# Quinoa

By [reba](https://paragraph.com/@reba) · 2022-12-21

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**Quinoa** (_Chenopodium quinoa_; [/ˈkiːn.wɑː, kiˈnoʊ.ə/](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/English),[\[2\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa#cite_note-2)[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa#cite_note-3)[\[4\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa#cite_note-4) from [Quechua](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quechuan_languages) _kinwa_ or _kinuwa_)[\[5\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa#cite_note-5) is a flowering plant in the [amaranth family](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranthaceae). It is a herbaceous [annual plant](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annual_plant) grown as a [crop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crop) primarily for its edible [seeds](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seed); the seeds are rich in [protein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protein), [dietary fiber](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietary_fiber), [B vitamins](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_vitamins), and [dietary minerals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral_\(nutrient\)) in amounts greater than in many grains.[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa#cite_note-FAOquinoaancientcrop-6) Quinoa is not a [grass](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poaceae), but rather a [pseudocereal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudocereal) [botanically related](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botany) to [spinach](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinach) and [amaranth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranth) (_Amaranthus_ spp.), and originated in the [Andean region](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andes) of northwestern South America.[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa#cite_note-7) It was first used to feed livestock 5,200–7,000 years ago, and for human consumption 3,000–4,000 years ago in the [Lake Titicaca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Titicaca) basin of Peru and Bolivia.

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*Originally published on [reba](https://paragraph.com/@reba/quinoa)*