pernambuco

Jan. 26th, 2023 07:48 am
prettygoodword: text: words are sexy (Default)
[personal profile] prettygoodword
pernambuco (pur-nuhm-BYOO-koh, pur-nuhm-BOO-koh) - n., a thorny leguminous tree (Paubrasilia echinata) of Brazil with a reddish-orange heartwood used to make bows for stringed instruments.


And is specifically the premier wood for bows, and was also formerly used to make a red dye called brazilin. It's a type of brazilwood and, natch, a hardwood, and no brazilwood is not named after Brazil but rather the other way around (the Portuguese name for the tree is pau-brasil, wood + ember). Pernambuco is named after the state in northeastern Brazil, which was named after Lisbon-based merchant Fernão de Noronha, whose ships transported brazilwoods from there to Europe -- his name was pronounced by the Tupi-speaking locals as Pernãobuka.

---L.

Date: 2023-01-26 06:45 pm (UTC)
oracne: turtle (Default)
From: [personal profile] oracne
I knew about the wood but not all those cool other facts! Thank you!

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