rosewood; red sandalwood
Refers to the dark, dense hardwood from trees of the genus Dalbergia or Pterocarpus, used for high-quality furniture, musical instruments, and carvings. In Japanese contexts, it often specifically means 紫檀 (Pterocarpus santalinus) or related species.
This furniture is made of rosewood.
Rosewood is known as a high-grade timber.
Standard kanji spelling for the wood.
From Chinese 紫檀 (zǐtán), literally 'purple sandalwood'. The Japanese reading したん is the on'yomi of the characters.