Hemp

Hemp plants. Hemp plants.

Hemp is a coarse, strong bast fibre obtained from the stem of plants of the family of the Cannabaceae, especially of the genus Cannabis, and in particular one of its species, Cannabis sativa. One of the traditional uses of Cannabis sativa is for making a thread to make hemp cloth.

Cannabis sativa can be found in many parts of the world, although the growing of hemp is restricted in some countries because of its association with the production of various soft drugs. The word hemp derives from the Old English word hænep.

Sources

  • OWEN-CROCKER, Gale R. (2012). 'Hemp', in: Gale Owen-Crocker, Elizabeth Coatsworth and Maria Hayward (eds.). Encyclopedia of Medieval Dress and Textiles of the British Isles, c. 450-1450, Brill: Leiden, pp. 266-267.
  • TORTORA, Phyllis G. and Ingrid JOHNSON (2014). The Fairchild Books: Dictionary of Textiles, 8th edition, London: Bloomsbury, p. 287.
  • Shorter Oxford English Dictionary: ‘Hemp’.

Digital source of illustration (retrieved 26 June 2016).

GVE

Last modified on Wednesday, 05 October 2016 09:49
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