Adansonia
African Baobab (Adansonia digitata) tree in Bagamoyo, Tanzania near the Kaole ruins
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Malvales
Family:	Malvaceae
Subfamily:	Bombacoideae
Genus:	Adansonia L.[1]
Species
See Species section

Adansonia is a genus of eight species of tree, six native to Madagascar, one native to mainland Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and one to Australia. The mainland African species also occurs on Madagascar, but it is not a native of that island.

A typical common name is baobab. Other common names include boab, boaboa, bottle tree, upside-down tree, and monkey bread tree. The generic name honours Michel Adanson, the French naturalist and explorer who described A. digitata.

Description[link]

Adansonias reach heights of 5 to 30 metres (16 to 98 ft) and have trunk diameters of 7 to 11 metres (23 to 36 ft). Glencoe baobab - an African baobab specimen in Limpopo Province, South Africa, often considered the largest example alive, up to recent times had a circumference of 47 metres (154 ft).^[2] Its diameter is estimated at about 15.9 metres (52 ft). Recently the tree split up into two parts and it is possible that the stoutest tree now is Sunland baobab, also in South Africa. The diameter of this tree is 10.64 m, with an approximate circumference of 33.4 metres.

Some baobabs are reputed to be many thousands of years old, which is difficult to verify, as the wood does not produce annual growth rings, though radiocarbon dating may be able to provide age data.

Occurrence[link]

The Malagasy species are important components of the Madagascar dry deciduous forests. Within that biome, A. madagascariensis and A. rubrostipa occur specifically in the Anjajavy Forest, sometimes growing out of the tsingy limestone itself.

A. digitata has been photographed growing in salt plains and by the sea, so may be a halophyte (salt tolerant).^[3][4]

Species[link]

Young Adansonia digitata tree in Hyderabad, India

• Adansonia digitata L. – African Baobab (western, northeastern, central & southern Africa, and in Oman and Yemen in the Arabian Peninsula, Asia)
• Adansonia grandidieri Baill. – Grandidier's Baobab (Madagascar)
• Adansonia gregorii F.Muell. (syn. A. gibbosa) – Boab or Australian Baobab (northwest Australia)
• Adansonia madagascariensis Baill. – Madagascar Baobab (Madagascar)
• Adansonia perrieri Capuron – Perrier's Baobab (North Madagascar)
• Adansonia rubrostipa Jum. & H.Perrier (syn. A. fony) – Fony Baobab (Madagascar)
• Adansonia suarezensis H.Perrier – Suarez Baobab (Diego Suarez, Madagascar)
• Adansonia za Baill. – Za Baobab (Madagascar)^[5]

Water storage[link]

Baobabs store water inside the swollen trunk (up to 120,000 litres / 32,000 US gallons) to endure the harsh drought conditions particular to each region.^[6] All occur in seasonally arid areas, and are deciduous, shedding their leaves during the dry season.

Uses[link]

Adansonia grandidieri, Madagascar

Since 2008, there has been increasing interest for developing baobab as a nutrient-rich raw material for consumer products.^[7][8] As of 2010 experts estimate the potential international market at a billion dollars($US) a year.^[9]

The tree also provides a source of fiber, dye, and fuel. Indigenous Australians used baobabs as a source of water and food, and used leaves medicinally. They also painted and carved the outside of the fruits and wore them as ornaments. A very large, hollow baobab south of Derby, Western Australia was used in the 1890s as a prison for convicts on their way to Derby for sentencing. The Boab Prison Tree, Derby still stands and is now a tourist attraction. There is a similar tree near the Western Australian town of Wyndham.

Leaves[link]

The leaves are commonly used as a leaf vegetable throughout the area of mainland African distribution, including Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the Sahel. They are eaten both fresh and as a dry powder. In Northern Nigeria, the leaves are locally known as kuka(Hausa), and are used to make Kuka soup(Miyan kuka).^{[10][unreliable source?]}

Fruit[link]

The fruit is about 18 cm long

The fruit has a velvety shell and is about the size of a coconut,^[9] weighing about 1.44 kilograms (3.2 lb). It has a "distinctive tart flavor, described as 'somewhere between grapefruit, pear, and vanilla.'"^[9] Local lore states that God was so displeased by the taste of the fruit of the baobab that he turned it upside down so that its roots are on top, thus giving it the odd shape.^[11]

The fruit offers proportionally large amount of nutrients, having more six times as much vitamin C than oranges, twice as much calcium content as milk, magnesium, B vitamins, antioxidants, phosphorus, and iron.^[12][9] Nutrient qualities of the dried fruit powder available in some developed countries remain undefined scientifically. In Zimbabwe, the fruit is known as mawuyu in the Shona language and has long been a traditional fruit. According to the National Geographic the nutrients were enjoyed only by locals "who ate the fruit fresh or crushed the crumbly pulp to stir into porridge and drinks", as of 2010 that is starting to change with developing the baobab's food products and business.^[9] Malawi women have already set up commercial ventures earning their children's school fees for their harvesting work.^[9] As of the 2000s, traditional uses of the whole fruit were unlikely outside of Africa, as the fruit will be processed for export as a white powder with a cheese-like texture to be used as an ingredient in products.^[12] The whole fruit of the baobab was not available in the European Union (EU), as legislation from 1997 dictates that foods not commonly consumed in the EU have to be formally approved before going on sale. In 2010 the EU approved the sale of these food products.^[9]

Fruit pulp[link]

The "powdery white interior" can be used as a "thickener in jams and gravies, a sweetener for fruit drinks, or a tangy flavor addition to hot sauces."^[9] The dry fruit pulp, separated from seeds and fibers, is eaten directly or mixed into porridge or milk, and is also known as "sour gourd" or "monkey's bread". In Malawi, the fruit pulp is used to make juice.^[12] The fruit can be used to produce cream of tartar.^[13] In various parts of East Africa, the dry fruit pulp is covered in sugary coating (usually with red coloring) and sold in packages as a sweet and sour candy called umbuyu.

The dry pulp is either eaten fresh or used to add to gruels on cooling after cooking – a good way of preserving the vitamin contents. It can also be ground to make a refreshing drink with a pleasing wine-gum flavour. In Tanzania, it is added to aid fermentation of sugar cane for beer making.^[14] Pulp can be stored for fairly long periods for use in soft drink production, but it needs airtight containers. Storage is improved by the use of sodium metabisulphite (Ibiyemi et al., 1988). It can also be frozen if ground to a powder. In Asia Pepsi Japan has used baobabs in a limited-edition carbonated soda called Baobab Pepsi that is described as having a citrus taste.^[15]

On 15 July 2008, the EU authorized the use of baobab dried fruit pulp as a food ingredient in smoothies and cereal bars.^[16] More recently, dried fruit pulp achieved GRAS status for these same food uses.^[17]

Seeds[link]

Baobab in Recife, Brazil

In the coastal areas of Kenya, baobab seeds, called mbuyu, are cooked with sugar, colored, and sold as a snack.^{[citation needed]} Mabuyu is also the term used in Tanzania for seeds of the calabash gourd, which are prepared in a similar fashion. The seeds are mostly used as a thickener for soups, but may also be fermented into a seasoning, roasted for direct consumption, or pounded to extract vegetable oil.

Culture and myths[link]

• Tabaldi is the name of the baobab tree in Sudan, and its fruit is gongalis^{[clarification needed]}. Baobab's trunk is used as a tank to store water. People in west Sudan use the hollow in the trunk to save water in the rainy season. Gongalis is used to make juice or to cure stomach and other diseases.^{[citation needed]}
• Ernst Haeckel mentions "monkey bread-fruit trees" (Adansonia) in his The History of Creation (Chap. 29), and claims their "individual life exceeds a period of five thousand years".
• The owners of Sunland Farm in Limpopo, South Africa have built a pub called "The Big Baobab Pub" inside the hollow trunk of the 22 metres (72 ft) high Sunland baobab. The tree is 47 m (155 ft) in circumference, and is reported to have been carbon dated at over 6,000 years old.^[18][19]
• The Savanaur Baobabs are three trees of 14–18 m girth, believed to be 5000 years old, which can be found in Savanur, Karnataka, India.

Gallery[link]

This section looks like an image gallery. Wikipedia policy discourages galleries of random images of the article subject; please improve or remove the section accordingly, moving freely licensed images to Wikimedia Commons if not already hosted there.

• 

  Adansonia digitata, Tarangire National Park in Tanzania

• 

  Adansonia grandidieri, Avenue of the Baobabs, Madagascar

• Baobabamrazorback.jpg

  Adansonia madagascariensis in a Madagascar dry deciduous forest

• SAbaobab.jpg

  Baobab (Adansonia digitata) in Kruger National Park, South Africa

• 

  Boab Adansonia gregorii in Australia

• 

  Baobab flowers in Mulund, Mumbai, India

• 

  Baobab tree at Siddi Tombs, Murud-Janjira, India

• 

  Baobab trees at seaside gate at Vasai Fort, India

• 

  A Baobab tree at Vasai Fort, India

References[link]

Further reading[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Adansonia

Wikispecies has information related to: Adansonia

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Baobab.

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (December 2010)

Orchestra Baobab
Performing in Brooklyn, New York, June 2008.
Background information
Origin	Dakar, Senegal
Genres	Afro-Cuban-Caribbean fusion.
Years active	1970–1987 2001–present
Website	orchestrabaobab.com

Orchestra Baobab is a Senegalese Afro-Cuban, Son, Wolof and Pachanga band. Organized in 1970, as a multi-ethnic, multi-national club band, Orchestre Baobab adapted the then current craze for Cuban Music (growing out of the Congolese Soukous style) in West Africa to Wolof Griot culture and the Mandinga musical traditions of the Casamance. One of the dominant African bands of the 1970s, they were overshadowed in the 1980s and broke up, only to reform in 2001 after interest in their recordings grew in Europe.

Formation: 1970[link]

Many of the original members were veterans of the famous Star Band, whose alumni later included the Étoile de Dakar, El Hadji Faye and Youssou N’Dour. Star Band were the resident band of the upscale Dakar Miami Club. So when the Baobab Club opened in Dakar in 1970, six players, led by saxophonist Baro N'Diaye, were lured from Star Band and the Orchestra Baobab were born. The club in turn is named for the baobab (Adansonia) tree.

The original frontmen of the band were the Casamance singers Balla Sidibe and Rudy Gomis who came from the melting pot of Casamance musical styles, and most famously Laye Mboup (killed in a 1974 car accident) who provided vocals in the Wolof griot style. His Wolof language lyrics and his soaring, nasal voice defined the sound of Baobab's early hits.

Barthelemy Attisso from Togo was a law student in Dakar, and a self taught musician, whose arpeggiated runs became instantly recognizable. With the saxophone of N'Diaye, this was the first core of the band. Issa Cissoko (Saxophone) and Mountage Koite (drums) were both from Maninka griot families, from Mali and eastern Senegal respectively. The original group was rounded out by the slow groove Latin styles of Latfi Benjeloum (rhythm guitar), who came from a Moroccan family exiled to Saint-Louis, Senegal, and Charlie N'Diaye (bass) from Casamance.

1970s and 1980s[link]

The group played an Afro-Cuban music fused with distinctly West African traditions. Unlike other Senegalese bands, they combined the Casamance harmonies and drumming from southern Senegal with melodies from Togo and Morocco to the Wolof tradition from northern Senegal.

Ndiouga Dieng took up the Wolof griot vocals after the death of Mboup, but many famous singers sat in. Thione Seck (who left the band for good in 1979 and is today a superstar solo artist), his younger brother Mapenda Seck and Medoune Diallo provided vocals off and on after the death of Mboup. Medoune Diallo is especially known for his Spanish vocals on hits like El son te llama, as a more Latin feel permeated the band's sound in the late 70s. In 1979 the Club Baobab closed its doors, and the band sought new venues.

Orchestra Baobab recorded 20 vinyl albums (mostly released as cassette tapes) between 1970 and 1985. But competition from Mbalax, a new funk inspired sound in the mid 1980s, overwhelmed Orchestra Baobab. By 1987, the band had broken up. Many of the members formed or joined other groups, but Barthelemy Attisso returned to Togo to practice law. In 2001 he hadn't played a guitar in thirteen years.^[1]

In 1982, they had recorded what was later to become their most famous album: Pirates Choice. The record was only released in 1989, but garnered much critical acclaim outside Senegal, thanks to its release in Europe by World Circuit records.

Reunion: 2000s[link]

After disbanding in 1987 the group came back together in 2001 with persuasion from Youssou N'Dour and their record label, World Circuit. The popularity of Orchestra Baobab began to decrease during the late 1980s due to the popularization of mbalax, the percussive street style popularised by Youssou N'Dour. During that same year Orchestra Baobab re-release their 1989 album Pirates Choice as a double CD with 6 extra rare tracks and completed a world tour including Europe and America. Most of the original line up reunited to play London’s Barbican Centre in May 2001. Since then Orchestra Baobab has released two records.

In 2002 Orchestra Baobab released Specialist in All Styles which was produced by Senegalese superstar Youssou N'dour with guest appearances by Cuban singer Ibrahim Ferrer and N'dour himself. Ibrahim Ferrer was not an accidental choice: not only had Orchestra Baobab written a song lauding this grand figure of Cuban music (Hommage a Tonton Ferrer), but Ferrer's huge burst of international fame with the Buena Vista Social Club in the 1990s mirrors the resurrection of Baobab. In fact, the original plan for what became the Buena Vista Social Club was organized by British world music producer Nick Gold of World Circuit Records, the same man who re-released Pirates Choice.

Orchestra Baobab gained attention from American media in 2003 when musicians Trey Anastasio and Dave Matthews filmed a documentary named Trey and Dave go to Africa which aired on VH1.^[2] The two visited Senegal and performed with Orchestra Baobab during the program.

Orchestra Baobab performed at Live 8 in Johannesburg, a series of concerts to end poverty.

In October 2007 Orchestra Baobab released the album Made in Dakar on World Circuit Records, leading commentators to claim that Baobab had reclaimed their place as pioneers of African Pop.^[3]

In May 2009 the band released "La Belle Epoque", a double-album of unearthed recordings dating from the 1970s. The package included a biography by Radio France Internationale journalist Pierre René-Worms, focusing on the early years before the group split. Volume 1 comprises recordings made at Club Baobab, Dakar, in 1971, 1973 and 1976; volume 2 includes original recordings made in 1978 for the album Baobab à Paris, their first European recordings. There are also original versions of Sibam and El Son te llama, written by Medoune Diallo, On verra ça by Balla Sidibé.^[4]

Discography[link]

^[5][6]

• Saf Mounadem (1972) JK 3026 As "Star Band de Dakar"
• M'Beugene (1972) Music Afrique / Baobab BAO 1
• Hommage a Lay M'Boop (1974-75?)
• Orchestre Baobab '75' (1975) Disques Buur BRLPO001
• Guy Gu Rey Gi (1975) Disques Buur BRLPO002
• Senegaal Sunugaal (1975) Disques Buur BRLPO003
• Visage Du Senegal (1975) Disques Buur BRLPO004
• Aduna Jarul Naawoo (1975) Disques Buur BRLPO005
• N'Deleng N'Deleng (1977) Music Afrique MSCLP 001
• Une Nuit Aun Jandeer (1978) Musicafrique MSCLP 002
• Baobab à Paris Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 (1978) Abou Ledoux ASL7001/Abou Ledoux ASL7002
• Gouygui Dou Daanou (1979) Disc Afrique/Salsa Musique DARL001
• Mohamadou Bamba (1980) Jambaar JM5000
• Sibou Odia (1980) Jambaar JM5004
• Ken Dou Werente (1982) MCA 307
• On verra Ça: The 1978 Paris Sessions (1992) World Circuit WCD027
• Bamba (1993) Stern's Africa STCD3003
• Pirates Choice (1989 & 2001) World Circuit WCB014 and World Circuit WCDO63
• Specialist in all styles (2002) World Circuit WCDO64
• A night at Club Baobab (2006)
• Made in Dakar (2007) World Circuit WCD078
• La Belle Epoque 1971 - 1977 (2009) Stern's Music #000361

Compilations[link]

• N'Wolof (1998, recorded in 1970-71) Dakar Sound DKS 014
• Roots and Fruit - African Dancefloor Classics (1999) Popular African Music PAM ADC 304
• Africa 100 (2005) Pitchfork Media
• World Circuit Presents... (2005) World Circuit
• Classics Titles (2006) Cantos Records

Awards[link]

After being separated for 15 years Orchestra Baobab reunited in 2001. The reunited group went on to win the award for best African artists and the critics' choice award at the 2003 BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards.^[7] The group won both awards for Specialist in All Styles, their first album since their split in 1987. In winning the Best African Artists award Orchestra Baobab beat the African musicians Kasse Mady Diabate and Tony Allen.

References[link]

• BBC Music: Essential Guide to World Music.
• Frank Bessem, “Musiques d'Afrique: Orchestre Baobab”
• Banning Eyre, National Geographic World Music Guide, from Global Rhythm Magazine, 9 November 2006.
• "ORCHESTRA BAOBAB" (in French). Afrique Music. http://www.afrique-music.com/2007100888/artistes/discographie/orchestra-baobab.html. Retrieved 23 February 2011. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Orchestra Baobab

• Official Site: Orchestra Baobab
• Official MySpace Page
• Official Page on their label World Circuit
• Chris Nickson, “Orchestre Baobab Biography” on AllMusic
• Photos from Orchestra Baobab & Super Rail Band; Live in Central Park, July 14, 2002.