carp the common name applied to a limited number of species in several genera of the very extensive family Cyprinidae; especially Cyprinus carpio, the best known and the one which is usually meant when a recipe refers to ‘carp’. This is a large fish, deep-bodied and reaching a length of up to 1 m (40"). It is native to the Danube River and others which flow into the Black Sea and the Aegean, but has been very widely introduced elsewhere, indeed one might almost say everywhere, mainly because of its value as a food fish. It grows quickly and is well suited to fish-farming operations.
