The term Landrace pig, or Landrace swine, refers to any of a group of
standardized breeds of
domestic pig
The pig (''Sus domesticus''), also called swine (: swine) or hog, is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is named the domestic pig when distinguishing it from other members of the genus '' Sus''. Some authorities cons ...
, and in this context, the word "
Landrace
A landrace is a Domestication, domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural Environment (biophysical), environment of agric ...
" is typically capitalized. The original breed by this name was the
Danish Landrace pig
The Danish Landrace, , is a Danish List of pig breeds, breed of pig. It is of medium to large size, white in colour with a long body, fine hair, a long snout, and heavy drooping ears. There are two distinct varieties, the white (') and the pieba ...
, from which the others were derived through development and crossbreeding. The breed was so named because the foundation stock of the Danish Landrace were specimens from the local, free-breeding, non-
pedigreed stock of swine, i.e., the regional
landrace
A landrace is a Domestication, domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural Environment (biophysical), environment of agric ...
native to Denmark. The modern breeds are not themselves landraces, since they are formal breeds maintained through
selective breeding
Selective breeding (also called artificial selection) is the process by which humans use animal breeding and plant breeding to selectively develop particular phenotypic traits (characteristics) by choosing which typically animal or plant m ...
rather than
natural selection
Natural selection is the differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in phenotype. It is a key mechanism of evolution, the change in the Heredity, heritable traits characteristic of a population over generation ...
. The establishment and spread of the Danish breed gave the word "
landrace
A landrace is a Domestication, domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural Environment (biophysical), environment of agric ...
" to the English language (it had already existed in Danish, German, Dutch, and some other Germanic languages).
[ Based on the ''Random House Dictionary''.] Sources from the mid-20th century often mean the Danish Landrace swine in particular when referring to "Landrace" pigs, as most of the others had not been developed yet.
List of Landrace pig breeds
The most common Landrace pig breeds are:
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American Landrace pig
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Belgian Landrace pig
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British Landrace pig
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Bulgarian Landrace pig
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Canadian Landrace pig
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Danish Landrace pig
The Danish Landrace, , is a Danish List of pig breeds, breed of pig. It is of medium to large size, white in colour with a long body, fine hair, a long snout, and heavy drooping ears. There are two distinct varieties, the white (') and the pieba ...
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Dutch Landrace pig
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Estonian Landrace pig (a.k.a. Estonian Bacon pig)
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Finnish Landrace pig
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French Landrace pig
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German Landrace pig
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Italian Landrace pig
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Norwegian Landrace pig
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Polish Landrace pig
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South African Landrace pig
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Swedish Landrace pig
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Swiss Landrace pig
References
{{Landrace pig breeds navbox
Pig breeds