Dole Superkids
Bananas
History of Apples


Although bananas in United States supermarkets come from Latin America, their historic journey takes them all the way back to the Malaysian jungles of Southeast Asia. Can you find Southeast Asia on a map? Many people believe bananas originated in Malaysia because there are so many varieties of bananas are found there.

Bananas were likely the first fruit farmed by humans. Their history is recorded all the way back to Alexander the Great’s conquest of India, where he first discovered bananas in 327 B.C.

When Spanish explorers came to the New World, so did the banana. According to Spanish history, in 1516 Friar Tomas de Berlanga brought the first banana rootstocks and planted them in the rich fertile soil of the Caribbean.

In the 1800s, sailors brought a few stems of bananas home with them after traveling in the Caribbean. Bananas were officially introduced to Americans at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. Each banana was wrapped in foil and sold for 10 cents.

How Bananas Got Their Name

Bananas received a new name each time a different group of people discovered them. In fact, centuries ago bananas were called "banna" and "ghana" and even "funana." The people of Africa are credited with giving the banana its permanent English name.

In India, bananas were called "Fruit of the Wise Men." According to Indian legend, wise men meditated under the shady, green leaves of banana plants. Don’t you wish you had a banana plant in your back yard?