Hymenaea courbaril
Details Top
| Internal ID | UUID643fd6414398c574034408 |
| Scientific name | Hymenaea courbaril |
| Authority | L. |
| First published in | Sp. Pl.: 1192 (1753) |
Ethnobotanical Use Top
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Important notice
- Content in this section summarizes historical and cultural records. It is not medical advice.
- Do not use plants for self-treatment. Safety, efficacy, and appropriate use are not established here.
- Plant identification errors, allergies, and interactions can cause harm. Consult qualified professionals for health questions.
- Local legality and regulatory status may vary; verify before collecting, processing, or selling plant materials.
The resin (animé) of Hymenaea courbaril is the most widely cited ethnobotanical preparation. In the Amazon, the resin is softened in a little warm water and taken in spoonful doses as an expectorant for colds and bronchial complaints (Erickson, 1984). In the Caribbean, the resin is also made into a warm poultice and applied to bruises and wounds, and in some islands it is chewed for sore throats (Thompson and Mosby, 1985). In Northeast Brazil, the bark is boiled to a strong decoction for painful urination and urinary infections, a use also recorded in Venezuela (Zoghbi, 2002). Outside these main regions, several island herbal manuals report a leaf infusion for cough and fever in St. Lucia and the Lesser Antilles (Anderson and Lebrun, 1993).
A practical preparation is a mild leaf infusion. Put about 1 tablespoon (roughly 1–2 g) of fresh or dried H. courbaril leaves in 8 oz (240 mL) of just-boiled water, cover, and steep 10 minutes; strain and sip warm. Start with one cup daily and avoid exceeding two cups. Use bark decoctions cautiously and avoid if pregnant or nursing unless a practitioner advises otherwise. For a tincture, macerate 100 g of dried bark in 500 mL of 45% ethanol (about 1:5 weight/volume), shaking daily, and decant after 3–4 weeks; the resulting tincture is best reserved for experienced dosing under guidance. Safety notes: resin may be purgative in excess; if cough or urinary symptoms persist, stop use and seek care.
The resin contains diterpenes (including clerodane types) and essential oils—compounds consistent with its long use as an expectorant and for topical wound care (Dictionary of Natural Products). Leaves and bark are rich in flavonoids and tannins, and triterpenoid saponins are also reported for Hymenaea species, a profile that plausibly supports the astringent and anti-inflammatory effects noted in traditional contexts (Wichtl’s Herbal Drugs and Phytopharmaceuticals).
Modern interest remains strong. In Brazil, resin tinctures and standardized bark extracts are sold by reputable herbal suppliers, and research continues on their anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and wound‑healing properties (Pereira et al., 2011). At the same time, community practice persists in the Amazon and Caribbean, where bark decoctions and resin poultices continue to be the primary preparations.
General Uses Top
Suggest a correction!Common products:
Timber; derived products include flooring, decking, exterior cladding, carpentry, heavy construction, and turned objects.
Wood and fiber:
Heartwood is reddish brown with darker streaks; sapwood is narrow and yellowish. It has very high density (≈0.80 g/cm³ at 12% moisture), high tangential shrinkage (≈8.5%), and low volumetric shrinkage (≈13.5%). Representative mechanical values reported at 12% MC include modulus of rupture ≈106 MPa and modulus of elasticity ≈16 GPa. The wood is durable against decay and termites and machines and finishes well. Structural uses include sleepers, bridges, heavy framing, and flooring; general carpentry and exterior joinery are also common.
Colorants and tanning:
The bark and heartwood contain condensed tannins (proanthocyanidins) suitable as natural brown colorants for protein fibers and as tanning agents in leather processing. Color fastness is fiber-dependent.
Properties relevant to use:
Very high density and shrinkage anisotropy; high bending and compression strength; dimensional stability after drying; natural resistance to decay fungi and termites; bark and heartwood tannin content enabling leather tanning and natural dyeing.
Sustainability and sourcing:
Typically sourced from managed or second-growth forests in its native range; subject to national timber and trade controls (e.g., CITES listings for some Hymenaea spp.). Certification under FSC or PEFC where available.
Synonyms Top
| Scientific name | Authority | First published in |
|---|---|---|
| Hymenaea animifera | Stokes | Bot. Mat. Med.2: 449 (1812) |
| Hymenaea candolleana | Kunth | F.W.H.von Humboldt, A.J.A.Bonpland & C.S.Kunth, Nov. Gen. Sp.6: 323 (1824) |
| Hymenaea resinifera | Salisb. | Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton: 327 (1796) |
| Hymenaea retusa | Willd. ex Hayne | Getreue Darstell. Gew.11: t. 12 (1830) |
| Hymenaea courbaril var. obtusifolia | Ducke | Arch. Jard. Bot. Rio de Janeiro4: 47 (1925) |
| Hymenaea multiflora | Kleinhoonte | Recueil Trav. Bot. Néerl.22: 405 (1925 publ. 1926) |
| Inga megacarpa | M.E.Jones | Contr. W. Bot.15: 140 (1929) |
| Hymenaea courbarii var. stilbocarpa | (Hayne) Y.T.Lee & Langenh. | J. Arnold Arbor.55: 449 (1974) |
| Hymenaea confertifolia | Hayne | Getreue Darstell. Gew.11: t. 9 (1830) |
| Hymenaea splendida | Vogel | Linnaea11: 409 (1837) |
| Hymenaea stilbocarpa | Hayne | Getreue Darstell. Gew.11: t. 11 (1830) |
| Hymenaea courbaril var. subsessilis | Ducke | Arch. Jard. Bot. Rio de Janeiro4: 263 (1925) |
| Hymenaea courbaril var. villosa | Y.T.Lee & Andrade-Lima | J. Arnold Arbor.55: 446 (1974) |
Common names Top
Add a new one! Suggest a correction!| Language | Common/alternative name |
|---|---|
| English | stinkingtoe |
| Spanish | guapinol |
| bpy | জাটোবা |
| Finnish | amerikanjatobapuu |
| French | courbaril |
| French | jatoba |
| gn | jeta'i |
| Armenian | Ժատոբա |
| Dutch | jatoba |
| Polish | jatoba |
| Portuguese | jatobá |
| Quechua | jak'u wayaqa |
| Quechua | jakku wayaka |
| Quechua | yaku wayaqa |
| Quechua | hak'u wayaqa |
| Quechua | copal |
| Romanian | jatoba |
| Romanian | jatobá |
| Russian | Ятоба |
| Slovenian | jatoba |
| Vietnamese | tòng chi |
| Chinese | 攣葉豆 |
| Chinese | 孿葉豆 |
| Chinese | 南美攣葉豆 |
| Chinese | 南美叉叶树 |
| Chinese | 孪叶豆 |
Germination/Propagation Top
Suggest a correction or add new data!
No germination or propagation data was added yet.
Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top
Legend for the distribution data:
- Doubtful data
- Extinct
- Introduced
- Native
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Africa click to expand
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East Tropical Africa
- Kenya
- Uganda
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South Tropical Africa
- Zimbabwe
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West Tropical Africa
- Benin
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Ivory Coast
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West-central Tropical Africa
- Congo
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Western Indian Ocean
- Madagascar
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East Tropical Africa
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Asia-temperate click to expand
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China
- China Southeast
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Eastern Asia
- Taiwan
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China
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Asia-tropical click to expand
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Indian Subcontinent
- Sri Lanka
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Malesia
- Borneo
- Jawa
- Malaya
- Philippines
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Indian Subcontinent
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Northern America click to expand
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Mexico
- Mexico Central
- Mexico Gulf
- Mexico Northwest
- Mexico Southeast
- Mexico Southwest
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Mexico
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Southern America click to expand
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Brazil
- Brazil North
- Brazil Northeast
- Brazil South
- Brazil Southeast
- Brazil West-central
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Caribbean
- Cuba
- Dominican Republic
- Haiti
- Jamaica
- Leeward Islands
- Puerto Rico
- Trinidad-Tobago
- Venezuelan Antilles
- Windward Islands
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Central America
- Belize
- Costa Rica
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Nicaragua
- Panamá
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Northern South America
- French Guiana
- Guyana
- Suriname
- Venezuela
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Southern South America
- Paraguay
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Western South America
- Bolivia
- Colombia
- Peru
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Brazil
Links to other databases Top
Suggest others/fix!| Database | ID/link to page |
|---|---|
| World Flora Online | wfo-0000168642 |
| UNII | 82VR2663W9 |
| USDA Plants | HYCO |
| Tropicos | 13005950 |
| INPN | 447043 |
| KEW | urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:125420-2 |
| The Plant List | ild-1496 |
| Open Tree Of Life | 31277 |
| NCBI Taxonomy | 20676 |
| IUCN Red List | 19891869 |
| IPNI | 125420-2 |
| iNaturalist | 139075 |
| GBIF | 2950750 |
| Freebase | /m/0gv7df |
| EPPO | HMYCO |
| EOL | 416028 |
| USDA GRIN | 19489 |
| Wikipedia | Hymenaea_courbaril |
| CMAUP | NPO1766 |
Genomes (via NCBI) Top
No reference genome is available on NCBI yet. We are constantly monitoring for new data.
Scientific Literature Top
Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.
| Title | Authors | Publication | Released | IDs | ||||||
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| Hymenaea courbaril resin-mediated gold nanoparticles as catalysts in organic dyes degradation and sensors in pharmaceutical pollutants | Khan N, Durrani P, Jamila N, Nishan U, Jan MI, Ullah R, Bari A, Choi JY | Heliyon | 20-Apr-2024 |
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| Use of Plant Extracts in Polymeric Scaffolds in the Regeneration of Mandibular Injuries | de Oliveira BE, Maia FL, Massimino LC, Garcia CF, Plepis AM, Martins VD, Reis CH, Silva VR, Bezerra AA, Pauris CC, Buchaim DV, Silva YB, Buchaim RL, da Cunha MR | Pharmaceutics | 02-Apr-2024 |
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| Editorial: Abiotic stress in plants: sustainability and productivity | Scalon SD, Santos CC, Badiani M, Tabaldi LA | Front Plant Sci | 20-Mar-2024 |
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| Leaf-Level Bidirectional Exchange of Formaldehyde on Deciduous and Evergreen Tree Saplings | Shutter JD, Cox JL, Keutsch FN | ACS Earth Space Chem | 18-Mar-2024 |
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| Amazonian useful plants described in the book “Le Pays des Amazones” (1885) of the Brazilian propagandist Baron de Santa-Anna Nery: a historical and ethnobotanical perspective | Silva LN, Oliveira EC, Baratto LC | J Ethnobiol Ethnomed | 26-Feb-2024 |
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| Citizen science data on urban forageable plants: a case study in Brazil | Soares FM, Ferreira Pires L, Garcia MC, Coradin L, Ghilardi-Lopes NP, Silva RR, de Carvalho AM, Gavai A, Bouzembrak Y, Maculan BC, Koffler S, Montedo UB, Drucker DP, Santiago R, de Carvalho MC, Lima AC, Gabriel HD, de França SG, de Almeida KR, dos Santos BJ, Saraiva AM | GigaByte | 21-Feb-2024 |
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| Toxicological Profile and Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Mucoadhesive Gel from Residues of Agave sisalana and Punica granatum | Fracasso JA, Sikina IY, da Costa LT, Guarnier LP, Ribeiro-Paes JT, de Ferreira FY, de Almeida LV, de Castro Silva B, de Barros Barbosa D, Ximenes VF, Venkli D, Viel AM, dos Santos L | Gels | 30-Nov-2023 |
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| In Vitro Evaluation of Potentially Edible Brazilian Trees and Shrubs in Ruminant Nutrition | de Morais JP, Campana M, Gregorini P, Garcia TM, Minussi JF, Pereira SN, Pereira FC, Del Valle TA | Animals (Basel) | 29-Nov-2023 |
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| High variability of perezone content in rhizomes of Acourtia cordata wild plants, environmental factors related, and proteomic analysis | García Méndez MD, Encarnación-Guevara S, Martínez Batallar ÁG, Gómez-Caudillo L, Bru-Martínez R, Martínez Márquez A, Selles Marchart S, Tovar-Sánchez E, Álvarez-Berber L, Marquina Bahena S, Perea-Arango I, Arellano-García JD | PeerJ | 15-Nov-2023 |
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| Evaluation of the Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, and Anti-Biofilm Effects of the Stem Bark, Leaf, and Seed Extracts from Hymenaea courbaril and Characterization by UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS Analysis | da Cruz JE, Saldanha HC, do Nascimento AM, Borges RB, Gomes MD, Freitas GR, Leal CM, Ferreira EA, da Silva Filho AA, Morais ER | Antibiotics (Basel) | 08-Nov-2023 |
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| A new proposal for the use of the focal animal technique in buffaloes in the Eastern Amazon | da Silva WC, da Silva JA, Gouveia Júnior A, de Alvarenga AB, Barbosa AV, da Silva ÉB, Pereira dos Santos MR, Lourenço-Júnior JD, Camargo Júnior RN, Silva AG | Front Vet Sci | 08-Nov-2023 |
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| How the Adequate Choice of Plant Species Favors the Restoration Process in Areas Susceptible to Extreme Frost Events | Viveiros E, Francisco BS, Dutra FB, de Souza LA, Inocente MC, Bastos AC, da Costa GF, Barbosa MC, Martins RP, Passaretti RA, Fernandes MJ, de Oliveira JS, Shiguehara AP, Manzoli EC, Teração BS, Piotrowski I, Piña-Rodrigues FC, da Silva JM | Biology (Basel) | 26-Oct-2023 |
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| Patterns of use of wild food plants by Brazilian local communities: systematic review and meta-analysis | Gomes LC, Medeiros PM, Prata AP | J Ethnobiol Ethnomed | 25-Oct-2023 |
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| Plant parentage influences the type of timber use by traditional peoples of the Brazilian Caatinga | Pedrosa KM, Ramos MB, La Torre-Cuadros MD, Lopes SD | PLoS One | 17-Oct-2023 |
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| Meta-analysis of the responses of tree and herb to elevated CO2 in Brazil | da Silva Fortirer J, Grandis A, Pagliuso D, de Toledo Castanho C, Buckeridge MS | Sci Rep | 22-Sep-2023 |
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Phytochemical Profile Top
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Collections Top
| In private collections | 0 |
| In public collections | 0 |