Lexicon of Pulse Crops integrates botanical and linguistic data to analyze and interpret the grain legume significance from the earliest archaeological and written records until the present day. Aimed at both agronomic and linguistic research communities, this book presents a database containing 9,500 common names in more than 900 languages and dialects of all ethnolinguistic families, denoting more than 1,100 botanical taxa of 14 selected pulse crop genera and species. The book begins with overviews of the world’s economically most important grain legume crops and their uncultivated relatives, as well as the world’s language families with their inner structure, including both extinct and living members. The main section of the text presents 14 specialized book chapters covering Arachis, Cajanus, Cicer, Ervum, Faba, Glycine, Lablab, Lathyrus, Lens, Lupinus, Phaseolus, Pisum, Vicia, and Vigna. They provide the reader with extensive lists of the botanically accepted species and subtaxa and surveys lexicological abundance in all world’s ethnolinguistic families, comprising extinct and living as well as natural and constructed languages, while the vernacular names for the most significant taxa are presented in comprehensive tables. Each of these chapters also presents the existing etymologies and novel approaches to deciphering the origins of common names, accompanied by one original color plate depicting possible root evolutions in the form of corresponding pulse crop plants.

Grain legumes, including common-bean, chickpea, pigeonpea, pea, cowpea, lentil and others, form important constituents of global diets, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Despite this significant role, global production has increased only marginally in the past 50 years. The slow production growth, along with a rising human population and improved buying capacity has substantially reduced the per capita availability of food legumes. Changes in environmental climate have also had significant impact on production, creating a need to identify stable donors among genetic resources for environmentally robust genes and designing crops resilient to climate change. Genetic and Genomic Resources of Grain Legume Improvement is the first book to bring together the latest resources in plant genetics and genomics to facilitate the identification of specific germplasm, trait mapping and allele mining to more effectively develop biotic and abiotic-stress-resistant grains. This book will be an invaluable resource for researchers, crop biologists and students working with crop development. - Explores origin, distribution and diversity of grain legumes - Presents information on germplasm collection, evaluation and maintenance - Offers insight into pre-breeding/germplasm enhancement efforts - Integrates genomic and genetic resources in crop improvement - Internationally contributed work

This volume provides a wide-ranging survey of all the major grain legumes.

"Provides vivid information about the history of plant exploration, migration, domestication, distribution and crop improvement"--

The common beans and pulses are diverse food resources of high nutritional value (protein, energy, fiber and vitamins and minerals) with broad social acceptance. These legume crops demonstrate global adaptability, genotypic and phenotypic diversity, and multiple means of preparation and dietary use. Beans and pulses are produced in regions as diverse as Latin America, Africa, Asia, and North America, and on a scale similar to some other crops, such as wheat, corn, rice and soybeans. Numerous factors influence utilization, including bean type and cultivar selection, cropping environment and systems, storage conditions and handling infrastructure, processing and final product preparation. Nutrient content and bio-availability are dramatically influenced by these conditions. In recent years, beans and pulses have been cited for imparting specific positive health potentiating responses, such as hypocholesteremic response, mitigation of diabetes and colonic cancer, and weight control. Enhanced dry bean utilization focused on improved dietary health is an opportunity within both subsistent and developed populations. This book provides a contemporary source of information that brings together current knowledge and practices in the value chain of beans/pulses production, processing, and nutrition. It provides in-depth coverage of a wide variety of pertinent topics including: breeding, postharvest technologies, composition, processing technologies, food safety, quality, nutrition, and significance in human health. An experienced team of over 25 contributors from North America, Asia, and Africa has written 15 chapters, divided into three sections: Overview, production and postharvest technologies of beans and pulses Composition, value-added processing and quality Culinology, nutrition, and significance in human health Contributors come from a field of diverse disciplines, including crop sciences, food science and technology, food biochemistry, food engineering, nutritional sciences, and culinology. Dry Beans and Pulses Production, Processing and Nutrition is an essential resource for scientists, processors and nutritionists, whatever the work setting.