The pear is an edible pomaceous fruit produced by a tree of genus Pyrus ( ). The pear is classified within Maloideae, a subfamily within Rosaceae. The apple (Malus ×domestica), which it resembles in floral structure, is also a member of this subfamily.
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The pear is an edible pomaceous fruit produced by a tree of genus Pyrus ( ). The pear is classified within Maloideae, a subfamily within Rosaceae. The apple (Malus ×domestica), which it resembles in floral structure, is also a member of this subfamily.
The English word pear is probably from Common West Germanic *pera, probably a loanword of Vulgar Latin pira, the plural of pirum, akin to Greek api(r)os, which is likely of Semitic origin. The place name Perry can indicate the historical presence of pear trees. The term "pyriform" is sometimes used to describe something which is "pear-shaped".
History
Pears grow in the sublime orchard of Alcinous, in Odyssey vii: "Therein grow trees, tall and luxuriant, pears and pomegranates and apple-trees with their bright fruit, and sweet figs, and luxuriant olives. Of these the fruit perishes not nor fails in winter or in summer, but lasts throughout the year."
The pear was cultivated also by the Romans, who did not eat them rawFact: date=October 2008: Pliny's Natural History recommended stewing them with honey and noted three dozen varieties. The Roman cookbook attributed to Apicius, De re coquinaria, has a recipe for a spiced stewed-pear patina, or soufflé (IV.2.35).
A certain race of pears, with white down on the under surface of their leaves, is supposed to have originated from P. nivalis, and their fruit is chiefly used in France in the manufacture of perry (see also cider). Other small-fruited pears, distinguished by their early ripening and apple-like fruit, may be referred to P. cordata, a species found wild in western France, and in Devonshire and Cornwall. Pears have been cultivated in China for approximately 3000 years. The genus is thought to have originated in present-day western China in the foothills of the Tian Shan, a mountain range of Central Asia, and to have spread to the north and south along mountain chains, evolving into a diverse group of over 20 widely recognized primary species. The enormous number of varieties of the cultivated European pear (Pyrus communis subsp. communis), are without doubt derived from one or two wild subspecies (P. communis subsp. pyraster and P. communis subsp. caucasica), widely distributed throughout Europe, and sometimes forming part of the natural vegetation of the forests. In England, where an ancient pear tree gave its name toFact: date=January 2009
Asian species with medium to large edible fruit include P. pyrifolia, P. ussuriensis, P. ×bretschneideri, P. ×sinkiangensis, and P. pashia. Other small-fruited species are frequently used as rootstocks for the cultivated species.
