Orange (fruit)

The orange, also called sweet orange to distinguish it from the <a href="/facts/Bitter_orange/3YJxyp42">bitter orange</a> (Citrus × aurantium), is the <a href="/facts/Fruit/PBpuzk60">fruit</a> of a tree in the <a href="/facts/Family_(biology)/qTrn6E8E">family</a> <a href="/facts/Rutaceae/sdC4DBWR">Rutaceae</a>. Botanically, this is the hybrid <a href="/facts/Citrus_%25C3%2597_sinensis/C7hLgb73">Citrus × sinensis</a>, between the <a href="/facts/Pomelo/uxb80y7X">pomelo</a> (Citrus maxima) and the <a href="/facts/Mandarin_orange/r1AVJlH1">mandarin orange</a> (Citrus reticulata). The <a href="/facts/Chloroplast/fo8U3yTx">chloroplast</a> <a href="/facts/Genome/tjhWET4V">genome</a>, and therefore the maternal line, is that of pomelo. There are many related hybrids including of mandarins and sweet orange. The sweet orange has had its full <a href="/facts/Whole_genome_sequencing/WNuHaU2K">genome sequenced</a>.
The orange originated in a region encompassing <a href="/facts/Northern_and_southern_China/p7vVbT3e">Southern China</a>, <a href="/facts/Northeast_India/JtFJkH2A">Northeast India</a>, and <a href="/facts/Myanmar/zcqQH2oE">Myanmar</a>; the earliest mention of the sweet orange was in <a href="/facts/Chinese_literature/X2MEqrzo">Chinese literature</a> in 314 BC. Orange trees are widely grown in tropical and subtropical areas for their sweet fruit. The fruit of the <a href="/facts/Citrus_%25C3%2597_sinensis/C7hLgb73">orange tree</a> can be eaten fresh or processed for its juice or fragrant <a href="/facts/Peel_(fruit)/p9J9Kp35">peel</a>. In 2022, 76 million <a href="/facts/Tonne/gMymLmWv">tonnes</a> of oranges were grown worldwide, with <a href="/facts/Brazil/QHkG46GL">Brazil</a> producing 22% of the total, followed by <a href="/facts/India/QW4TV4sy">India</a> and <a href="/facts/China/lTjIXY5p">China</a>.
Oranges, variously understood, have featured in human culture since ancient times. They first appear in Western art in the <a href="/facts/Arnolfini_Portrait/c8kw6xaV">Arnolfini Portrait</a> by <a href="/facts/Jan_van_Eyck/yFDqbABp">Jan van Eyck</a>, but they had been depicted in Chinese art centuries earlier, as in Zhao Lingrang's <a href="/facts/Song_dynasty/FxV5bXS5">Song dynasty</a> fan painting Yellow Oranges and Green Tangerines. By the 17th century, an orangery had become an item of prestige in Europe, as seen at the <a href="/facts/Versailles_Orangerie/cxsByCgW">Versailles Orangerie</a>. More recently, artists such as <a href="/facts/Vincent_van_Gogh/q9aWnV4l">Vincent van Gogh</a>, <a href="/facts/John_Sloan/H8pLqe94">John Sloan</a>, and <a href="/facts/Henri_Matisse/PsUTqHjP">Henri Matisse</a> included oranges in their paintings.

Orange (fruit) open-in-new

Orange (fruit)