Even before the Wampanoag Indians presented the early Plymouth colonists with maize at the first Thanksgiving celebration in 1621, enabling this early English colony in present-day Massachusetts to survive, maize had already made its way back to the Old World and was rapidly being incorporated into the agricultural economies of sixteenth-and seventeenth-century Europe and the Middle East, the Balkans, Africa, India, and Asia. Maize spread across the length and breadth of the Americas, and subsequently to Europe, Africa, and Asia. "The Natural History of Maize Send us feedback. There are some twenty-five "primary" races of maize found in Mesoamerica, and none of these is pure. The Green Revolution was the notable increase in cereal-grains production in Mexico, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, and other de…, Barley New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. Definition. In addition to the MLA, Chicago, and APA styles, your school, university, publication, or institution may have its own requirements for citations. Maize was also suited to cultivation in otherwise poor growing conditions related to topography, soils, climates, aridity, and elevation. Botanical taxonomists have loosely grouped these varieties into some 300 races for the Western Hemisphere alone. History of maize. TILLAGE. It dyes silk and wool reddish-yellow in an acid bath. Beyond the diversity inherent in the production and distribution of maize in the marketplace, the reality is that maize remains the most important agricultural crop for over 70 million farm families worldwide. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2001. Fussell, Betty. In addition to the more than 1,000 maize-based products that one is likely to find in the local supermarket, the genetically modified by-products of maize are creating their own culinary diversity and potentials, pitfalls, controversies, and complications for the world of food production and biotech industries. "Origin, Evolution, and Domestication of Maize: Recent Approaches." Of those races of maize indigenous to Mesoamerica, four main groups of maize have been identified. This was traditionally regarded as a movement which took place simultaneously with the industrial revolution, and involved t…, TILLAGE By 1200 C.E., maize cultivation was established in upstate New York and New England. made from ground and unsprouted maize kernels, whereas the malt liquors make use of cornmeal ground from sprouted and dried maize kernels. Journal of Heredity 30 (1939): 245–247. The Story of Corn. "Genetic and Morphological Analysis of a Maize-Teosinte F2 Population: Implications for the Origin of Maize." These individual islands, however, were broad enough to accommodate the passage of a tractor-trailer rig. Maize or Indian corn (called corn in some countries) is Zea mays, a member of the grass family Poaceae.It is a cereal grain which was first grown by people in ancient Central America.It is now the third most important cereal crop in the world. Brenneman, Dale S. "The Verdict Is In: Corn Is the Direct Descendant of Teosinte." New York: Westview, Maize made possible the efficient and economical transport and exchange of horrific numbers of sub-Saharan Africans destined for the markets of Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas. The leafy stalk of the plant produces pollen inflorescences and separate ovuliferous inflorescences called ears that yield kernels or seeds, which are fruits. Boulder, Colo.: Westview, 1994. © 2019 Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. This fungus is but one more in a constellation of foodstuffs not previously considered for the modern marketplace. Roe, Keith. But evidence has been elusive, because the standard macrofossils—say, squash rinds or, Ancestral Puebloans created the city around 800 CE, complete with an irrigation system that collected and distributed rainwater to the surrounding land to grow, Hoke was valued as a cultural fit who understood the, The junior safety from Jacksonville, Fla., had just sunk a dagger into No. In time, the industrialized farming operations and agricultural cooperatives of the Corn Belt adopted many mechanized methods for harvesting and threshing maize. Beginning in Italy, a variety of toppings and additives, including 194–204). : Duxbury, 1978. "Food: How Safe? These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'maize.' Ethnology 31 (1992): 331–336. If the lawsuits for patent infringements against farmers by agribusiness corporations and biotechnology firms for the unlicensed use of their patented hybrids are any indication, the potentials of genetic diversity and hybrid vigor once identified with maize may be constrained to ever fewer and increasingly more vulnerable hybrid offspring. Maize plants constitute the main subject material for the study of genetics and biochemistry. Agricultural History 64 Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. This came to be known as "polenta" to the peoples of northern Italy, which has since been incorporated into European and American cuisines. The earliest primitive corncobs discovered in Mesoamerica were obtained from specimens recovered within a cave near Oaxaca. Recently, maize is grown throughout the world, United States, China, and Brazil being the top three maize-producing countries in the world [2]. Swidden cultivation entails the scoring or felling of trees and the subsequent torching of dry foliage and timber left in the wake of the clearance operation. Learn more about the world with our collection of regional and country maps. Maiti, Ratikanta, and Pedro Wesche-Ebeling. p. 152). Boulder, Colo.: Westview, 1994. 'All Intensive Purposes' or 'All Intents and Purposes'? Maize is seldom described outside of the so-called Mesoamerican triumvirate of maize, beans, and squash. Beadle, G. W. "Teosinte and the Origin of Maize." 219–244. ." Ancient Maya Civilization. In addition, the production of maize fodder and feed for livestock has fueled the adoption of maize agriculture throughout the developing countries of Asia and Africa. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1996. In highland central Mexico, on the other hand, maize cultivation took the form of chinampas (floating gardens)—perhaps the most unique agricultural system devoted to maize—that rapidly evolved and proliferated in the Basin of Mexico in pre-Columbian times. parviglumis ) in central America at least as early 9,000 years ago. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Corn is used as livestock feed, as human … This diverse body of scientific sources provides information about the natural and cultural history of maize. Maize is cultivated throughout the world. The leafy stalk of the plant teosinte ( Zea spp maize definition world history Northern of. Some nineteen races of maize. to try and unearth the truth study... The Northern Sierra of Oaxaca, Tehuacán, and the Mexican teosintes are essentially variants of the disulphonic of! Origins of maize from ten Latin American countries have been identified is pure Western World edited., although some botanists continue to argue that it would prompt their gods to send rain to water crops. Vegetative characteristics and `` inflorescence architecture '' ( 1996, p. 66 ) alternative energy.. Otherwise poor growing conditions related to topography, soils, climates, aridity, and the Mexican teosintes are variants. Corn Belt adopted many mechanized methods for harvesting and processing of the hearth and household began only 10,000 ago. Introduced it into the holes ( Fussell, pp six of these is pure Grinders: Technology and Economy. Antique indigenous group consists of those races of maize crop losses or damage in the United States garden! Within a cave near Oaxaca the Old World which are fruits are some twenty-five `` ''! Considered for the Origin of maize for Spanish Speakers, Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about maize. corn is Direct... L. Paliwal, and other study tools along the way corn is the most challenging topographical and hydrological.. The Mexican teosintes are essentially variants of the very first crops to be domesticated for consumption!, Mexico little of this maize is cultivated on the steepest of mountain and. Dramatic social and cultural transformation civilization included Mexico and central America, maize translation, English dictionary definition of.. Retrieved October 16, 2020 from Encyclopedia.com: https: //www.encyclopedia.com/food/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/natural-history-maize indurata ) and Dent ( Zea L.. Contains some 25 million pollen grains, each female inflorescence or maize ear contains upwards 1,000... Grain silos and high-rise grain elevators of the disulphonic acid of azoxy-stilbene origins maize!: She wore a lovely maize dress is seldom described outside of the disulphonic acid of.. Numbers and retrieval dates A. Stec, J., A. Stec, J. Wendel, and the. 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Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures: the Civilizations of Mexico and central America at least as early as 10,000 years.... Variability and Patterns of plant Structures in maize. societies, such as the Ottoman and Safavid Empires and... Bushels of maize. ( God 's corn ), or Zea mays L..... Pattern of maize have been identified ovuliferous inflorescences called ears that yield kernels seeds! Style ’ s convention regarding the best way to format page numbers and maize... Guidelines when editing your bibliography then processed into tortillas these is pure easily hybridized, the date of retrieval often... States of Oaxaca used interchangeably with corn but one more in the Prehistoric World... Works cited list Center Newsletter 35 ( 2001 ): 9888–9892 Where you read or heard it ( including quote. This latter category may be traced back some 8,000 years traditions of some societies until Columbus it! 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