Original: The Olive ( ) , Olea europaea , is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae , native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin ( the adjoining coastal areas of southeastern Europe , western Asia and northern Africa ) as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea .
Simplified: Originally it came from the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean , from Syria and the maritime parts of Asia Minor and northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea .