thumbnail|Cheroot-making leaves or cheroot leaves

The cheroot is a filterless cylindrical cigar with both ends clipped during manufacture. Since cheroots do not taper, they are inexpensive to roll mechanically, and their low cost makes them popular.

The word 'cheroot' probably comes via Portuguese charuto, originally from Tamil curuttu/churuttu/shuruttu (சுருட்டு), "roll of tobacco". This word could have been absorbed into the French language from Tamil during the 18th century, when the French were trying to stamp their presence in South India. The word could have then been absorbed into English from French. Cheroots are originated from the city of Tiruchirappalli in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Cheroot are longer than another filter-less Indian-origin product, the beedi.

In Burmese, Myanmar, cheroots are commonly called "seboleik" ("light-tasting rolled tobacco"), while cigars made solely from tobacco leaves are termed "sebyinleik" (“strong-tasting rolled tobacco”).

Asia

thumb|180px|Preparation of cheroots, [[Inle Lake, Myanmar]]

240px|thumb|Cheroots sold in the market at [[Nyaungshwe, Myanmar]]

<!--thumb|A Burmese Girl Holding a Cheroot, Watts and Skeen, Burma Albumen print1890-->

Cheroots are traditional in Myanmar and India, and consequently were popular among the British during the days of the British Empire. They are often associated with Myanmar in literature:

Apparently, cheroot smoking was also associated with resistance against tropical disease in India. Verrier Elwin wrote in a foreword (1957) to Leaves from the Jungle: Life in a Gond Village:

Although a cheroot is defined as cylindrical, home-rolled cheroots in Myanmar are sometimes conical.

The World Bank Group reported that an estimated 2,500 cheroot-making businesses were in Myanmar, and are mainly located in Myin Gyan District in Mandalay Region.

See also

  • Beedi
  • Cigar

References

  • Making cheroots