, possibly influenced by Greek kardamon (cress) and amomon (a spice plant) Key roots: kardamomon (Greek: "cardamom"), kardamon (Greek: "cress, garden pepper").
Cardamom is the third most expensive spice in the world by weight, after saffron and vanilla. It was traded along the ancient spice routes long before it was named in Western languages — the word likely entered Greek from a Dravidian language of southern India, where the plant is native. Vikings encountered cardamom through trade with Constantinople and brought it to Scandinavia, where it remains enormously popular today — Scandinavians are among the world's largest per-capita consumers of cardamom, using it extensively in