Lentil
Annual legume grown for its lens-shaped edible seeds.
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The lentil, scientifically classified as Vicia lens or Lens culinaris, is an annual legume cultivated for its lens-shaped, edible seeds, which are also called lentils. The plant typically reaches about 40 cm in height, with slender, angular, hairy stems and branches that can be erect, semi-erect, or spreading. Its leaves are alternate, oblong-linear in shape, and range from yellowish green to dark bluish green, with the upper leaves often modified into tendrils. Small flowers, which are self-pollinating, appear in clusters of one to four from the leaf axils, colored white, pink, purple, pale purple, or pale blue.
Flowering begins from the lowest buds and moves upward, taking about two weeks for all flowers on a branch to open; after three to four days, pods begin to set. The pods are oblong, slightly inflated, and about 1.5 cm long, normally containing two seeds roughly 0.5 cm in diameter. The seeds are characteristically lens-shaped and can be mottled or speckled. Lentils are hypogeal, meaning the cotyledons remain underground within the seed coat during germination, offering protection from frost, wind erosion, and insects.
The genus Vicia belongs to the subfamily Faboideae within the legume family Fabaceae. The cultivated lentil and six related wild taxa—Lens orientalis, L. tomentosus, L. lamottei, L. odemensis, L. ervoides, and L. nigricans—were formerly placed in the genus Lens, now considered a section of Vicia. Among these, L. orientalis is regarded as the progenitor of the cultivated lentil, and the two are often treated as subspecies. The English word "lentil" derives from Latin, and optical lenses are named for their resemblance to the seed's shape.
Scientific classification
- CladeTracheophytes
- CladeAngiosperms
- CladeEudicots
- CladeRosids
- OrderFabales
- FamilyFabaceae
- SubfamilyFaboideae
- GenusVicia
- SpeciesVicia lens
Named by (L.) Coss. & Germ. (1845)
Close relatives
Other species of Vicia with a Codexery entry.
- Vicia faba Vicia faba
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Lentil (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Where the lentil has been recorded
Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (12,959 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 446 inland records left out (institution coordinates). 2 isolated far-off records not drawn.
Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain)
Quick Facts
- Height
- 30 to 50 cm (12 to 20 in / 50.8 cm)
- Seed shape
- lens-shaped
- Seed diameter
- about 0.5 cm (1/4 in)
- Pollination
- self-pollinating
- Flower colors
- white
- pink
- purple
- pale purple
- or pale blue
- Pod length
- about 1.5 cm (5/8 in)
- Seeds per pod
- usually two
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The lentil is a diploid, annual, bushy herb of erect, semierect, or spreading and compact growth, normally varying from 30 to 50 centimetres in height. It has many hairy branches and a slender, angular stem. The leaves are alternate, of oblong-linear and obtuse shape, and range from yellowish green to dark bluish green.
Upper leaves are converted into tendrils, while lower leaves are mucronate. Flowers, one to four in number, arise from leaf axils on a slender footstalk and are small, white, pink, purple, pale purple, or pale blue. Pods are oblong, slightly inflated, about 1.5 cm long, and normally contain two lens-shaped seeds about 0.5 cm in diameter.
Lentils are hypogeal, meaning the cotyledons of the germinating seed stay in the ground and inside the seed coat, making them less vulnerable to frost, wind erosion, or insect attack. Flowering begins from the lowermost buds and moves upward (acropetal flowering), with about two weeks needed for all flowers to open on a single branch. After three to four days, pod setting takes place.
Reader's Guide
The lentil holds significance as a staple food in many cuisines, particularly in the Indian subcontinent where split lentils (dal) are cooked into thick curries eaten with rice or roti. Its English name derives from the Latin lens, which also gave rise to the Roman family name Lentulus and the term for optical lenses, due to the seed's shape. Taxonomically, the cultivated lentil (formerly Lens culinaris) is now considered part of the genus Vicia, with its wild progenitor being Lens orientalis (also classified as Vicia lens subsp. orientalis).
The seven related taxa are often referred to as 'taxa' rather than species or subspecies, as their classification is not broadly agreed upon. Lentils are classified for market by seed qualities such as size, shape, seed coat colour and pattern, thickness, and cotyledon colour. Major types include red lentils (with red cotyledon, often hulled), green and brown lentils (with yellow cotyledon), and specialty types such as black Beluga lentils and Puy lentils.
More in Ingredients
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Lentil (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Occurrence records: GBIF (CC0 / CC BY). Basemap: Natural Earth (public domain).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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