manna

manna (măn'u) [key], in the Bible, edible substance provided by God for the people of Israel in the wilderness. In the Book of Exodus it is compared to coriander seed and described as fine, white, and flaky, with the taste of honey and wafer. In Christianity manna has been seen as prefiguring the Eucharist. Manna has been linked with the gum resin produced by several kinds of tree and with a species of lichen still found in many sections of W Asia and N Africa. According to another theory, manna is the sweet secretion of various plant insects.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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