The word "turnip" can refer to any of the following four vegetables:
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Turnip
The turnip or white turnip (''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''rapa'') is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, fleshy taproot. The word ''turnip'' is a compound of ''turn'' as in turned/rounded on a lathe and ' ...
(white turnip, summer turnip, ''Brassica rapa rapa'')
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Rutabaga
Rutabaga (; North American English) or swede (British English and some Commonwealth English) is a root vegetable, a form of ''Brassica napus'' (which also includes rapeseed). Other names include Swedish turnip, neep (Scots), and turnip (Scott ...
(yellow turnip, ''Brassica napus'' or ''B. napobrassica'')
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Jícama
''Pachyrhizus erosus'', commonly known as jícama ( or ; Spanish ''jícama'' ; from Nahuatl ''xīcamatl'', ) Mexican turnip, is the name of a native Mexican vine, although the name most commonly refers to the plant's edible tuberous root. Jíca ...
(Mexican turnip, yam bean, sweet turnip, ''Pachyrhizus erosus'')
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Daikon
Daikon or mooli, ''Radish, Raphanus sativus'' Variety (botany), var. ''longipinnatus,'' is a mild-flavored winter radish usually characterized by fast-growing leaves and a long, white, root. Originally native to continental East Asia, daikon ...
(white radish, mooli, ''Raphanus sativus var. longipinnatus'')
Regional differences in terminology
Regional differences in terminology are summarised in the table below.
''Brassica napus'' and ''B. napobrassica'' are mostly called ''swedes'' (a shortening of ''Swedish turnip'') in England, especially in the South, and in most dialects of the Commonwealth. ''Rutabaga'', from the Swedish ''rotabagga,'' for "root bag" is mostly used in North America, in the United States and some parts of Canada. The rutabaga or swede differs from the turnip (''Brassica rapa'') in that it is typically larger and yellow-orange rather than white. In the Canadian provinces of Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador and Atlantic Canada, the yellow-fleshed variety are referred to as "turnips", whilst the white-fleshed variety are called "white turnips".
However, in some dialects of
British English
British English (BrE, en-GB, or BE) is, according to Lexico, Oxford Dictionaries, "English language, English as used in Great Britain, as distinct from that used elsewhere". More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in ...
the two vegetables have overlapping or reversed names: in the north of
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
, the larger, yellow variety may be called "yellow turnip" or "neep", while the smaller white variety are called "swede" or "white turnip". The yellow-fleshed type are known as "narkies" in Sunderland, and in past years used to be hollowed out and used as lanterns at Halloween, as was the case in Scotland, before the acceptance of the American-style Halloween pumpkin.
Other vegetables
Kohlrabi
Kohlrabi (pronounced ; scientific name ''Brassica oleracea'' Gongylodes Group (horticulture), Group), also called German turnip or turnip cabbage, is a Biennial plant, biennial vegetable, a low, stout cultivar of wild cabbage. It is a cultivar o ...
is also called German turnip, turnip cabbage or cabbage turnip,
dict.leo.org accessed 24-May-2009 12:40 PM CEST
' although there the stem, not the root, is the enlarged part.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Turnip (Disambiguation)
Brassicaceae
Plant common names