Many ancient as well as modern names are known in many languages, indicating the long history of cultivation of this plant.
China is believed to be the country of origin, since truly wild forms have been found there.
The Romans, at the beginning of the Christian Era, also were familiar with the radish. This big radish was more like the present Oriental varieties than our kinds. Some have claimed that the radish was unknown in England before 1548, but that seems hardly probable in view of its early importance among Mediterranean peoples and its ease of culture almost everywhere. Radishes were seen in Mexico about 1500 and in Haiti in 1565, indicating that they were among the first European crops introduced into the Americas by Columbus and his immediate followers. They were among the first crops grown by the English colonists in this country, and have been popular here ever since.