peanut

The peanut (Arachis hypogaea), also known as the groundnut, goober (US, via Kikongo), goober pea, pindar (US, via Kikongo) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds, contained in underground pods. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics by small and large commercial producers, both as a grain legume and as an oil crop. Underground fruiting (geocarpy) is atypical among legumes, which led botanist Carl Linnaeus to name the species hypogaea, from Greek 'under the earth'.

The peanut belongs to the flowering plant family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), commonly known as the pea family. Like most other legumes, peanuts harbor symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria in root nodules, which improve soil fertility, making them valuable in crop rotations. Some people are allergic to peanuts and can have a fatal reaction.