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''Ficus sycomorus'', called the sycamore fig or the fig-mulberry (because the leaves resemble those of the
mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of 19 species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 subordinat ...
), sycamore, or sycomore, is a fig species that has been cultivated since ancient times.


Etymology and naming

The specific name came into English in the 14th century as ''sicamour'', derived from Old French ''sagremore, sicamor''. This in turn derives from Latin , from
Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...
() 'fig-mulberry'. The Greek name may be from the Greek tree-names ' fig' and '
mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of 19 species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 subordinat ...
', or it may derive from the Hebrew name for the mulberry, . The name '' sycamore'' spelled with an A, has also been used for unrelated trees: the great maple, ''
Acer pseudoplatanus ''Acer pseudoplatanus'', known as the sycamore in the British Isles and as the sycamore maple in the United States, is a species of maple native to Central Europe and Western Asia. It is a large deciduous, broad-leaved tree, tolerant of wind an ...
'', or plane trees, ''
Platanus ''Platanus'' ( ) is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. The type ...
''. The spelling "sycomore", with an O rather than an A as the second vowel is, if used, specific to ''Ficus sycomorus''.


Distribution

''Ficus sycomorus'' is native to
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
south of the
Sahel The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...
and north of the Tropic of Capricorn, excluding the central-west
rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...
areas. It grows naturally in
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
; in the southern
Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...
; in
Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...
; in very localised areas in
Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...
; and in
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
,
Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...
and
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
. In its native habitat, the tree is usually found in rich soils along rivers and in mixed woodlands.


Description

''Ficus sycomorus'' grows to 20 m tall and has a considerable spread, with a dense round crown of spreading branches. The
leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...
are heart-shaped with a round apex, 14 cm long by 10 cm wide, and arranged spirally around the twig. They are dark green above and lighter with prominent yellow veins below, and both surfaces are rough to the touch. The petiole is 0.5–3 cm long and pubescent. The
fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...
is a large edible fig, 2–3 cm in diameter, ripening from buff-green to yellow or red. They are borne in thick clusters on long branchlets or the leaf axil. Flowering and fruiting occurs year-round, peaking from July to December. The bark is green-yellow to orange and exfoliates in papery strips to reveal the yellow inner bark. Like all other figs, it contains a
latex Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latices are found in nature, but synthetic latices are common as well. In nature, latex is found as a wikt:milky, milky fluid, which is present in 10% of all floweri ...
. The fruit is produced year round, starting in April or a bit later depending on variety, and continuing into winter. It is sometimes separated into five successive "crops".


Cultivation

Two major varieties are known in Egypt. Roumi (also called Falaki or Turki), which has more horizontally spread branches, stouter shoots and petioles, more densely spaced leaves that are wider than they are long, and larger, flatter, broad pink fruits; and Kelabi (also called Arabi or Beledi), which has more vertical branches, is more slender, has smaller leaves and has smaller yellowish pear shaped fruits. In modern history, many Egyptians would once a year (on the day of a particular saint) make a ring of bruises and cuts around the base of their sycamore trees. According to botanists Daniel Zohary and Maria Hopf, cultivation of this species was "almost exclusively" by the
ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...
ians. Remains of ''F. sycomorus'' begin to appear in predynastic times and occur in quantity from the start of the third millennium BC. It was the ancient Egyptian
tree of life The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythology, mythological, religion, religious, and philosophy, philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The ...
. Zohary and Hopf note that "the fruit and the timber, and sometimes even the twigs, are richly represented in the
tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...
s of the Egyptian Early, Middle and Late Kingdoms." In numerous cases the parched fruiting bodies, known as sycons, "bear characteristic gashing marks indicating that this art, which induces ripening, was practised in Egypt in ancient times." Although this species of fig requires the presence of the
symbiotic Symbiosis (Ancient Greek : living with, companionship < : together; and ''bíōsis'': living) is any type of a close and long-term biolo ...
wasp A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder ...
'' Ceratosolen arabicus'' to reproduce sexually, and this insect is extinct in Egypt, Zohay and Hopf have no doubt that Egypt was "the principal area of sycamore fig development." Some of the caskets of mummies in
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
are made from the wood of this tree. In tropical areas where the wasp is common, complex mini-ecosystems involving the wasp, nematodes, other parasitic wasps, and various larger predators revolve around the life cycle of the fig. The trees' random production of fruit in such environments assures its constant attendance by the insects and animals which form this ecosystem. Sycamores were often planted around artificial pools in ancient Egyptian gardens.. The sycamore tree was brought to Israel by
Philistines Philistines (; LXX: ; ) were ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan during the Iron Age in a confederation of city-states generally referred to as Philistia. There is compelling evidence to suggest that the Philistines origi ...
during the Iron Age, along with opium poppy and cumin. These sycamore trees used to be numerous in western
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
, lending their name to the neighborhood of Gemmayzeh (( ), "sycamore fig"). However, the trees have largely disappeared from this area.


Gardens

In the
Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...
''F. sycomorus'' is an orchard and ornamental tree of great importance and extensive use. It has wide-spreading branches and affords shade.


In religion


Judaism and Christianity

In the
Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
( or ; Strong's number 4809). It was a popular and valuable fruit tree in
Jericho Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. F ...
and
Canaan CanaanThe current scholarly edition of the Septuagint, Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Testamentum graece iuxta LXX interprets. 2. ed. / recogn. et emendavit Robert Hanhart. Stuttgart : D ...
. In El Matareya, there is a sycamore known as the Tree of the Virgin, which serves as a pilgrimage site. It is not the same tree; instead, when the previous tree that stands in this spot dies, a new one is planted from cuttings of the old tree. It is said that the Holy Family took refuge in this tree. The Coptic pope Theophilus also recounted that Joseph had a walking stick, which an infant
Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
broke. When Joseph buried the pieces of the stick, a sycamore grew forth and provided shelter.


Other religions

In Ancient Egypt, the sycamore was associated with the goddesses
Hathor Hathor (, , , Meroitic language, Meroitic: ') was a major ancient Egyptian deities, goddess in ancient Egyptian religion who played a wide variety of roles. As a sky deity, she was the mother or consort of the sky god Horus and the sun god R ...
,
Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...
, and Nut. In the case of the latter, prayers exist referring to the "sycamore of Nut", and asking for water and breath. These goddesses were sometimes depicted as trees, sometimes standing in front of them with vessels of water, or sometimes as a tree with human body parts, such as an arm or breast. It was the most significant depicted life giving tree in ancient Egypt. Sycamores are referenced in ancient Egyptian love poetry as a meeting place for lovers. There are references to twin sycamores of turquoise in funerary contexts which Ra comes forth from, indicating they likely face east, or are located on the eastern horizon. In modern Egyptian folklore, the sycamore retains an association with mysticism and magic. In the story "It Serves Me Right!", it is used to represent the Tree of Lifespans. The fruit from this tree dries up at the end of a life, but is fresh when one still has more life to live. Therefore, the inhabitants of a land found at the bottom of a well in the story only eat the dry, bad sycamore fruits and leave the good ones alone. In Kikuyu religion, the sycomore is a sacred tree. All sacrifices to Ngai (or Murungu), the supreme creator, were performed under the tree. Whenever the mugumo tree fell, it symbolised a bad omen and rituals had to be performed by elders in the society. Some of those ceremonies carried out under the Mugumo tree are still observed.


Gallery

File:Ficus sycomorus - Leaves.jpg, Leaves File:Ficus sycomorus - Stem with fruits.jpg, Trunk with unripe fruit File:Sycamore fruits.jpg, Fruit File:Sycomore in Ethiopia.jpg, In Ethiopia


See also

* '' Ficus vasta'' * Sycamine


References


External links


Figweb.org - ''Ficus sycomorus''
* PBS ''
Nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...
'' documentary: ''The Queen of Trees'' (on the sycamore fig in Kenya)
pbs.org: ''The Queen of Trees''

pbs.org/wnet/nature: Sycamore fig in Kenya
{{Taxonbar, from=Q750217 sycomorus Flora of Africa Flora of Cyprus Flora of Lebanon Flora of Palestine (region) Flora of the Arabian Peninsula Fruit trees Fruits originating in Africa Fruits originating in Asia Garden plants of Africa Garden plants of Asia Ornamental trees Plants described in 1753 Plants in the Bible Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus