JATROPHA CURCAS: INTRO
WARNING: Jatropha curcas is considered poisonous. Although this plant is used in folk medicine around the world, there have been reports of serious adverse effects—especially in young children. For your safety, please avoid consuming any part of Jatropha curcas.
I first came across Jatropha curcas, or physic nut tree, when I was staying with my auntie in Guyana…
Her tree was located outside her front door.
My auntie made a decoction from boiling Jatropha leaves in water. She gave me some to drink and said it’s “gud fuh de bady.”
She told me about the tree’s ability to rid the body of evil and how its sap turns blood red on Good Friday.
This is what inspired me to learn more about Jatropha curcas…
MEANING BEHIND THE NAME
Throughout my research, I kept hoping to find the plant’s Indigenous name—Toltec, Aztec, Carib, Arawak, or Taino. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any records (contact me if you have any resources).
Being ubiquitously referred to by its Greek-derived name, I figured I’d stick with Jatropha curcas. This sets the stage to discuss colonialism…
The name, Jatropha curcas, comes “from the Greek words iatros meaning physician and trophe meaning food.” (1)
The early colonizers named this tree for its perceived health benefits—benefits they most likely learned about from the Indigenous people they encountered.
NAMES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Read more about Jatropha Curcas below:
Sources
Missouri Botanical Garden. Jatropha Curcas - Plant Finder, http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=280092&isprofile=0&
J. Heller. Physic nut Jatropha curcas L., promoting the conservation and use of underutilized and neglected crops. (1st edn), International Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research Institute, Gartersleben (IPGRI), Rome, Italy (1996)
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/243055686_Physic_nut_Jatropha_curcas_L