The Old English word for 'barley' was bære, which traces back to Proto-Indo-European and is cognate to the Latin word farina "flour". source
The Old English word for 'barley' was bære, which traces back to Proto-Indo-European and is cognate to the Latin word farina "flour".
The direct ancestor of modern English "barley" in Old English was the derived adjective bærlic, meaning "of barley". source
The direct ancestor of modern English "barley" in Old English was the derived adjective bærlic, meaning "of barley".
The first citation of the form bærlic in the Oxford English Dictionary dates to around 966 CE, in the compound word bærlic-croft. source
The first citation of the form bærlic in the Oxford English Dictionary dates to around 966 CE, in the compound word bærlic-croft.
The underived word bære survives in the north of Scotland as bere, and refers to a specific strain of six-row barley grown there. source
The underived word bære survives in the north of Scotland as bere, and refers to a specific strain of six-row barley grown there.
The word barn, which originally meant "barley-house", is also rooted in these words. Barley is a member of the grass family. source
The word barn, which originally meant "barley-house", is also rooted in these words. Barley is a member of the grass family.
Barley is a self-pollinating, diploid species with 14 chromosomes. source
Barley is a self-pollinating, diploid species with 14 chromosomes.
Outside this region, the wild barley is less common and is usually found in disturbed habitats. source
Outside this region, the wild barley is less common and is usually found in disturbed habitats.
Tibet was found to be an additional center of domestication of cultivated barley. source
Tibet was found to be an additional center of domestication of cultivated barley.
Wild barley has a brittle spike; upon maturity, the spikelets separate, facilitating seed dispersal. source
Wild barley has a brittle spike; upon maturity, the spikelets separate, facilitating seed dispersal.
Domesticated barley has nonshattering spikes, making it much easier to harvest the mature ears. source
Domesticated barley has nonshattering spikes, making it much easier to harvest the mature ears.
The nonshattering condition is recessive, so varieties of barley that exhibit this condition are homozygous for the mutant allele. source
The nonshattering condition is recessive, so varieties of barley that exhibit this condition are homozygous for the mutant allele.
In traditional classifications of barley, these morphological differences have led to different forms of barley being classified as different species. source
In traditional classifications of barley, these morphological differences have led to different forms of barley being classified as different species.
Under these classifications, two-rowed barley with shattering spikes (wild barley) is classified as Hordeum spontaneum K. Koch. source
Under these classifications, two-rowed barley with shattering spikes (wild barley) is classified as Hordeum spontaneum K. Koch.
Heading date: A parameter in barley cultivation. source
Heading date: A parameter in barley cultivation.
'Azure', a six-rowed, blue-aleurone malting barley released in 1982. source
'Azure', a six-rowed, blue-aleurone malting barley released in 1982.