Category: History

Myths and legends surrounding the origins of food are, not surprisingly, very common. Here’s a new one on me: according to one story, deftly told by Roland Bourdeix on one of his blogs, the island of Niue — the Rock of Polynesia — owes its name to two very special varieties of coconut. But don’t take my word for it; read Roland’s post.

Are there other places named specifically for foods? And is there some central repository of myths and legends that involve agriculture and food? I don’t know of one.

The latest issue of the Prescott College alumni magazine Transitions is devoted to the question “Where does our food come from?” ((We have taken the liberty of using their subtitle as the title for this post. Warning: it’s a biggish pdf.)) Sure, Gary Nabhan is in there, busily retracing Vavilov’s footsteps. But also our friend and occasional contributor Colin Khoury. And much else besides. Oh, and since we’re talking about Vavilov, he collected in the Pamirs, didn’t he?

Two events don’t constitute a trend; that takes three. But I note with interest that Greece’s entry in the 12th International Architecture Exhibition in Venice is Ark. Old seeds for new cultures. Readers will remember that the UK Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo of 2010 featured a Seed Cathedral.

Greece’s effort is much more rooted in food than the UK’s. The Greek Ark Project helpfully explains:

The oldest meaning of the ancient greek word for the activity of building, ktisis, is “weeding, preparation of the soil for sowing, planting“, while the meanings of ‘foundation’ and ‘construction’ are subsequent. Sowing and Construction introduce at the outset a dual function for architecture as the activity of organizing both buildings in space and, also, of open, natural spaces. By means of the present project, we seek to reintroduce into contemporary architectural practices the spaces of culture in its double meaning, of agriculture and of civilization. “People meet within culture”.

It goes on to place the architecture squarely within the realm of agriculture.

And thanks to The History of Greek Food for the original post and the photograph.