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Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Z is for Zarf

My theme for A- Z was the year my book takes place: 1881. My plan was to post about people, places, and random facts about the year as it relates - however distantly - to my book, West of Paradise. However, I ran into a little trouble with these last three letters, so instead I tried to find interesting words beginning with the appropriate letter that people might not be familiar with.

And so I give you Z for Zarf, a chalice-like holder for a hot coffee cup, typically made of ornamented metal and used in the Middle East. And while you may think of coffee as an 18th century discovery, it was in Turkey that it first became popular in the 13th century. Like the serving of tea in China and Japan, the serving of coffee in Turkey was a complex ritualized process, and the coffee was served in small cups without handles. These were then placed in holders known as zarf to not only protect the cup, but also the fingers of the person drinking the hot coffee.




Zarf could also be a pretty nice Scrabble word assuming you found the right spot for it.



There are no zarfs in my tale, but as an added bonus for sticking with me to the end of the alphabet, I'm giving away a copy of West of Paradise to one lucky winner. Anyone who comments and is interested these last three days of the challenge will be automatically entered to win.


And now for that comfy chair and a glass of wine...perhaps some Zinfandel might be appropriate :)

20 comments:

  1. I love anything associated with coffee. Congrats on finishing the challenge!

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  2. No coffee, but I'll take some wine!
    And you made it to the end - well done.

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  3. What a coincidence. Now I want a cuppa. I can scarf it from a zarf.

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  4. I posted a while back about my new-found love for coffee and I was amazed by the comments. People drink coffee in so many ways. Some go to fairly elaborate lengths to get the perfect blend. Some like the Turkish coffee that you mentioned above, though I do believe that they drink it in a regular ole coffee cup;) Zarf. Great word.

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  5. Cool post! I had no idea that the first coffee cups were called zarfs. What a great word!
    BTW, I just posted a review for West of Paradise on Amazon and Goodreads. Five Stars! Excellent read!

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  6. I love coffee (or tea) cups without handles.
    I have a few and LOVE them, in fact, they
    are some of my most favorite kinds.

    Cheers, boogie boogie and BIG CONGRATS
    on making it to the end of the A/Z game.

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  7. This is a great word that is new to me. The last three letters are a nightmare, aren't they?
    I've enjoyed going back to 1881 with you this month!

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  8. I kind of dropped off, but zarf! it's good that you completed the challenge!

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  9. I had no idea about zarf. All the people in modern day Egypt just drink their tea or coffee from a glass and seem impervious to burned fingers. (I totally drink from a mug.) Congrats on finishing A-Z! :)

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  10. I need to remember Zarf the next time I play scrabble. :)

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  11. Great word. I would dazzle the family in Scrabble with that one. I picked up so Zinfidale at the store earlier today.

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  12. Ooo, a chalice. I'd have to put tea in it. Coffee no longer agrees with me. :(

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  13. Zarf? Isn't that what Pinky used to say? No... That was narf...

    I'm a little beat. But we made it!

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  14. zarf! I am so saving that for my next scrabble challenge against my hubby. I'm going to win now! :-)
    Great post, and I'd like to have a coffee cup like that.
    Deb@ http://debioneille.blogspot.com

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  15. Zinfandel in a zarf sounds great. Great job with your challenge congratulations.

    Good idea promoting your book this whole time and then the give away. I will use some of your marketing savvy next to round with the A to Z because I hope to have a book by then.

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  16. I'm not a coffee drinker but that's a great Scrabble word. Congratulations on completing the A-Z.

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  17. I hadn't ever heard of this word before - but now I want a zarf to drink my mead out of. hehe

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  18. A word to remember! Congratulations on completing the challenge! I have enjoyed visiting, but will need to return to read some of the posts I missed.

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  19. Congrats to you for finishing the challenge.

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  20. Interesting word - zarf - I wouldn't mind having some coffee in a zarf.
    Congratulations on finishing with the A-to-Z challenge!
    Mary @ The View from my World

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