If you do a search on "is sorghum a millet?" you'll likely come up with a negative response that pivots on sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) being botanically (taxonomically) more closely related to corn than it is to other millets. The larger botanical picture, however, is more complicated. Also, we also know that outside of North America especially, many consider sorghum among the millets - it was included in the International Year of Millets (2023) and is NAMA's millet-of-the-month in June. What is the case for including sorghum among the millets? On the botanical side, I've pointed out previously that while it is true that sorghum, like corn, is in the Andropogoneae tribe,/1 so too are adlay (Coix lacryma-jobi) and the rare but interesting Taiwan oil millet (Spodiopogon formosanus). Moreover, there are two other millets that are in an entirely different sub-family of Poaceae (the botanical grass family that includes all grains) - namely finger millet (Eleusine coracana) and teff (Erogrostis tef). WHich is to say, that they are more outliers than the Andropogoneae group. So, the botanical / taxonomic argument that sorghum should not be considered a millet doesn't really hold up. If we are to draw line between millets and not millets, it can't be solely on the basis of taxonomic proximity./2 The category of "millets" is in some ways a "folk taxonomy," largely shaped by history, culture, and language. So where does sorghum fall in these respects? Among its common names historically have been "great millet," "Indian millet," and "Egyptian millet" (although for the latter two it's possibly more complicated). On the other hand, it has also been called "Guinea corn," and one variety, "broomcorn" (the term "broomcorn millet" as I understand it, then compares proso millet - Panicum miliaceum - back to sorghum, based on the use obvious in the names). For some years, I've seen sorghum and pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum / Cenchrus americanus) grouped as "major millets" as opposed to the many "minor millets" or "small millets" which as a general rule, have their grains in hard hulls./3 In these respects, it seems hard to separate sorghum out from the millets. In terms of production and extent of cultivation, sorghum is in a class by itself. The volume of grain sorghum harvested is roughly twice that of all other millets combined. On the other hand, its production is about a tenth of that of any of the major cereal grains. In terms of water use, it is comparable to many of the millets - which is to say, it needs less to produce than major cereal grains./4 In terms of marketing and consumer acceptance as food in North America, sorghum faces similar challenges to those of other millets. The latter is, for me, the most important consideration for NAMA continuing to include sorghum among the millets. At the same time, since sorghum in the US has an important, funded infrastructure for its promotion as a crop and food, we don't need to spend as much of our limited time and resources on promoting it. Ultimately, however, we don't need a debate on whether sorghum is or isn't a millet (maybe both are true?). My personal perspective is that sorghum and each of the other millets are individual grains that can play more important roles in our agriculture and food cultures. The category of millets, even if it might be a bit more fluid and even contested at its margins, facilitates our discussion of all of them in the future of food and ag. Notes: 1. Botanical hierarchy: … > Family > Sub-family > Tribe > Genus > Species 2. On the other hand, the more recent inclusion by some in India of certain pseudo-cereals - notably amaranth and buckwheat - among the millets goes too far, in my opinion. These are in an entirely different botanical family. Some have also used the term "pseudo-millets," but this term is not generally accepted, and in any event, is redundant to the accepted term of pseudo-cereals 3. Finger millet is an interesting exception, and in some recent literature, it is grouped among the "major millets." 4. Proso millet and pearl millet, however, are the most adapted of all the millets to hot and dry conditions. Don Osborn, PhD (East Lansing, MI, US) North American Millets Alliance