[1623.—"Tamarinds, which the Indians call Hambele" (imlī, as in quotation from Garcia above).—P. della Valle, Hak. Soc. i. 92.]
1829.—"A singularly beautiful Tamarind tree (ever the most graceful, and amongst the most magnificent of trees)...."—Mem. of Col. Mountain, 98.
1877.—"The natives have a saying that sleeping beneath the 'Date of Hind' gives you fever, which you cure by sleeping under a nim tree (Melia azedirachta), the lilac of Persia."—Burton, Sind Revisited, i. 92. The nim (see [NEEM]) (pace Capt. Burton) is not the 'lilac of Persia' (see [BUCKYNE]). The prejudice against encamping or sleeping under a tamarind tree is general in India. But, curiously, Bp. Pallegoix speaks of it as the practice of the Siamese "to rest and play under the beneficent shade of the Tamarind."—(Desc. du Royaume Thai ou Siam, i. 136).
TAMARIND-FISH, s. This is an excellent zest, consisting, according to Dr. Balfour, of white [pomfret], cut in transverse slices, and preserved in tamarinds. The following is a note kindly given by the highest authority on Indian fish matters, Dr. Francis Day:
"My account of Tamarind fish is very short, and in my Fishes of Malabar as follows:—
"'The best Tamarind fish is prepared from the Seir fish (see [SEER-FISH]), and from the Lates calcarifer, known as [Cockup] in Calcutta; and a rather inferior quality from the Polynemus (or Roe-ball, to which genus the [Mango-fish] belongs), and the more common from any kind of fish.' The above refers to Malabar, and more especially to Cochin. Since I wrote my Fishes of Malabar I have made many inquiries as to Tamarind fish, and found that the white pomfret, where it is taken, appears to be the best for making the preparation."
TAMBERANEE, s. Malayāl. tam-burān, 'Lord; God, or King.' It is a title of honour among the [Nairs], and is also assumed by Saiva monks in the Tamil countries. [The word is derived from Mal. tam, 'one's own,' purān, 'lord.' The junior male members of the Malayāli Rāja's family, until they come of age, are called Tambān, and after that Tamburān. The female members are similarly styled Tambaṭṭi and Tamburaṭṭi (Logan, Malabar, iii. Gloss. s.v.).]
1510.—"Dice l'altro Tamarai: zoe Per Dio? L'altro respõde Tamarani: zoe Per Dio."—Varthema, ed. 1517, f. 45.
[c. 1610.—"They (the Nairs) call the King in their language Tambiraine, meaning 'God.'"—Pyrard de Laval, Hak. Soc. i. 357.]
TANA, TANNA, n.p. Thāna, a town on the Island of Salsette on the strait ('River of Tana') dividing that island from the mainland and 20 m. N.E. of Bombay, and in the early Middle Ages the seat of a Hindu kingdom of the Konkan (see [CONCAN]), as well as a seaport of importance. It is still a small port, and is the chief town of the District which bears its name.