Abstract The composition of the essential oil obtained from the dried flowering aerial parts of Marrubium vulgare L. (Labiatae) was analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Twenty components have been identified in the essential oil of M. vulgare. The major constituents of the essential oil were Î²-bisabolene (20.4%), Î´-cadinene (19.1%) and isocaryophyllene (14.1%).