How did fruits get their names?

There is a variety of fruits in today's world. Each fruit has a name and the names are derived from foreign languages - modern and ancient. Some of these fruits have names that don't go with the fruit also.

The name gooseberry has nothing to do with geese. It was originally called gorseberry. 'Gorse' in Saxton (a language spoken by early germanic people) means 'rough'. This fruit grows on a rough or thorny shrub.

Just like the gooseberry, the fruit strawberry has no connection with straws. Strawberry is the changed name of 'strayberry'. The strawberry runners stray in all directions and hence the name.

Peaches have been around for thousands of years. This fruit made its way to Europe when the Romans were around. The Romans called it 'persicum' meaning 'Persian apples. It was traded by the Persians during that time. 

The national fruit of New Zealand kiwi was found in China. In other countries, it was called Chinese gooseberries. During the twentieth century, people called it 'kiwifruit'. Later due to its furry covering like the kiwi bird it was named as 'kiwi'. 

Pomegranates originated in tropical Asia. It later spread in the Mediterranean and middle east region The fruit got its name from the French word ‘pom grenate’ meaning seeded apple. 

Grape is the English equivalent of the Italian word 'grappo'. In Dutch and French, it was called 'grappe'. Both the words in the respective languages mean 'bunch'. The fruit generally occurs in clusters in nature.

Credits: Harini