PUATAUKANAVE INTERNATIONAL HOTEL

What is the puataukanave?

The puataukanave or Cordia subcordata (Lam.) is a tree from the Boraginaceae family. It grows along the coastal beaches of the tropical old world and the Pacific, up to 10m high, although in Tonga usually remaining much smaller, because of the lack of large quantities of rain. It has nice orange flowers, shaped not unlike the pua (frangipani). This may have given a mix up in Tonga (and Sāmoan: tauʻanave) long ago, as the tree is known simply as kanawa on the islands towards Micronesia. The year round fruits are big and float in the sea, so the currents can spread the species far and wide.

Other names by which the plant is known: mareer, kerosene wood (Papua Niu Kini, because of its easy burning), manjak, snottygobbles, glueberry, narrow-leafed bird lime tree, tou (Tahitian), and kou (Hawaiʻian).