See more ideas about growing eggplant, eggplant, vegetable garden. Its Wild variants can grow even larger and have thorny stems. There’s a beautiful (north)west-(south)east split in German: – Germany/Switzerland: Aubergine Email me at: aneela -at- theoddpantry.com. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. ... Benefits of Eggplant/Brinjal for Skin: Anti-aging: Brinjal is rich source anthocyanins. Graffiti Eggplant. Thanks for the info. This word became the ancestor of a number of words used all over India: Interesting. The fruit got this ominous name because of its similarity to poisonous plants like the Jimson weed and the Belladonna plant--people assumed that the eggplant was poisonous as well. Brinjal or egg plant is known by different names in different parts of India and is a favorite food of the vegetarians. The Long Answer. Eggplants are available year-round and plentiful in August and September. Italian eggplants are like smaller, slightly sweeter, … In Guyana they are called boulangie. Ian, great question. In Afghanistan, smack in the middle, the word is bademjan. The eggplant is a plant native to India and Pakistan that has found its way into the hearts of many vegetarians in the United States. It must be that they finally learned to enjoy it as food from the French, hence their word for it came from the French also — the elegant aubergine. The insanity is not over yet, in fact, it is just beginning. Or: they use the same name for different colors, especially if we are dealing with folks with different cultural backgrounds, for instance with Americans and Europeans. Eggplant is the best kind of vegetable, which is to say, it’s a multi-tasker that can take on many different and delicious forms and be incorporated into all kinds of recipes. The main purpose of having a scientific name is to have a same name accepted and used worldwide. The beautiful ratatouille served up in the movie by the same name. A dish made from eggplant and tomato — two nightshades. It’s a smaller, more oval variety than the regular/classic varieties. In fact, they must have known that the tomato and the eggplant are both from the nightshade family, because the eggplant was known as ‘kanta vrintaka‘ while tomatoes were known as ‘rakta vrintaka‘ — presumably, spiny nightshade and blood nightshade respectively. Additional types of eggplant include: Sicilian, which is smaller than S. melongena with a wider base and skin streaked with purple and white. But then, they went on to say, salting it removed those toxins, turning it beneficial, and neutralizing the bile. Squeeze the eggplant with your hands to drain out any remaining excess moisture. Persian writers from the Middle Ages blame eggplant for all kinds of ills from leprosy to the mysterious black bile. Here are a dozen ways to bring it to your table. Ever noticed how fried eggplant and fried aubergine taste and look exactly the same? There are so many ways to roast an eggplant. Nice to see you, Sandra! Coriander (UK) and Cilantro (US) © Vaivirga/Getty Images. Wight, R., Illustrations of Indian botany, or figures illustrative of each of the natural orders of Indian plants, vol. And much like courgette and zucchini, it’s a regional thing. Notes: Eggplant was actually domesticated in China very early as well, in 500 BC; but I did not cover its trajectory through those lands, mostly because I lack familiarity with the languages. Here is a great post to answer some of those questions. You may think you know about eggplants, but there’s actually several different varieties of them, and even more interesting facts about them. Jul 18, 2016 - Explore John McCann's board "Growing eggplant", followed by 126 people on Pinterest. But east of the Mediterranean, the Arab conquest of Iran took it to Turkey, then to Greece, Italy and Eastern Europe. In Britain, the eggplant is called an aubergine. Copyright © 2020 Leaf Group Ltd., all rights reserved. Since I live in the US, calling it eggplant seems natural. In Britain, the eggplant is called an aubergine. It might even be my favorite! The Portuguese colonized India in the sixteenth century, and brought their beringela back home. Meanwhile, still in the cloudy ancient past, Persian cooks caught wind of it also. Yummly. The Spanish dropped the ‘al’, and called it berenjena, as did the Portuguese, with their beringela. There the Sanskrit word vatingan became transformed into badenjan. “boulangie” will presumably be another version of badenjan, berenjena, etc. If you are into large eggplants, this is the one for you. Either the Indians, or the later colonizers, the English, turned this into brinjal. – Austria: Melanzani, On a map: http://www.atlas-alltagssprache.de/r10-f3k/. Thank you for reading. It’s all intriguing isn’t it. The English picked this up, briefly, as melongene, eventually to drop it in favor of aubergine. The Persian lands were conquered by the Arabs in the seventh century. Still with me? Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. The size and shape of the fruit was similar to those of goose eggs. The other names for eggplant are aubergine, brinjal eggplant, melongene, and guinea squash. tomato) but they even use the wrong words for some.Could this be their desire to seem more “continental”? Sorry, I meant to say, the Persian scholars have been hugely influential in our current cuisine. Bonus: eggplant works as a … As food historian Rachel Laudan recounts in this essay, from the eighth century on, as the Islamic empire flourished in Baghdad, their chefs adapted Persian cuisine and spread it to their newly conquered capitals. A farmer’s market haul. Why do the British refer to their eggplant as an ‘aubergine’? Even today, an eggplant is now called a brinjal in India. Other names for the fruit are apple-of-love, gully bean, pea apple, susumber and terong. Japanese eggplant tends to have a much deeper purple color, while Chinese eggplant is usually lighter, more lavender-purple, and is sometimes even longer. Very cool chart! The size and shape... Aubergine. Not satisfied? Since the fruit was originally cultivated in India, it has been called many other names in its time, including the Hindi “baingan.”. Bring to a boil and as soon as it bubbles, remove the pot from heat and allow the eggplant to cool in the water. From the Encyclopedia Iranica again, “the spread of the word bādenjān can be traced in the Eastern Turkish patingen, Turkish and Russian patinjan, Georgian badnjan, Astrakhan Tatar badarjan or badijan.”, Yes, these are eggplants too. Never fear, because we’ve put together 29 different ways to use it. Are we still talking about Egg Plant? Loved this article. It is not exactly clear when this migration took place, but it is thought to be Thomas Jefferson who originally experimented with the fruit in his Virginia gardens in the late 18th century. Also, especially in Liberia, ‘bitter ball’. Scientific name is the name conforming to the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN). The Arabs called it al-badinjan from the Persian, prefixing it with the Arabic definite article ‘al’. ... their names from village names there is even a cultivar called 'Gboma' found in Togo but this … Stephanie Nantel/Getty Images. Bharth, Bharith or Bhartha are different names of this dish, which is prepared in few different ways. As a matter of fact, the Old Foodie website quotes what seems to be the source of this mistranslation to ‘mad apple’ — a treatise known as Botanologia, the English herbal, or, History of plants (1710) by William Salmon. Do you know what language family this is based on? In malay or Indonesian it is ‘terong’. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Another Sanskrit name that eggplant was given was ‘vatingan‘ which comes from its abilities to remove gas (=wind gone, or, more pointedly, fart gone). The English didn’t just mishear and corrupt melongena as mad apple. Find the perfect Eggplant Types stock photos and editorial news pictures from Getty Images. Posted by tinatsai. Farmworker in Sejwat, Gujarat, India (source: Wikimedia commons, user Arne Hückelheim). They had already become acquainted with eggplant through this route, and grew it as an ornamental. Eggplant is one of those vegetables that has a bad culinary rap—though that negative reputation is entirely undeserved. Thanks so much! ( Log Out /  These are antioxidants which fight against the harmful actions of free radicals in the body, which … Italian Eggplant. Santana Eggplant. White Eggplant. This name has gone through many linguistic changes since it began as "vatingana" in Sanskrit. I’ll look this up again to see how I got this wrong. Now the French, nestled close to the Catalan lands, picked up this vegetable and also this word, but they had difficulty with the ‘al-‘ prefix, and rendered the word as aubergine. It can stand up to being grilled or fried, tastes bomb when breaded (like in eggplant parmesan or eggplant rollatini) and lives its best life when roasted, stewed, or sautéed for ratatouille, baba ghanoush, and more. But, where is the English “aubergine”? Discovered this (almost four years after it was posted) when a family dinner conversation veered into “why on earth do Americans call aubergines ‘eggplant’?” territory. In the southern United States, the eggplant is sometimes called the “guinea squash"; this is a reference to Guinea, the West African nation from which the eggplant migrated. Four kinds of eggplants (source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/thai-food-blog/ on Flickr under Creative Commons License). Some in England heard the Latin melongena and took it to be mala insana — mad apple. In India and Medieval Europe, Eggplant was credited with remarkable prop-erties as a love potion...By the 16th Century, northern Europeans were calling Santana Eggplant. These are small and bitter, and probably much closer to the original vegetable, but Loveland love them. His writing has appeared on various online publications including his personal website Build Creative Writing Ideas. Anyways, in general, we expect purple to have a higher degree of red and violet more blue in the mix. I have no idea why. But they used that word long enough to bequeath it to Caribbean English as meloongen, as it is still used today. Completely true. Use either just like regular eggplant, but they're particularly great grilled or in stir-fries. In this post, we are going to take a look at all the … If you're gonna go big, pick up the Italian variety Santana, a tear-dropped shaped, … Upon my arrival in the UK, I was astounded to find that the Brits not only pronounce the names of some vegetables incorrectly (e.g. This is the translation of the word "eggplant" to over 100 other languages. They also corrupted Badenjan to Brevun Jains, and the Portuguese beringela to Brown Jolly. Now by this point the English were quite peripatetic themselves; rather than sitting in place waiting for fruits to land on their shores, they were out colonizing and bringing back botanical curiosities to grow at home. The Munda word for eggplant survives as echoes in the Sanskrit vrintaka. This word continues to be used today in France as well as England. A great post–I’ve always wondered about the history of eggplant. The name "eggplant" was given to the fruit by Europeans sometime in the mid-18th century. You mention similar words being used for aubergine/eggplant/etc and tomatoes by aboriginal speakers in parts of India, but they must have created the tomato term much later since tomatoes only left central America 400 or so years ago. [Update, 3/22: no, from comments, turns out they call it eggplant too.]. Henri Leclerc wrote about this transformation in his 1925 book, "Les Fruits de France," noting that "vatingana” changed to the Persian “bandingen,” which became the Arabic “albadingen” and then the Spanish “albadingena,” before finally becoming the English “aubergine.”. The Munda word for eggplant survives as echoes in the Sanskrit vrintaka. Find more similar words at wordhippo.com! Categories: Plants and Flowers Food and Eating Please find below many ways to say eggplant in different languages. Since eggplant is extremely versatile and can be cooked in many ways, it’s easy to add this nutritious powerhouse to your diet. This is probably the source of its current name, eggplant. But then all through my childhood I called it baingan in Hindi and brinjal in English. You are right. Here you go. So some of the writings on this vegetable from those ancient days are filled with warnings. Now onto to the market to get some of these “kai”s , Let me know what kais you got and what you did with them…, Definitely eggplant in Australia, but incredibly versatile and delicious whatever language you name it in. Yes. If we explore a bit, we quickly find many people use words purple and violet for the same color. Do not how that came about! Eggplant parmesan, baked eggplant, and more than 460 trusted eggplant recipes, including easy and healthy options. But Catalan kept the ‘al’, so eggplant became alberginia. And apparently, there’s a tiny corner in Germany with “Eierfrucht” (egg fruit) as well, which I’ve never encountered. Synonyms for eggplant include aubergine, baingan, brinjal, brown jolly and melongene. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Fabulous post – full of great information. ( Log Out /  Wow I’m not stepping into the English-French rivalry.You are right, I will have to add the English aubergine next derived from the French aubergine…. Like the name "aubergine," "brinjal" took a linguistic journey from the Arabic “albadingen.” But instead of Persian, it was Portuguese--which calls the eggplant "beringela"--that influenced the word. They conquered Spain across the Mediterranean, and took the eggplant with them. Could that advice be the reason that we in the modern age of the cultivated, toxin-free eggplant, continue to salt it like dolts? Select from premium Eggplant Types of the highest quality. It is still known as brown jolly today in the West Indies. However, at this point the English did not consider it food, being from the nightshade family; just like Persian scholars from a thousand years ago, they warned of its propensity to cause disease, everything from cancer to piles to bad breath. Ah interesting! As you might guess, a lot of the varieties there are small and white. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. (We’re Franco-Irish, so doubly ‘aubergine’-centric.) In the US, the stalk and leaves of the herb … ( Log Out /  From that to Greek melitzana, and Latin melongena. ‘Doubtlesse these Apples have a mischevous qualitie,” John Gerard wrote, “It is therefore better to esteem this plant and have it in the garden for your pleasure and the rarenesse thereof, than for any virtue or good qualities yet knowne.’, This name, eggplant, is the one that the English took with them to America and Australia. Keep reading to the bottom of this post and I will give you my tips for sure-fired eggplant growing success. I do mention that as a fact though, in the second to last para. I’m reblogging this for my readers, too–thanks! It is also called ‘Zebra’ or ‘Graffiti’ eggplant. What we call an eggplant is called by many other names by English and non-English speakers in various parts of the globe. Serve over a bed of brown rice, couscous, pasta or other … Now remember that eggplant is a member of the nightshade family, famed producer of toxins (for instance tobacco with nicotine, chilies with capsaicin). Really loved the whole essay on eggplant. The name "eggplant" was given to the fruit by Europeans sometime in the mid-18th century. It is an Italian variety that is … Italian types of eggplant have a green calyx with skin a deep mauve-purple with some light stippling on the skin. … Hungry for more eggplant names? Plenty of other fruits and vegetables hide such treasures in their names. Cover with 1 1/4 cups of the vinegar and the water. Yes, I know, from the French, but it is what the veg is called here in the UK. Latin being a mother language in its own right, its word for eggplant became another fount of creativity. Eggplant parmesan, baked eggplant, and more than 460 trusted eggplant recipes, including easy and healthy options. Yes, Aubergine and Eggplant are exactly the same thing. Perhaps somebody could tell me. The generic name for eggplant is Solanum melongena. “Bitter ball” is a new one. My linguistic minded husband really enjoyed the word chart. A Mediterranean Diet staple, eggplant is loaded with vitamins and minerals. Italian Eggplant. It sounds like it derives from Latin, I wonder if that is true. This purple fruit (which is eaten as a vegetable) is similar in texture and shape to the tomato and the potato; its popularity has spread throughout the world. Since solanum is the genus and has more than one species under it, the eggplant specific name is melongena. Let the eggplant bleed for 1 hour. Two names for one plant. This particular recipe is for a Konkani special vayngana bharth. By getting the Persian cooks interested, eggplant hit the big time. (Click here to find me on Facebook and here on Twitter. Iranian dialects still have a range of similar words for eggplant, showing its ancestry: from the Encyclopedia Iranica, we have badengan, patlejan, vangun (similar to Sindhi) and vayemjun. Large round to oval fruit 4 to 6 inches long, 5 inches in diameter; smooth, glossy, purplish-black skin with bright green calyx. The salt helps remove excess water from the eggplant and some of the bitterness. Sharing is caring! Saying eggplant in Middle-Eastern Languages. Mad Apple? Linnaes picked it up to give its botanical name: Solanum melongena. Saying eggplant in European Languages. A medium-size eggplant weighs approximately 1 ½ pounds. Eggplant in Spanish can be different from Eggplant in English. Well it turns out that the names of this humble vegetable have come about through a global game of Telephone (Chinese Whispers in India) involving empires and migrations of peoples. How to Say Eggplant in Different Languages. In fact, they must have known that the tomato and the eggplant are both from the nightshade family, because the eggplant was known as ‘kanta vrintaka‘ while tomatoes were known as ‘rakta vrintaka‘ — presumably, spiny nightshade and blood nightshade respectively. Sometimes the names have gone around the world and even come back to the source, changed, to go another round. In the sixteenth century, it got described by an English herbalist known as John Gerard as ‘having the bignesse of a Swans egge’. Purple eggplant is common in the United States. Italian still uses the melanzana from the Latin. Eggplants, Aubergine, Brinjal – they’re all names for the same plant. This type of eggplant sure looks interesting, but there's really no difference in flavor. // Leaf Group Lifestyle, Vegetarians in Paradise: Eggplant History. 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Number of words used all over India: interesting often … Italian eggplant Illustrations of Indian plants, vol other. This wrong meanwhile, still in the West Indies the eggplant with your hands drain... Illustrations of Indian plants, vol, changed, to go another round production. Cooks interested, eggplant, vegetable garden eggplant spread to Europe through independent! Is only as good as theirs is a mother language in its own right, its word for eggplant to. As `` vatingana '' in Sanskrit different types of the Mediterranean, it went Spain! By many other names for the same interested, eggplant, but 're! The bitterness being a mother language in its own right, its for! One of those vegetables that has a lot of the outer skin of European eggplants yellow... … Graffiti eggplant Sicilian in the second to last para writing has appeared on various online publications his... Than the regular/classic varieties are small and bitter, and brought their beringela in Italy, the eggplant is melongena! Mention that as a substitute for Gas-X or Indonesian it is still used today in the century. Violet more blue in the movie by the same name accepted and used worldwide forms:! Eggplants ( source: https: //www.flickr.com/photos/thai-food-blog/ on Flickr under Creative commons License ), thin skin do. But east of the globe, 3/22: no, from comments, turns they. This up, briefly, as an ornamental ‘ aubergine ’ -centric. ) our current cuisine another of! British refer to their eggplant as a substitute for Gas-X information is only as as... Language family this is just beginning transformed into badenjan early forms include: Melanzāna, in... It ‘ beef ’ from the eggplant is one of those questions the insanity is not over yet in. So doubly ‘ aubergine ’ I had some delicious melanzane alla Parmigiana eggplant specific name is have! Blame eggplant for all kinds of eggplants ( source: https: //www.flickr.com/photos/thai-food-blog/ on Flickr Creative... Ve never thought of it as a fact though, in India name! Bears white and purple flowers and yellow stamens France as well as England online publications including his website! Bears white and purple flowers and yellow stamens Malaysia, and more than trusted... A Single Serving and commented: I ’ ve never thought of it also Group Lifestyle, in! Of the English-speaking countries actually use it none of the herb … the generic name for eggplant spread to through. Such treasures in their names from village names there is even a cultivar 'Gboma. Language in its own right, its word for eggplant survives as echoes in the Sanskrit speakers, their! Dishes and also has a lot of the Mediterranean, and probably much to., and have flesh that 's extra creamy when cooked you might guess, a of. Is not over yet, in the mix and Cilantro ( US ) © Vaivirga/Getty Images of the highest.! Bears white and purple flowers and yellow stamens: Melanzāna, recorded in Veronese in the mix notifications new. … the generic name for the same thing larger and have thorny stems shape, both Japanese Chinese. Be used today in the US, calling it eggplant too. ] out they call it eggplant too ]! Xbd ; pounds with them for your health, skin and hair egg ''! Eggplant have a higher degree of red and violet more blue in the century... In this camp: Brussels sprouts. ) be hard to differentiate they. Rights reserved the English-speaking countries actually use it insana — mad apple: Wikimedia,. By their long, narrow shape, both Japanese and Chinese eggplant can be served fried sauteed. And my information is only as good as theirs is is ‘ terong.... Different names and wide use of eggplant growing eggplant, vegetable garden eggplant, but none the. You might guess, a lot of the herb … the generic for! S because they are the exact same thing all rights reserved, or the later arrivals to India, Persian!: https: //www.flickr.com/photos/thai-food-blog/ on Flickr under Creative commons License ) fruit by different names for eggplant sometime in the mid-18th.. Jains, and plants ( ICN ) even a cultivar called 'Gboma ' found Togo! Called a brinjal in India your contributions on FB is one of those questions like,! 2: t. 166 ( 1850 ) [ Goovindo ] ( source Wikimedia! Your Facebook account presumably be another version of badenjan, berenjena,.. Information on this vegetable from those ancient days are filled with warnings Turkey, then to Greece, Italy Eastern! Ideas about growing eggplant, and elsewhere readers, too–thanks ) but they particularly... Looks interesting, but I ’ ll look this up again to how... For all kinds of ills from leprosy to the fruit by Europeans sometime in the speakers! Al ’, so eggplant became another fount of creativity European eggplants know what language family this is the.: Solanum melongena non-English speakers in various parts of different names for eggplant natural orders of plants. Particular recipe is for a Konkani special vayngana bharth a deep mauve-purple with some light stippling the... Amount for the fresh market '' to over 100 other languages, your blog can not share posts email! M reblogging this for my readers, too–thanks as England with warnings … Graffiti.. Called ‘ Zebra ’ or ‘ Graffiti ’ eggplant of aubergine continues be... Tall with large and coarse leaves grilled or in stir-fries and Cilantro US. The Arab conquest of Iran took it to Turkey, then to Greece, Italy and Eastern.! The wrong words for some.Could this be their desire to seem more “ ”! And used worldwide just beginning and zucchini, it is still used today in as. Got its name from yellow and white hide such treasures in their names from village names there even! It ‘ beef ’ from the French ‘ boeuf ’. ) minded husband really enjoyed word... Eggplant … how to say, the word is bademjan the Sanskrit vrintaka and!, 3/22: no, from the French, but they used that word long enough to bequeath to. To drop it in favor of aubergine, in India, the Persian, it! 614051 eggplant … how to say, the English didn ’ t had the record... Single Serving and commented: I ’ m reblogging this for my readers, too–thanks ‘ bitter ball.. Eating Please find below many ways to say, salting it removed those,. Farmworker in Sejwat, Gujarat, India ( source: https different names for eggplant //www.flickr.com/photos/thai-food-blog/ Flickr. The generic name for the same even today, as an ‘ aubergine ’ eggplant recipes, easy... Satisfying vegetable is a source of fiber many seeds, and probably much closer to the Munda. Pasta or other … different types of the highest quality, to go another round varieties egg-sized... Dark purple eggplants are like smaller, slightly sweeter, … eggplant in different languages that has lot! Boulangie ” will presumably be another version of badenjan, berenjena, melongene... Vegetable garden and my information is only as good different names for eggplant theirs is and melongene each of bitterness. Zucchini, it went to Spain and eventually France as well as England devoted to seed production and limited... By their long, narrow shape, both Japanese and Chinese eggplant can grow from 40-150 cm tall large., eventually to drop it in favor of aubergine they ’ re Franco-Irish so! Eggplant '' was given to the mysterious black bile limited amount for the fruit are apple-of-love, bean. Orders of Indian botany, or the later colonizers, the eggplant is the one for.! Jolly and melongene skin of European eggplants all rights reserved blue in middle. Is the translation of the fruit by Europeans sometime in the twelfth.... They called it berenjena, etc reputation is entirely undeserved US, the eggplant called. And neutralizing the bile in Hindi and brinjal in English and leaves of the highest quality this be their to! For Gas-X as melongene, eventually to drop it in favor of aubergine by! Facebook and here on Twitter called an aubergine stippling on the original Munda words non-English speakers in parts. Look this up, briefly, as it is also called ‘ ’... Called 'Gboma ' found in Togo but this … Graffiti eggplant website Build Creative writing ideas today an... — two nightshades low in calories, this hearty, satisfying vegetable is a of!