The term rhubarb was adopted into the English language as Rubarbe in the late fourteenth century. During that period, alternative spellings included reubarbe, rubarb, reubard, reuballe, and more. Originating from Old French rubarbe, the word can be traced back to Medieval Latin reubarbum and Ancient Greek rha barbaron, which meant “foreign rhubarb” (an intriguingly cyclical etymology). The inclusion of the letter h in the Greek version differs from the English adaptation, as the h was introduced during Middle English and officially incorporated in the eighteenth century due to the influence of the rheum plant genus. The rha component of rha barbaron is a Scythian name for the Volga River, where the vegetable was commonly imported from, while the barbaron element is related to the term barbarian – originally used as a derogatory label for individuals who were not Greek. Additionally, barbaron is evocative of the incomprehensible foreign language that Greeks perceived as unfamiliar.
