Candy
Candy, specifically sugar candy, is
a confection made from a concentrated solution of
sugar in water, to which flavorings and colorants
are added. Candies come in numerous colors and varieties
and have a long history in popular culture.
The Middle English word "candy" began
to be used in the late 13th century, coming into
English from the Old French cucre candi, derived
in turn from Persian Qand and Qandi, "cane
sugar", probably derived from Sanskrit word
khanda "piece (of sugar)," perhaps from
Dravidian (cf. Tamil kantu for candy, or kattu "to
harden, condense"). In North America, candy
is a broad category that includes candy bars, chocolates,
licorice, sour candies, salty candies, tart candies,
hard candies, taffies, gumdrops, marshmallows, and
more. Vegetables, fruit, or nuts which have been
glazed and coated with sugar are said to be candied.
Outside North America, the generic English-language
name for candy is sweets or confectionery (United
Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa and other commonwealth
countries). In Australia, small pieces of sweet
substance are known as "lollies".
In North America, Australia, NZ and the UK, the
word "lollipop" refers specifically to
sugar candy with flavoring on a stick. While not
used in the generic sense of North America, the
term candy is used in the UK for specific types
of foods such as candy floss (cotton candy in North
America and fairy floss in Australia), and certain
other sugar based products such as candied fruit.
A popular candy in Latin America is the so-called
pirulín (also known as pirulí), which
is a multicolor, conic-shaped hard candy of about
10 to 15 cm long, with a sharp conical or pyramidal
point, with a stick in the base, and wrapped in
cellophane.
(Source: Wikipedia.org)
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