The Origin of Durian

Origin of The Word "Durian"

 
What is a durian?




The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (which mean thorn). Add the suffix -an and you have a noun in Malay.  The word durian usually refers to the fruit but it can also mean the durian flesh (or arils) that we eat.

A durian fruit and one that is opened to show the durian flesh or arils

 The durian fruit has a thick fibrous husk, covered by sharp spines or thorns. The flesh or pulp is creamy, white, yellow or golden yellow which is strongly flavored and sharply aromatic.

More Common Names in:

• Cambodia: Thu-réén 
• Laos:         Thourièn 
• Vietnam:    Sâù riêng
• Thailand:   Thurian, Rian 
• Philippines:Dulian 
• Indonesia: Duren, Ambetan, Kadu 
• Myanmar: Du-yin

Origin and Distribution of Durian

Where do durians come from?

The genus Durio has about 30 species of which 19 are native to the island of Borneo (thought to be Durio’s original center of diversity), 11 to peninsular Malaysia, and 7 to Sumatra. At least seven species are notable for producing edible fruit, one of which (Durio zibethinus L.) is cultivated commercially in huge quantities in south east Asia. And this blog is all about this particular species of durian.

South east Asia region including the northern regions of 

Australia and southern India where durians are grown.

 Durian is the "King of Fruits" 

The King of All Tropical Fruits

 The Durian is a fruit of a perfectly unique character; we have nothing with which it can be compared.

"as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed... I should certainly choose the Durian ..as the king of fruits".  
                                                 Alfred Russel Wallace

The durian is the most famous and popular tropical fruit in Southeast Asia. Fondly regarded as the "King of Fruits", the durian is sought and savored with passion by millions of durian lovers in the South East Asian region. Its fame is spreading and there is a strong demand for quality durian in Hong Kong and mainland China. Durian fans can also be found in Taiwan, USA, Europe and Canada.

How The Common Durian Got Its Scientific Name

Even wild cats, especially the civet cats, find the durian irresistible. The strong odour and exceedingly delicious taste of the durian enable Ambon hunters in eastern Indonesia to use durian to bait the civet cats. This unique behavior was well described by the famous 17th century German botanist G.E. Rumphius in his Herbarium Amboinense (1741–1750) on Indonesian flora.

Rumphius was also known as the “Indian Pliny,” and spent most of his life in the employ of the Dutch East India Company, stationed on the island of Ambon in eastern Indonesia.

The genus Durio was first classified by Rumphius.

As a tribute to Rumphius' work on durian, particularly on the common durian species that civet cats love, Carl Linnaeus (the great Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature) affixed the Latin name zibethinus to it. Linnaeus is the correct authority for Durio zibethinus, not Murray.  The earliest valid publication on the species is that appearing on page 581 of the 13th edition of Linnaeus’s ‘Systema Vegetabilium’ published in 1774, and edited by J.A. Murray. This confusion arose in the 1800’s when a simple error found its way into several major taxonomic works.

Zibethinus is derived from the Italian word zibetto, which means "civet cat" and also an old name for "skunk".  Thus, this popular tropical fruit gets its name from the civet cat's love affair with the fruit and not that it smells like a civet cat!.

Durian and civet cat have their own distinctive smell

 Thus, the botanical name for this common durian is known as Durio zibethinus L.