araq

Arabic arak (عرق) means sweat—the moisture that forms on a surface when vapor condenses. In the context of distillation, it described precisely what medieval Arab alchemists and physicians observed: as alcoholic vapor rose through the still and contacted cooler metal, droplets of condensate formed and ran down the walls like sweat on skin. The word araq thus named the process and product simultaneously: the spirit was the sweat of the still. Arab scholars in the 9th and 10th centuries—including Jabir ibn Hayyan (Geber), often called the father of chemistry—developed and refined distillation techniques, and arak spread across the Islamic world as both a medicine and, outside strict observance, a recreational drink.