Thyme and Origanum Oils Summary
See also
- Marjoram Oils
- Savory Oil
- Serpolet
- Verbena
- White Thyme Oil
- Wild Thyme
Notes
Summary monograph defining nomenclature distinctions between Thyme Oil (thymol-type, >40% phenols, >90% thymol), Origanum Oil (carvacrol-type, >55% phenols), Sweet Marjoram Oil (no phenols), White Thyme Oil (redistilled or adulterated), Wild Thyme/Feldthymian/Serpolet, and Savory Oil. Main confusion arises from Spanish oils being marketed interchangeably.
Full Arctander text
#### Thyme and Origanum Oils.
##### Summary:
To reduce further confusion in the nomenclature of **Thyme **and **Origanum**, the author proposes to outline briefly the names under which the various oils are listed in this work:
**Thyme**** ****Oil**: is produced from **Thymus**** ****Vulgaris,**** ****Thymus**** ****Zygis**** **or other species of **Thymus**, producing thymol-type of essential oil.
As **Thyme**** ****Oils**, the author will consider only those oils distilled from the above plants, and in which the phenol content is over 40%, and where more than 90% of the phenols is thymol.
**Origanum Oil**: is produced from **Thymus Capitatus **(also called **Coridothymus Capitatus **in Spain and the Middle East) while in north Africa various carvacrol-bearing plants of the Origanum species are used. Bulgarian and Italian so-called origanum oils are produced from **Origanum Vulgare **and other species, (see monograph on **Marjoram Oils**).
As **Origanum**** ****Oils**, the author will consider only those oils distilled from the above species, and containing over 55 % phenols, exclusively or almost exclusively consisting of carvacrol (liquid). Wild Marjoram Oils are either produced from **Origanum**** ****Vulgane**** **(see above) or, in Spain, from **Thymus**** ****Masticina**.
**Sweet**** ****Marjoram**** ****Oils**** **are produced from cultivated plants of **Majorana**** ****Hortensis**. They contain no phenols.
**White**** ****Thyme**** ****Oil**** **is not a natural oil, but it may be a redistilled "red thyme oil". Commercial lots of "white thyme oil" show heavy cutting and adulteration and rarely a true, redistilled thyme oil.
The German "**Feldthymian**" oil, also called "**Wild**** ****Thyme**" is produced from **Thymus**** ****Serpyllum**
in many countries. It is known under the name of **Serpolet**** **in France.
**Savory**** ****Oil**** **is produced from **Satureia**** ****Montana**** **or **Satureia**** ****Hortensis**. The oil resembles Spanish origanum to a certain degree.
**Thymus**** ****Hiemalis**** **produces the so-called "Spanish verbena oil" (see monograph on **Verbena**).
True **Verbena**** ****Oil**** **is produced from **Lippia**** ****Citriodora**, but there is no regular production of this oil.
The main confusion arises from the fact that Spanish thyme oils are often origanum oils and vice versa. Mixtures of the two oils are also commercially offered under one or the other name.