Why are peppers called peppers?

Factual Questions
1

Today’s Straight Dope column on the east and west Indies reminds of something I have wondered about. I hope it has a GQ answer.

Many years ago an old professor of mine claimed that the reason capsicum peppers are so called is that when Columbus (or more likely, some later explorer) went searching “India” for peppercorns, he didn’t find them, but brought back a second choice which he called “vegetable pepper” in, presumably, Spanish or Portuguese and then translated into other languages. For example in French, peppers are called poivrons (pepper is poivre). Does anyone know if this story is true?

2

No clue if that tale is factually correct but I have also been told that origin story.

3

The earliest quote in the OED for pepper meaning the capsicum plant is from 1578.

“1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball v. lxix. 634 The Indian Pepper [Du. Peper van Indien, Fr. Poyure d’Inde] hath square stalkes.”

Doesn’t mean that there’s not an earlier use, of course.

4

But that’s wrong!
Pepper stalks are round, green stems, just like most other vegetables.

5

Wikipedia claims without a source that Capsicum plants are called peppers because they taste hot like black peppers.

~Max

6

It’s certainly plausible. Lots of New World species got named after Old World species that they in some way resemble. And the Old World species which most closely resembles the capsicum, in the ways that matter, is pepper.

7

To expand on Chronos’ comment, the French word for another new-world plant, the potato, is pomme de terre, or “earth apple.”

And French for “llama” is girafe toute petite, or “micro-giraffe.”

(That second one is a complete fabrication. I’m pretty certain that the French word for “llama” is llama).

8

If it helps you could move to Australia and adopt the local name for them, Capsicums. :cool:

9

For that matter, Corn is another re-purposed old word.

10

In fact, you can see it fossilized in that older use in the OPs “peppercorns”.

11

Maybe he mistook it for peppermint (most of the mints have square stems).

12

Just to add to the confusion, ask for a ‘pepper’ in the UK and you will get a ‘bell pepper’. If you want the hot variety, you would need to ask for ‘chile’ or ‘chile pepper’. ‘Jalapenos’ fall somewhere in between.

13

In the US, also, if you just ask for “a pepper”, it’s likely to be a bell.

But you’re not likely to just ask for “a pepper” in the first place, unless there’s some context that makes it clear, because the different types of pepper are so different in who likes them and what they would be used for.

EDIT: Also, if it’s not clear, most peppers, including bells, jalapenos, Anaheims, cayennes, and so on, are all the same species. So a bell pepper has just as much claim to the name as one of the hotter ones.

14

However, if you ask for “pepper”, you are likely to see the waiter bring out ground peppercorns. Weird how that works.

~Max