The olive tree dates back millions of years. Wild olive trees, ancestors of the domesticated ones, can still be seen in the Peloponnese, Crete, North Africa and Middle East, their places of origin.
Recent archaeological studies in the Cyclades and other regions in Greece have brought to light fossilized olive tree leaves that go back 50-60.000 years, according to modern dating methods. This places Greece among the homelands of the olive tree.