Wolfberries

Goji, goji berry, or wolfberry (Chinese: 枸杞; pinyin: góuqǐ), is the fruit of either Lycium barbarum or Lycium chinense, two closely related species of boxthorn in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. L. barbarum and L. chinense fruits are similar but can be distinguished by differences in taste and sugar content. Goji, goji berry, or wolfberry (Chinese: 枸杞; pinyin: góuqǐ), is the fruit of either Lycium barbarum or Lycium chinense, two closely related species of boxthorn in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. L. barbarum and L. chinense fruits are similar but can be distinguished by differences in taste and sugar content. Both species are native to Asia, and have been long used in traditional Asian cuisine. The fruit has also been an ingredient in traditional Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Japanese medicine, since at least the 3rd century CE. The plant parts are called by the Latin names lycii fructus (fruit), herba lycii (leaves), etc., in modern official pharmacopeias. Since about 2000, goji berry and derived products became common in developed countries as health foods or alternative medicine remedies extending from exaggerated and unproven claims about their health benefits. The genus name Lycium was assigned by Linnaeus in 1753. The Latin name lycium is derived from the Greek word λυκιον (lykion), used by Pliny the Elder (23-79) and Pedanius Dioscorides (ca. 40-90) for a plant known as dyer's buckthorn, which was probably a Rhamnus species. The Greek word refers to the ancient region of Lycia (Λυκία) in Anatolia, where that plant grew. The common English name, 'wolfberry', has unknown origin. It may have arisen from the mistaken assumption that the Latin name Lycium was derived from Greek λύκος (lycos) meaning 'wolf'. In the English-speaking world, the name 'goji berry' has been used since around 2000. The word 'goji' is an approximation of the pronunciation of gǒuqǐ (pinyin for 枸杞), the name for the berry producing plant L. chinense in several Chinese dialects. In technical botanical nomenclature, L. barbarum is called matrimony vine while L. chinese is Chinese desert-thorn. Young wolfberry shoots and leaves are harvested commercially as a leaf vegetable.