Olive Tree History and Evolution
Giorgos Kostelenos and Apostolos Paul Kiritsakis

The olive tree, Olea derives its name from the Greek word elea, and is one of the oldest known cultivated trees in the world. It seems possible that when man first cut wild olive tree branches to kindle a fire or to use them as a weapon, he noted its potential uses as well. It is possible that when the cut branches were left partly covered on the ground, they sprouted and after a long time grew into wild olive trees. The “taming” of the wild olive and the emergence of the cultivated olive tree represents the triumph of a developing civilization (Kiritsakis, 1998). The olive tree has been cultivated for about 6,000 years in the Mediterranean basin. Unquestionably, the cultivation of the olive tree began before the written word was invented.

Archaeological studies indicate that the original centers of olive cultivation were in Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Cyprus and Crete. Paintings found in the Minoan palace of Knossos on Crete early in this century, show people consuming olives and using olive oil for cooking and as fuel in lamps. Huge clay containers (amphoras), used for the storage of olive oil in ancient times, exist even today in Knossos and Phestos. Many archaeologists believe that the wealth of the Cretan Minoan Kingdom (3500 BC-1000 BC) was due to the successful trade in olive oil. Olive tree cultivation was spread from Crete to the rest of Greece. Around 600 BC, olive tree was brought to Italy and to other Mediterranean countries from Greece or from North Africa. The olive tree was probably introduced to Spain by Greeks, Romans and Arabs. Rome expanded olive cultivation to the entire Roman empire under occupation. The olive tree was widely cultivated in southern Europe and this is where the name Olea europaea, comes from.

After the discovery of the North American continent, the olive tree was brought there by the Spanish settlers. Olive trees were first planted in California around 1800 AD, when seeds or cuttings were brought to San Diego by the Franciscan padres. In the earlier days, the cultivar from this Mission was the leading one in California. Despite the fact that Americans have also developed an olive oil-based cuisine, the local supply is still inadequate. In the 1930s and 1940s, many Californian olive groves were grafted to produce table olives, rather than oil olives. Thus, today California supplies only a small percent of the olive oil consumed in the United States. Arizona is another State with commercial acreage planted with olive trees.

In modern times the olive tree has been spread all over the world and has been successfully cultivated in many regions, previously not known to have olive trees. Olive trees are now being grown commercially in about 30 countries located mainly between a latitude of 30º and 45º. However, the Mediterranean basin, which was its ancient home, has the largest number of olive trees and is still the main source of olive oil in the world.

The Olive Culture in the Mediterranean Region

According to legend, the olive tree was a gift from the gods to the ancient Greeks. Historian Herodotus described Athens in the fifth century BC as a vast center of olive culture. Philosopher Aristotle elevated olive cultivation to a science. The olive tree was a spiritual treasure for the Greeks. Olive branches dipped in purified water were used in funeral ceremonies. A special wreath, made of olive branches wrapped with wool, was carried by singing boys during harvest festivals. The crowning wreaths (kotinos) for the winners of the ancient Olympic games, which were held at the Greek city Olympia, were made of a wild olive tree branch. Victorious athletes also received olive oil in a cup.

The olive tree was a symbol for the Romans just as it was for the Greeks and other nations. Romans and Greeks developed all aspects of olive cultivation, production and processing. It was the Romans who invented the screw press (hydraulic press) for olive fruit processing and that procedure remained mostly unchanged for about 2,000 years. Rome realized the significance of the olive tree in Africa and boosted its cultivation there. Romans considered those, who used animal fat instead of olive oil in their diet, to be barbarians. Olives were considered as one of the most useful and delectable fruits, like figs and grapes. Unquestionably olives and olive oil were the most valuable products in ancient times.

Olive oil besides being a fatty nutrient had always other various uses. It had a special place in the Orthodox Church ceremonies, it was used for the consecration of the Orthodox priests and of the kings of Greece. In Biblical history the olive tree played its role. Noah, after the waters of the flood receded, sent a dove out from the Ark. The dove came back and in its mouth the dove carried an olive branch and the olive tree was recognized as the symbol of peace thereafter.

The olive tree also played an important role in the decoration of pottery, and murals on the walls of houses. The olive tree has great historical importance because of the antiquity of its culture and the extent of its influence upon the development of Western Civilization. It is not a coincidence that Romans, Greeks, Syrians, Egyptians, Israelites, Arabs, Babylonians and many other people in ancient history were considered to be “children of the olive land” and were nourished by the fruit of the olive tree.

Many olive cultivars have been developed over the centuries. Four of the cultivars most commonly used for oil production are Koroneiki in Greece, Frantoio in Italy, Arbequina in Spain and Mission in USA. Olive cultivars differ in size and color of their fruit, and in the oil content as well as in quality. Some cultivars produce oil superior to that of most others. Thus, olives vary from cultivar to cultivar, as do apples or other fruits.

Unlike other fruit producing trees however, olive trees live to be centuries old and sometimes thousands of years old. The aged trunks in the natural environment of an olive grove are eye catching and make people appreciate the Nature’s work of art and lead them to their conservation and their characterization as areas of “ particular natural beauty” for some (Simantirakis & Lykoudi, 2001), or as “Monumental Olive Trees of the World” for others (ACOM, 2002) .

There are several monumental trees in many countries of the world (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Cyprus, Greece, etc). In Greece for example there are the olive tree of goddess Athena , of Plato, of Hippocrates. There is also the olive tree of Kalamata (Psyllakis et al., 2003) with an 8 meter perimeter, more than 800 hundred years old and is the only tree that has survived the big fire (1821-1824) in Peloponesse. In the island of Crete among the 20 ancient olive trees with an age of more than a thousand years, the famous ‘olive tree of Vouves’ is probably one of the oldest olive trees in the world, still producing some fruit, with an age estimated between 2000 and 3000 years old. This natural monument attracts many visitors every year.

Evolution of the Olive Tree from a Botanical Point of View

The olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is the most distinctive tree of the Mediterranean flora and it can be found in all of the surrounding the Mediterranean Sea countries. Native olive trees can also be found beyond the Mediterranean countries such as, Portugal on the west side and Jordan, Iraq, Iran up to Turkmenistan, on the east side.

During the evolutionary course of the olive tree, more than 1500 olive cultivars were created by man, making its expansion possible not only throughout the Mediterranean basin and the Middle East, but also even further such as the Americas, Oceania, Central and Southern Africa, Far East and Southeast Asia.

Worldwide the cultivation of the olive tree occupies more than 9.800.000 hectares and it is the 6^th most important crop for production of edible oils. Only 15% of the olive groves throughout the world are irrigated. Furthermore, about 20% of all the olive groves are considered as “marginal” because they occupy areas of low productivity, that is, areas that are not suited for other, more demanding fruit trees. Another 50% of the olive groves can be characterized as “traditional” and only 30% of the groves are “modern” – with young trees , of an intensive form and satisfactory cultivation, which give 50% of the total olive products (Lombardo,2007).

Regarding the cultivated land areas, Spain comes first in the world with approximately 2.572.500 hectares followed by Tunisia with 1.780.000, Italy 1.212.000 , Greece 900.000 , Turkey 778.000 , Morocco with 735.000 hectares and others. In the last decades the olive tree cultivation has been spread in many countries . The successful mechanization of its cultivation, mostly in the form of hyper intense linear olive groves, has found new grounds, potentials and capability for a rapid expansion of olive cultivation in countries possessing large tracts of land, but limited or costly workforce.

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