Maize has an extended history. The exact date is not certain, but it is said that maize in its oldest form is at least 60,000 years old. Archeological findings of fossil pollen grain were a start to finding the origin of maize. Fossil grains were found significantly beneath Mexico City. All findings and data gathered about the maize and its ancestry seems to come from the Americas. Maize is undoubtedly an American plant if you look at its history of findings and its center of origin. (Mangelsdorf). The maize’s ancestor is a form of pod corn, similar to popcorn, but not how we are familiar with it today. Many different races of maize exist. The seeming genetic origin of maize is its ancestor, teosinte, a wild, Zea species of maize
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Tests were conducted on nine different samples of sediment which lead to the discovery that teosinte itself has 25 sub races of maize, which shows the diverse evolution of this crop. In one of these tested sediment zones a type of plant mineral, plytoliths, was present. This mineral is still present in the modern maize cobs we have today. Teosinte was also the ancestor of more than 300 various breeds of grass and all known species of Tripsacum. This would explain the different kinds of maize and corn we have today in society. Teosinte was the ground for the diverse variety of maize available to man (Piperno). In conclusion, it seems as if the origin of maize was definitely in the Americas, specifically in the Mexico area. It is seen that one specific origin, namely teosinte, can have a tremendous impact on the domestication of crops that can be seen throughout history. The domestication of maize is very drastic, and such a clear change is evident. Maize started out as pollen, seed, and grass, whereas now because of domestication, there are full cobs of corn, large and completely different in comparison to its …show more content…
2001. “Genetic Evidence and the Origin of Maize.” Latin American Antiquity, 12(01), 84–86.
Mangelsdorf, Paul C. 1954. “New Evidence on the Origin and Ancestry of Maize.” American Antiquity, 19(04), 409–410.
Piperno, D. R., and K. V. Flannery. 2001. “The Earliest Archaeological Maize (Zea Mays L.) from Highland Mexico: New Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Dates and Their Implications.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 98(04),
Tests were conducted on nine different samples of sediment which lead to the discovery that teosinte itself has 25 sub races of maize, which shows the diverse evolution of this crop. In one of these tested sediment zones a type of plant mineral, plytoliths, was present. This mineral is still present in the modern maize cobs we have today. Teosinte was also the ancestor of more than 300 various breeds of grass and all known species of Tripsacum. This would explain the different kinds of maize and corn we have today in society. Teosinte was the ground for the diverse variety of maize available to man (Piperno). In conclusion, it seems as if the origin of maize was definitely in the Americas, specifically in the Mexico area. It is seen that one specific origin, namely teosinte, can have a tremendous impact on the domestication of crops that can be seen throughout history. The domestication of maize is very drastic, and such a clear change is evident. Maize started out as pollen, seed, and grass, whereas now because of domestication, there are full cobs of corn, large and completely different in comparison to its …show more content…
2001. “Genetic Evidence and the Origin of Maize.” Latin American Antiquity, 12(01), 84–86.
Mangelsdorf, Paul C. 1954. “New Evidence on the Origin and Ancestry of Maize.” American Antiquity, 19(04), 409–410.
Piperno, D. R., and K. V. Flannery. 2001. “The Earliest Archaeological Maize (Zea Mays L.) from Highland Mexico: New Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Dates and Their Implications.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 98(04),