The domestic turkey is descended mainly from the wild turkey of North America. Indigenous peoples in Mexico domesticated turkeys before European contact, and the birds later spread through Europe and other regions.
Wild turkeys belong to the species Meleagris gallopavo. Domestic turkeys were selected for traits such as large body size and rapid growth, especially for meat production. Their domestication history is distinct from that of chickens, which originated primarily from red junglefowl in Asia.
Turkeys are now raised commercially and on small farms, while wild populations remain native to North America. The name can cause geographical confusion because “turkey” is also the English name of a country, but the bird’s common name predates that association in English usage.