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Guarana
| Guaraná | |
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| Species: | P. cupana
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| Binomial name | |
| Paullinia cupana | |
Guarana or Guaraná (IPA: [gu̯a.ra.'na], [gu̯a.ɾa.'na] or [gu̯a.ɹa.'na]), Paullinia cupana (syn. P. crysan, P. sorbilis), is a shrub or small tree in the Sapindaceae family. It is native to Venezuela and northern Brazil. The seed of the Guaraná fruit is a stimulant with thermogenic and diuretic properties.
The guaraná fruit's color ranges from orange to red and contain black seeds which are partly covered by white arils. The color contrast when the fruit has been split open has been likened to eyeballs; this is the basis of a myth (see below).[1]
Guaraná plays an important role in Tupi and Guaraní Brazilian culture. The name 'guaraná' is derived from the Tupi-Guarani word wara'ná. These tribes believed, it was magical, a cure for bowel complaints and a way to regain strength. They also tell the myth of a 'Divine Child' that was killed by a serpent and whose eyes gave birth to this plant.
- ↑ Sir Ghillean Prance, Mark Nesbitt (2004). Cultural History of Plants. New York: Routledge. p. 179.
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