{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}} {{About|the tree and the fruit|other uses|Olive (disambiguation)}} {{redirect-multi|3|Olive grove|Olive tree|Olive wood}} {{Use British English|date=July 2023}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2023}} {{Speciesbox |name=Olive |fossil_range=Late Pleistocene to recent, {{Fossil range|0.06|0}} |image=Olivesfromjordan.jpg |image2 = Oliveira (Olea europaea) na Praça da Estação, Bagé, RS, Brasil (8160 x 6120px).jpg |image2_caption= ''O. europaea'' cultivated in Brazil |genus=Olea |species=europaea |status=DD |status_system=IUCN3.1 |status_ref=<ref>{{cite iucn |last1=Magos Brehm |first1=J. |last2=Draper Munt |first2=D. |last3=Kell |first3=S.P. |year=2011 |title=''Olea europaea'' |errata= 2016 |volume=2011 |article-number=e.T63005A102150835 |doi= |access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref> |authority=L. |range_map=Olea europaea range.svg |range_map_caption=Distribution map of ''Olea europaea'' s.l. }} {{Contains special characters |special=Linear B Unicode characters |fix= Help:Multilingual_support#Linear B |characters=Linear B}}
The '''olive''' (botanical name '''''Olea europaea''''', "European olive") is a species of subtropical evergreen tree in the family Oleaceae. Originating in Asia Minor,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Olive Tree |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/olive-world/olive-tree/ |access-date=7 April 2025 |website=International Olive Council}}</ref> it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean Basin, with wild subspecies in Africa and western Asia; modern cultivars are traced primarily to the Near East, Aegean Sea, and Strait of Gibraltar.<ref name="LiveScience" /> The olive is the type species for its genus, ''Olea'', and lends its name to the Oleaceae plant family, which includes lilac, jasmine, forsythia, and ash. The olive fruit is classed botanically as a drupe, similar in structure and function to the cherry or peach. The term oil was originally synonymous with olive oil, the liquid fat derived from olives.
The olive has deep historical, economic, and cultural significance in the Mediterranean.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Dodd |first=Emlyn |date=2026 |title=The Archaeology of Olive Oil Production in Roman and Pre-Roman Italy |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/737823 |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |volume=130 |issue=1 |pages=115–151 |doi=10.1086/737823}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Polymerou-Kamilakis |first=Aikaterini |chapter=1 - The Culture of the Olive Tree (Mediterranean World) |date=2006-01-01 |title=Olive Oil |edition=Second |pages=1–12 |editor-last=Boskou |editor-first=Dimitrios |chapter-url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9781893997882500055 |access-date=2025-03-28 |publisher=AOCS Press |isbn=978-1-893997-88-2 |doi=10.1016/B978-1-893997-88-2.50005-5 |doi-broken-date=2 November 2025 }}</ref><ref name="phys.org">{{Cite web |last1=Palli |first1=Jordan |last2=Tuscia |first2=University of |title=The olive landscape: A nearly 4,000-year-old legacy of human-nature interaction in the Central Mediterranean |url=https://phys.org/news/2025-03-olive-landscape-year-legacy-human.html |access-date=2025-04-16 |website=phys.org}}</ref> It is among the oldest fruit trees domesticated by humans,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Liphschitz |first1=Nili |first2=Ram |last2=Gophna |first3=Moshe |last3=Hartman |first4=Gideon |last4=Biger |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/030544039190037P |title=The beginning of olive (''Olea europaea'') cultivation in the old world: A reassessment |journal=Journal of Archaeological Science |volume=18 |issue=4 |year=1991 |pages=441–453}} Abstract: The olive was one of the first fruit trees cultivated by man. It has been claimed that cultivation of the olive began in Israel during the Chalcolithic Period. Careful botanical examination of pollen grains, stones and wood remains gathered from living trees and from archaeological contexts show that it is impossible to distinguish between wild and cultivated olives. The ample remnants of olive found in archaeological contexts, together with other finds, such as pottery vessels, oil lamps, and olive oil installations, indicate that the earliest widespread use of olives in Israel was in the Early Bronze Age".</ref> being first cultivated in the Eastern Mediterranean between 6,000 and 4,000 BC, most likely in the Levant.<ref name="LiveScience">{{Cite web |last=Ghose |first=Tia |date=6 February 2013 |title=The Origins of the Olive Tree Revealed |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-origins-of-the-olive/ |access-date=7 April 2025 |website=Scientific American |language=en}}</ref> The olive gradually disseminated throughout the Mediterranean via trade and human migration starting in the 16th century BC;<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Olive Tree |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/olive-world/olive-tree/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=International Olive Council}}</ref> it took root in Crete around 3500 BC and reached Iberia by about 1050 BC. Olive cultivation was vital to the growth and prosperity of various Mediterranean civilisations, from the Minoans and Myceneans of the Bronze Age to the Greeks and Romans of classical antiquity.<ref name="Renfrew-1972" /><ref>{{cite journal |last=Dodd |first=Emlyn |date=2026 |title=The Archaeology of Olive Oil Production in Roman and Pre-Roman Italy |doi=10.1086/737823 |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |volume=130 |issue=1 |pages=115–151}}</ref>
The olive has long been prized throughout the Mediterranean for its myriad uses and properties. Aside from its edible fruit, the oil extracted from the fruit has been used in food and for lamp fuel, personal grooming, cosmetics, soap making, lubrication, and medicine, while the wood of olive trees was sometimes used for construction.<ref name="Britannica">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/plant/olive-plant |title=Olive {{!}} Description, Production, & Oil |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |year=2025}}</ref> Owing to its utility, resilience, and longevity—an olive tree can allegedly live for thousands of years—the olive also held symbolic and spiritual importance in various cultures; its branches and leaves were used in religious rituals, funerary processions, and public ceremonies, from the ancient Olympic games to the coronation of Israelite kings. Ancient Greeks regarded the olive tree as sacred and a symbol of peace, prosperity, and wisdom, associations that have persisted.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Albini |first1=Adriana |last2=Albini |first2=Francesca |last3=Corradino |first3=Paola |last4=Dugo |first4=Laura |last5=Calabrone |first5=Luana |last6=Noonan |first6=Douglas M. |year=2023 |title=From antiquity to contemporary times: how olive oil by-products and waste water can contribute to health |journal=Frontiers in Nutrition|volume=10 |article-number=1254947 |doi=10.3389/fnut.2023.1254947 |doi-access=free |pmc=10615083 |pmid=37908306}}</ref> Ancient Romans cultivated olive trees in increasingly marginal landscapes and set up enormous industrial production facilities across the Mediterranean, especially in North Africa and Spain.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dodd |first=Emlyn |date=2026 |title=The Archaeology of Olive Oil Production in Roman and Pre-Roman Italy |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/737823 |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |volume=130 |issue=1 |pages=115–151 |doi=10.1086/737823}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Dodd |first=Emlyn |last2=Limbergen |first2=Dimitri Van |date=2024-01-01 |title=The 'Place' of Urban Wineries and Oileries in the Greek and Roman World |url=https://www.brepolsonline.net/content/journals/10.1484/J.JUA.5.137202 |journal=Journal of Urban Archaeology |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=81–108 |doi=10.1484/J.JUA.5.137202 |issn=2736-2426}}</ref> The olive is a core ingredient in traditional Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines, particularly in the form of olive oil, and a defining feature of local landscapes, commerce, and folk traditions.
The olive is cultivated in all countries of the Mediterranean, as well as in Australia, New Zealand, the Americas, and South Africa.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=355112 |title=Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, ''Olea europaea'' |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=5 December 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Olea%20europaea.png |publisher=Biota of North America Program |title=''Olea europaea'' (map) |access-date=5 December 2014}}</ref> Spain, Italy, and Greece lead the world in commercial olive production; other major producers are Turkey, Tunisia, Syria, Morocco, Algeria, and Portugal.<ref name="Britannica" /> There are thousands of cultivars of olive tree, and the fruit of each cultivar may be used primarily for oil, for eating, or both, although some varieties are grown as sterile ornamental shrubs, and are known as ''Olea europaea'' 'Montra', ''dwarf olive'', or ''little olive''. Approximately 80% of all harvested olives are processed into oil, while about 20% are for consumption as fruit, generally referred to as "table olives".<ref name="Fernández, A. Garrido 1997" />
==Etymology==
The word ''olive'' derives from Latin ''{{lang|la|ŏlīva}}'' 'olive fruit; olive tree',<ref>{{L&S|oliva|ref}}</ref> possibly through Etruscan {{Lang|ett|𐌀𐌅𐌉𐌄𐌋𐌄}} ({{Lang|ett-Latn|eleiva}}) from the archaic Proto-Greek form *ἐλαίϝα (*''elaíwa'') (Classic Greek {{lang|grc|ἐλαία}} ''{{lang|grc-Latn|elaía}}'' 'olive fruit; olive tree').<ref>OLD s.v. ''{{lang|la|oliva}}''</ref><ref>{{LSJ|e)lai/a|ἐλαία|ref}}</ref> The word ''oil'' originally meant 'olive oil', from ''{{lang|la|ŏlĕum}}'',<ref>{{L&S|oleum|ref}}</ref> {{lang|grc|ἔλαιον}} (''{{lang|grc-Latn|élaion}}'' 'olive oil').<ref>Ernout & Meillet s.v. ''{{lang|la|oleum}}''.</ref><ref>{{LSJ|e)lai/a|ἐλαία}}, {{LSJ|e)/laio,|ἔλαιον|ref}}</ref> The word for 'oil' in multiple other languages ultimately derives from the name of this tree and its fruit. The oldest attested forms of the Greek words are Mycenaean {{lang|gmy|𐀁𐀨𐀷}}, ''{{lang|gmy-Latn|e-ra-wa}}'', and {{lang|gmy|𐀁𐀨𐀺}}, ''{{lang|gmy-Latn|e-ra-wo}}'' or {{lang|gmy|𐀁𐁉𐀺}}, ''{{lang|gmy-Latn|e-rai-wo}}'', written in the Linear B syllabic script.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Linear B word e-ra-wa |url=http://www.palaeolexicon.com/default.aspx?static=12&wid=318 |access-date=12 June 2010}} {{cite web |title=The Linear B word e-ra-wo |url=http://www.palaeolexicon.com/ShowWord.aspx?Id=16728 |website=Palaeolexicon. Word study tool of ancient languages |access-date=2014-03-15}}{{cite web|url=http://minoan.deaditerranean.com/resources/linear-b-sign-groups/e/e-ra3-wo/ |title=e-ra3-wo |access-date=2014-03-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321102105/http://minoan.deaditerranean.com/resources/linear-b-sign-groups/e/e-ra3-wo/ |archive-date=21 March 2016}} {{cite web |last=Raymoure |first=K. A. |url=http://minoan.deaditerranean.com/resources/linear-b-sign-groups/e/e-ra-wo/ |title=e-ra-wo |website=Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B |publisher=Deaditerranean |access-date=15 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160320140244/http://minoan.deaditerranean.com/resources/linear-b-sign-groups/e/e-ra-wo/ |archive-date=20 March 2016 }}</ref>
==Description==
thumb|19th-century illustration|alt=drawing of a branch, flowers, seeds and fruit of the olive tree
The olive tree, ''Olea europaea'', is an evergreen tree or shrub native to Mediterranean Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is short and squat and rarely exceeds {{convert|8|-|15|m|ft|abbr=on|round=5}} in height. Pisciottana, a unique variety comprising 40,000 trees found only in the area around Pisciotta in the Campania region of southern Italy, often exceeds this, with correspondingly large trunk diameters. The silvery green leaves are oblong, measuring {{convert|4|–|10|cm|in|abbr=on|frac=2}} long and {{convert|1|–|3|cm|in|abbr=on|frac=4}} wide. The trunk is typically gnarled and twisted.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rugini |first1=Eddo |last2=Baldoni |first2=Luciana |last3=Muleo |first3=Rosario |last4=Sebastiani |first4=Luca |title=The Olive Tree Genome |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DgDGDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA14+|year=2016 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-319-48887-5 |page=14}}</ref>
Small, white flowers are borne generally on the previous year's wood, in racemes springing from leaf axils. Each flower is made of four yellowish white petals fused at the bottom joined to a base of four fused green sepals. The flower buds grow slowly from 4 to 6 weeks before they reach a length of about 2 cm and bloom, they bloom quicker between 5–6 days in hot weather and 2 weeks in colder areas. The flowers pollinate and fertilise faster in hotter climates.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Seifi |first1=Esmaeil |last2=Guerin |first2=Jenny |last3=Kaiser |first3=Brent |last4=Sedgley |first4=Margaret |date=January 2015 |title=Flowering and fruit set in olive: a review |journal=Iranian Journal of Plant Physiology |url=https://journals.iau.ir/article_539653_140a99eea26c37e6020a694666a7b405.pdf |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=1263–1272 |archive-date=19 September 2025 |access-date=17 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250919081522/https://journals.iau.ir/article_539653_140a99eea26c37e6020a694666a7b405.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
The fruit is a small drupe, {{convert|1|–|2.5|cm|in|abbr=on|frac=16}} long when ripe, thinner-fleshed and smaller in wild plants than in orchard cultivars. Olives are harvested in the green to purple stage.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iBsmDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA129 |page=129 |title=Olives and Olive Oil as Functional Foods: Bioactivity, Chemistry and Processing |editor1=Apostolos Kiritsakis |editor2=Fereidoon Shahidi |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |date=2017|isbn=978-1-119-13531-9}}</ref> ''O. europaea'' contains a pyrena commonly referred to in British English as a "stone", and in American English as a "pit".<ref>{{cite book |last=Featherstone |first=Susan |title=A Complete Course in Canning and Related Processes: Volume 3 Processing Procedures for Canned Food Products |publisher=Woodhead Publishing |date=2015 |isbn=978-0-85709-687-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J7gfBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA113 |page=113}}</ref>
[[File:Mallorca Wild Olive.jpg|thumb|Specimen of ''Olea europaea sylvestris'' as bonsai. These trees grow wild in the mountains of the Spanish island of Mallorca and are valued for their tiny leaves and rough bark. This tree won first prize in the broadleaf evergreen category in the 2024 edition of the Unión del Bonsái Español (UBE) exhibition in Aranjuez, Spain.]]
thumb|upright|Specimen of ''Olea europaea'' subsp. ''laperrinei'' in the Hoggar Mountains in southern Algeria
thumb|upright|Unripe fruits on a cultivated tree in Israel
==Taxonomy==
The six natural subspecies of ''Olea europaea'' are distributed over a wide range:<ref name=j2>{{cite journal |last=Green |first=P.S. |year=2002|title=A revision of Olea L. (Oleaceae) |journal=Kew Bulletin |volume=57|pages=91–140|jstor=4110824|doi=10.2307/4110824|issue=1|bibcode=2002KewBu..57...91G }}</ref><ref name=j3>{{cite journal |last1=Besnard |first1=Guillaume |last2=Rubio de Casas |first2=Rafael |last3=Christin |first3=Pascal-Antoine |last4=Vargas |first4=Pablo |title=Phylogenetics of Olea (Oleaceae) based on plastid and nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences: Tertiary climatic shifts and lineage differentiation times |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=104 |issue=1 |date=2009 |issn=1095-8290 |pmid=19465750 |pmc=2706730 |doi=10.1093/aob/mcp105 |pages=143–160 |url=https://academic.oup.com/aob/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/aob/mcp105 |access-date=8 March 2026}}</ref> <ref>{{cite journal |last1=Brito |first1=Gina |last2=Loureiro |first2=João |last3=Lopes |first3=Tina |last4=Rodriguez |first4=Eleazar |last5=Santos |first5=Conceição |title=Genetic characterisation of olive trees from Madeira Archipelago using flow cytometry and microsatellite markers |journal=Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution |year=2008 |bibcode=2008GRCEv..55..657B |volume=55 |issue=5 |page=657 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/226023886 |doi=10.1007/s10722-007-9268-8 }}</ref>
*''O. e.'' subsp. ''europaea'' (Mediterranean Basin)
The subspecies ''O. e.'' subsp. ''europaea'' is divided into two varieties, ''O. e.'' var. ''europaea'', which was formerly named ''Olea sativa'', with the seedlings called "olivasters", and ''O. e.'' var. ''silvestris'', which corresponds to the old wildly growing Mediterranean species ''O. oleaster'', with the seedlings called "oleasters".<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/315747227 |title=Oleiculture in progress |first1=Elettra |last1=Marone |first2=Piero |last2=Fiorino |date=January 2012 |journal= Advances in Horticultural Science |volume=26 |issue=3–4 |doi=10.13128/ahs-22672}}</ref> The subspecies ''O. e.'' subsp. ''sylvestris'' is characterised by a smaller, shrubby tree that produces smaller fruit and leaves.<ref name="Barazani 2016">{{cite journal |last1=Barazani |first1=Oz |last2=Keren-Keiserman |first2=Alexandra |last3=Westberg |first3=Erik |last4=Hanin |first5=Nir |last5=Dag |first4=Arnon |last6=Ben-Ari |first6=Giora |last7=Fragman-Sapir |first7=Ori |last8=Tugendhaft |first8=Yizhar |last9=Kerem |first9=Zohar |last10=Kadereit |first10= Joachim W. |date=2016-01-13 |title=Genetic variation of naturally growing olive trees in Israel: from abandoned groves to feral and wild? |url=https://rdcu.be/dvErI |journal=BMC Plant Biol |volume=16 |issue=261 |page=261 |doi=10.1186/s12870-016-0947-5 |doi-access=free |pmid=27964727 |pmc=5154132 |bibcode=2016BMCPB..16..261B}}</ref>
*''O. e.'' subsp. ''cuspidata'' (from South Africa throughout East Africa ,Arabia, Northwest India to Southwest China) *''O. e.'' subsp. ''cerasiformis'' (Madeira); also known as ''Olea maderensis'' *''O. e.'' subsp. ''guanchica'' (Canary Islands) *''O. e.'' subsp. ''laperrinei'' (Algeria, Sudan, Niger) *''O. e.'' subsp. ''maroccana'' (Morocco)
The subspecies ''O. e. cerasiformis'' is tetraploid, and ''O. e. maroccana'' is hexaploid.<ref name=j5>{{cite journal |last1=Besnard |first1=G. |last2=Garcia-Verdugo |first2=C. |last3=Rubio De Casas |first3=R. |last4=Treier |first4=U. A. |last5=Galland |first5=N. |last6=Vargas |first6=P. |title=Polyploidy in the Olive Complex (Olea europaea): Evidence from Flow Cytometry and Nuclear Microsatellite Analyses |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=101 |issue=1 |date=2008 |issn=1095-8290 |pmid=18024415 |pmc=2701839 |doi=10.1093/aob/mcm275 |pages=25–30 |url=https://academic.oup.com/aob/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/aob/mcm275 |access-date=8 March 2026}}</ref> Wild-growing forms of the olive are sometimes treated as the species ''Olea oleaster'', or "oleaster". The trees referred to as "white" and "black" olives in Southeast Asia are not actually olives but species of ''Canarium''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/heritage-trees/ht-2005-136 |title=Buah Ca-na, Chinese White Olive |website=National Parks Board |access-date=14 February 2019 |archive-date=15 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190215050351/https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/heritage-trees/ht-2005-136 }}</ref>
===Cultivars===
{{Main|List of olive cultivars}}
Hundreds of cultivars of the olive tree are known.<ref name="encyclopedia1996">{{cite encyclopedia|title=World Olive Encyclopedia|publisher=International Olive Council|year=1996|isbn=978-84-01-61881-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Lanza, Fabrizia |title=Olive: A Global History|year=2012|publisher=Reaktion Books|isbn=978-1-86189-972-9|pages=106–110}}</ref> An olive's cultivar has a significant impact on its colour, size, shape, and growth characteristics, as well as the qualities of olive oil.<ref name="encyclopedia1996"/> Olive cultivars may be used primarily for oil, eating, or both. Olives cultivated for consumption are generally referred to as "table olives".<ref name="Fernández, A. Garrido 1997">{{cite book |last1=Garrido Fernandez |first1=A. |last2=Fernandez-Diez |first2=M.J. |last3=Adams |first3=M.R. |title=Table Olives: Production and Processing |year=1997 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0-412-71810-6 |pages=23–45}}</ref>
Since many olive cultivars are self-sterile or nearly so, they are generally planted in pairs with a single primary cultivar and a secondary cultivar selected for its ability to fertilise the primary one. In recent times, efforts have been directed at producing hybrid cultivars with qualities useful to farmers, such as resistance to disease.<ref name=j8>{{cite journal |last1=Valverde |first1=Pedro |last2=Barranco |first2=Diego |last3=López-Escudero |first3=Francisco Javier |last4=Díez |first4=Concepcion Munoz |last5=Trapero |first5=Carlos |title=Efficiency of breeding olives for resistance to Verticillium wilt |journal=Frontiers in Plant Science |volume=14 |date=22 February 2023 |pmid=36909426 |pmc=9994353 |doi=10.3389/fpls.2023.1149570 |doi-access=free |page=}}</ref>
==History==
As one of the oldest cultivated trees on Earth,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Liphschitz |first1=N. |last2=Gophna |first2=R. |last3=Hartman |first3=M. |last4=Biger |first4=G. |year=1991 |title=The beginning of olive (Olea europaea) cultivation in the old world: a reassessment |url=|journal=Journal of Archaeological Science |volume=18 |issue=4|pages=441–453 |doi=10.1016/0305-4403(91)90037-p |bibcode=1991JArSc..18..441L }}</ref> the history of the olive is deeply intertwined with humans; its ecological success and expansion is largely the result of human activity rather than environmental conditions, with the tree's genetic and geographic trajectory directly reflecting the rise and fall of several civilisations.<ref name="phys.org"/> Owing to this deep relationship with humans, the olive has been disseminated well beyond its native range, spanning 28.6 million acres across 66 countries.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 October 2022 |title=One-Third of Global Olive Oil Production Comes from Intensive Farming |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/production/one-third-of-global-olive-oil-production-comes-from-intensive-farming/112809 |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=Olive Oil Times |language=en-US}}</ref> There were an estimated 865 million olive trees in the world in 2005, of which the vast majority were found in Mediterranean countries; traditionally marginal areas accounted for no more than 25% of olive-planted area and 10% of oil production.<ref>{{cite web |title=Olive Growing and Nursery Production |url=http://www.internationaloliveoil.org/projects/paginas/Section-a.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170818161143/http://www.internationaloliveoil.org/projects/paginas/Section-a.htm |archive-date=18 August 2017 |access-date=5 December 2014 |publisher=International Olive Council}}</ref>
===Mediterranean Basin===
Fossil evidence indicates that the olive tree had its origins 20–40 million years ago in the Oligocene, in what now corresponds to Italy and the eastern Mediterranean Basin.<ref name="Therios">{{cite book |title=Olive Oil. Chemistry and Technology |editor-last=Boskou |editor-first=D. |publisher=AOCS Press |date=1996 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dXqXXeHI_PcC&pg=PA1|title=Olives: Volume 18 of Crop Production Science in Horticulture (History of Olive Growing, page 1)|last=Therios|first=Ioannis Nikolaos|date=2009|publisher=CABI|isbn=978-1-84593-620-4}}</ref> Around 100,000 years ago, olives were used by humans in Africa, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, for fuel and most probably for consumption.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Marquer |first1=L. |last2=Otto |first2=T. |last3=Arous |first3=E. Ben |last4=Stoetzel |first4=E. |last5=Campmas |first5=E. |last6=Zazzo |first6=A. |last7=Tombret |first7=O. |last8=Seim |first8=A. |last9=Kofler |first9=W. |last10=Falguères |first10=C. |last11=El Hajraoui |first11=M. Abdeljalil |date=2022-03-22 |title=The first use of olives in Africa around 100,000 years ago |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-022-01109-x |journal=Nature Plants |language=en |volume=8 |issue=3 |pages=204–208 |doi=10.1038/s41477-022-01109-x |pmid=35318448 |bibcode=2022NatPl...8..204M |s2cid=247615211 |issn=2055-0278 |access-date=2022-03-30}}</ref> Wild olive trees, or oleasters, have been collected in the Eastern Mediterranean since approximately 19,000 BP;<ref name="Kislev 1992">{{cite journal |last1=Kislev |first1=M.E. |last2=Nadel |first2=D. |last3=Carmi |first3=I. |title=Epipalaeolithic (19,000 BP) cereal and fruit diet at Ohalo II, Sea of Galilee, Israel |journal=Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology |volume=73 |issue=1-4 |date=1992 |doi=10.1016/0034-6667(92)90054-K |pages=161–166}}</ref> the genome of cultivated olives reflects their origin from oleaster populations in the region.<ref name="Besnard 2002">{{cite journal |last1=Besnard |first1=G. |last2=Khadari |first2=B. |last3=Baradat |first3=P. |last4=Bervillé |first4=A. |title=Combination of chloroplast and mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms to study cytoplasm genetic differentiation in the olive complex (Olea europaea L.) |journal=Theoretical and Applied Genetics |volume=105 |issue=1 |date=2002 |doi=10.1007/s00122-002-0868-6 |pages=139–144}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Thompson |first1=John D. |title=Plant Evolution in the Mediterranean: Insights for Conservation |date=2020 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-883514-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lxT0DwAAQBAJ}}</ref><ref name="Besnard 2013">{{cite journal |last1=Besnard |first1=G. |last2=El Bakkali |first2=A. |last3=Haouane |first3=H. |last4=Baali-Cherif |first4=D. |last5=Moukhli |first5=A. |last6=Khadari |first6=B. |title=Population genetics of Mediterranean and Saharan olives: geographic patterns of differentiation and evidence for early generations of admixture |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=112 |issue=7 |date=1 November 2013 |pmid=24013386 |pmc=3806528 |doi=10.1093/aob/mct196 |pages=1293–1302}}</ref><ref name="Diez 2015">{{cite journal |last1=Diez |first1=Concepcion M. |last2=Trujillo |first2=Isabel |last3=Martinez‐Urdiroz |first3=Nieves |last4=Barranco |first4=Diego |last5=Rallo |first5=Luis |last6=Marfil |first6=Pedro |last7=Gaut |first7=Brandon S. |title=Olive domestication and diversification in the Mediterranean Basin |journal=New Phytologist |volume=206 |issue=1 |date=2015 |doi=10.1111/nph.13181 |pages=436–447}}</ref>
The olive plant was first cultivated in the Mediterranean between 8,000 and 6,000 years ago.<ref name="LiveScience" /><ref name="Therios" /><ref>{{cite book |last=Di Giovacchino |first=Luciano |title=Handbook of Olive Oil: Analysis & Properties |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |year=2013 |edition=2nd |location=New York |page=57 |chapter=3}}</ref> Domestication likely began in the Levant, based on archeological findings in ancient tombs, including written tablets, olive stones, and olive wood fragments, as well as genetic analyses.<ref name="vossen" /><ref>{{cite book |last=Lanza |first=Fabrizia |title=Olive: a global history |publisher=Reaktion Books |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-86189-972-9 |location=London |page=15}}</ref><ref name="LiveScience" /> Hittite texts dating to the second millennium BC in present-day Turkey describe anointing a newborn child and mother with olive oil to protect against the dangers of childbirth.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lewit |first=Tamara |date=12 November 2025 |title=Healing, purification and holiness: how ancient Greeks, Romans and early Christians used olive oil |url=http://theconversation.com/healing-purification-and-holiness-how-ancient-greeks-romans-and-early-christians-used-olive-oil-267003 |access-date=2025-11-12 |website=The Conversation}}</ref>
For thousands of years, olives were grown primarily for lamp oil rather than for culinary purposes,<ref name="vossen">{{cite journal |last=Vossen |first=Paul |title=Olive Oil: History, Production, and Characteristics of the World's Classic Oils |journal=HortScience |year=2007 |volume=42 |issue=5 |pages=1093–1100 |doi=10.21273/HORTSCI.42.5.1093 |doi-access=free }}</ref> as the natural fruit has an extremely bitter taste.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kanakis |first1=P. |last2=Termentzi |first2=A. |last3=Michel |first3=T. |last4=Gikas |first4=E. |last5=Halabalaki |first5=M. |last6=Skaltsounis |first6=A.-L. |year=2013 |title=From olive drupes to olive Oil. An HPLC-orbitrap-based qualitative and quantitative exploration of olive key metabolites |journal=Planta Medica |volume=79 |issue=16 |pages=1576–1587 |doi=10.1055/s-0033-1350823 |pmid=24072502 |bibcode=2013PlMed..79.1576K }}</ref> It is very likely that the first mechanised agricultural methods and tools were those designed to produce olive oil;<ref>WORLD OLIVE ENCYCLOPAEDIA, International Olive Oil Council Principe de Vergara 154 28(X)2 Madrid (Spain), '''p. 24'''.</ref> the earliest olive oil production dates back some 6,500 years ago in coastal Canaan (present-day Israel).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Galili |first1=E. |last2=Stanley |first2=D. |year=1997 |title=J., Sharvit J., Weinstein-Evron M. Evidence for earliest olive-oil production in submerged settlements off the Carmel Coast, Israel |url=|journal=Journal of Archaeological Science |volume=24 |issue=12|pages=1141–1150 |doi=10.1006/jasc.1997.0193 }}</ref> As early as 3000{{Nbsp}}BC, olives were grown commercially in Crete and may have been the main source of wealth for the Minoan civilisation.<ref name="gooch">{{cite journal |last=Gooch |first=Ellen |url=http://www.epikouria.com/issue1/10+1-things-olives.php |title=10+1 Things you may not know about olive oil |journal=Epikouria Magazine |issue=Fall/Spring |year=2005 |access-date=5 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208032145/http://www.epikouria.com/issue1/10+1-things-olives.php |archive-date=8 December 2014 }}</ref>
The exact ancestry of the cultivated olive is unknown. Fossil ''Olea'' pollen has been found in Macedonia and other places around the Mediterranean, indicating that this genus is an original element of the Mediterranean flora. Fossilised leaves of ''Olea'' were found in the paleosols of the volcanic Greek island of Santorini and dated to about 37,000 BP. Imprints of larvae of olive whitefly ''Aleurobus olivinus'' were found on the leaves. The same insect is commonly found today on olive leaves, showing that the plant-animal co-evolutionary relations have not changed since that time.<ref>Friedrich W.L. (1978). [http://www.therafoundation.org/articles/environmentflorafauna/fossilplantsfromweichselianinterstadialssantorinigreeceii Fossil plants from Weichselian interstadials, Santorini (Greece) II] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719060330/http://www.therafoundation.org/articles/environmentflorafauna/fossilplantsfromweichselianinterstadialssantorinigreeceii |date=19 July 2011}}, published in the "Thera and the Aegean World II", London, pp. 109–128. Retrieved on 2011-12-07.</ref> Other leaves found on the same island date back to 60,000 BP, making them the oldest known olives from the Mediterranean.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.oliveoilmuseums.gr/ecportal.asp?id=55&nt=18&lang=2 |title=Mediterranean Museums of Olive |website=www.oliveoilmuseums.gr |access-date=22 May 2016 |archive-date=8 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208070740/http://www.oliveoilmuseums.gr/ecportal.asp?id=55&nt=18&lang=2}}</ref>
==== Expansion and propagation ====
In the 16th century BC, the Phoenicians, a seafaring people native to the Levantine heartland where olives likely were first cultivated, started disseminating the olive throughout the Mediterranean. Owing to their dominance as traders, merchants, and mariners, they succeeded in spreading the olive to the Greek isles, particularly Crete, later introducing it to the Greek mainland between the 14th and 12th centuries BC. Olive cultivation increased and gained great importance among the Greeks; the Athenian statesman Solon ({{Circa|630|560 BC}}) issued decrees regulating olive planting and encouraging its cultivation, particularly for export.<ref>Plutarch ''Solon'' 1 s:Lives (Dryden translation)/Solon#1, 24.1</ref> Greek literature and mythology reflected the privileged and even sacred position of the olive, while leading thinkers and figures like Hippocrates, Homer, and Theophrastus observed its various positive properties and benefits.
The earliest evidence of the olive tree in Egypt traces back to the Eighteenth Dynasty (1570–1345 BC),<ref>{{Cite web |last=abcommunication |date=2019-06-08 |title=The evolution of olive growing in Egypt |url=https://www.olioofficina.it/en/knowledge/economy/the-evolution-of-olive-growing-in-egypt.htm |access-date=2025-06-03 |website=OlioOfficina Magazine |language=en-US |archive-date=24 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230924045453/https://www.olioofficina.it/en/knowledge/economy/the-evolution-of-olive-growing-in-egypt.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> during the same period the Phoenicians began distributing it across the Mediterranean. However, scenes on the walls of the tomb of King Teti (ruled c. 2345 BC to c. 2333 BC) show olive fruit and trees, though it is unclear if these represent domestic cultivation. Pharoah Ramses III (reigned 1186–1155 BC) promoted cultivating olive trees and offered the olive oil extracted from Heliopolis to the Sun God Ra; papyrus manuscripts dated to his reign (c. 1550 BC), as well as temple engravings, depict the growing of olive trees and the use of olive oil in cooking, lamps, cosmetics, medicine and embalming. Pharoah Tutankhamun, who ruled from c. 1333 to 1323 BC, wore a garland of olive branches originated from Dakhla Oasis, 360 km to the east. Egyptian mummies dating back to the 20-25th dynasties (c. 1185 BC to c. 656 BC) have been found wearing olive wreaths.
While there is no evidence of olive cultivation in Mesopotamia, olive wood appears as early as the mid third millennium BC; the site of Emar in present-day Syria has olive wood and olive stones dating to the Middle Bronze Age (2000–1600 BC).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Deckers |first1=Katleen |last2=Riehl |first2=Simone |last3=Meadows |first3=Joseph |last4=Tumolo |first4=Valentina |last5=Hinojosa-Baliño |first5=Israel |last6=Lawrence |first6=Dan |date=2024 |title=A history of olive and grape cultivation in Southwest Asia using charcoal and seed remains |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=19 |issue=6 |article-number=e0303578 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0303578 |doi-access=free |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=11189204 |pmid=38900727|bibcode=2024PLoSO..1903578D }}</ref> The Code of Hammurabi, a compilation of laws and edicts made by King Hammurabi of the Old Babylonian Empire (reigning from c. 1792 to c. 1750 BC), makes repeated references to olive oil as a key commodity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Avalon Project: Code of Hammurabi |url=https://avalon.law.yale.edu/ancient/hamframe.asp |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=avalon.law.yale.edu}}</ref> The Assyrian Empire (858–627 BC) may have expanded into the southern Levant partly to secure control over its lucrative olive oil production.<ref>Van de Mieroop M. A history of the ancient Near East ca. ca. 3000 323 BC. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing; 2016.</ref>
There is now good evidence for the presence of the olive tree and its exploitation in Italy as early as the Neolithic, and by the Bronze Age it was cultivated and olive oil possibly produced.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Dodd |first=Emlyn |date=2026 |title=The Archaeology of Olive Oil Production in Roman and Pre-Roman Italy |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/737823 |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |volume=130 |issue=1 |pages=115–151 |doi=10.1086/737823 |issn=0002-9114}}</ref> But from 1000 BC and then through the Roman Republic and Empire, it was grown in increasingly marginal locations, and could be found across much of peninsula Italy, Sicily and Sardinia.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Dodd |first=Emlyn |date=2026 |title=The Archaeology of Olive Oil Production in Roman and Pre-Roman Italy |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/737823 |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |volume=130 |issue=1 |pages=115–151 |doi=10.1086/737823 |issn=0002-9114}}</ref> Cultivation moved as far upwards as Liguria near the border with France and into transalpine regions. When the Romans arrived in North Africa beginning in the second half of the first century BC, the native Berbers knew how to graft wild olives and had highly developed its cultivation throughout the region.
[[File:Architrave with Frieze Adorned with Olive Branches & Tragic Mask (49350864306).jpg|thumb|Roman architrave with frieze adorned with olive branches (c. first century AD)]]
The olive's expansion and cultivation reached its greatest extent through Rome's gradual conquest and settlement across virtually the entire Mediterranean; the Romans continued propagating the olive for commercial and agricultural purposes, as well as to assimilate local populations. It was introduced in present-day Marseille around 600 BC and spread from there to the whole of Gaul (modern France). The olive tree made its appearance in Sardinia following Roman conquest in the third century BC, though it may not have reached nearby Corsica until after the fall of the western Roman Empire in the fifth century AD.
Although olive growing was introduced to Spain by the Phoenicians some time in 1050 BC, it did not reach a larger scale until the arrival of Scipio (212 BC) during the Second Punic War against Carthage. After the Third Punic War (149–146 BC), olives occupied a large stretch of the Baetica valley in southwest Spain and spread towards the central and Mediterranean coastal areas of the Iberian Peninsula, including Portugal. Through the second century AD, this region would become the largest source of olives and olive oil within the empire.<ref name="UNRV">{{Cite web |title=Olives and Olive Oil in Ancient Rome {{!}} UNRV Roman History |url=https://www.unrv.com/economy/olives-and-olive-oil.php |access-date=2025-04-26 |website=www.unrv.com}}</ref> Olive became a core part of the Roman diet, and by extension a major economic pillar; the cultivation, harvesting, and trade in olives and their derived goods sustained many livelihoods and regions. The emperor Hadrian (117–138 AD) passed laws prompting olive cultivation by exempting individuals who grew olive trees from rent payments on their land for ten years.<ref name="UNRV" />
The degree to which the olive benefited from the Romans is demonstrated by the significant decline in olive planting and olive oil production that followed the collapse of the Roman Empire.<ref>Julie Angus, Olive Odyssey: searching for the secrets of the fruit that seduced the world. ISBN 9781553655145. '''P. 80.'''</ref> Beginning in the early eighth century AD, Muslim Arabs and North Africans brought their own varieties of olives during their conquest of Iberia, reinvigorating and expanding olive growing throughout the peninsula. The spread and importance of olives during subsequent Islamic rule is reflected in the Arabic roots of the Spanish words for olive (''aceituna''), oil (''aceite''), and wild olive tree (''acebuche'') and the Portuguese words for olive (''azeitona'') and olive oil (''azeite'').
===Outside the Mediterranean===
The olive is not native outside the Mediterranean Basin, although various wild subspecies are endemic throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, southern Arabia, and central and south Asia.<ref name="Besnard-2017">{{Cite journal |last1=Besnard |first1=G. |last2=Terral |first2=J. F. |last3=Cornille |first3=A. |date=2017 |title=On the origins and domestication of the olive: A review and perspectives |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=121 |issue=3 |pages=385–403 |doi=10.1093/aob/mcx145 |pmc=5838823 |pmid=29293871}}{{erratum|doi=10.1093/aob/mcy002 |pmid=29293871 |pmc=5838823 |checked=yes}}</ref> Beyond its immediate native range, the cultivated olive historically spread across West Asia through southwest China, and into parts of southern Egypt, northeast Sudan, the Canary Islands, and possibly the mountains of the Sahara.<ref name="Besnard-2017" /> Olive domestication is present on every inhabited continent due to human introduction.
[[File:21-alimenti, olio,Taccuino Sanitatis, Casanatense 4182..jpg|thumb|Storing olives on Dere Street; ''Tacuinum Sanitatis'', 14th century]]
==== Americas ====
Spanish colonists brought the olive to the New World in the 18th century, where its cultivation prospered in present-day Peru, Chile, Uruguay and Argentina. The first seedlings from Spain were planted in Lima by Antonio de Rivera in 1560. Olive tree cultivation quickly spread along the valleys of South America's dry Pacific coast where the climate is similar to the Mediterranean.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequencies of 1492 |last=Crosby |first=Alfred W. |author-link=Alfred W. Crosby |page=73 |year=2003 |publisher=Praeger |location=Santa Barbara, CA |isbn=978-0-27598-092-4}}</ref>
Spanish missionaries established the olive tree in California between 1769 and 1795 at Mission San Diego de Alcalá. Orchards were started at other missions, but by 1838, only two olive orchards were confirmed in California. Cultivation for oil gradually became a highly successful commercial venture from the 1860s onward.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Carter |first=Nancy Carol |url=https://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/v54-3/pdf/v54-3carter.pdf |year=2008 |title=San Diego Olives: Origins of a California Industry |journal=The Journal of San Diego History |volume=54 |issue=3 |pages=138–140 |access-date=3 May 2017}}</ref><ref name="Pierce-1897">{{cite book |last=Pierce |first=Newton B. |author-link=Newton Barris Pierce |title=Yearbook of the United States Department of Agriculture 1896 |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture (U.S. Government Printing Office) |year=1897 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=biIZAQAAIAAJ |oclc=1027034631 |chapter=Olive culture in the United States |pages=371–390}}</ref>
Olive growing in the United States is primarily concentrated in warmer regions like California, Texas,<ref>{{Cite news |last=McWilliams |first=James |date=23 July 2015 |title=The Other Oil Boom |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/food/the-other-oil-boom/ |access-date=10 April 2025 |work=Texas Monthly}}</ref> New Mexico, Arizona, Georgia, and Florida. California is by far the largest olive producer in the U.S., accounting for 95 percent of domestic olives;<ref name="Agricultural Marketing Research Center">{{Cite web |title=Olives |url=https://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/fruits/olives |website=Agricultural Marketing Research Center}}</ref> as of 2021, there are roughly 36,000 acres under olive cultivation in the U.S.,<ref name="Agricultural Marketing Research Center" /> of which about 35,000 acres are in California.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 September 2019 |title=Olive trees offer gnarly, timeless beauty |url=https://www.lsuagcenter.com/profiles/tblanchard/articles/page1568990740177#:~:text=In%20the%20United%20States,%20olives%20grow%20well,way%20south%20to%20Georgia,%20Florida%20and%20Texas. |access-date=10 April 2025 |website=LSU AgCenter}}</ref> However, the industry is expanding into the southeastern U.S., with Florida and Georgia experiencing growth in olive farming.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 August 2020 |title=America's Tuscany: 9 Amazing Olive Oil Orchards to Visit in the U.S. |url=https://www.afar.com/magazine/americas-tuscany-9-amazing-olive-oil-orchards-to-visit-in-the-us |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=AFAR Media}}</ref><ref name="Agricultural Marketing Research Center" />
==== Asia ====
Olive trees were successfully introduced to Japan in 1908 on Shodo Island; located in the Seto Inland Sea, the island has a moderate climate characterised by stable year-round temperature and relatively low rainfall. It became the cradle of olive cultivation in Japan,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.town.shodoshima.lg.jp/en/index.html |title=Shodoshima Town |website=shodoshima.lg.jp |access-date=24 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170907230150/http://www.town.shodoshima.lg.jp/en/index.html |archive-date=7 September 2017 }}</ref> accounting for over 95% of the country's total production,<ref name="Olive Oil Times">{{cite web |last=Argentino |first=Christopher |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/production/tracking-the-rise-of-olive-oil-in-japan/120816 |title=Tracking the Rise of Olive Oil in Japan |website=Olive Oil Times |date=2023-06-12 |access-date=28 March 2025}}</ref> and earning the nickname "Olive Island".<ref name="Hachisu-2015">{{Cite web |last=Hachisu |first=Nancy Singleton |date=30 October 2015 |title=The island making Japan's best olive oil |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2015/10/30/food/island-making-japans-best-olive-oil/ |access-date=28 March 2025 |website=The Japan Times}}</ref> Olives play a central role in the local culture and economy, with the island's mascot and tourism merchandise reflecting olive themes.<ref name="Hachisu-2015" /> Olive cultivation has spread to other regions in Japan, namely neighboring Kagawa and Okayama and nearby Kyushu.<ref name="Olive Oil Times" /> The vast majority of Japanese growers are small-scale farmers.<ref name="Olive Oil Times" />
Since 2010,<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 September 2011 |title=Pakistan Makes Plans for Olive Oil Production |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/production/pakistan-plans-olive-oil-production/20523 |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=Olive Oil Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Pakistan has been pursuing large scale commercial olive production, which it identified as a strategic national priority to reduce dependence on foreign oils and expand economic opportunity.<ref name="oliveoiltimes.com">{{Cite web |date=20 April 2020 |title=Pakistan Bets Big on Local Olive Oil Production |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/production/pakistan-bets-big-on-local-olive-oil-production/81123 |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=Olive Oil Times}}</ref> As part of the national Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Project launched in 2019, which aimed to plant 10 billion trees to mitigate climate change and environmental degradation,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2021 |title=Pakistan's Ten Billion Tree Tsunami |url=https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/pakistans-ten-billion-tree-tsunami |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=www.unep.org}}</ref> the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government planted thousands of olives to symbolise peace and provide commercial opportunities in the war-torn region.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 February 2022 |title=In Pakistan, Efforts to Grow Olives in Underdeveloped Areas Begin to Bear Fruit |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/business/in-pakistan-efforts-to-grow-olives-in-underdeveloped-areas-begin-to-bear-fruit/105533 |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=Olive Oil Times}}</ref> By 2020, with the help of experts from Spain and Italy, Pakistan imported thousands of trees and identified 10 million acres for growing olives.<ref name="oliveoiltimes.com"/> The following year, the federal Ministry of Climate Change launched the Olive Trees Tsunami Project to plant nearly 10 million hectares of olive trees. In 2022, Pakistan announced its intention to join the International Olive Council as part of ongoing efforts to develop its domestic olive industry.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 February 2022 |title=Pakistan Set to Become Olive Council Member |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/business/pakistan-to-become-olive-council-member/105121 |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=Olive Oil Times}}</ref> As of January 2025, the country had 5.6 million cultivated olive trees, with 500,000 to 800,000 new trees planted annually, as well as 80 million wild olive trees.<ref name="Olive Oil Times-2025">{{Cite web |date=13 January 2025 |title=Pakistani Province of Punjab Announces Plan to Plant 50M Olive Trees |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/business/asia/pakistani-province-of-punjab-announces-plan-to-plant-50m-olive-trees/136504 |access-date=15 May 2025 |website=Olive Oil Times}}</ref> Punjab province plans to plant 50 million olive trees on about 9.8 million acres by 2026.<ref name="Olive Oil Times-2025" />
Commercial olive oil production started in India in 2016, following the planting of olive saplings imported from Israel in Rajasthan's Thar Desert in 2008.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/business/an-agri-marvel-takes-root-in-thar-sands/cid/1458888 |title=An agri marvel takes root in Thar sands |work=The Telegraph |date=31 October 2016 |access-date=3 March 2023 |last=Chowdhury |first=Jayanta Roy}}</ref> Production was spearheaded by Rajasthan Olive Cultivation Limited, a state government-funded agency that offered subsidies and incentives for growing olives, with support from Israeli experts.<ref>{{cite news |date=16 July 2013 |title=India's plan to become a leading olive oil producer |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-23123801 |access-date=28 March 2025 |work=BBC News}}</ref> Olive farms continued expanding into 2020 but saw a precipitous decline in size and production volume by 2023, due to the difficult climate and declining government interest and support.<ref>{{Cite news |date=6 January 2025 |title=Olive rush dries up in Rajasthan, but dreams are alive |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/olive-rush-dries-up-in-rajasthan-but-dreams-are-alive/articleshow/116973791.cms |access-date=28 March 2025 |work=The Times of India}}</ref>
==== Global expansion ====
A 2025 report by Spain's Agrobank and the Olive Oil World Congress (OOWC) found that olive oil production increased markedly outside the European Union, with non-EU producers accounting for 40 percent of global output in 2024/2025, compared to below 33 percent in 2021/2022. Fifty-eight countries across five continents produce olive oil, with the most recent growers being El Salvador, Ethiopia, Kuwait, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and North Macedonia.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-26 |title=Global Olive Oil Production Hits Record 3.5 Million Tons |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/business/global-olive-oil-production-hits-record-3-5-million-tons/142651 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=Olive Oil Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Amid ongoing climate warming, several small-scale olive production farms have been established at fairly high latitudes in Europe and North America since the early 21st century, including in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Das nördlichste Olivenöl der Welt |trans-title=The northernmost olive oil in the world |url=https://www.obst-und-garten.de/das-noerdlichste-olivenoel-der-welt,QUlEPTY3MzQyMzYmTUlEPTEwMDAx.html |access-date=2023-02-28 |website=Obst & Garten |date=26 November 2020 |language=de}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=McCarthy |first=Michael |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/britain-s-first-olive-grove-is-a-sign-of-our-hotter-times-6097129.html |title=Britain's first olive grove is a sign of our hotter times |work=The Independent |access-date=3 March 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/first-welsh-olive-grove-planted-2262852 |title=First Welsh olive grove planted on Anglesey |work=WalesOnline |date=30 April 2007 |access-date=3 March 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/olive-oil-basics/canadian-farmer-succeeds-with-olives-and-gives-kelp-seaweed-some-of-the-credit/47124 |title=Canadian Farmer Succeeds with Olives and Gives Kelp Seaweed Some of the Credit |last=Adams |first=Barbara |date=2015-03-26 |work=Olive Oil Times |access-date=2023-03-05}}</ref>
==Cultivation==
[[File:Olive niche.jpg|thumb|Areas of cultivation in green<ref name="Oteros (2014)">Oteros, Jose (2014). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261005349_Modelizacin_del_ciclo_fenolgico_reproductor_del_olivo_%28Olea_europaea_L.%29?ev=prf_pub Modelización del ciclo fenológico reproductor del olivo] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160827013607/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261005349_Modelizacin_del_ciclo_fenolgico_reproductor_del_olivo_%28Olea_europaea_L.%29?ev=prf_pub |date=2016-08-27 }}. PhD Thesis. University of Córdoba (Spain)</ref>|alt=Map of the distribution of cultivation in the Mediterranean Basin]]
The earliest evidence for the domestication of olives comes from the Chalcolithic period archaeological site of Teleilat el Ghassul in modern Jordan. Farmers in ancient times believed that olive trees would not grow well if planted more than a certain distance from the sea; Theophrastus gives 300 stadia ({{convert|55.6|km|mi|disp=or|abbr=on}}) as the limit. Modern experience does not always confirm this, and, though showing a preference for the coast, they have long been grown further inland in some areas with suitable climates, particularly in the southwestern Mediterranean (Iberia and northwest Africa) where winters are mild. An article on olive tree cultivation in Spain is brought down in Ibn al-'Awwam's 12th-century agricultural work, ''Book on Agriculture''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ibn al-'Awwam |first=Yaḥyá |author-link=Ibn al-'Awwam |title=Le livre de l'agriculture d'Ibn-al-Awam (kitab-al-felahah) |year=1864 |location=Paris |publisher=A. Franck |translator=J.-J. Clement-Mullet |pages=207–225 (ch. 7 - Article 1)|url=https://archive.org/details/lelivredelagric00algoog/page/n14/mode/2up |language=fr |oclc=780050566}} (pp. [https://archive.org/details/lelivredelagric00algoog/page/n316/mode/2up 207]–225 (Article I))</ref>
[[File:Olive trees A-3176 1.jpg|thumb|Andalucía, Spain|alt=Plantation in Andalucía, Spain]]
Olives are cultivated in many regions of the world with Mediterranean climates, such as South Africa, Chile, Peru, Pakistan, Australia, and the western United States (particularly California), as well as in areas with temperate climates such as New Zealand, Uruguay and the Córdoba Province, Argentina.<ref>''Enciclopedia Universal Europeo Americana''. Volume 15. Madrid (1981). Espasa-Calpe S.A. {{ISBN|84-239-4500-6}} (Complete Encyclopedia) and {{ISBN|84-239-4515-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Torres |first1=Mariela |last2=Pierantozzi |first2=Pierluigi |last3=Searles |first3=Peter |last4=Rousseaux |first4=M. Cecilia |last5=García-Inza |first5=Georgina |last6=Miserere |first6=Andrea |last7=Bodoira |first7=Romina |last8=Contreras |first8=Cibeles |last9=Maestri |first9=Damián |display-authors=5 |date=2017-10-27 |title=Olive Cultivation in the Southern Hemisphere: Flowering, Water Requirements and Oil Quality Responses to New Crop Environments |journal=Frontiers in Plant Science |volume=8 |article-number=1830 |doi=10.3389/fpls.2017.01830 |pmc=5663689 |pmid=29163569 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2017FrPS....8.1830T }}</ref>
[[File:Olives au marche de Toulon p1040238.jpg|thumb|right|Market in Toulon, France|alt=Olives at a market in Toulon, France]]
===Growth and propagation===
[[File:Olive Grove prunings in neat rows. Ostuni, Puglia.jpg|thumb|right|Pruned trees in Ostuni, Apulia, Italy|alt=Pruned trees in neat rows at Ostuni, Apulia, Italy]]
Olive trees show a marked preference for calcareous soils, flourishing best on limestone slopes and crags, and coastal climate conditions. They grow in any light soil, even on clay if well drained, but in rich soils, they are predisposed to disease and produce poor quality oil. (This was noted by Pliny the Elder.) Olives like hot weather and sunny positions without any shade, while temperatures below {{convert|-10|C|F}} may injure even a mature tree. They tolerate drought well because of their sturdy and extensive root systems. Olive trees can remain productive for centuries as long as they are pruned correctly and regularly.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-03-22 |title=On the Preservation and Maintenance of Monumental Olive Trees |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/world/preservation-of-monumental-olive-trees/50921 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=Olive Oil Times}}</ref>
Only a handful of olive varieties can be used to cross-pollinate. 'Pendolino' olive trees are partially self-fertile, but pollenisers are needed for a large fruit crop. Other compatible olive tree pollinators include 'Leccino' and 'Maurino'. 'Pendolino' olive trees are used extensively as pollinisers in large olive tree groves.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Marcia |title=Pendolino Olive Trees for Sale |url=https://olivesunlimited.com/portfolio-item/pendolino-olive-tree/ |access-date=2023-10-06 |website=Olives Unlimited}}</ref>
Olives are propagated by various methods. The preferred ways are cuttings and layers; the tree roots easily in favourable soil and throws up suckers from the stump when cut down. However, yields from trees grown from suckers or seeds are poor; they must be budded or grafted onto other specimens to do well.<ref>Lewington and Parker, 114.</ref> Branches of various thickness cut into lengths around {{convert|1|m|ft|abbr=on|frac=2}} planted deeply in manured ground soon vegetate. Shorter pieces are sometimes laid horizontally in shallow trenches and, when covered with a few centimetres of soil, rapidly throw up sucker-like shoots. In Greece, grafting the cultivated tree on the wild tree is a common practice. In Italy, embryonic buds, which form small swellings on the stems, are carefully excised and planted under the soil surface, where they soon form a vigorous shoot.{{citation needed|date=March 2023}}
The olive is sometimes grown from seed. To facilitate germination, the oily pericarp is first softened by slight rotting, or soaked in hot water or in an alkaline solution.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Olive |url=http://www.plantgrower.org/olive.html |access-date=2026-04-09 |website=www.plantgrower.org |language=en}}</ref>
In situations where extreme cold has damaged or killed the olive tree, the rootstock can survive and produce new shoots which in turn become new trees. In this way, olive trees can regenerate themselves. In Tuscany in 1985, a very severe frost destroyed many productive and aged olive trees and ruined many farmers' livelihoods.<ref name="Lydecker 1985 d662">{{cite news |last=Lydecker |first=Toni |title=The Italian Extra-Virgin Olive Oil Disaster |newspaper=Washington Post |date=August 18, 1985 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/food/1985/08/18/the-italian-extra-virgin-olive-oil-disaster/2a00c9bc-ce00-4c99-8714-a2a7691a09d1/ |access-date=14 January 2024}}</ref> However, new shoots appeared in the spring and, once the dead wood was removed, became the basis for new fruit-producing trees.{{citation needed|date=March 2023}}
Olives grow very slowly, and over many years, the trunk can attain a considerable diameter. A. P. de Candolle recorded one exceeding {{convert|10|m|ft|abbr=on}} in girth. The trees rarely exceed {{convert|15|m|ft|abbr=on|round=5}} in height and are generally confined to much more limited dimensions by frequent pruning. Olives are very hardy and are resistant to disease and fire. Its root system is robust and capable of regenerating the tree even if the above-ground structure is destroyed. <ref>{{Cite web |title=Olive Oil Facts {{!}} Olive Oil an Art and Science - Interesting Facts |url=https://theolivetable.com/olive-oil-facts/ |access-date=2026-04-09 |website=Extra Virgin Olive Oil {{!}} The Olive Table {{!}} Greek Olive Oil |language=en-US}}</ref>
The crop from old trees is sometimes enormous, but they seldom bear well two years in succession, and in many cases, a large harvest occurs every sixth or seventh season. Where the olive is carefully cultivated, as in Liguria, Languedoc, and Provence, the trees are regularly pruned. The pruning preserves the flower-bearing shoots of the preceding year, while keeping the tree low enough to allow the easy gathering of the fruit.
{{anchor|Pests|Diseases}} ===Pests, diseases, and weather===
{{see also |List of olive pests}}
Various pathologies can affect olives. The most serious pest is the olive fruit fly (''Dacus oleae'' or ''Bactrocera oleae'') which lays its eggs in the olive most commonly just before it becomes ripe in the autumn. The region surrounding the puncture rots, becomes brown, and takes a bitter taste, making the olive unfit for eating or for oil. For controlling the pest, the practice has been to spray with insecticides (organophosphates, e.g. dimethoate). Classic organic methods have been applied such as trapping, applying the bacterium ''Bacillus thuringiensis'', and spraying with kaolin. Such methods are obligatory for organic olives.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How Organic Olive Oil Gets Certified |url=https://bhooc.com/blogs/articles/how-organic-olive-oil-gets-certified |access-date=2026-04-09 |website=Big Horn Olive Oil}}</ref>
A fungus, ''Cycloconium oleaginum'', can infect the trees for several successive seasons, causing great damage to plantations. A species of bacterium, ''Pseudomonas savastanoi'' pv. ''oleae'',<ref name=j1>{{cite journal |last=Janse |first=J.D. |year=1982 |title=''Pseudomonas syringae'' subsp. ''savastanoi'' (ex Smith) subsp. nov., nom. rev., the bacterium causing excrescences on ''Oleaceae'' and ''Nerium oleander'' L |journal=Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol. |volume=32 |pages=166–169 |doi=10.1099/00207713-32-2-166 |issue=2 |doi-access=free}}</ref> induces tumour growth in the shoots. Certain lepidopterous caterpillars feed on the leaves and flowers. ''Xylella fastidiosa'' bacteria, which can infect citrus fruit and vines, has attacked olive trees in Apulia, southern Italy, causing olive quick decline syndrome (OQDS).<ref name="ESPM Dept">{{cite web |url=http://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/2015/02/minimizing-the-spread-of-disease-in-italys-famous-olive-trees/ |title=Minimizing the Spread of Disease in Italy's Famous Olive Trees |date=9 February 2015 |website=Our Environment at Berkeley |publisher=University of California, Berkeley |access-date=5 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-32031233 |title=Olive tree disease spreads in Italy |work=BBC News |date=2015-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Petroni |first1=Agostino |title=The Farmer Trying to Save Italy's Ancient Olive Trees |journal=Atlas Obscura |date=29 April 2021 |url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/olive-oil-disease-italy |access-date=12 May 2021}}</ref> The main vector is ''Philaenus spumarius'' (meadow spittlebug).<ref>{{Cite journal |doi=10.1007/s10658-015-0784-7 |title=The olive quick decline syndrome in south-east Italy: A threatening phytosanitary emergency |journal=European Journal of Plant Pathology |volume=144 |issue=2 |pages=235–243 |year=2015 |last1=Martelli |first1=G. P. |last2=Boscia |first2=D. |last3=Porcelli |first3=F. |last4=Saponari |first4=M. |s2cid=16126474}}</ref>
A pest that spreads through olive trees is the black scale bug, a small black scale insect that resembles a small black spot. They attach themselves firmly to olive trees and reduce the quality of the fruit; their main predators are wasps. The curculio beetle eats the edges of leaves, leaving sawtooth damage.<ref name="burr">Burr, M. (1999). ''Australian Olives. A guide for growers and producers of virgin oils'', 4th edition. {{ISBN |0-9577583-0-8}}.</ref>
Rabbits eat the bark of olive trees and can do considerable damage, especially to young trees. If the bark is removed around the entire circumference of a tree, it is likely to die. Voles and mice do damage by eating the roots. At the northern edge of their cultivation zone, for instance in northern Italy, southern France and Switzerland, olive trees suffer occasionally from frost.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.patrimoineculinaire.ch/Prodotti#471 |title=Olio d'oliva ticinese |publisher=Culinary Heritage of Switzerland |access-date=9 March 2022 |quote=Nel 1494, 1600 e 1709, gli oliveti vennero quasi completamente distrutti dal gelo. Anni dopo, furono accantonati in favore dei gelsi, così da promuovere l'allevamento dei bachi da seta. Verso la fine degli anni '80 del secolo scorso, la coltivazione dell'olivo è stata ripresa |trans-quote=In 1494, 1600 and 1709, frost destroyed almost all the olive trees. Later, they were replaced by mulberry trees to promote the breeding of silkworms. Olive cultivation in Ticino was revived at the end of the 1980s}}</ref> Gales and long-continued rains during the gathering season cause damage. In the colder Mediterranean hinterland, olive cultivation is replaced by other fruit, typically sweet chestnut.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mazzoleni |first=Stefano |title=Recent Dynamics of the Mediterranean Vegetation and Landscape |page=145 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |date=2004 |isbn=978-0-470-09370-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s88vzd9PwkkC |quote=In the coastal areas, the olive groves are tightly interwoven with low maquis, garrigue and steppe, which have been widely grazed and, consequently, burned. On the other hand, low mountains and inland hills have chestnut and mixed deciduous coppiced woods. The actual boundaries between these two different vegetation landscapes can be found at different altitudes according to local climatic conditions; higher (about 1000m asl) in the eastern and southern areas, and lower and close to the sea in the central and northern basin. |access-date=2023-01-30}}</ref>
===As an invasive species===
[[File:Invasive weeds in the adelaide hills.jpg|right|thumb|As an invasive weed, Adelaide Hills, South Australia|alt=Olives as invasive weeds, Adelaide Hills, South Australia]]
Since its first domestication, ''O. europaea'' has been spreading back to the wild from planted groves. Its original wild populations in southern Europe have been largely swamped by feral plants.<ref name=j6>{{cite journal|title=Ancient wild olives in Mediterranean forests|doi=10.1038/35099680|year=2001|last1=Lumaret|first1=Roselyne|last2=Ouazzani|first2=Noureddine|journal=Nature|volume=413|issue=6857|page=700|pmid=11607022|bibcode=2001Natur.413..700L|s2cid=4387691|doi-access=free}}</ref>
In some other parts of the world where it has been introduced, most notably South Australia, the olive has become a major weed that displaces native vegetation. In South Australia, its seeds are spread by the introduced red fox and by many bird species, including the European starling and the native emu, into woodlands, where they germinate and eventually form a dense canopy that prevents regeneration of native trees.<ref name=j7>{{cite journal|title=Feral olives (''Olea europaea'') as future woody weeds in Australia: a review|journal=Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture|volume=40|pages= 889–901|doi=10.1071/EA98141|year=2000|last1=Spennemann|first1=D.H.R.|last2=Allen|first2=L.R.|issue=6 |bibcode=2000AuJEA..40..889S }}</ref> As the climate of South Australia is very dry and bushfire prone, the oil-rich feral olive tree substantially increases the fire hazard of native sclerophyll woodlands.<ref>[http://www.pir.sa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/37900/Olives_weed.pdf Olives as Weeds] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130205144030/http://www.pir.sa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/37900/Olives_weed.pdf |date=5 February 2013 }} Animal and Plant Control Commission of South Australia</ref>
===Harvesting===
Olives are harvested in the autumn and winter. More specifically in the Northern Hemisphere, green olives are picked from the end of September to about the middle of November. In the Southern Hemisphere, green olives are picked from the middle of October to the end of November, and black olives are collected worldwide from the middle of November to the end of January or early February. In southern Europe, harvesting is done for several weeks in winter, but the time varies in each country, and with the season and the cultivar.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2026-02-27 |title=Olive Harvest 2025/2026 Europe – Production, Quality & Outlook |url=https://www.organicfarming-italy.com/en/olive-harvest-2025-2026-europe/ |access-date=2026-04-09 |language=en-US}}</ref> Large olive trees produce on average about 400 pounds of olives annually. thumb |Olive harvest in Baruffi (Impruneta, Tuscany, Italy) in 2016 Most olives today are harvested by shaking the boughs or the whole tree. Using olives found lying on the ground can result in poor quality oil, due to damage. Another method involves standing on a ladder and "milking" the olives into a sack tied around the harvester's waist. This method produces high quality oil.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.olivemuseum.com/harvest-olives.html |title=Methods for harvesting olive fruit |publisher=olivemuseum.com |access-date=2 April 2014 |archive-date=28 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131228120928/http://olivemuseum.com/harvest-olives.html}}</ref> A third method uses a device called an oli-net that wraps around the tree trunk and opens to form an umbrella-like catcher from which workers collect the fruit. Another method uses an electric tool with large tongs that spin around quickly, removing fruit from the tree.
Table olive varieties are more difficult to harvest, as workers must take care not to damage the fruit; baskets that hang around the worker's neck are used. In some places in Italy, Croatia, and Greece, olives are harvested by hand because the terrain is too mountainous for machines. As a result, the fruit is not bruised, which leads to a superior finished product. The method also involves sawing off branches, which is healthy for future production.<ref name="epikouria2006">"Unusual Olives", ''Epikouria Magazine'', Spring/Summer 2006</ref>
The amount of oil contained in the fruit differs greatly by cultivar; the pericarp is usually 60–70% oil. Typical yields are {{convert |1.5 |– |2.2 |kg |lboz |abbr=on}} of oil per tree per year.<ref name=r1>{{cite book |last1=Rackham |first1=Oliver |author1-link=Oliver Rackham |last2=Moody |first2=Jennifer Alice |title=The making of the Cretan landscape|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k4dHmA9jq4wC |year=1996|publisher=Manchester University Press |isbn=978-0-7190-3647-7}} cited in {{cite journal |last=Riley |first=F.R. |year=2002|title=Olive Oil Production on Bronze Age Crete: Nutritional properties, Processing methods, and Storage life of Minoan olive oil |doi=10.1111/1468-0092.00149 |journal=Oxford Journal of Archaeology |volume=21 |page=63}}</ref>
=== Fermentation and curing ===
[[File:GraberOliveHouseVatRoom.JPG |thumb |Vat room used for curing at Graber Olive House]]
Raw or fresh olives are naturally very bitter and astringent; to make them palatable, olives must be cured and fermented, thereby removing oleuropein, a bitter phenolic compound that can reach levels of 14% of dry matter in young olives.<ref name="Omar-2010">{{cite journal |pmid=21179340 |pmc=3002804 |year=2010 |last1=Omar |first1=S.H. |title=Oleuropein in olive and its pharmacological effects |journal=Scientia Pharmaceutica |volume=78 |issue=2 |pages=133–154 |doi=10.3797/scipharm.0912-18}} </ref> In addition to oleuropein, other phenolic compounds render freshly picked olives unpalatable and must be removed or lowered in quantity through curing and fermentation. Generally speaking, phenolics reach their peak in young fruit and are converted as the fruit matures.<ref name="epikouria2006" /> Once ripening occurs, the levels of phenolics sharply decline through their conversion to other organic products, which render some cultivars edible immediately.<ref name="Omar-2010" /> One example of an edible olive native to the island of Thasos is the ''throubes'' black olive, which becomes edible when allowed to ripen in the sun, shrivel, and fall from the tree.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.olivessa.co.za/throubes/ |title=Throubes |work=Olives South Africa |access-date=2017-03-22 |archive-date=2013-11-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131127094519/http://www.olivessa.co.za/throubes/}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=Eat Like a Man |url=http://www.esquire.com/blogs/food-for-men/martini-olive-alternative-090810 |magazine=Esquire |access-date=22 September 2011 |date=2010-09-08 }}</ref>
The curing process may take from a few days with lye, to a few months with brine or salt packing.<ref name="yada">{{cite web |first1=Sylvia |last1=Yada |first2=Linda |last2=Harris |url=https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8267.pdf |title=Olives: Safe Methods for Home Pickling |publisher=University of California, Division of Agricultural and Natural Resources |access-date=6 December 2014}}</ref> With the exception of California style and salt-cured olives, all methods of curing involve a major fermentation involving bacteria and yeast that is of equal importance to the final table olive product.<ref name="Kailis, Stanley G. 2007">{{cite book |author=Kailis, Stanley G. |author2= Harris, David John |year=2007 |title=Producing table olives |publisher= Landlinks Press}}</ref> Traditional cures, using the natural microflora on the fruit to induce fermentation, lead to two important outcomes: the leaching out and breakdown of oleuropein and other unpalatable phenolic compounds, and the generation of favourable metabolites from bacteria and yeast, such as organic acids, probiotics, glycerol, and esters, which affect the sensory properties of the final table olives.<ref name="Omar-2010" /> Mixed bacterial/yeast olive fermentations may have probiotic qualities.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/j.foodres.2012.10.004 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233986307 |title=Screening of lactic acid bacteria isolated from fermented table olives with probiotic potential |journal=Food Research International |volume=50 |pages=135–142 |year=2013 |last1=Bautista-Gallego |first1=J. |last2=Arroyo-López |first2=F.N. |last3=Rantsiou |first3=K. |last4=Jiménez-Díaz |first4=R. |last5=Garrido-Fernández |first5=A. |last6=Cocolin |first6=L. |hdl=2318/121637 |s2cid=59404600 |hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Silva |first1=T. |last2=Reto |first2=M. |last3=Sol |first3=M. |last4=Peito |first4=A. |last5=Peres |first5=C.M. |last6=Peres |first6=C. |last7=Malcata |first7=F. Xavier |title=Characterization of yeasts from Portuguese brined olives, with a focus on their potentially probiotic behavior |journal=LWT – Food Science and Technology |volume=44 |issue=6 |page=1349 |year=2011 |doi=10.1016/j.lwt.2011.01.029}}</ref> Lactic acid is the most important metabolite, as it lowers the pH, acting as a natural preservative against the growth of unwanted pathogenic species. The result is table olives which can be stored without refrigeration. Fermentations dominated by lactic acid bacteria are, therefore, the most suitable method of curing olives. Yeast-dominated fermentations produce a different suite of metabolites which provide poorer preservation, so they are corrected with an acid such as citric acid in the final processing stage to provide microbial stability.<ref name="Fernández, A. Garrido 1997"/>
The many types of preparations for table olives depend on local tastes and traditions. The most important commercial examples are listed below.
* '''Spanish or Sevillian fermentation:''' Most commonly applied to green olive preparation, around 60% of all the world's table olives are produced with this method.<ref>{{cite journal |pmid=22783248 |pmc=3390769 |year=2012 |last1=Botta |first1=C. |last2=Cocolin |first2=L. |title=Microbial dynamics and biodiversity in table olive fermentation: Culture-dependent and -independent approaches |journal=Frontiers in Microbiology |volume=3 |page=245 |doi=10.3389/fmicb.2012.00245 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Olives are soaked in lye (dilute NaOH, 2–4%) for 8–10 hours to hydrolyse the oleuropein. They are usually considered "treated" when the lye has penetrated two-thirds of the way into the fruit. They are then washed once or several times in water to remove the caustic solution and transferred to fermenting vessels full of brine at typical concentrations of 8–12% NaCl.<ref>{{cite thesis |title=Isolation and characterization of yeasts isolated from naturally fermented olives with brine bioprotective function |publisher=Laboratory of Food Microbiology, DISPA, Agrarian Faculty, University of Catania |degree=PhD in Food Science and Technology, Food Microbiology}}</ref> * Fermentation is carried out by the natural microbiota present on the olives that survive the lye treatment process. Many organisms are involved, usually reflecting the local conditions or terroir of the olives. During a typical fermentation gram-negative enterobacteria flourish in small numbers at first but are rapidly outgrown by lactic acid bacteria species such as ''Leuconostoc mesenteroides'', ''Lactobacillus plantarum'', ''Lactobacillus brevis'' and ''Pediococcus damnosus''. These bacteria produce lactic acid to help lower the pH of the brine and therefore stabilise the product against unwanted pathogenic species. A diversity of yeasts then accumulate in sufficient numbers to help complete the fermentation alongside the lactic acid bacteria. Yeasts commonly mentioned include the teleomorphs ''Pichia anomala'', ''Pichia membranifaciens'', ''Debaryomyces hansenii'' and ''Kluyveromyces marxianus''.<ref name="Fernández, A. Garrido 1997"/> * '''Sicilian or Greek fermentation:''' Applied to green, semiripe and ripe olives, they are almost identical to the Spanish type fermentation process, but the lye treatment process is skipped and the olives are placed directly in fermentation vessels full of brine (8–12% NaCl). The brine is changed on a regular basis to help remove the phenolic compounds. As the caustic treatment is avoided, lactic acid bacteria are only present in similar numbers to yeast and appear to be outdone by the abundant yeasts found on untreated olives. As very little acid is produced by the yeast fermentation, lactic, acetic, or citric acid is often added to the fermentation stage to stabilise the process.<ref name="Kailis, Stanley G. 2007"/> * '''Picholine or directly brined fermentation:''' Applied to green, semi-ripe, or ripe olives, they are soaked in lye typically for longer periods than Spanish style (e.g. 10–72 hours) until the solution has penetrated three-quarters of the way into the fruit. They are then washed and immediately brined and acid corrected with citric acid to achieve microbial stability. Fermentation still occurs carried out by acidogenic yeast and bacteria but is more subdued than other methods. The brine is changed on a regular basis to help remove the phenolic compounds, and a series of progressively stronger concentrations of salt are added until the product is fully stabilised and ready to be eaten.<ref name="Fernández, A. Garrido 1997"/> * '''Water-cured fermentation:''' Applied to green, semi-ripe, or ripe olives, these are soaked in water or weak brine and this solution is changed on a daily basis for 10–14 days. The oleuropein is naturally dissolved and leached into the water and removed during a continual soak-wash cycle. Fermentation takes place during the water treatment stage and involves a mixed yeast/bacteria ecosystem. Sometimes, the olives are lightly cracked with a blunt instrument to trigger fermentation and speed up the fermentation process. Once debittered, the olives are brined to concentrations of 8–12% NaCl and acid corrected and are then ready to eat.<ref name="Kailis, Stanley G. 2007"/> * '''Salt-cured fermentation:''' Applied only to ripe olives, since it is only a light fermentation. They are usually produced in Morocco, Turkey, and other eastern Mediterranean countries. Once picked, the olives are vigorously washed and packed in alternating layers with salt. The high concentration of salt draws the moisture out of olives, dehydrating and shriveling them until they look somewhat analogous to a raisin. Once packed in salt, fermentation is minimal and only initiated by the most halophilic yeast species such as ''Debaryomyces hansenii''. Once cured, they are sold in their natural state without any additives.<ref name="Fernández, A. Garrido 1997" /> So-called '''oil-cured olives''' are cured in salt and then soaked in oil.<ref>{{cite web |title=Oil-Cured Olives: A Kalamata Substitute? |url=https://www.cooksillustrated.com/how_tos/9998-oil-cured-olives-a-kalamata-substitute |publisher=Cooks Illustrated |date=May 2016 |access-date=27 November 2016}}</ref> * '''California or artificial ripening:''' Applied to green and semi-ripe olives, they are placed in lye and soaked. Upon their removal, they are washed in water injected with compressed air, without fermentation. This process is repeated several times until both oxygen and lye have soaked through to the stone. The repeated, saturated exposure to air oxidises the skin and flesh of the fruit, turning it black in an artificial process that mimics natural ripening. Once fully oxidised or "blackened", they are brined and acid corrected and are then ready for eating.<ref name="nyt"/><ref name="ioc"/>
==Longevity==
{{See also|List of oldest trees}}
Olive trees have been venerated for their resilience and longevity since antiquity; several specimens are reputed to be several thousand years old. However, compared to other woody plants, the exact lifespan is difficult to determine through common methods like dendrochronology (analyzing tree rings) due to the olive tree's irregular growth patterns, which can include missing annual tree rings, hollowed-out interiors, and multiple trunks.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kornei |first=Katherine |date=2024-03-09 |title=These May Be the Oldest Olive Trees in the World |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/09/science/olive-tree-oldest.html |access-date=2025-04-10 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> For example, a 2013 study revealed wide disparities among different laboratories conducting tree-ring dating of the same specimens.<ref name="Cherubini-2013">{{Cite journal |last1=Cherubini |first1=Paolo |last2=Humbel |first2=Turi |last3=Beeckman |first3=Hans |last4=Gärtner |first4=Holger |last5=Mannes |first5=David |last6=Pearson |first6=Charlotte |last7=Schoch |first7=Werner |last8=Tognetti |first8=Roberto |last9=Lev-Yadun |first9=Simcha |display-authors=5 |date=2013-01-28 |title=Olive Tree-Ring Problematic Dating: A Comparative Analysis on Santorini (Greece) |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=8 |issue=1 |article-number=e54730 |bibcode=2013PLoSO...854730C |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0054730 |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=3557290 |pmid=23382949 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Although age can be inferred from a tree's diameter, this method is imperfect due to a range of other factors that affect size and length, such as soil fertility and climatic conditions.<ref name="Cherubini-2013"/> Based on a combination of tree-ring and radiocarbon dating, olive trees have maximum ages between 300 and 500 years,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Camarero |first1=J. Julio |last2=Colangelo |first2=Michele |last3=Gracia-Balaga |first3=Adrián |last4=Ortega-Martínez |first4=Miguel A. |last5=Büntgen |first5=Ulf |date=2021-02-01 |title=Demystifying the age of old olive trees |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1125786520301417 |journal=Dendrochronologia |volume=65 |article-number=125802 |bibcode=2021Dendr..6525802C |doi=10.1016/j.dendro.2020.125802 |hdl=11563/188276}}</ref> with some research finding that most of the oldest trees live up to 700 years.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Camarero |first1=J. Julio |last2=Touchan |first2=Ramzi |last3=Valeriano |first3=Cristina |last4=Bashour |first4=Isam |last5=Stephan |first5=Jean |date=2024-04-01 |title=Dating the Noah trees to improve age estimates in centennial and millennial olive trees |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1125786524000183 |journal=Dendrochronologia |volume=84 |article-number=126181 |bibcode=2024Dendr..8426181C |doi=10.1016/j.dendro.2024.126181 |issn=1125-7865|hdl=10261/354303 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>
=== Oldest living trees ===
* An olive tree in Mouriscas, Abrantes, Portugal, ''Oliveira do Mouchão'', is one of the oldest known olive trees still alive to this day, with an estimated age of 3,350 years,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Declaração |url=http://www.icnf.pt/portal/florestas/aip/resource/docs/certificados/KNJ1-478-Declaracao.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104074841/http://www.icnf.pt/portal/florestas/aip/resource/docs/certificados/KNJ1-478-Declaracao.pdf |archive-date=2016-11-04 |access-date=2016-11-03}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=FLORESTAS — ICNF |url=http://www.icnf.pt/portal/florestas/ArvoresFicha?Processo=KNJ1/478&Concelho=&Freguesia=&Distrito= |access-date=2016-11-03 |language=pt}}</ref> planted approximately at the beginning of the Atlantic Bronze Age. * An olive tree in the city of Bar in Montenegro has an estimated age of between 2,014 and 2,480 years.<ref>{{cite web |last=Anđelković |first=Nataša |date=9 July 2022 |title=Crna Gora i priroda: Stara maslina u Baru - majka, hraniteljica i sveto drvo |url=https://www.bbc.com/serbian/lat/balkan-61175303.amp |access-date=6 December 2022 |work=BBC News Serbian |language=Serbian}}</ref> * An olive tree on the island of Brijuni in Croatia has a radiocarbon dating age of about 1,600 years. It still gives fruit (about {{convert|30|kg|lb|abbr=on|disp=or}} per year), which is made into olive oil.<ref name="brijuni_national_park">{{cite web |title=The olive tree on Brijuni |url=https://www.np-brijuni.hr/en/explore-brijuni/sites-worth-visiting/the-olive-tree-on-brijuni |access-date=3 April 2025 |publisher=Brijuni National Park}}</ref><!--An olive tree from town Kaštel Štafilić, Dalmatia in Croatia, has been calculated to be over 1,500 years old.--> * An olive tree in west Athens, named Plato's Olive Tree, is thought to be a remnant of the grove where Plato's Academy was situated, making it an estimated 2,400 years old.<ref name="costas">{{cite web |last=Vasilopoulos |first=Costas |date=17 January 2013 |title=Plato's Sacred Olive Tree Vanished |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/world/platos-sacred-olive-tree-vanished/32262 |access-date=3 April 2025 |work=Olive Oil Times}}</ref> The tree consisted of a cavernous trunk from which a few branches were still sprouting in 1975 when a traffic accident caused a bus to uproot it.<ref name="costas" /> Following that the trunk was preserved and displayed in the nearby Agricultural University of Athens. * The age of an olive tree in Crete, the Finix Olive, is claimed to be more than 2,000 years, based on archaeological evidence around the tree.<ref name="r1" /> * The olive tree of Vouves in Crete has an age estimated at between 2,000 and 4,000 years.<ref name="west">{{cite web |title=Crete Lore |url=http://cretewest.com/Templates/cretelore.html |access-date=14 October 2017 |publisher=CreteWest.com}}</ref> * An olive tree called Farga d'Arió in Ulldecona, Catalonia, Spain, has been estimated (with laser-perimetry methods) to date back to 314 AD, which would mean that it was planted when Constantine the Great was Roman emperor.<ref name="ara">[http://www.ara.cat/societat/Certifiquen-olivera-dUlldecona-antiga-lEstat_0_1378062339.html ARA, 18 June 2015] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150620021900/http://www.ara.cat/societat/Certifiquen-olivera-dUlldecona-antiga-lEstat_0_1378062339.html|date=20 June 2015}}. ARA-diari (2015-06-18). Retrieved on 2015-06-20.</ref> * Some Italian olive trees are believed to date back to Ancient Rome (8th century BC to 5th century AD), although identifying progenitor trees in ancient sources is difficult. There are other trees about 1,000 years old in the same garden. The 15th-century trees of Olivo della Linza, at Alliste in the Province of Lecce in Apulia on the Italian mainland, were noted by Bishop Ludovico de Pennis during his pastoral visit to the Diocese of Nardò-Gallipoli in 1452.<ref>[http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/diocese/nard0.htm Diocese of Nardò–Gallipoli] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140204025801/http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/diocese/nard0.htm|date=2014-02-04}}. GCatholic.org</ref> * The village of Bcheale, Lebanon, claims to have the oldest olive trees in the world (4000 BC for the oldest), but no scientific study conclusively supports these claims. Research published in 2024 determined that at least one tree was over 1,100 years, while most others were around 500 years old.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kornei |first=Katherine |date=2024-03-09 |title=These May Be the Oldest Olive Trees in the World |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/09/science/olive-tree-oldest.html |access-date=2025-05-16 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> Trees in the towns of Amioun appear to be at least 1,500 years old.<ref>{{cite web |last=Al-BAB |date=August 2011 |title=Ancient Olive Tree |url=http://albabblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/ancient-olive-trees-of-bechealeh.html |access-date=2011-09-01}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Drinkwater |first=Carol |title=The Olive Route |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-297-84789-2}}</ref> * Several trees in the Garden of Gethsemane (from the Hebrew words ''gat shemanim'' or olive press) in Jerusalem are claimed to date back to the time of Jesus.<ref>Lewington, A. & Parker, E. (1999). ''Ancient Trees'', pp. 110–113, London: Collins & Brown Ltd. {{ISBN|1-85585-704-9}}</ref> A study conducted by the National Research Council of Italy in 2012 used carbon dating on older parts of the trunks of three trees from Gethsemane and came up with the dates of 1092, 1166 and 1198 AD, while DNA tests show that the trees were originally planted from the same parent plant.<ref name="HaaretzOlives">{{cite news |date=20 October 2012 |title=Jerusalem olive trees among oldest in world |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-20/jerusalem-olive-trees-among-oldest-in-world/4324342 |access-date=2016-01-28 |newspaper=Haaretz |agency=Reuters}}</ref> According to molecular analysis, the tested trees showed the same allelic profile at all microsatellite loci analyzed, which furthermore may indicate attempt to keep the lineage of an older species intact.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Petruccelli |first1=R. |last2=Giordano |first2=C. |last3=Salvatici |first3=M. C. |last4=Capozzoli |first4=L. |last5=Ciaccheri |first5=L. |last6=Pazzini |first6=M. |last7=Lain |first7=O. |last8=Testolin |first8=R. |last9=Cimato |first9=A. |year=2014 |title=Observation of eight ancient olive trees (''Olea europaea'' L.) growing in the Garden of Gethsemane |url=https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/biologies/articles/10.1016/j.crvi.2014.03.002/ |journal=Comptes Rendus Biologies |volume=337 |issue=5 |pages=311–317 |doi=10.1016/j.crvi.2014.03.002 |pmid=24841957}}</ref> However, Bernabei writes, "All the tree trunks are hollow inside so that the central, older wood is missing... In the end, only three from a total of eight olive trees could be successfully dated. The dated ancient olive trees do not, however, allow any hypothesis to be made with regard to the age of the remaining five giant olive trees."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bernabei |first1=Mauro |year=2015 |title=The age of the olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane |journal=Journal of Archaeological Science |volume=53 |pages=43–48 |bibcode=2015JArSc..53...43B |doi=10.1016/j.jas.2014.10.011}}</ref> Babcox concludes, "The roots of the eight oldest trees are possibly much older. Visiting guides to the garden often state that they are two thousand years old."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Babcox |first1=Wendy |year=2014 |title=Every Olive Tree in the Garden of Gethsemane |url=http://dcqr.ucpress.edu/content/3/2/111.full.pdf |journal=Departures in Critical Qualitative Research |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=111–115 |doi=10.1525/dcqr.2014.3.2.111}}{{Dead link|date=May 2024|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> * The 2,000-year-old<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=2,000-year-old Trees still producing olives |url=http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2011-08-16/news/2000-year-old-trees-still-producing-olives-297296/ |access-date=14 May 2016 |newspaper=The Malta Independent}}</ref> Bidni olive trees on Malta, which have been confirmed through carbon dating,<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Race to save endemic olive tree intensifies |url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20160809/local/race-to-save-endemic-olive-tree-intensifies.621461 |access-date=10 August 2016 |newspaper=The Times of Malta}}</ref> have been protected since 1933<ref>{{cite magazine |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=List of Historical Trees Having an Antiquarian Importance |url=https://www.mepa.org.mt/file.aspx?f=1430 |access-date=14 May 2016 |magazine=Government of Malta}}{{dead link|date=February 2024|bot=medic}}</ref> and are listed in UNESCO's Database of National Cultural Heritage Laws.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=List of Historical Trees Having an Antiquarian Importance |url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/natlaws/media/pdf/malta/malta_orderantiquetrees_enorof |access-date=14 May 2016 |magazine=UNESCO}}</ref> In 2011, after recognising their historical and landscape value, and in recognition of the fact that "only 20 trees remain from 40 at the beginning of the 20th century",<ref>{{cite report |url=https://eufunds.gov.mt/en/EU%20Funds%20Programmes/European%20Agricultural%20Fund/Documents/National%20Rural%20Development/Rural%20Development%20Programme%202007%20-%202013.pdf |title=Rural Development Programme for Malta 2007–2013 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2009 |publisher=Ministry for Resources and Rural Affairs |access-date=10 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126195656/https://eufunds.gov.mt/en/EU%20Funds%20Programmes/European%20Agricultural%20Fund/Documents/National%20Rural%20Development/Rural%20Development%20Programme%202007%20-%202013.pdf |archive-date=26 November 2021 }}</ref> Maltese authorities declared the ancient Bidni olive grove at Bidnija as a Tree Protected Area.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2011 |title=Trees and Woodlands Protection Regulations, 2011 |url=http://www.doi-archived.gov.mt/EN/gazetteonline/2011/05/gazts/GG%2024.5Mepa.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160530135011/http://www.doi-archived.gov.mt/EN/gazetteonline/2011/05/gazts/GG%2024.5Mepa.pdf |archive-date=30 May 2016 |access-date=10 May 2016 |magazine=The Government of Malta Gazette}}</ref> * The Al-Mihras olive trees of Jordan represent an ancient genetic lineage, with some specimens exceeding 1,000 years in age. Genomic sequencing identifies the cultivar as a potential ancestor to modern European varieties like ''Frantoio'' and ''Manzanilla'', while its single-nucleotide polymorphisms contribute to high oleic acid content and climate resilience. In 2024, the Al-Mihras trees were recognised by UNESCO for its historical and cultural significance.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Haddad |first=N. |display-authors=etal |title=Complete chloroplast genome sequence of historical olive (Olea europaea subsp. europaea) cultivar Mehras, in Jordan |journal=Mitochondrial DNA Part B |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=194–195 |year=2021 |doi=10.1080/23802359.2020.1866459 |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/23802359.2020.1866459}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sadder |first=M. T. |display-authors=etal |title=Complete mitochondrial genome sequence of historical olive (Olea europaea Linnaeus 1753 subsp. europaea) cultivar Mehras in Jordan |journal=Mitochondrial DNA Part B |volume=8 |issue=11 |pages=1205–1208 |year=2023 |doi=10.1080/23802359.2023.2275828 |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/23802359.2023.2275828}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Al-Mihrass tree: knowledge, skills and rituals associated with it |url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/al-mihrass-tree-knowledge-skills-and-rituals-associated-with-it-02276 |website=UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage |access-date=30 March 2026}}</ref>
<gallery mode="packed" heights="150" caption="Examples of olive trees"> File:Ulivone di Canneto Sabino.jpg|Canneto Sabino, Italy File:Olive tree Karystos2.jpg|Karystos, Euboea, Greece File:OlivaAjv.jpg|Partenit, Ukraine </gallery>
==Global production==
Olives are one of the most extensively cultivated fruit crops in the world.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://apps3.fao.org/wiews/olive/intro.jsp |title=FAO, 2004 |publisher=Apps3.fao.org |access-date=2009-05-18 |archive-date=2007-03-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070313202743/http://apps3.fao.org/wiews/olive/intro.jsp }}</ref> As of 2024, 58 countries across five continents maintain commercial olive groves,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-26 |title=Global Olive Oil Production Hits Record 3.5 Million Tons |url=https://www.oliveoiltimes.com/business/global-olive-oil-production-hits-record-3-5-million-tons/142651 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=Olive Oil Times}}</ref> which occupied roughly 11.6 million hectares (28.6 million acres), a quarter of the world's permanent cultivated area.<ref name="Fernández-Lobato-2024">{{Cite journal |last1=Fernández-Lobato |first1=L. |last2=Ruiz-Carrasco |first2=B. |last3=Tostado-Véliz |first3=M. |last4=Jurado |first4=F. |last5=Vera |first5=D. |date=2024-02-25 |title=Environmental impact of the most representative Spanish olive oil farming systems: A life cycle assessment study |journal=Journal of Cleaner Production |volume=442 |article-number=141169 |doi=10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.141169 |issn=0959-6526|doi-access=free |bibcode=2024JCPro.44241169F }}</ref> By comparison, in 2011, about {{convert|9.6|e6ha|e6acre|abbr=off}} were planted with olive trees, which was more than twice the amount of land devoted to apples, bananas, or mangoes; only coconut trees and oil palms commanded more space.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://faostat.fao.org/site/567/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=567#ancor|title=Faostat.fao.org (2012-02-23). Retrieved on 2012-07-08|access-date=2010-08-11|archive-date=2012-06-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120619130038/http://faostat.fao.org/site/567/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=567#ancor|url-status=live}}</ref> Cultivation area tripled from {{convert|2.6|to|7.95|e6ha|e6acre|abbr=off}} between 1960 and 1998 and reached a peak of {{convert|10|e6ha|e6acre|abbr=off}} in 2008. Nevertheless, olive production in the Mediterranean region has declined since 2019 due to climate, economic and political factors.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, the 10 leading producers are all in the Mediterranean region and responsible for 95% of the world's olives.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FAOSTAT |url=https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL/visualize |access-date=2024-06-02 |website=www.fao.org}}</ref> Spain is the world's leading producer and concentrates the largest land area to olive cultivation, with more than 180 million trees spanning over 2,507,684 hectares, followed by Tunisia (1,746,360 ha) and Italy (1,143,363 ha).<ref name="Fernández-Lobato-2024" /> In Italy, olive tree cultivation is widespread in the south, accounting for three quarters of its production; it is less abundant in the colder north of Italy, although growth has increased, particularly in the more temperate microclimates of Liguria and the hills around Lake Garda. Approximately 170 million plants are distributed over one million farms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.madeinsouthitalytoday.com/made-in-italy-olive-oil.php|title=Italy olive oil production|website=www.madeinsouthitalytoday.com}}</ref>
In terms of olive oil output, Spain is by far the largest producer, making up 25% of the global supply, followed by Italy, Morocco, and Tunisia.<ref>{{Cite web |title=´Olive oil global production could decrease a 20% due to global warming´ |url=https://www.oliveoilworldcongress.com/olive-oil-global-production-could-decrease-20-due-to-global-warming |access-date=2025-04-10 |website=www.oliveoilworldcongress.com}}</ref> The European Union is responsible for nearly 60% of the world's olive oil.<ref name="Fernández-Lobato-2024" /> upright=1.8|thumb|'''o'''={{convert|100,000|MT}} produced/year|alt=Map of production in the Mediterranean basin. '''o'''={{convert|100,000|MT}}/year.
{{stack begin |float=left}} {|class="wikitable sortable" |+ Main countries of production (as of 2016 per FAOSTAT)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://faostat.fao.org/|title=FAOSTAT|access-date=2010-08-11|archive-date=2013-01-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130118190636/http://faostat.fao.org/|url-status=live}}</ref> |- ! Country/Region ! Production <br /> (tonnes) ! Cultivated area <br /> (hectares) ! Yield <br /> (tonnes/ha) |- |World |style="text-align:right;"|19,267,000 |style="text-align:right;"|10,650,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1.8091 |- |{{Flag|European Union}} |style="text-align:right;"|11,686,528 |style="text-align:right;"|5,028,637 |style="text-align:right;"|2.3240 |- |{{Flag|Spain}} |style="text-align:right;"|6,560,000 |style="text-align:right;"|2,573,000 |style="text-align:right;"|2.5490 |- |{{Flag|Greece}} |style="text-align:right;"|2,343,000 |style="text-align:right;"|887,000 |style="text-align:right;"|2.6414 |- |{{Flag|Italy}} |style="text-align:right;"|2,092,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1,165,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1.7950 |- |{{Flag|Turkey}} |style="text-align:right;"|1,730,000 |style="text-align:right;"|846,000 |style="text-align:right;"|2.0460 |- |{{Flag|Morocco}} |style="text-align:right;"|1,416,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1,008,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1.4044 |- |{{Flag|Syria}} |style="text-align:right;"|899,000 |style="text-align:right;"|765,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1.1748 |- |{{Flag|Tunisia}} |style="text-align:right;"|700,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1,646,000 |style="text-align:right;"|0.4253 |- |{{Flag|Algeria}} |style="text-align:right;"|697,000 |style="text-align:right;"|424,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1.6437 |- |{{Flag|Egypt}} |style="text-align:right;"|694,000 |style="text-align:right;"|67,000 |style="text-align:right;"|6.7293 |- |{{Flag|Portugal}} |style="text-align:right;"|617,000 |style="text-align:right;"|355,000 |style="text-align:right;"|1.7394 |} {{stack end}} {{stack begin}} {{stack end}} {{clear}}
==Nutrition==
{{Infobox nutritional value |name=Olives, green |image=Olives vertes.JPG |caption=Marinated green olives |kJ=609 |protein=1.03 g |fat=15.32 g |satfat=2.029 g |monofat=11.314 g |polyfat=1.307 g |carbs=3.84 g |fibre=3.3 g |sugars=0.54 g |calcium_mg=52 |iron_mg=0.49 |magnesium_mg=11 |phosphorus_mg=4 |potassium_mg=42 |sodium_mg=1556 |thiamin_mg=0.021 |riboflavin_mg=0.007 |niacin_mg=0.237 |vitB6_mg=0.031 |folate_ug=3 |choline_mg=14.2 |vitA_ug=20 |betacarotene_ug=231 |lutein_ug=510 |vitE_mg=3.81 |vitK_ug=1.4 |opt1n=Water |opt1v=75.3 g |source_usda=1 |note=[https://web.archive.org/web/20161021095406/https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/2283?fgcd=&man=&lfacet=&count=&max=35&sort=&qlookup=olive&offset=&format=Full&new=&measureby= Full Link to USDA Database entry] }}
A {{convert|100|g|oz|frac=2|abbr=off|adj=on}} reference serving of cured green olives provides {{convert|609|kJ|kcal|abbr=off}} of food energy, are a rich source of vitamin E (25% of the Daily Value, DV), and contain a large amount of sodium (104% DV); other nutrients are insignificant. Green olives are 75% water, 15% fat, 4% carbohydrates and 1% protein (table).
=== Phytochemicals === The polyphenol composition of olive fruit varies during fruit ripening and during processing by fermentation when olives are immersed whole in brine or crushed to produce oil.<ref name=phenolexplorer45/> In raw fruit, total polyphenol contents, as measured by the Folin method, are 117 mg/100 g in black olives and 161 mg/100 g in green olives, compared to 55 and 21 mg/100 g for extra virgin and virgin olive oil, respectively.<ref name="phenolexplorer45">{{cite web|publisher=Phenol-Explorer|title=Olives and olive oil|url=http://phenol-explorer.eu/reports/45#olive|access-date=5 December 2014}}</ref> Olive fruit contains several types of polyphenols, mainly tyrosols, phenolic acids, flavonols and flavones, and for black olives, anthocyanins. The main bitter flavour of olives before curing results from oleuropein and aglycone which total in content, respectively, 72 and 82 mg/100 g in black olives, and 56 and 59 mg/100 g in green olives.<ref name=phenolexplorer45/>
During the crushing, kneading and extraction of olive fruit to obtain olive oil, oleuropein, demethyloleuropein and ligstroside are hydrolyzed by endogenous beta-glucosidases<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Romero-Segura |first1=C. |last2=García-Rodríguez |first2=R. |last3=Sanz |first3=C. |last4=Pérez |first4=A. G. |title=Virgin Olive Phenolic Profile as a Result of the Anabolic and Catabolic Enzymes Status in the Olive Fruit |url=https://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/53947/4/VOO.pdf |access-date=2023-05-18 |website=DIGITAL.CSIC}}</ref> to form aldehydes, dialdehydes, and aldehydic aglycones.<ref name="Cicerale-et-al-2008">{{cite journal |last1=Cicerale |first1=Sara |last2=Conlan |first2=Xavier A. |last3=Sinclair |first3=Andrew J. |last4=Keast |first4=Russell S. J. |title=Chemistry and Health of Olive Oil Phenolics |journal=Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition |publisher=Taylor & Francis |volume=49 |issue=3 |date=2008-12-17 |issn=1040-8398 |doi=10.1080/10408390701856223 |pages=218–236 |pmid=19093267 |bibcode=2008CRFSN..49..218C |s2cid=38244644}}</ref> Polyphenol content also varies with olive cultivar and the manner of presentation, with plain olives having higher contents than those that are stoned or stuffed.<ref name="Cicerale-et-al-2008" /><ref name="Romero-et-al-2004">{{cite journal |journal=J Agric Food Chem |year=2004 |volume=52 |issue=3 |pages=479–484 |title=Effect of cultivar and processing method on the contents of polyphenols in table olives |vauthors=Romero C, Brenes M, Yousfi K, García P, García A, Garrido A |pmid=14759136 |doi=10.1021/jf030525l |bibcode=2004JAFC...52..479R |s2cid=36821085}}</ref>
=== Allergenicity ===
Olive tree pollen is '''extremely allergenic''', with an OPALS allergy scale rating of 10 out of 10.<ref name=Ogren>{{cite book |last1=Ogren |first1=Thomas |title=The Allergy-Fighting Garden |date=2015 |publisher=Ten Speed Press |location=Berkeley, CA |isbn=978-1-60774-491-7 |page=159}}</ref> ''Olea europaea'' is primarily wind-pollinated<ref>{{cite web |last1=Polito |first1=V. |title=Pollination and Fruit Set |url=http://ceglenn.ucdavis.edu/files/90444.pdf |access-date=12 May 2015 |archive-date=4 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204120225/http://ceglenn.ucdavis.edu/files/90444.pdf }}</ref> and its buoyant pollen is a strong trigger for asthma.<ref name="Ogren" /> One popular variety, 'Swan Hill', is widely sold as an "allergy-free" olive tree; however, this variety does bloom, and it produces allergenic pollen.<ref name="Ogren" />
==Uses and properties==
The olive tree, ''Olea europaea'', has been cultivated for the olive fruit, olive oil, fine wood, olive leaf, and ornamental reasons. About 80% of all harvested olives are turned into oil, while about 20% are used as table olives.<ref name="encyclopedia1996" /> The olive is one of the "trinity" or "triad" of basic ingredients in Mediterranean cuisine, along with wheat (for bread, pasta, and couscous) and the grape (for wine).<ref>{{cite book |title=The Emergence of Civilization; The Cyclades and the Aegean in the Third Millennium B.C. |last=Renfrew |first=Colin |author-link=Colin Renfrew |year=1972 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn= 978-0-9774094-6-4 |page=280}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Essid |first=Mohamed Yassine |chapter=Chapter 2. History of Mediterranean Food |title=MediTerra: The Mediterranean Diet for Sustainable Regional Development |publisher=Presses de Sciences Po |date=2012 |isbn=978-2-7246-1248-6 |page=29 |chapter-url=http://www.cairn.info/mediterra-2012-english--9782724612486-page-51.htm}}</ref>
=== Olive oil ===
Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the resulting oil. It is most commonly used for culinary purposes, namely frying, marinating, or flavouring food or as a salad dressing. Olive oil is also used in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, soaps, and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps. Olive oil serves a ritual purpose in some religions. Pursuant to historical tradition, various Christian churches use olive oil as part of consecration ceremonies, such as administering certain sacraments and ecclesiastical functions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Sacred Role of Olive Oil in Christian Rites |url=https://www.aboutoliveoil.org/olive-oil-christian-rites |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=www.aboutoliveoil.org}}</ref>
Spain accounts for almost half of global olive oil production; other major producers are Portugal, Italy, Tunisia, Greece and Turkey.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Olive Oil Dashboard December 2020 : production |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/IOC-Olive-Oil-Dashboard-December-2020.html#production-2 |access-date=2023-11-02 |website=www.internationaloliveoil.org}}</ref> Per capita consumption is highest in Greece, followed by Italy and Spain.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Olive Oil Dashboard December 2020 : consumption |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/IOC-Olive-Oil-Dashboard-December-2020.html#consumption-1 |access-date=2023-11-02 |website=www.internationaloliveoil.org}}</ref>
The composition of olive oil varies with the cultivar, elevation, time of harvest and extraction process. It consists mainly of oleic acid (up to 83%), with smaller amounts of other fatty acids including linoleic acid (up to 21%) and palmitic acid (up to 20%). Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is required to have no more than 0.8% free acidity and fruity flavour characteristics.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Jimenez-Lopez |first1=Cecilia |last2=Carpena |first2=Maria |last3=Lourenço-Lopes |first3=Catarina |last4=Gallardo-Gomez |first4=Maria |last5=Lorenzo |first5=Jose M. |last6=Barba |first6=Francisco J. |last7=Prieto |first7=Miguel A. |last8=Simal-Gandara |first8=Jesus |date=2020-07-28 |title=Bioactive Compounds and Quality of Extra Virgin Olive Oil |journal=Foods |volume=9 |issue=8 |page=1014 |doi=10.3390/foods9081014 |issn=2304-8158 |pmc=7466243 |pmid=32731481 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
===Table olives===
{{Redirect|Black olives|the instrumental|Black Olives}} {{multiple image |align =right |direction =vertical |image1 =Olives in cup.jpg |alt1 =Olives with herbs |image2 =Grüne Oliven.jpg |alt2 =Green olives |image3 =Schwarze Oliven.jpg |alt3 =Black olives |footer =Table olives }}
Table olives are classified by the International Olive Council (IOC) into three groups according to the degree of ripeness achieved before harvesting:<ref name="nyt">{{cite news |author1=Julia Moskin |title=Olives, Flavored by Time, Seasoned With Memories |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/17/dining/17oliv.html |access-date=28 January 2020 |work=The New York Times |date=17 October 2007}}</ref> # '''Green olives''' are picked when they have obtained full size, while unripe; they are usually shades of green to yellow and contain the bitter phytochemical oleuropein.<ref name="nyt"/> # '''Semi-ripe or turning-colour olives''' are picked at the beginning of the ripening cycle, when the colour has begun to change from green to multicolour shades of red to brown. Only the skin is coloured, as the flesh of the fruit lacks pigmentation at this stage, unlike that of ripe olives. # '''Black olives''' or '''ripe olives''' are picked at full maturity when fully ripe, displaying colours of purple, brown or black.<ref name="nyt"/> To leach the oleuropein from olives, commercial producers use lye, which neutralises the bitterness of oleuropein, producing a mild flavour and soft texture characteristic of California black olives sold in cans.<ref name="nyt"/> Such olives are typically preserved in brine and sterilised under high heat during the canning process.<ref name="ioc">{{cite web |title=Olives darkened by oxidation |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/glossary/5875-olives-darkened-by-oxidation/ |publisher=International Olive Council |access-date=28 January 2020 |date=4 December 2019}}</ref>
===Olive wood===
thumb|Olivewood cookware Olive wood is very hard and tough and is prized for its durability, colour, high combustion temperature, and interesting grain patterns. Because of the commercial importance of the fruit, slow growth, and relatively small size of the tree, olive wood and its products are relatively expensive. Common uses of olive wood include kitchen utensils, carved wooden bowls, cutting boards, fine furniture, and decorative items. The yellow or light greenish-brown wood is often finely veined with a darker tint; being very hard and close-grained, it is valued by woodworkers.<ref>{{cite book|title=Edible Trees|date=1969|publisher=AnVi OpenSource Knowledge Trust|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bgUqDAAAQBAJ}}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
===Ornamental===
In modern landscape design, olive trees are frequently used as ornamental features for their distinctively gnarled trunks and evergreen silvery-grey foliage.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gardenista.com/posts/simple-landscaping-ideas-10-genius-gardens-with-an-olive-tree/|title=Genius Garden Ideas: 10 Landscapes with Olive Trees|website=www.gardenista.com|access-date=29 July 2018|date=2018-07-29}}</ref> Smaller cultivars have become increasingly popular as indoor plants due to their resilience and aesthetic appeal.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-11 |title=Trader Joe's Brought Back The $11 Mini Olive Tree Plant |url=https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/trader-joe-brought-back-11-191500711.html?guccounter=1 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=Yahoo Life |language=en-US}}</ref>
=== Olive mill wastewater === The pressing of olives to create olive oil results in a liquid byproduct known in Latin as ''amurca'' or olive mill wastewater. Owing to its bitterness and unpleasant aroma, it was historically discarded as a waste product, though multiple uses for it have been proposed.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Cuffaro |first1=Doretta |last2=Bertolini |first2=Andrea |last3=Bertini |first3=Simone |last4=Ricci |first4=Claudio |last5=Cascone |first5=Maria Grazia |last6=Danti |first6=Serena |last7=Saba |first7=Alessandro |last8=Macchia |first8=Marco |last9=Digiacomo |first9=Maria |date=2023-08-26 |title=Olive Mill Wastewater as Source of Polyphenols with Nutraceutical Properties |journal=Nutrients |volume=15 |issue=17 |pages=3746 |doi=10.3390/nu15173746 |doi-access=free |issn=2072-6643 |pmc=10489820 |pmid=37686778 |quote=OMWW is characterized by marked acidity and a high content of phenolic components, and due to these peculiarities, it can potentially be toxic to the air, microorganisms, and plants}}</ref>
=== Olive stone ===
The hard, inedible core of the olive fruit, also known as the stone, has potential applications including for biofuel, activated carbon (used for water filtration and absorption),<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Alardhi |first1=Saja M. |last2=Salih |first2=Hussein G. |last3=Ali |first3=Nisreen S. |last4=Khalbas |first4=Ali H. |last5=Salih |first5=Issam K. |last6=Saady |first6=Noori M. Cata |last7=Zendehboudi |first7=Sohrab |last8=Albayati |first8=Talib M. |last9=Harharah |first9=Hamed N. |display-authors=5 |date=2023-11-29 |title=Olive stone as an eco-friendly bio-adsorbent for elimination of methylene blue dye from industrial wastewater |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=13 |issue=1 |page=21063 |doi=10.1038/s41598-023-47319-x |pmid=38030694 |pmc=10687264 |bibcode=2023NatSR..1321063A |issn=2045-2322}}</ref> furfural production, filler, animal feed, or resin formation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Rodríguez |first1=Guillermo |last2=Lama |first2=Antonio |last3=Rodríguez |first3=Rocío |last4=Jiménez |first4=Ana |last5=Guillén |first5=Rafael |last6=Fernández-Bolaños |first6=Juan |date=2008-09-01 |title=Olive stone an attractive source of bioactive and valuable compounds |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0960852407009613 |journal=Bioresource Technology |volume=99 |issue=13 |pages=5261–5269 |doi=10.1016/j.biortech.2007.11.027 |pmid=18160280 |bibcode=2008BiTec..99.5261R |hdl=10261/347771 |issn=0960-8524|hdl-access=free }}</ref> Spain, the world's leading olive grower, produces about 400,000 tons of olive stones annually, which are mostly used as biomass for residential boilers, olive mills, and some industries.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/leading-olive-oil-producer-spain-turns-olive-stones-fuel-2024-09-12/ Leading olive oil producer Spain turns to olive stones for fuel] |Reuters</ref>
=== Environmental health and sustainability ===
Olive tree cultivation has been linked to promoting biodiversity, improving soil quality,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Perevolotsky |first1=A |last2=Seligman |first2=NG |year=1998 |title=Role of grazing in Mediterranean rangeland ecosystems |url=|journal=Bio Sci |volume=48 |issue=12 |pages=1007–1017 |doi=10.2307/1313457 |jstor=1313457 }}</ref> and mitigating climate change through carbon sequestration.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Brilli |first1=L. |last2=Lugato |first2=E. |last3=Moriondo |first3=M. |last4=Gioli |first4=B. |last5=Toscano |first5=P. |last6=Zaldei |first6=A. |display-authors=etal |year=2019 |title=Carbon sequestration capacity and productivity responses of Mediterranean olive groves under future climates and management options |journal=Mitig Adapt Strateg Global Change |volume=24 |issue=3|pages=467–91 |doi=10.1007/s11027-018-9824-x |bibcode=2019MASGC..24..467B }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mairech |first1=H. |last2=López-Bernal |first2=A. |last3=Moriondo |first3=M. |last4=Dibari |first4=C. |last5=Regni |first5=L. |last6=Proietti |first6=P. |display-authors=etal |year=2021 |title=Sustainability of olive growing in the Mediterranean area under future climate scenarios: exploring the effects of intensification and deficit irrigation |journal=European Journal of Agronomy |volume=129 |issue=|article-number=126319 |doi=10.1016/j.eja.2021.126319 |bibcode=2021EuJAg.12926319M |hdl=10396/22389 }}</ref> As long-lived perennial plants, they absorb carbon dioxide over long time frames, with groves sequestering approximately 2.2 to 4.5 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per hectare annually.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lopez-Bellido |first1=PJ |last2=Lopez-Bellido |first2=L |last3=Fernandez-Garcia |first3=P |last4=Muñoz-Romero |first4=V |last5=Lopez-Bellido |first5=FJ |year=2016 |title=Assessment of carbon sequestration and the carbon footprint in olive groves in southern Spain |url=|journal=Carbon Manag |volume=7 |issue=3–4|pages=161–170 |doi=10.1080/17583004.2016.1213126 |bibcode=2016CarM....7..161L }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Moreno |first=Francisco Javier Larraona |date=2023-10-04 |title=EXPERTS WILL GATHER AT THE IOC TO ANALYSE THE OLIVE GROVE'S FUNDAMENTAL ROLE IN ADDRESSING CLIMATE CHANGE ACTING AS A PERMANENT CO2 SINK |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/experts-will-gather-at-the-ioc-to-analyse-the-olive-groves-fundamental-role-in-addressing-climate-change-acting-as-a-permanent-co2-sink/ |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=International Olive Council }}</ref>
== Symbolic and cultural significance ==
{{main|Symbolic and cultural significance of the olive}}
[[File:Antimenes Painter - ABV 270 50 - Herakles and the boar - olive gathering - Berlin AS F 1855 - 03.jpg|thumb|upright|Greek vase showing two bearded men and a youth gathering olives from a tree, by the Antimenes Painter ({{Circa|520–510 BC}})]]
Researchers and historians have identified the olive as a defining characteristic of both ancient and contemporary Mediterranean culture, geography, and cuisine.<ref>{{cite book |last=Essid |first=Mohamed Yassine |year=2012 |chapter=Chapter 2. History of Mediterranean Food |chapter-url=http://www.cairn.info/mediterra-2012-english--9782724612486-page-51.htm |title=MediTerra: The Mediterranean Diet for Sustainable Regional Development |publisher=Presses de Sciences Po. |pages=51–69 |isbn=978-2-7246-1248-6}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Renfrew |first=Colin |author-link=Colin Renfrew |year=1972 |title=The Emergence of Civilization; The Cyclades and the Aegean in the Third Millennium B.C. |publisher=Taylor & Francis|page=280}}</ref> Georges Duhamel remarked that the "Mediterranean ends where the olive tree no longer grows".<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Olive Tree |url=https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/olive-world/olive-tree/ |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=International Olive Council}}</ref> Olives were domesticated in the third millennium BC at the latest, at which point they, along with grain and grapes, became part of Colin Renfrew's Mediterranean triad of staple crops that fueled the emergence of more complex societies.<ref name="Renfrew-1972">{{cite book |last=Renfrew |first=Colin|author-link=Colin Renfrew |title=The Emergence of Civilisation: The Cyclades and the Aegean in The Third Millennium BC |date=1 April 1972 |location=London |publisher=Methuen |isbn=0416164803 |page=280}}</ref>
<!--Ancient Greece--> In ancient Greece, olives and olive oil became a major export product during the Minoan and Mycenaean periods.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hammond |first=Norman |author-link=Norman Hammond |url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/australasia-travel/australia/the-olive-oiled-greeces-trade-with-egypt-0p8wnmf3z5h |title=The olive oiled Greece's trade with Egypt|date=28 August 2009 |work=The Times |access-date=2025-04-02}}</ref> In Egypt, these imported olive branches may have acquired ritual meanings. It is likely that olive oil was used as a perfume.<ref>World Olive Encyclopedia, International Olive Oil Council, Coordinator: José Maria Rlazquez Martinez, pp. 24.</ref> The olive was sacred to Athens and its patron deity Athena, appearing on its coinage.<ref>{{cite book |page=278 |title=Metamorphosis in Greek Myths |first=Paul M. C. |last=Forbes Irving |publisher=Clarendon Press |date=1990 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=URvXAAAAMAAJ |isbn=0-19-814730-9 |access-date=2023-01-30 |archive-date=2023-01-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230127114028/https://books.google.com/books?id=URvXAAAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref>
<!--Ancient Rome--> Roman mythology held that Hercules introduced the olive tree to Italy from North Africa, while the goddess of wisdom, Minerva, taught the art of cultivation and oil extraction.<ref name="Consortium">{{Cite web |title=Romans spread the olive tree in all the conquered territories |url=https://www.olioromaigp.it/eng/territory/history#:~:text=A%20millennial%20plant,%20in%20ancient,of%20cultivation%20and%20oil%20extraction. |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=Olio di Roma PGI}}</ref> The Roman architect and engineer Vitruvius describes of the use of charred olive wood in tying together walls and foundations in his ''De Architectura''.<ref>Pollio, Vitruvius (1914). [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_La4aAAAAYAAJ ''The Ten Books on Architecture'']. Harvard University Press, Book 1, Ch. V, Sec. 3, p. 22</ref>
<!--Judaism and Israel--> Olives were one of the main elements in ancient Israelite cuisine. Olive oil was used also for lighting, sacrificial offerings, ointment, and anointing religious and political officials.<ref name=MD23>Macdonald, Nathan (2008). ''What Did the Ancient Israelites Eat?''. William B. Eerdmans. pp. 23–24. {{ISBN|978-0-8028-6298-3}}.</ref> An olive branch was brought back to Noah by a dove to demonstrate that the flood was over.<ref>{{cite web |title=Genesis Chapter 8 KJV |url=https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Genesis-Chapter-8/#11 |quote=And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.}}</ref> Deuteronomy characterises the "Promised Land" of the Hebrews as containing olive groves and lists olives as one of the seven species that are special products of the Land of Israel.<ref>{{cite book|title=Eat and Be Satisfied: A Social History of Jewish Food|last1=Cooper|first1=John|year=1993|publisher=Jason Aronson Inc.|location=New Jersey|isbn=978-0-87668-316-3|pages=4–9}}.</ref><ref name="Shafer-Elliott-2022">{{Cite book |last=Shafer-Elliott |first=Cynthia |chapter=Fruits, Nuts, Vegetables, and Legumes |date=2022 |title=T&T Clark Handbook of Food in the Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel |pages=144–145 |editor-last=Fu |editor-first=Janling |url=https://www.bloomsburyfoodlibrary.com/encyclopedia-chapter?docid=b-9780567679826&tocid=b-9780567679826-chapter8 |access-date=2025-07-27 |series=T&T Clark Handbooks |edition=1 |place=London |publisher=T&T Clark |isbn=978-0-567-67982-6 |editor2-last=Shafer-Elliott |editor2-first=Cynthia |editor3-last=Meyers |editor3-first=Carol}}</ref> Two olive branches appear in Israel's emblem.<ref name="sacks">Mishory, Alec. ''The Israeli Emblem''. Jewish Virtual Library. [https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/emblem.html]. American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. Accessed 9 Jul. 2012.</ref> The tree was declared the unofficial national tree of Israel in 2021 by a survey of Israelis.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Surkes |first1=Sue |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/olive-voted-as-national-tree-to-mark-tu-bishvat/ |title=Olive voted as national tree to mark Tu Bishvat |website=The Times of Israel |date=28 January 2021 }}</ref>
<!--Christianity--> The olive tree, as well as its fruit and oil, play an important role in Christianity.<ref>Balfour, John Hutton (1885). [https://archive.org/details/b28065219 "Plants of the Bible"]. T. Nelson and sons</ref> Gethsemane, an olive garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives,<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195046458/page/253 |title=The Oxford Companion to the Bible |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1993 |isbn=0-19-504645-5 |editor-last=Metzger |editor-first=Bruce M. |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195046458/page/253 253] |editor2-last=Coogan |editor2-first=Michael D. |url-access=registration}}</ref> is where Jesus underwent his agonised prayer to God and was where he was betrayed and arrested before his crucifixion.<ref>{{cite web |title=Τῇ ΙΕʹ τοῦ αὐτοῦ μηνὸς Αὐγούστου |url=https://glt.goarch.org/texts/Aug/Aug15.html |website=Ἑλληνικὰ Λειτουργικὰ Κείμενα τῆς Ὀρθοδόξης Ἐκκλησίας}}</ref> <!--Islam--> The olive tree and olive oil are mentioned seven times in the Quran.<ref>{{cite book|title=Virgin Olive Oil|author=Hassouna, Viktoria |page=23|year=2010|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VBOC_RQPUvcC&pg=PA23|publisher=Books on Demand|isbn=978-3-8391-7505-7}}</ref> Olive leaves are used as incense in some Muslim Mediterranean countries.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cyprus44.com/culture/olive-leaf-burning.asp |title=Olive Leaf Burning|website=cyprus44.com |access-date=2017-02-08}}</ref>
<!--Palestine--> In Palestine, the olive tree carries symbolic connotations of resilience, health, ancestral ties, and community.<ref name="Ababneh-2023">{{Cite journal |last=Ababneh |first=Mohammad Daher |date=2023-04-08 |title=Olive Symbolism in Palestinian and Spanish Poetry: A Comparative Study |url=https://al-kindipublisher.com/index.php/ijllt/article/view/5182 |journal=International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Translation |volume=6 |issue=4 |pages=55–65 |doi=10.32996/ijllt.2023.6.4.8 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name="Sarafa-2004">{{Cite journal |last=Sarafa |first=Rami |date=2004 |title=Roots of Conflict: Felling Palestine's Olive Tress |journal=Harvard International Review |volume=26 |issue=1 |page=13 |jstor=43649049}}</ref> Olive trees are a symbol of Palestinian identity,<ref name="Ababneh-2023" /><ref name="Simaan-2017">{{Cite journal |last=Simaan |first=Juman |date=2017-10-02 |title=Olive growing in Palestine: A decolonial ethnographic study of collective daily-forms-of-resistance |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14427591.2017.1378119 |journal=Journal of Occupational Science |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=510–523 |doi=10.1080/14427591.2017.1378119 |s2cid=148876900 |issn=1442-7591}}</ref> and signify the bond between Palestinians and their land.<ref name="Ababneh-2023"/> The olive tree is a means of survival and security,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Amer |first=Ruwaida |title=The olive tree, symbol of Palestine and mute victim of Israel's war on Gaza |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/1/22/the-olive-tree-symbol-of-palestine-and-mute-victim-of-israels-war-on-gaza |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=Al Jazeera}}</ref> serving as the primary source of income for over 800,000 families and accounting for 14 percent of the Palestinian economy.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-03-11 |title=Israel's Campaign Against Palestinian Olive Trees - The Yale Review Of International Studies |url=https://yris.yira.org/column/israels-campaign-against-on-palestinian-olive-trees/ |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=yris.yira.org}}</ref> Almost half the cultivated land in the West Bank is planted with about 10 million olive trees.<ref name=Palestine>{{Cite news |author=Mohammed Haddad |name-list-style=and |author2=Zena Al Tahhan |date=14 Oct 2021 |title=Infographic: Palestine's olive industry |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/14/infographic-palestines-olive-industry |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=Al Jazeera}}</ref> The olive tree's cultural and economic significance to the Palestinians has put it at the center of the ongoing Israeli–Palestinian conflict; an estimated 800,000 olive trees have been uprooted by Israeli authorities and settlers since 1967.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-04-06 |title=Environmental Terrorism Cripples Palestinian Farmers - occupied Palestinian territory |url=https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/environmental-terrorism-cripples-palestinian-farmers |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=reliefweb.int}}</ref><ref>[https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/23/israeli-military-uproots-thousands-of-palestinian-olive-trees-in-west-bank Israeli military uproots thousands of Palestinian olive trees in West Bank]</ref>
<!--US--> During the early stage of the American Revolutionary War, the Second Continental Congress of the Thirteen American Colonies issued the "Olive Branch Petition" to Great Britain to prevent further escalation. The Great Seal of the United States, first used in 1782, depicts an eagle clutching an olive branch and arrows in its talons, indicating the power of peace and war, respectively.<ref name="usa">{{Cite web|title=Great Seal of the United States|url=https://statesymbolsusa.org/symbol-official-item/national-us/state-seal/united-states-seal|access-date=2021-02-22|website=statesymbolsusa.org|date=8 September 2014}}</ref> The eagle is portrayed as casting its gaze towards the olive branch, symbolising the United States' preference to pursue peace before war.<ref>{{Cite web |last=NMAD |date=2018-03-19 |title=The Great Seal |url=https://diplomacy.state.gov/the-great-seal/ |access-date=2025-04-10 |website=The National Museum of American Diplomacy}}</ref> Thomas Jefferson, a founding father and third president of the United States, was an admirer of olives and olive oil, regarding the tree as "the richest gift of heaven".<ref name="Monticello">{{Cite web |title=Mediterranean Journey (1787) |url=https://www.monticello.org/research-education/thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia/mediterranean-journey-1787/ |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=Monticello}}</ref>
<!--UN--> The flag of the United Nations adopted in 1946 is a world map surrounded by two olive branches.<ref name="un">{{Cite web|title=United Nations Emblem and Flag|url=https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-emblem-and-flag|access-date=2022-05-31|publisher=United Nations}}</ref> <!-- This section is just a summary of the much fuller article on Symbolic and cultural significance of the olive: please do not add anything here. If you have new material with reliable sources, add it to that article, not this one. Thanks. -->
== See also ==
* List of olive cultivars * Moria (tree) * Olive skin{{-}}
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
==External links==
{{Wiktionary}} {{Commons category multi|Olea europaea|Olives}} {{Wikiquote}}
* [https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?25555 Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture; Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN): ''Olea europaea''] * [https://www.ginartoleas.com/productos/oleas-olivos/ Most Common Spanish Olea Trees, Ginart Oleas]
{{Olives}} {{Mediterranean cuisine}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q37083}} {{Authority control}}
Olives Category:Cocktail garnishes Category:Domesticated crops Category:Drought-tolerant trees Category:Drupes Category:Flora of East Tropical Africa Category:Flora of France Category:Flora of Macaronesia Category:Flora of Northeast Tropical Africa Category:Flora of South Tropical Africa Category:Flora of Southeastern Europe Category:Flora of Southern Africa Category:Flora of Southwestern Europe Category:Flora of the Arabian Peninsula Category:Flora of the Mediterranean basin Category:Flora of the Western Indian Ocean Category:Flora of Western Asia Category:Fruit trees Category:Garden plants of Africa Category:Garden plants of Asia Category:Garden plants of Europe Category:Medicinal plants Category:Mediterranean cuisine Category:Ornamental trees Category:Plants described in 1753 Category:Plants in the Bible Category:Plants used in bonsai Category:Spanish cuisine Category:Symbols of Athena Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Category:Tree crops Category:Trees of Africa Category:Trees of Ethiopia Category:Trees of Europe Category:Trees of Mediterranean climate Category:Trees of Morocco Category:Trees of Turkey Category:Succulent plants Category:Cuisine of California <!--widespread species; include only WGSRPD regions; list from GRIN-->