Cookbook talk:Nappa Cabbage

Nappa - where?
Out of interest, where is this vegetable called "nappa cabbage" other than the USA? Koreans call it baechu, and it seems that most of China calls it wombok or something similar, or maybe also petsai. In Australia, it is usually called either wombok or Chinese cabbage. Where did this "nappa" name come from? Webaware 03:08, 17 November 2006 (UTC)
 * Originally, I presumed that it was a reference to Napa Valley, California, USA. This region of the country does in fact grow a lot of produce and grows it year round.  However, given it's use in Asian cooking it seemed doubtful the term would be used outside of the USA.  Interestingly, Nappa (Dragon Ball), is a fictional cartoon character in an anime, where the name is reported to be a pun on the cabbage.  This being the case and the difference in spelling of one 'p' vs two 'p', the Napa spelling might be a mispelling that is commonly used in the USA due to our connection to the Napa valley.  The Napa valley itself is not named after the cabbage but rather the word likely has native American origins.  Perhaps someone familiar with Asian culture might know if the Chinese call it Nappa?  I believe the petsai may be a name used in French countries or those Asian countries with histories of French colonization. Psychofarm 11:42, 17 November 2006 (UTC)