Sar"a*cen (?), n. [L. Saracenus
perhaps fr. Ar. sharqi, pl. sharqiīn, Oriental,
Eastern, fr. sharaqa to rise, said of the sun: cf. F.
sarrasin. Cf. Sarcenet, Sarrasin,
Sirocco.] Anciently, an Arab; later, a Mussulman; in the
Middle Ages, the common term among Christians in Europe for a
Mohammedan hostile to the crusaders.
Saracens' consound (Bot.), a kind of
ragwort (Senecio Saracenicus), anciently used to heal
wounds.