Hami melon

From Hami +‎ melon, calque of Mandarin 哈密瓜 (hāmìguā).

Hami melon (plural Hami melons)

1. A variety of muskmelon from Xinjiang, China, particularly associated with Hami City.
   • 1994, Lifu Chen, Hsu-Hsin Chang, Ramon Hawley Myers, editors, The Storm Clouds Clear Over China: The Memoir of Chʻen Li-fu, 1900-1993, page 133:

     Sheng had given me many Hami melons, and once again a cavalry of several hundred horsemen arrived for my departure, making for a spectacular send-off.

   • 1995, Wen Dong Kuang, Focus on Xinjiang‎, page 19:

     The first major town on the Silk Road after entering Xinjiang was Hami. The mention of the name always makes one think of the famous Hami melons, but the melons are actually grown everywhere in Xinjiang.

   • 2008, Nicole Mones, The Last Chinese Chef‎, page 169:

     They also left a lasting stamp on the food of the capital, with their great round wheels of sesame flatbread, their grilled and stir-fried lamb, and their incredibly fragrant Hami melons.

   • (Can we date this quote?), “Food”, in Yilan County Government‎, archived from the original on 29 March 2018:

     The Hami melon, native to the Hami Region of Sinjiang Province, has found a new home here in Jhuangwei, Yilan. The soil downstream of the Lanyang River is great for the cultivation of hami melon because of the plentiful sunshine, excellent water system, and the local mild weather. The Hami melon was introduced to Jhuangwei in 1982.

• Chinese Hami melon