Rye is a grass belonging to the wheat tribe. It is closely related to wheat and barley and is chiefly used to make rye floor, rye beer, and certain alcoholic beverages. Its scientific name is Secale cereale and grows wild in central and eastern Turkey. In modern day Turkey, domesticated rye has been found in several Neolithic sites.
How rye spread from Turkey to other parts of the world remains unknown, but it is not unrealistic to assume that it was transported westwards from Turkey as a minor admixture in wheat. Pliny the Elder, a famous Roman author and naturalist, wrote that rye “is a very poor food and only serves to avert starvation“.
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, rye became an important source of nutrients for agricultural peoples inhabiting Central and Eastern Europe. Compared to wheat, rye is more tolerant to dry and cool conditions and it can be grown in very acidic soils. It is however less tolerant to cold than barley.
Bread made from rye is still very popular in Central, Eastern and Northern Europe and is for instance used to make Nordic crisp-bread and the famous German pumpernickel bread. It is also used to produce Rye Vodka and Rye whiskey.
