Barley is a cereal grain derived from the annual grass Hordeum vulgare. It serves as a major animal feed crop, with smaller amounts used for malting (in beer and whisky) and in wholefoods. The Oxford English Dictionary records the derivation from the Old English baerlic, although the "lic" ending may indicate it was an adjective pertaining to the crop or plant, rather than a noun. It was first recorded around 966 CE in the compound word baerlic-croft.