Musaceae
Encyclopedia
Musaceae is a botanical name
for a family
of flowering plants. The family is native to the tropics of Africa and Asia. The plants have a large herbaceous growth habit with leaves with overlapping basal sheaths that form a pseudostem making some members appear to be wood
y trees.
The family has been practically universally recognized by taxonomists, although with differing circumscriptions. Older circumscriptions of the family commonly included the genera now included in Heliconiaceae and Strelitziaceae
.
The APG II system
, of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system
, 1998), assigns Musaceae to the order Zingiberales
in the clade commelinids
in the monocots.
As currently circumscribed the family includes either two or three genera
(depending upon acceptance of the genus Musella
, see below). All of the genera and species are native to the Old World
. The largest and most economically important genus in the family is Musa, famous for the banana
and plantain
. The genus Musa
was formally established in the first edition of Linnaeus
' Species Plantarum in 1753 — the publication that marks the start of the present formal botanical nomenclature
. At the time he wrote the Species Plantarum, Linnaeus had first hand knowledge of only one type of banana, which he personally had the opportunity of seeing growing under glass in the garden of Mr. George Clifford near Haarlem
in the Netherlands.
Before 1753 the genus had already been described by the pre-Linnaean botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius
and Linnaeus himself had described the banana he had seen as Musa cliffortiana in 1736 (this might be described as a "pre-Linnaean" Linnaean name). The 1753 name Musa paradisiaca L. for plantain
s and Musa sapientum L. for dessert banana
s are now known to refer to hybrids, rather than natural species. It is known today that most cultivated seedless bananas are hybrids or polyploids of two wild banana species - Musa acuminata
and Musa balbisiana
. Musa sapientum is now identified to be the hybrid Latundan
cultivar (Musa acuminata × balbisiana Colla (AAB Group) cv. 'Silk'), while Musa paradisiaca are now known to be hybrids belonging generally to the AAB and ABB banana cultivar group
s. Hybridization and polyploidy was the cause of much confusion in the taxonomy of the genus Musa that was not resolved until the 1940s and 1950s.
In this clearing up of the taxonomy, Ernest Entwistle Cheesman in 1947 revived the genus name Ensete
which had been published in 1862, by Horaninow, but had not been accepted.
Section Musella
Franch. was raised to the rank of genus by H.W. Li in 1978 for the Chinese species Musella lasiocarpa, which was originally described in Musa, transferred to Ensete by Cheesman and subsequently back to Musa. Acceptance of Musella has varied, with some taxonomists considering it a synonym of, and including its single species in, Musa.
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
for a family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of flowering plants. The family is native to the tropics of Africa and Asia. The plants have a large herbaceous growth habit with leaves with overlapping basal sheaths that form a pseudostem making some members appear to be wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
y trees.
The family has been practically universally recognized by taxonomists, although with differing circumscriptions. Older circumscriptions of the family commonly included the genera now included in Heliconiaceae and Strelitziaceae
Strelitziaceae
Strelitziaceae is a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants. The plants are very similar in appearance and growth habit to members of the related families Heliconiaceae and Musaceae...
.
The APG II system
APG II system
The APG II system of plant classification is the second, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in April 2003 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was a revision of the first APG system, published in 1998, and was superseded in 2009...
, of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system
APG system
The APG system of plant classification is the first, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in 1998 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was superseded in 2003 by a revision, the APG II system, and then in 2009 by a further...
, 1998), assigns Musaceae to the order Zingiberales
Zingiberales
Zingiberales is an order of flowering plants. The order has been widely recognised by the taxonomists, at least for the past few decades. This order includes many familiar plants like ginger, cardamom, turmeric, galangal and myoga of the Zingiberaceae or ginger family, and bananas and plantains...
in the clade commelinids
Commelinids
In plant taxonomy, commelinids is a name used by the APG III system for a clade within the monocots, which in its turn is a clade within the angiosperms. The commelinids are the only clade that the APG has informally named within the monocots...
in the monocots.
As currently circumscribed the family includes either two or three genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
(depending upon acceptance of the genus Musella
Musella
Musella is a genus comprising one or two species in the family Musaceae native to southeast Asia, including southwest China , Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar...
, see below). All of the genera and species are native to the Old World
Old World
The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....
. The largest and most economically important genus in the family is Musa, famous for the banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
and plantain
Plantain
Plantain is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa. The fruit they produce is generally used for cooking, in contrast to the soft, sweet banana...
. The genus Musa
Musa (genus)
Musa is one of three genera in the family Musaceae; it includes bananas and plantains. There are over 50 species of Musa with a broad variety of uses....
was formally established in the first edition of Linnaeus
Carolus Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
' Species Plantarum in 1753 — the publication that marks the start of the present formal botanical nomenclature
Botanical nomenclature
Botanical nomenclature is the formal, scientific naming of plants. It is related to, but distinct from taxonomy. Plant taxonomy is concerned with grouping and classifying plants; botanical nomenclature then provides names for the results of this process. The starting point for modern botanical...
. At the time he wrote the Species Plantarum, Linnaeus had first hand knowledge of only one type of banana, which he personally had the opportunity of seeing growing under glass in the garden of Mr. George Clifford near Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
in the Netherlands.
Before 1753 the genus had already been described by the pre-Linnaean botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius
Georg Eberhard Rumphius
Georg Eberhard Rumphius or originally Rumpf was a German-born botanist employed by the Dutch East India Company in what is now eastern Indonesia, and is best known for his work, Herbarium Amboinense....
and Linnaeus himself had described the banana he had seen as Musa cliffortiana in 1736 (this might be described as a "pre-Linnaean" Linnaean name). The 1753 name Musa paradisiaca L. for plantain
Plantain
Plantain is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa. The fruit they produce is generally used for cooking, in contrast to the soft, sweet banana...
s and Musa sapientum L. for dessert banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
s are now known to refer to hybrids, rather than natural species. It is known today that most cultivated seedless bananas are hybrids or polyploids of two wild banana species - Musa acuminata
Musa acuminata
Musa acuminata is a species of wild banana native to Southeast Asia. It is the progenitor of modern edible bananas, along with Musa balbisiana. First cultivated by humans around 8000 years ago, it is one of the earliest examples of domesticated plants.-Taxonomy and nomenclature:Musa acuminata...
and Musa balbisiana
Musa balbisiana
Musa balbisiana is a species of wild banana native to South Asia. It is one of the ancestors of modern cultivated bananas along with Musa acuminata. It grows lush leaves in clumps and grows with a more upright habit than most cultivated bananas. Flowers grow in inflorescences coloured red to...
. Musa sapientum is now identified to be the hybrid Latundan
Latundan banana
Latundan bananas , are triploid hybrid banana cultivars from the Philippines...
cultivar (Musa acuminata × balbisiana Colla (AAB Group) cv. 'Silk'), while Musa paradisiaca are now known to be hybrids belonging generally to the AAB and ABB banana cultivar group
Cultivar group
In naming cultivated plants, a Group is a formal classification category, under the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants :The term "Group" was introduced in the 2004 ICNCP, replacing the "Cultivar-group" of the 1995 ICNCP.A Group is united by some common trait; for example...
s. Hybridization and polyploidy was the cause of much confusion in the taxonomy of the genus Musa that was not resolved until the 1940s and 1950s.
In this clearing up of the taxonomy, Ernest Entwistle Cheesman in 1947 revived the genus name Ensete
Ensete
Ensete, or Enset, is a genus of plants, native to tropical regions of Africa and Asia. It is one of the three genera in the banana family, Musaceae.- Domesticated enset in Ethiopia :...
which had been published in 1862, by Horaninow, but had not been accepted.
Section Musella
Musella
Musella is a genus comprising one or two species in the family Musaceae native to southeast Asia, including southwest China , Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar...
Franch. was raised to the rank of genus by H.W. Li in 1978 for the Chinese species Musella lasiocarpa, which was originally described in Musa, transferred to Ensete by Cheesman and subsequently back to Musa. Acceptance of Musella has varied, with some taxonomists considering it a synonym of, and including its single species in, Musa.
See also
- BananaBananaBanana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
- EnseteEnseteEnsete, or Enset, is a genus of plants, native to tropical regions of Africa and Asia. It is one of the three genera in the banana family, Musaceae.- Domesticated enset in Ethiopia :...
- MusaMusa (genus)Musa is one of three genera in the family Musaceae; it includes bananas and plantains. There are over 50 species of Musa with a broad variety of uses....
- MusellaMusellaMusella is a genus comprising one or two species in the family Musaceae native to southeast Asia, including southwest China , Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar...
- PlantainPlantainPlantain is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa. The fruit they produce is generally used for cooking, in contrast to the soft, sweet banana...
External links
- Musaceae at the Angiosperm Phylogeny Website
- Musaceae in the Flora of China
- Musaceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval. Version: 27 April 2006. http://delta-intkey.com.
- Monocot families (USDA)
- NCBI Taxonomy Browser
- links at CSDL
- The Musaceae - an annotated list of the species http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~drc/musaceae.htm