Forms: (4 caumfre), 5–9 camphire, (6 campher, camfory, -ie, camfery, camphora, camfora, canfora), 6–7 camphyre, (champhire, 7 camphory, campheer, -phir, -fer, -fire, canfir, 8 champhor), 7– camphor. [a. F. camfre, camphre, med.L., Pr. and Pg. camphora, It. canfora, Sp. and Pg. alcanfor, med.Gr. καφουρά (‘Camphora, quam Aetius caphura nominavit’ Herm. Barbaro, 15th c. commentator on Dioscorides, Devic), a. Arab. kāfūr, in Old Pers. kāpūr, Prakrit kappūram, Skr. karpūram; in Hindī kappūr, kapūr, kāpūr, Malay kāpūr. The European forms are immediately from Arabic, with an for long ā. Various forms of the word occur in 16th-c. Eng., but the typical form down to c. 1800 was camphire; the mod. camphor is conformed to the Latin.]
1. A whitish translucent crystalline volatile substance, belonging chemically to the vegetable oils, and having a bitter aromatic taste and a strong characteristic smell: it is used in pharmacy, and was formerly in repute as an antaphrodisiac.
Common camphor (C10 H16 O) is prepared by distillation and sublimation from Camphora officinarum (Laurus Camphora), a tree indigenous to Java, Sumatra, Japan, etc., and from other lauraceous trees. Many essential oils, as those of feverfew, lavender, etc., deposit varieties of camphor differing only in their action on polarized light. Borneo camphor or Borneol (C10 H18 O) is yielded by Dryobalanops Camphora, N. O. Dipteraceæ, a tree growing in Sumatra and Borneo; it is less volatile than common camphor, and has a mingled camphoraceous and peppery smell. Ngai Camphor, of the same chemical composition as Borneol, is produced in China and Burmah by the distillation of Blumea balsamifera.
1313. in Wardrobe Acc. 7 Edw. II., 20. Caumfre 18d.
1530. Palsgr., 202/2. Camforie or gumme, camfre.
1553. Eden, Treat. New Ind. (Arb.), 22. Great plentie of Camphora called camphyre, whiche they affirme to be the gumme of a certayn tree.
1585. Lloyd, Treas. Health, I. ii. Gume of Arabicke, Dragance, Camfery.
1598. Gilpin, Skial. (1878), 35. Tearmes of quick Camphire, & Salt-peeter phrases.
1599. Hakluyt, Voy., II. I. 242. Canfora being compound commeth all from China, and all that which groweth in canes commeth from Borneo.
1605. Timme, Quersit., III. 177. Camphor.
1626. Bacon, Sylva, § 30. Brimstone, Pitch, Champhire, Wilde-Fire … make no such fiery winde, as Gunpowder doth.
1629. Capt. Smith, Trav. & Adv., v. 8. Campheer, and powder of Brimstone.
1649. Jer. Taylor, Gt. Exemp., III. xiv. 15. Intemperance … makes a fair estate evaporate like Camphire, turning it into nothing.
1657. W. Coles, Adam in Eden, cclxxxiv. 54. In English Camphire, Camfire, Camphor, and Camfer.
1661. Boyle, Spring of Air, II. i. (1682), 21. Camphire of which a little will fill a room with its odour.
1680. Morden, Geog. Rect. (1685), 323. The Canfir of Borneo.
1681. Dryden, Span. Fryar, i. Wks. 1725, V. 149. Prescribe her an Ounce of Camphire every Morning … to abate Incontinency.
1764. Churchill, Candidate, Poems (1769), II. 35. Her loins by the chaste matron Camphire bound.
1781–7. Bp. Watson, Chem. Ess. (1789), V. 273. Camphor.
1814. Sir H. Davy, Agric. Chem., 146. Camphor is used to preserve the collections of Naturalists.
1875. Darwin, Insectiv. Pl., ix. 209. Camphor is the only known stimulant for plants.
† 2. A tree or plant that yields camphor; esp. Camphora officinarum and Dryobalanops Camphora; see prec. sense. Obs.
The shrub called ‘camphire’ in the 1611 version of the Bible is now identified with the Lawsonia inermis or henna-plant, N.O. Lythraceæ.
1570. Levins, Manip., 72. Campher, herb, camphora.
1596. Spenser, F. Q., III. ii. 49. Rew, and Savine, and the flowre Of Camphora.
1611. Bible, Song of Sol. i. 14. My beloued is vnto me, as a cluster of Camphire [1885 R. V. henna-flowers].
1633. H. Cogan, Pinto’s Trav., xxxix. (1663), 156. A Tent pitched upon 12 Ballisters of the wood of Camphire.
1684. Bunyan, Pilgr., II. 194. Here also grew Camphire, with Spicknard, and Saffron.
3. attrib. and in Comb., as camphor ball, julep, oil, pill, posset, tree (see 2).
1592. Greene, Upst. Courtier (1871), 38. Being curiously washed with no worse than a *Camphor ball.
1611. Beaum. & Fl., Philast., II. 26. Such *Camphire constitutions as this.
1836. Penny Cycl., VI. 204. In that part of the stem [of Dryobalanops Camphora] which should be occupied by the pith it [Borneo camphor] is found along with *camphor-oil.
1671. Mrs. Behn, Amorous Prince, IV. iv.
| This is whoring now: may I turn Franciscan, | |
| If I could not find in my heart to do penance | |
| In *Champhire Posset, this month for this. |
1607. Topsell, Four-f. Beasts, 448. The leopard … delighteth in the *camphory tree.
1876. Harley, Mat. Med., 451. The Camphor Tree is a large and handsome tree with evergreen shining leaves.
