''Lonchocarpus violaceus'' is a species of evergreen tree in the family
. It is native to the
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
and northern
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
.
It has been introduced to Florida.
Its names include lilac tree, greenheart, Spanish ash, and lancepod.
According to some sources ''L. violaceus'' was used by the
Maya peoples
The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people ...
to produce the alcoholic beverage, ''
balché
''Balché'' is a mildly intoxicating beverage that was commonly consumed by the ancient Maya in what is now Mexico and upper Central America. Today, it is still common among the Yucatec Maya. The drink is made from the bark of a leguminous tree, ...
''. It is likely they are actually referring to ''
L. longistylus'' which was once synonymized with ''L. violaceus''.
References
violaceus
Flora of South America
Flora of the Caribbean
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
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