Coconut
More Coconut Trivia by SmartHerbals:
The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera L.) played a critical role in the migration of humans throughout the Pacific Rim and Afro-Eurasian tropics.
Coconuts have a shiny exterior - the brown fibrous appearance comes when the husk is removed.
Coconuts were named so by the Portuguese, who saw a face in the three pores visible on a de-husked coconut fruit. Although it sort of sounds the same as the “cocoa” we use to make chocolate, the root words are completely different.
Coconut fruits are drupes (like olives, cherries), and the part we eat is equivalent to a cherry pit.
Coconuts are widely cultivated, but the domesticated variants were only developed in the Pacific, being self-pollinating dwarf trees with brightly coloured fruit.
Ancient Austronesians carried coconuts (and rice) all the way to Madagascar using trade routes that connected Southeast Asia to Madagascar and coastal east Africa.
Because the coconuts cultivated on the eastern coast of the Americas were carried by the Portuguese via the African West Coast, those regions grow “Indian Ocean Coconuts”, while the western coast grows “Pacific Ocean Coconuts”, brought there by ancient Austronesians. Although the Portuguese also carried Pacific Ocean Coconuts to Mexico.
Over 60 million tons of coconuts are cultivated each year - we use it in various forms, like coconut milk and water, shavings eaten raw or toasted, and the oil is used in cooking and for beauty products.
Sources:
Gunn BF, Baudouin L, Olsen KM (2011) Independent Origins of Cultivated Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) in the Old World Tropics. PLoS ONE 6(6): e21143. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0021143
Lutz (2011) Deep history of coconuts decoded. Washington University in St. Louis News Room. https://source.wustl.edu/2011/06/deep-history-of-coconuts-decoded/ (Media release about the above paper)
Statistica.com
Image: Adobe Stock - ggfoto
