The name alkanet generally refers to Alkanna tinctoria or Dyer's bugloss (though it may be used for Anchusa officinalis or common bugloss).

It is a member of the Borage family Boraginaceae.

Alkanet tinctoria is also known as orchanet, dyer's bugloss , Spanish bugloss or bugloss of Languedoc. Its name comes from the Spanish word alcana, from Arabic al-hena, after henna, (Lawsonia inermis).

Alkanet is grown in the south of France and on the shores of the Levant. Its root yields a fine red colouring matter which has been used as a cloth dye and to tint tinctures, oils, wines, varnishes, etc. It is commonly used today as a food colouring.

It was listed in the 1918 U.S. Dispensatory. [1]