Cinnamon

Cinnamomum verum

Family: Lauraceae Part used: Inner bark (quills and powder)

Key Compounds

• trans-Cinnamaldehyde
• Eugenol
• Linalool
• Cinnamyl acetate
• β-Caryophyllene
• Coumarin (low in Ceylon; high in cassia)
• Procyanidins

Traditional Use

• Egyptian mummification — cinnamon and cassia documented in embalming preparations
• Ancient Greek and Roman spice trade — imported via Arab and Phoenician intermediaries
• Traditional Chinese medicine — 桂皮 (cinnamon bark), documented for centuries in Chinese materia medica
• Japanese kampo medicine — 桂皮 (keihi) appears in multiple formulas including 葛根湯 (kakkonto)
• Medieval European medicine and cooking — classed as a warming spice, used in both kitchen and apothecary
• Portuguese Ceylon cinnamon monopoly — first European control of the Sri Lanka trade, from 1518

Most of what is sold as “cinnamon” in North America is not Cinnamomum verum. It is cassia — a different species, from a different country, with a different chemical profile. They taste similar. The labels do not tend to specify which one you have.

The distinction matters more in some places than others. The European Union sets limits on coumarin — a compound present in high concentrations in cassia and in very low concentrations in Ceylon cinnamon — because of concern about liver toxicity at high doses. North America does not currently have the same regulation. Japan and Sri Lanka sell primarily Ceylon cinnamon or clearly labelled products. The cinnamon debate has been ongoing for decades. Most people have not been informed they are part of it.

Meet the plant

Cinnamomum verum is a medium-sized tree in the Lauraceae family — the same family as bay laurel and avocado. The cinnamon comes from the inner bark of new shoots cut from existing trees. The outer bark is stripped and discarded; the inner bark peels away in sheets, is laid out to dry, and curls into the quill shape as it dries. The same trees are harvested multiple times over decades — the new shoots provide the next harvest. It is a crop that improves with patience.

Ceylon cinnamon quills are made of many thin layers of inner bark compressed together, which is why they crumble when you press them. Cassia quills are a single thick layer — hard, dense, not going to crumble. This is the quickest test for which type of cinnamon you have. It requires a stick, not powder. Once ground, the two are nearly indistinguishable by appearance.

The Lauraceae connection — same family as avocado and bay — is rarely mentioned on any label. The bay leaf you add to a stew and the cinnamon you add to your coffee are more closely related to each other than either is to most kitchen herbs.

4,000 years of being worth more than it should be

Cinnamon and cassia appear in ancient Egyptian texts, including records of embalming preparations. Both were imported — neither grows in Egypt. The trade routes from Southeast Asia and South Asia to Egypt were operational by 2000 BCE, and cinnamon was moving along them. This is unusual: most ancient spices came from somewhere broadly local. Cinnamon came from Sri Lanka. Getting it to Egypt required maritime and overland trading networks of considerable distance.

The ancient Greeks and Romans received it through Arab and Phoenician intermediaries, who were careful not to reveal where it actually came from. The origin story they told — that cinnamon was found in giant bird nests — was designed to prevent independent sourcing. It worked for a while.

Rome paid heavily for cinnamon. The story that Nero burned a year’s supply of cinnamon at his wife Poppaea’s funeral (68 CE) — the same kind of story told about frankincense — is repeated in ancient sources. Whether accurately or not, it was the kind of thing that seemed plausible to say about cinnamon and Roman excess, which indicates how the spice was understood.

The Portuguese took control of the Sri Lanka cinnamon trade in 1518. The Dutch replaced them in 1658. The British replaced the Dutch in 1796. For roughly three centuries, European colonial powers competed specifically for the output of one island — Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) — because that island produced the best cinnamon in the world, and the best cinnamon was worth competing for. Sri Lanka is now an independent country. It still produces approximately 90% of global Ceylon cinnamon.

The chemistry that surprised everyone

The primary flavour compound is trans-cinnamaldehyde, making up 55–90% of the essential oil and responsible for the characteristic warm, spicy aroma. Eugenol (also found in cloves), linalool, and cinnamyl acetate complete the aromatic profile. The same aldehyde chemistry is found in cassia, at broadly similar concentrations — which is why the two taste similar enough to be sold interchangeably despite being different species.

The difference is coumarin. Cassia contains coumarin at levels that the EU considers a concern for regular consumption in large amounts — the regulation applies mainly to foods like gingerbread that use cinnamon heavily. Ceylon cinnamon has very low coumarin. For occasional culinary use, the difference may not be significant. For daily supplementation at high doses, the EU considers it worth specifying.

Cinnamon also contains procyanidins — the same class of compounds found in grape seed extract and dark chocolate. They are present in meaningful concentrations. They are rarely mentioned in the commercial narrative around cinnamon.

What people actually do with it

Cook with it: Both types function similarly in recipes. The distinction matters more for large doses over long periods than for culinary use. Sri Lankan curries use Ceylon cinnamon. Moroccan tagines use it. Mexican chocolate drinks use it. Vietnamese pho uses cassia. The variation is regional, and reflects which type was available historically where the dish developed.

Japanese confectionery (肉桂あめ): Nikki candy — small, intensely cinnamony hard candies — is a traditional Japanese confection. The flavour is distinct from the gentler cinnamon common in Western baking: stronger, more aromatic, with the characteristic edge of good cinnamon. Available at Japanese confectionery shops. An easy way to encounter true cinnamon flavour without baking anything.

Kampo medicine (桂皮, keihi): Cinnamon bark is a component of multiple kampo formulas. 葛根湯 (kakkonto) — the most commonly taken kampo product in Japan, available pre-packaged in every pharmacy — contains keihi. It is one of the more commercially accessible traditional medicine applications of cinnamon. Whether you have bought kakkonto at a conbini is whether you have taken a kampo formula containing cinnamon bark.

Tea and infusions: Simmering a cinnamon stick in water or milk is the traditional preparation method across multiple cultures. It extracts the water-soluble components; the essential oil fraction requires longer simmering or a fat-based medium.

Could you grow this yourself?

Not in most of Japan. Cinnamomum verum is a tropical tree requiring high humidity, 20–30°C year-round, and a tropical wet climate. It does not tolerate frost. Okinawa Prefecture is theoretically compatible with its requirements; Honshu is not. It is primarily a commercial crop in Sri Lanka, with some production in India, Madagascar, and the Seychelles.

Growing time: the bark harvest begins after about two years of shoot growth on established trees. The trees themselves need 3–4 years before they produce usable shoots. Sri Lankan cultivation is a generational enterprise.

In Japan

Cinnamon has two distinct identities in Japan. The first is the familiar imported spice — シナモン in katakana — found in Western-style baking, coffee shops, and chai. The second is 肉桂/桂皮 (nikkei/keihi) — the ingredient in kampo medicine, in traditional Japanese confectionery, and in pre-Meiji familiarity with the spice as a Chinese-derived medical ingredient.

Both exist simultaneously and do not always recognise each other as the same plant. The coffee chain customer who adds cinnamon to their latte and the person at the pharmacy buying 葛根湯 are both using cinnamon bark. The packaging for one says シナモン; the other says 桂皮.

肉桂あめ (nikki ame) is available at traditional confectionery shops — particularly Kyoto-style shops (wagashi-ya). Shichimiya Honpo in Kyoto, which produces shichimi togarashi, also sells nikki products. Both the old and new cinnamon exist there, in the same shopping precinct.

Things you’re probably wondering

What is the difference between Ceylon cinnamon and cassia? Different species. Ceylon (Cinnamomum verum) is from Sri Lanka, has low coumarin, soft crumbly quills. Cassia (Cinnamomum cassia and relatives) is primarily from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam, has high coumarin, single-layer hard quills. Most North American “cinnamon” is cassia.

How do you tell them apart? Try to crumble the stick. Ceylon: crumbles easily, many thin layers. Cassia: hard, single layer, doesn’t bend. Ground cinnamon cannot be distinguished this way.

Is cinnamon used in Japanese traditional medicine? Yes. 桂皮 (keihi) is in multiple kampo formulas, including 葛根湯 (kakkonto) — available at every Japanese pharmacy.

Where does Ceylon cinnamon come from? Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) — hence the name. About 90% of global production. Portugal, then the Dutch, then the British controlled this trade for three centuries. Sri Lanka now controls it.

Where to buy in Japan? Every supermarket carries シナモン. Nikki ame (肉桂あめ) at wagashi shops. 桂皮 products at pharmacies. Both types at Kaldi Coffee Farm and specialty spice shops.

Botanical details

The full compound list

Essential oil (bark):

• trans-Cinnamaldehyde — 55–90%
• Eugenol
• Linalool
• Cinnamyl acetate
• β-Caryophyllene
• Benzyl benzoate

Other compounds:

• Coumarin (very low in Ceylon; high in cassia)
• Procyanidins (Type-A and Type-B)
• Tannins
• Calcium oxalate crystals (bark)

See Also

• Clove (Syzygium aromaticum) — shares eugenol as a major compound; Spice Islands origin; similarly long colonial trade history
• Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) — another ancient aromatic spice; seeds rather than bark
• Bay laurel (Laurus nobilis) — same Lauraceae family; quite different culinary role

References

• Ravindran PN et al. Cinnamon and Cassia: The Genus Cinnamomum. CRC Press, 2004
• EFSA (European Food Safety Authority). Scientific Opinion on coumarin in flavourings, 2008
• Tung YT et al. “Essential oils of cinnamomum osmophloeum leaf and their bioactivities.” J Agric Food Chem. 2010
• Japanese Pharmacopoeia — 桂皮 (cinnamon bark) monograph
• Senanayake UM, Lee TH, Wills RBH. “Volatile constituents of cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) oils.” J Agric Food Chem. 1978