Comments on Season with Spice - an Asian Spice Shop: Spotlight on Spice: How do you say 'cumin'?

Here in Australia, all three pronunciations are us...

2014-06-26T01:09:30.229-07:00

Here in Australia, all three pronunciations are used. I say come-in but as I sell spices and spice blends, I usually use all three so as not to exclude anyone!

I say cumino

2012-10-05T19:47:54.444-07:00

I say cumino

If you say it with confidence, no one will questio...

2012-06-18T19:43:16.411-07:00

If you say it with confidence, no one will question you:) Thanks Allie.

I'm down in Alabama and I've always said Q...

2012-06-10T10:07:34.006-07:00

I'm down in Alabama and I've always said Q-min, but I've always said it quietly because I never knew if I was wrong! haha

I think once spices become more understood, cooked...

2012-05-08T23:37:58.000-07:00

I think once spices become more understood, cooked with, and talked about in American culture, we will finally come to an agreement on how to say 'cumin' :)

Good point, Kipoley

2012-05-08T23:24:47.822-07:00

Good point, Kipoley

I've been saying Q-min for many years, which I...

2012-05-08T05:26:11.761-07:00

I've been saying Q-min for many years, which I think I picked up somewhere along the way during/after college (in the northeastern part of the states). I recently discovered, however, that my father pronounces it koo-min, which I think must come from our Syrian side of the family. It made me reconsider my own pronunciation. :)

I pronounce it Q-min. Once I moved from Texas to M...

2012-05-07T08:54:24.288-07:00

I pronounce it Q-min. Once I moved from Texas to Miami, FL, I found many Latinos pronounced it koo-min.

If people know what you are talking about than you...

2012-05-07T03:55:22.584-07:00

If people know what you are talking about than you said it right:) I'm in Michigan too. Koo-min is my favorite spice!

Interesting, the pronunciation definitely changes ...

2012-04-23T21:35:43.637-07:00

Interesting, the pronunciation definitely changes from family to family...

I pronounce it come'-in, which is how my mothe...

2012-04-23T11:33:11.357-07:00

I pronounce it come'-in, which is how my mother taught me. She was born in Buffalo, raised in Chicago, but she raised us in Southern California.

Thanks Erin, I guess there's no wrong answer

2012-03-26T17:50:19.735-07:00

Thanks Erin, I guess there's no wrong answer

I am from New Zealand and I say koo-min mostly and...

2012-03-26T17:04:00.762-07:00

I am from New Zealand and I say koo-min mostly and sometimes Q-min???

Hi Alexandria - I too took it for granted when I w...

2012-03-13T20:48:41.883-07:00

Hi Alexandria - I too took it for granted when I was a child and never learned the names of our local spices although they are such an integral part of Malaysian cuisine. I am glad that I am making it up for the learning losses as an adult. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

It is confusing to learn the names of spices in different languages though. For example, cumin is jintan putih while aniseed is jintan manis in Bahasa Malay. I am still trying remember the names in Chinese so I can have the spice talk with my mom! Well, it's all part of the fun:)

I'm from Malaysia. Never cooked as a child &am...

2012-03-06T01:44:49.174-08:00

I'm from Malaysia.
Never cooked as a child & never knew all local names of spices, etc.
I still have a problem telling my fish & vegetables apart! :D

When I started cooking in India, I knew it as "Jeera" and picked up the pronunciation "Q-min" from some locals there... :)

Hi Kristin, I think the Midwest is split 50/50 bet...

2011-12-16T01:48:36.798-08:00

Hi Kristin, I think the Midwest is split 50/50 between Koo-min and Q-min. I'm in the Q-min camp, but that may be the result of Malaysian influences (aka Reese).

Koo-min and SW Michigan.

2011-12-15T13:32:33.721-08:00

Koo-min and SW Michigan.

Obviously it has a different name in bahasa Indone...

2011-10-24T18:08:20.771-07:00

Obviously it has a different name in bahasa Indonesia and Malaysia as well :)

This is great to hear from people all over the wor...

2011-10-21T10:18:06.546-07:00

This is great to hear from people all over the world! The different Arabic pronunciation is really interesting, since it probably dates back much longer in history.

In Arabic it's "come-moon" Say it q...

2011-10-19T18:58:07.763-07:00

In Arabic it's "come-moon" Say it quick.

I would like to say "come in", but we in...

2011-10-18T11:33:29.274-07:00

I would like to say "come in", but we in Croatia pronounce it "Koo-min" :)

I pronounce it koo-min, I'm from Michigan.

2011-10-18T07:28:14.827-07:00

I pronounce it koo-min, I'm from Michigan.

I've always pronounced it Q-min. From South Af...

2011-10-18T01:48:09.234-07:00

I've always pronounced it Q-min. From South Africa :)

Here in the States, it is pronounced - Cue Min or ...

2011-10-17T22:17:58.473-07:00

Here in the States, it is pronounced - Cue Min or Kyu Min

I am Indian, but born and brought up in Chicago. ...

2011-10-17T20:27:55.864-07:00

I am Indian, but born and brought up in Chicago. I grew up calling cumin "jeeru" as that is what it is known as in Gujarati. After I learned the English word, I call it q-min.