food taboos
Culturally forbidden eating
Food taboos are culturally or religiously prohibited foods—things a group considers unfit to eat regardless of nutritional value.
Jews and Muslims avoid pork, Hindus avoid beef, and many cultures forbid eating dogs or insects that others consume readily.
Taboos may stem from sacred texts, disgust responses, or historical associations.
What counts as food varies dramatically across societies: Eating horse meat violates food taboos in America but not in France.
- ceremonial mealsFormal food gatherings with tradition
- cannibalismIntraspecies flesh consumption
- forbidden fruitEnticing thing that's prohibited
- acquired tasteLiking developed over time
- veganismComplete animal product abstention
Jainism · horse meat · caste · sacred cows · offal · bushmeat · raw meat · dietary laws · shark finning · clean and unclean · ritual purity · ritual slaughter · milk and meat · fasting · harvest festivals · family meals · dog meat · Lent
- cultural practicesmusic, dance, art, religion, marriage
- food culturetable manners, culinary traditions, dining etiquette, traditional foods, ethnic cuisine
- foodwaystable manners, dining etiquette, communal dining, feast, holiday meals
- religious dietshalal, dietary laws, no pork, halal meat, kosher wine
- South Asian culturecaste system, Hinduism, joint family, varna, dowry
- MediterraneanMediterranean Sea, olive grove, olive tree, olive, Aegean Sea
food taboosstaple foods
Essential regular food sources
halal · kosher · clean foods