Saturday, 10 October 2026

Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.

Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.

raau-FO-feeah -- named in honour of Leonhard Rauwolf [↗], German physician, botanist, and traveller ... Dave's Botanary
tet-ruh-FIL-uh -- four-leaved ... Dave's Botanary
commonly known as: American serpentwood, be still tree, devil pepper, wild snakeroot • Bengali: বড় চন্দ্রিকা bara chandrika, গন্ধনকুলী gandhanakuli • Hindi: बड़ा चंद्रिका bara-chandrika • Kannada: ದೊಡ್ಡ ಚಂದ್ರಿಕೆ dodda chandrike, ನಾಲ್ಕೆಲೆ ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧ naalkele sarpagandha • Malayalam: കാട്ടുമൽപ്പൊരി kattumalppori, പാമ്പുംകൊല്ലി paambumkolli • Odia: ପାତାଳ ଗରୁଡ଼ patala garuda • Tamil: பாம்பு களாச் செடி paambu kalaach chedi • Telugu: పాపటాకు papataku • Tulu: ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧೊ sarpagandho

known for / parts made use of: roots, leaves, bark & latex, fruits/berries ... compiled from the web
botanical names: Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. ... homotypic synonyms: Rauvolfia canescens L. ... heterotypic synonyms: Rauvolfia heterophylla Roem. & Schult. • Rauvolfia hirsuta Jacq. ... and more at POWO, retrieved October 09, 2026
TAXONOMIC NOTE
Rauvolfia & Rauwolfia
While strict botanical taxonomy dictates that Rauvolfia (with a "v") is the only validly published genus name according to modern rules of nomenclature, Rauwolfia (with a "w") remains deeply embedded in commercial trade and medical literature. This creates an interesting parallel usage where the taxonomically correct spelling is often overshadowed by its unauthorized, "corrected" counterpart. Because early pharmaceutical research and the landmark discovery of reserpine were heavily documented under the "w" variant, scientific and medical journals continue to favour it, allowing an orthographic error to command a larger following than the officially recognized botanical name. ... compiled from the web.
Bibliography / etymology / notes
Links listed as references in the notes below, may not remain valid permanently. Portals / websites have a tendency to re-organize / revise their content, leading to change in URLs of pages in their site. Some sites may even close down at their own will. The bits about the languages of India mentioned below are merely some bare facts gathered from the internet; just enough to satisfy curiosity about "where" could the listed names be best prevalent in India. All English transliterated names to be taken sensu amplo.
~~~~~ ENGLISH ~~~~~
written and spoken widely, in most parts of India
American serpentwood, be still tree, devil pepper, wild snakeroot
~~~~~ BENGALI ~~~~~
written in: Bengali (বাংলা) ... spoken in: West Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand, Tripura, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
বড় চন্দ্রিকা bara chandrika, গন্ধনকুলী gandhanakuli
The trail of Bengali names "Bara Chandrika" and "Gandhanakuli" reveals distinct etymological origins rooted in classical medical and scientific literature. When R. tetraphylla (synonym Rauvolfia canescens) was introduced and widely studied by researchers at institutions like the Calcutta Medical College and the School of Tropical Medicine, Calcutta in the mid-20th century as a reserpine substitute, researchers and local suppliers needed a clear distinction. Because tetraphylla grows into a noticeably larger, taller, much-branched woody shrub (up to 4 meters) compared to the small, herbaceous serpentina, it was officially designated as "Bara Chand" or "Bara Chandrika" in localized pharmacy and economic botany manuals. ... compiled from the web.
~~~~~ HINDI ~~~~~
written in: Devanagari (हिन्दी) ... spoken in: Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand
बड़ा चंद्रिका bara-chandrika
~~~~~ KANNADA ~~~~~
written in: Kannada (ಕನ್ನಡ) ... spoken in: Karnataka
ದೊಡ್ಡ ಚಂದ್ರಿಕೆ dodda chandrike
ನಾಲ್ಕೆಲೆ ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧ naalkele sarpagandha
~~~~~ MALAYALAM ~~~~~
written in: Malayalam (മലയാളം) ... spoken in: Kerala, Lakshadweep
കാട്ടുമൽപ്പൊരി kattumalppori
പാമ്പുംകൊല്ലി paambumkolli
~~~~~ ODIA ~~~~~
written in: Odia (ଓଡ଼ିଆ) ... spoken in: Odisha, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
ପାତାଳ ଗରୁଡ଼ patala garuda
~~~~~ TAMIL ~~~~~
written in: Tamil (தமிழ்) ... spoken in: Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
பாம்பு களாச் செடி paambu kalaach chedi
~~~~~ TELUGU ~~~~~
written in: Telugu ( తెలుగు) ... spoken in: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Puducherry
పాపటాకు papataku
  • Flora Andhrika - Plant Wealth of Andhra Pradesh, India ... (accessed: October 09, 2026)
~~~~~ TULU ~~~~~
written in: Tigalari (Tulu) was used for writing Vedic texts in Sanskrit, Kannada (ತುಳು), Malayalam (തുളു) ... spoken in: Karnataka, north Kerala
ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧೊ sarpagandho
~~~~~ KNOWN DISTRIBUTION in INDIA ~~~~~
cultivated in gardens from Uttar Pradesh to West Bengal southwards to Tamil Nadu and Kerala; it is naturalised in many localities and is a common weed in warm and moist habitats
~~~~~ Created on: 17:20 09-10-2026 ¦ Last updated: 11:55 10-10-2026 (DD-MM-YYYY) ~~~~~
Apocynaceae Asclepiadaceae Asclepiadoideae perennial medicinal shrub "Rauvolfia tetraphylla" "Rauvolfia canescens" "Rauvolfia heterophylla" "Rauvolfia hirsuta" "American serpentwood" "be still tree" "devil pepper" "wild snakeroot"
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Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.

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