Oranges originated in Southeast Asia, and now they’re grown worldwide. There are more than 600 kinds of oranges grown around the world.
Orange is a type of citrus fruit. Other examples of citrus fruits are lemons and grapefuits, but we don’t talk about those.
Oranges are round, orange-coloured fruits. They can also be found oval in shape.
Oranges grow on evergreen flowering trees. These trees have a lifespan of over 50 years! Hence, an orange tree can provide its fruits to multiple generations.
An orange is just a modified berry! And just like other berries, also have three fleshy layers with two or more seeds. They also develop from just one flower with one ovary.
Oranges contain more Vitamin C than any other fruit. Almost 88% of an orange is just Vitamin C! Vitamin C is essential for our body to grow, heal wounds, and fight infections. Thus, we should include oranges in our daily diets.
Brazil is the largest producer of oranges. It grows one-third of all the world’s oranges. That’s why Brazil is called the orange production capital. It’s followed by the United States of America, Mexico and China.
Orange, the fruit, came before orange, the colour. The colour orange came about 200 years later than the fruit. It was referred to as ‘red-yellow’ or ‘yellow-red’ before. It is probably derived from the Sanskrit word ‘naarang’ for an orange tree. The colour was called orange for the first time in 1502. People used it to describe a dress worn by Margaret Tudor, the Queen of Scotland.
The fibre and nutrients provided by oranges are equal to the fibre provided by SEVEN cups of cornflakes!
Oranges don’t come from the wild. They are a hybrid of the pomelo and tangerine.
Depending on the variety, certain kinds of oranges reach peak season in different months, but there will always be a type of citrus fruit at its peak. Navel oranges are best from December until March, blood orange varieties are the best from December until April, and clementines and tangerines are best between late October and January.
CARNIVAL OF IVREA
The Carnival of Ivrea is a festival in the Northern Italian city of Ivrea, which includes a tradition of throwing oranges between organised groups, known as the ‘Battle of the Oranges’. It is the largest food fight in Italy and surrounding countries.
Regarding the origins, a popular account has it that the battle commemorates the city’s defiance against the city’s tyrant, who is either a member of the Ranieri family, or a conflation of the 12th Century Ranieri di Biandrate and the 13th Century Marquis William VII of Montferrat. This tyrant attempted to attack a young woman on the evening of her wedding, but the plan backfired when she decapitated him. Each year, a young girl is chosen to play the part of Violetta, the defiant young woman.
Every year, the citizens remember their liberation with the ‘Battle of the Oranges’ where teams of Aranceri (orange handlers) on foot throw oranges against Aranceri riding in carts (representing the tyrant’s ranks). During the 19th Century French occupation of Italy, the Carnival of Ivrea was modified to add representatives of the French army. Another adaptation of the story has the oranges used to symbolize the removed testicles of the tyrant.
The oldest rituals of Ivrea Carnival include a large bonfire and are similar to ancient celebrations linked to the end of winter and the rise of the new spring.
The battle has been on hiatus since 2021 but returned in 2023. Other cancellations occurred in 1915-18 & 1940-45.