Business & Money, Essays, History, Food Science, Social Sciences 

Here for the first time in paperback, is Food in History, a world history of food from prehistoric times to today and a remarkable study of the way in which food has influenced the entire course of human development. It is packed with intriguing information and startling insights: how pepper contributed to the fall of the Roman Empire; how the turkey got its name: how a new kind of plow helped spark the Crusades; why the cow became sacred in India; why stir-frying was invented; and what cinnamon had to do with the discovery of America.

Reay Tannahill's sparkling and erudite narrative thoroughly illuminates the essential role of food in world history, showing how humanity's quest for food has shaped the development of society. This quest has profoundly influenced population growth and urban expansion, dictated economic and political theory, expanded the horizons of commerce, inspired wars of dominion, and precipitated the discovery of new worlds. Food has played a part in religion, science, technology, medicine, war, class distinction, and even in relations between people, where for 12,000 years there has been a steady undercurrent of antagonism between vegetarians and meat-eaters.

First published in 1973 and revised in 1988, Food in History offers a salutary reminder that food is still, as it has always been, not only inseparable from the history of the human race, but also essential to it. 

GT 2850 T34

Food in history
Reay Tannahil
Three Rivers Press
1988