Banana fiber

Banana tree Musa sapientum

Description

Any of several type of fibers obtained from the leaves of banana plants from the family Musaceae. Banana plants, such as the Musa sapientum, are grown in most tropical areas, such as the Philippines, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Africa, for its fruit. Additionally, the leaves of the plant are used for making cordage, mats, paper, and paint brushes. The most important type of hemp-like banana fiber is Abaca.

Leaves from the banana tree

Synonyms and Related Terms

banana fibre (Br.); fibra de plátano (Esp.); vezel van de bananenboom (Ned); abaca; cloth from banana fibers = banana-fiber cloth; banana cloth; basho-fu;

Resources and Citations

• Encyclopedia Britannica, http://www.britannica.com Comment: "Banana." (Accessed 25 Apr. 2004).

• Van Nostrand's Scientific Encyclopedia, Douglas M. Considine (ed.), Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1976

• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997

• Zora Sweet Pinney, 'A Handle on the Terms used for Artists' Brushes', unpublished glossary, 1999

• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000

• Meredith Montague, contributed information, 1998