Oldest Foods Known to Man

There are a multitude of different types of foods, both natural and artificial, available to man today. Through the centuries, plants and animals have been carried all around the world. Trees have been replanted far from where they originally grew and animals have been transported around the world and bred to create different tasting meats. But have you ever wondered what foods people ate a long time ago, before there was technology and machines and mass produced food?

Below is a list of some of the very first foods that man ate. As you will see, the following foods are still around and eaten by us today.

Apple – The apple tree, perhaps the oldest fruit tree to be cultivated, has been around 3500 years. It was one of the fruits that grew in the Mesopotamian gardens in the Fertile Crescent.

Apricot – This sweet little gem also grew in the gardens of Mesopotamia about 3500 years ago.

Avocado – Avocados have been cultivated by man for between 7,000 to 10,000 years. The fruit is believed to be native to Central America and also to Mexico.

Barley – Barley was the main crop in Mesopotamia about 3500 years ago. The Sumerians, who lived in Mesopotamia at the time, made coarse, flat, unleavened bread from the crop.

Fish – There is archeological evidence that fish was caught and consumed by homo sapiens 380,000 years ago. More recently, the Chinese traded fish some 3,000 years ago and there is evidence that they used ice to preserve fish as far back as 1,000 years ago. Fish was also a favorite food of the Egyptians and Romans.

Millett – Millett is a small seeded grain that grows in arid and semi-arid regions and was first cultivated in Northern China and Korea. Special archeologists have discovered that the Cishan culture (8000-5500 BCE) cultivated rice 10,000 years ago and, in fact, their culture was based on farming millett.

Mulberry – The mulberry is another fruit which grew in the Mesopotamian gardens 3500 years ago.

Mushroom – Man has eaten mushrooms since prehistoric times. Traces of puffballs have been found in prehistoric lake dwellings in Switzerland, Germany and Austria. Ancient Egyptians and Romans also consumed mushrooms, and a bowl of field mushrooms was found in a Bronze Age house near Nola, in Italy.

Olive – Another very old food, the olive was native to Asia Minor, spreading to Iran, Syria and Palestine approximately 6,000 years ago. The olive tree was cultivated even before there was written language. By 3,000 BCE, the olive was being grown on Crete, and olives have been found in Egyptian tombs from 2,000 years BCE.

Date – The date is a fruit berry which grows in very dry climates. Man has been eating dates as far back as 7,000 to 10,000 years ago, as remains found in Syria and Egypt has shown.

Egg – People have been consuming eggs since the beginning of time, although the types of eggs eaten were different in different parts of the world, with the ostrich and chicken eggs being the most common. In India, jungle fowl were domesticated about 3200 BCE. Fowl were domesticated and laying eggs for human consumption in China and Egypt about 1400 BCE.

Fig – Figs grew in the Mesopotamian gardens 3500 years ago.

Pistachio Nut – Archeological findings go back to 6760 BCE in the Palaeozoic period, in the land that is presently Jordan.

Pistachios were used to make desserts and were believed to be an aphrodisiac.

Oyster – Oysters are another food that has been consumed by man since the beginning of time and have been a food on the Mediterranean coast since prehistoric times.

Pear – It is believed that the pear was consumed in prehistoric times from the Neolithic Age (10,700 – 9,400 BCE) to the Bronze Age (3300 – 1200 BCE)

Potato – This staple is believed to have come from the Andes Mountains of South America. About 7,000 years ago, pre-Columbian farmers found and started cultivating the potato. It was not until 1537 that Western man became aware of the potato, when the Spanish Conquistadores came through Peru.

Rice – Rice has been used for human consumption for 2500 years, and is often referred to in Sanskrit texts, a language that has been around since the 4^th century BCE. Rice was originally grown in China and then spread to Sri Lanka and India. It is believed that Alexander the Great’s armies brought rice to West Asia and Greece.

Vanilla – Vanilla comes from the fruit of a thick tropical vine, and is a member of the orchid family. Several tribes living in southeastern Mexico discovered vanilla at least 1,000 years ago.

Vinegar – It cannot be said for certain when vinegar was discovered. Vinegar is a natural food and is actually a fruit juice that has been fermented and become acidic. As a result, vinegar was made all over the world. The word ‘vinegar’ came from the French. The first part of the word ‘vin’ means wine and the second part ‘aigre’ means sour. There are many different types of vinegar. Although we don’t know exactly when vinegar was discovered, we do know that the ancient Chinese made vinegar from rice wine some 3,000 years ago. In their attempt to make wine from the date palm, the ancient Babylonians made vinegar in 5,000 BCE.

Walnut – The walnut tree is one of the oldest trees known to man and has existed since 7000 BCE. In early Roman times, walnuts were considered a food for the gods.

Watermelon – Watermelons are one of the very oldest foods known to man and were eaten by the Egyptians 5000 years ago.

Wild rice – Wild rice is an ancient cereal grain that comes from a grass that grows in water, in isolated lakes and along river bed areas. The grain has been found inside layers of the earth that date back 12,000 years.

Sources:

· oliveoilsource.com

· saudiaramcoworld.com

· foodtimeline.org

· duke.edu