Book excerpt: Wild emmer is the progenitor of most cultivated wheats and thus an important source of wheat improvement. This book draws the results from multidisciplinary studies on the ecological, genetic, genomic, agronomic, and evolutionary aspects of wild emmer, conducted at many labs around the world. It is divided into the following parts: Origin and Evolution of Wheat - Population Genetics of Wild Emmer Wheat at the Protein and DNA Levels - Genetic Resources of Wild Emmer for Wheat Improvement - Genome Organization and Genetic Mapping - Conclusions and Prospects. The authors describe the evolution of wild emmer as a model organism of a selfer in evolutionary biology, and its rich potential genetic resources for wheat improvement.