National Apricot Day

Apricots ripen in the early summer, but they’re quite commonly dried so that way we can enjoy them year-round. The word ‘apricot’ in Latin purportedly means “precious”, but further investigation reveals that while this moniker is appropriate, it actually comes from Arabic ‘al barqūq’ (“early ripe”) via French ‘abricot’.

Apricots are found the world over but originated in northeastern China near the Russian border in ancient times. Later, the fruit was introduced to Europe and Armenia.