Olive

"Olive grove" and "Olive tree" redirect here. For other uses, see Olive grove (disambiguation) and Olive tree (disambiguation).

This article is about the tree and the fruit. For other uses, see Olive (disambiguation). For olive oil, see Olive oil.

Olive Tree Olea europaea
Olea europaea, Dead Sea, Jordan
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Oleaceae
Genus:	Olea
Species:	O. europaea
Binomial name
Olea europaea L.

19th century illustration

The olive ( /ˈɑːləv/ or /ˈɒlɨv/), Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin (the adjoining coastal areas of southeastern Europe, western Asia and northern Africa) as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.

Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the Mediterranean region as the source of olive oil. The tree and its fruit give its name to the plant family, which also includes species such as lilacs, jasmine, Forsythia and the true ash trees (Fraxinus). The word derives from Latin olīva which in turn comes from the Greek ἐλαία (elaía)^[1][2] ultimately from Mycenaean Greek