Rutabaga

The rutabaga, swede (from Swedish turnip),turnip, or neep (Brassica napobrassica, or Brassica napus var. napobrassica, or Brassica napus subsp. rapifera) is a root vegetable that may have originated as a cross between the cabbage and the turnip. The roots are prepared for human food in a variety of ways, and the leaves can be eaten as a leaf vegetable. The roots and tops are also used as winter feed for livestock, when they may be fed directly, or by allowing the animals to forage the plants in the field.

Etymology

Rutabaga has many national and regional names. Rutabaga is the common North American term for the plant. This comes from the old Swedish dialectal word rotabagge, from rot (root) + bagge (short, stumpy object; probably related to bag). In the U.S., the plant is also known as Swedish turnip or yellow turnip. The term swede is used instead of rutabaga in many Commonwealth Nations, including much of England, Wales, Australia, and New Zealand. The name turnip is also used in parts of Northern and Midland England, the Westcountry (particularly Cornwall), Ireland, Manitoba, Ontario and Atlantic Canada. In Scotland, it is known as turnip, and in Scots as tumshie or neep (from Old English næp, Latin napus). Some areas of south east Scotland, such as Berwickshire and Roxburghshire, still use the term baigie, possibly a derivative of the original Swedish rutabaga. The term turnip is also used for the white turnip (Brassica rapa ssp rapa). Some will also refer to both swede and (white) turnip as just turnip (this word is also derived from næp). In North-East England, turnips and swedes are colloquially called snadgers, snaggers (archaic) or narkies.

Rutabaga (gene)

Rutabaga is the name of the gene encoding calcium-sensitive dependent adenylate cyclase in fruit flies. Rutabaga has been implicated in a number of functions, including learning and memory, behavior, and cell communication.

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