Definition

Noun: 1. A type of bushy plant (Salsola soda and related species) native to salt marshes and sea beaches of the Mediterranean region and the Canary Islands. Historically, the dried plants were burned to produce an impure form of sodium carbonate called "soda ash." 2. The crude alkaline soda ash (sodium carbonate) obtained from burning such plants.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Plant):
  • The barilla plant thrives in saline coastal soils.
  • For centuries, barilla was a key source of alkali for making soap and glass.
• Noun (Product):
  • The factory imported barilla for its soap-making process.
  • Before the Leblanc process, barilla was a vital industrial material.

Advanced Usage

• Historical/Industrial Context: The term is primarily used in historical, botanical, or industrial contexts to refer to the plant or the ash produced from it, which was a precursor to modern chemical production of soda ash.
  • The 18th-century glass industry relied heavily on Spanish barilla.

Variants and Related Words

• Saltwort: A common name for plants in the genus , including barilla species.
• Kali: Another historical name for plants of the genus used to produce alkali.
• Soda ash: The modern term for sodium carbonate, the refined product historically derived from barilla.

Synonyms

• Alkali plant (for the plant itself)
• Crude soda ash (for the product)

Notes on Meaning

The word has two closely linked meanings: the source plant and the historical industrial product derived from it. Its usage is now largely archaic, replaced by modern chemical and botanical terms.

Noun

1. Algerian plant formerly burned to obtain calcium carbonate
2. bushy plant of Old World salt marshes and sea beaches having prickly leaves; burned to produce a crude soda ash