Barley
/ˈbɑːr.li/noun
A cereal grain used for food, malt, and animal feed.
Did you know?Barley was one of the earliest domesticated crops in the Fertile Crescent, and its name traces back through Old English to a Proto-Germanic root shared with words for grain and bread-making life.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰars- / *bʰor-
“A proposed ancient grain-related base often linked to bristle or barley-like plants, though the exact prehistory is uncertain.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*barlaz
“Barley, the cereal grain.”
Old English
OE
bærlic / berlic
“Barley.”
Middle English
ME
barli
“Barley.”
Modern English
English
barley
“The cereal grain Hordeum vulgare.”