Arrugula, sometimes spelled arugula, is also known as roquette, true rocket, rocket salad, rocket, tira, and in England as white pepper. The name "rocket" derives from the French roquette, a diminutive form of the Latin eruca, the Italian ruccetta, and medieval French Provencal roqueto. While arrugula is now the most common name for this herb, it was known as roquette for many years.
Ancient Egyptians and Romans both favored arrugula as an aphrodisiac. Prior to the 1990s, arrugula wasn't cultivated and was instead simply collected in the wild.
On the island of Ischia, an alcholic beverage called Rucolino is made from Arrugula. Rucolino is usually consumed as an after dinner drink.