From The Food Encyclopedia by Jacques Rolland and Carol Sherman
Small, young, fatty fish that can be eaten fresh, but are more often salted and preserved in brine or oil, or tinned in various sauces. Among the fish using the name "sardine" are pilchards from Europe and California and some members of the herring family, such as the brisling or sprat. The name probably originated because pilchards caught off the coast of Sardinia were the first to be preserved in oil.
