The Areca nut is the seed of the
ArecaAreca is a genus of about 50 species of single-stemmed palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests from Malaysia to the Solomon Islands. The generic name Areca is derived from a name used locally on the Malabar Coast of India....
palm (
Areca catechuAreca catechu is the areca palm or areca nut palm, , a species of palm which grows in much of the tropical Pacific, Asia, and parts of east Africa. The palm is believed to have originated in either Malaysia or the Philippines...
), which grows in much of the tropical Pacific, Asia, and parts of east Africa. It is commonly referred to as "betel nut" as it is often chewed wrapped in
betelThe Betel is the leaf of a vine belonging to the Piperaceae family, which includes pepper and Kava. It is valued both as a mild stimulant and for its medicinal properties...
leaves.
Description
The areca nut is not a true nut but rather a
drupeIn botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries...
. It is commercially available in dried, cured and fresh forms. While fresh, the husk is green and the nut inside is so soft that it can easily be cut with an average knife. In the ripe fruit the husk becomes yellow or orange and, as it dries, the fruit inside hardens to a wood-like consistency. At that stage the areca nut can only be sliced using a special scissor-like cutter (known as
AdaKitta (अडकित्ता) in
MarathiMarathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
,
Jati in Bengali,
Sarota in Hindi,
Paakkuvetti in Malayalam,
Adake kattari in Kannada,
Paakkuvetti in Tamil and
Aḍakattera in Telugu, "sudi" in Gujarati, "Giraya" in Sinhala).
Usually for chewing, a few slices of the nut are wrapped in a
BetelThe Betel is the leaf of a vine belonging to the Piperaceae family, which includes pepper and Kava. It is valued both as a mild stimulant and for its medicinal properties...
leaf along with
limeCalcium hydroxide, traditionally called slaked lime, is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula Ca2. It is a colourless crystal or white powder and is obtained when calcium oxide is mixed, or "slaked" with water. It has many names including hydrated lime, builders lime, slack lime, cal, or...
and may include
cloveCloves are the aromatic dried flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae. Cloves are native to the Maluku islands in Indonesia and used as a spice in cuisines all over the world...
,
cardamomCardamom refers to several plants of the genera Elettaria and Amomum in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to India and Bhutan; they are recognised by their small seed pod, triangular in cross-section and spindle-shaped, with a thin papery outer shell and small black seeds...
,
catechuFor the region in India, see Kutch District.Catechu is an extract of any of several species of Acacia—but especially Acacia catechu—produced by boiling the wood in water and evaporating the resulting brew....
(kattha), etc. for extra flavoring. Betel leaf has a fresh, peppery taste, but it can be bitter depending on the variety, and this is called "Thamboolam" in Sanskrit, "kavala" in kannada, "paan" in Assamese, "Paan" in Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi, and Marathi. Bajjai in Tulu
Areca nuts are chewed with betel leaf for their effects as a mild stimulant, causing a mild hot sensation in the body and slightly heightened alertness, although the effects vary from person to person. The effect of chewing betel and the nut is relatively mild and could be compared to drinking a cup of coffee. The areca nut contains tannins known as
arecatanninArecatannins are a class of condensed tannins contained in the seeds of Areca catechu also called betel nut. The arecatannin-type natural products from Ceylonese cassia bark and Areca seed may be considered as an example of true polyphenols....
,
gallic acidGallic acid is a trihydroxybenzoic acid, a type of phenolic acid, a type of organic acid, also known as 3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoic acid, found in gallnuts, sumac, witch hazel, tea leaves, oak bark, and other plants. The chemical formula is C6H23COOH. Gallic acid is found both free and as part of...
, a fixed oil
gum-Natural gums:* Natural gum, any of a number of naturally occurring resinous materials in vegetative species* Gum anima* Gum arabic, used as food additive, adhesive et al.* Cassia gum* Dammar gum* Gellan gum* Guar gum* Kauri gum* Locust bean gum* Spruce gum...
, a little
terpineolTerpineol is a naturally occurring monoterpene alcohol that has been isolated from a variety of sources such as cajuput oil, pine oil, and petitgrain oil. There are three isomers, alpha-, beta-, and gamma-terpineol, the last two differing only by the location of the double bond...
,
ligninLignin or lignen is a complex chemical compound most commonly derived from wood, and an integral part of the secondary cell walls of plants and some algae. The term was introduced in 1819 by de Candolle and is derived from the Latin word lignum, meaning wood...
, various saline substances and three main alkaloids:
ArecolineArecoline is an alkaloid natural product found in the areca nut, the fruit of the areca palm . It is an odourless oily liquid volatile in steam, miscible with most organic solvents and water, but extractable from the latter by ether in presence of dissolved salts. The salts are crystalline, but...
, Arecaidine and Guvacine which have vasoconstricting properties. The betel leaf chewed along with it contains
eugenolEugenol is a phenylpropene, an allyl chain-substituted guaiacol. Eugenol is a member of the phenylpropanoids class of chemical compounds. It is a clear to pale yellow oily liquid extracted from certain essential oils especially from clove oil, nutmeg, cinnamon, basil and bay leaf. It is slightly...
, also a vasoconstrictor. Many chewers also add small pieces of
tobaccoTobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
leaf to the mixture, thereby adding the effect of the
nicotineNicotine is an alkaloid found in the nightshade family of plants that constitutes approximately 0.6–3.0% of the dry weight of tobacco, with biosynthesis taking place in the roots and accumulation occurring in the leaves...
, which causes greater addiction than the drugs contained in the nut and the betel.
In almost all parts of
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
,
Sri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
and southern
ChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
areca nuts are not only chewed along with betel leaf but are also used in the preparation of Ayurvedic and
Traditional Chinese medicinesChinese Herbology is the theory of Traditional Chinese herbal therapy, which accounts for the majority of treatments in Traditional Chinese medicine ....
. Powdered areca nut is used as a constituent in some tooth powders. Other medicinal uses include the removal of tapeworms and other
intestinal parasiteIntestinal parasites are parasites that populate the gastro-intestinal tract in humans and other animals. They can live throughout the body, but most prefer the intestinal wall. Means of exposure include: ingestion of undercooked meat, drinking infected water, and skin absorption...
s by swallowing a few teaspoons of powdered areca nut, drunk as a
decoctionDecoction is a method of extraction, by boiling, of dissolved chemicals, or herbal or plant material, which may include stems, roots, bark and rhizomes. Decoction involves first mashing, and then boiling in water to extract oils, volatile organic compounds, and other chemical substances...
, or by taking tablets containing the extracted alkaloids.
Tradition
Chewing the mixture of areca nut and betel leaf is a tradition, custom or ritual which dates back thousands of years from South Asia to the Pacific. It constitutes an important and popular cultural activity in many
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n and
OceanicOceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
countries, including
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
,
PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
,
Sri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
,
Papua New GuineaPapua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
,
BangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
,
BhutanBhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
,
TaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
,
MyanmarBurma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
,
CambodiaCambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, the
Solomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
,
ThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
,
LaosLaos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, the
MaldivesThe Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
,
PalauPalau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
,
IndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, the
PhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and
VietnamThe Culture of Vietnam, an agricultural civilization based on the cultivation of wet rice, is one of the oldest in East Asia; the ancient Bronze age Dong Son culture is considered to be one of its most important progenitors...
. It is not known how and when the areca nut and the betel leaf were combined together into one psychoactive drug. Archaeological evidence from Thailand,
IndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and the
PhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
suggests that they have been used in tandem for four thousand years or more.
In Vietnam, the areca nut and the betel leaf are such important symbols of love and marriage that in
VietnameseVietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
the phrase "matters of betel and areca" (
chuyện trầu cau) is synonymous with marriage. The tradition of chewing areca nuts starts the talk between the groom's parents and the bride's parents about the young couple's marriage. Therefore the leaves and juices are used ceremonially in Vietnamese weddings. The folk tale explaining the origin of this Vietnamese tradition is a good illustration of the belief that the combination of areca nut and the betel leaf is ideal to the point that they are practically inseparable, like an idealized married couple.
http://www.vietspring.org/legend/traucau.html
Malay culture and tradition hold betel nut and leaves in high esteem. Traditionally, guests who visits a Malay house are given a tray of betel nuts and betel leaves, the same way as one offering drinks to guests now. There's even a Malay proverb about the betel nut,
"bagaikan pinang dibelah dua", loosely translated, like a betel nut divided in half. It usually refers to newlyweds, who are compatible to each other, just like a betel nut when divided in half. The Proverb is closely analogous to the contemporary "two peas in a pod".
In the Indian Subcontinent the chewing of betel and areca nut dates back to the pre-
Vedic periodThe Vedic period was a period in history during which the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, were composed. The time span of the period is uncertain. Philological and linguistic evidence indicates that the Rigveda, the oldest of the Vedas, was composed roughly between 1700–1100 BCE, also...
HarappaHarappa is an archaeological site in Punjab, northeast Pakistan, about west of Sahiwal. The site takes its name from a modern village located near the former course of the Ravi River. The current village of Harappa is from the ancient site. Although modern Harappa has a train station left from...
n empire. Formerly in India and
Sri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
it was a custom of the royalty to chew Areca nut and betel leaf. Kings had special attendants carrying a box with the ingredients for a good chewing session. There was also a custom to chew Areca nut and betel leaf among lovers because of its breath-freshening and relaxant properties. Hence there was a sexual symbolism attached to the chewing of the nut and the leaf. The areca nut represented the male and the betel leaf the female principle. Considered an auspicious ingredient in
HinduismHinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, the Areca nut is still used along with betel leaf in religious ceremonies and also while honoring individuals in most of Southern Asia.
In
AssamAssam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
it is a tradition to offer
Pan-tamul (Betel leaves and raw areca nut) to guests after tea or meals in a brass plate with stands called a
Bota. Among the Assamese the areca nut also has a variety of uses during religious and marriage ceremonies, where it has the role of a fertility symbol. A tradition from Upper Assam is to invite guests to wedding receptions by offering a few areca nuts with betel leaves. During
BihuBihu denotes a set of three different cultural festivals of Assam and celebrated by the Assamese diaspora around the world. Though they owe their origins to ancient rites and practices they have taken definite urban features and have become popular festivals in urban and commercialized milieus in...
, the
husori players are offered areca nuts and betel leaves by each household while their blessings are solicited.
Spanish mariner
Álvaro de MendañaÁlvaro de Mendaña de Neira was a Spanish navigator. Born in Congosto, in León, he was the nephew of Lope García de Castro, viceroy of Peru...
reported how the Solomon Islanders were chewing the nut and the leaf with caustic lime and it stained their mouths red. He noticed that friendly and genial chief Malope in
Santa Isabel IslandSanta Isabel Island is the longest in the Solomon Islands, South Pacific, and the largest in the group of islands in Isabel Province.-Location and geographic data:...
was offering him the stuff as a token of friendship every time they met.
The adding of tobacco leaf to the chewing mixture is a relatively recent introduction, for tobacco was introduced from the American continent in colonial times.
Effects on health
The
International Agency for Research on CancerThe International Agency for Research on Cancer is an intergovernmental agency forming part of the World Health Organisation of the United Nations....
(IARC) regards the chewing of betel and areca nut to be a known human
carcinogenA carcinogen is any substance, radionuclide, or radiation that is an agent directly involved in causing cancer. This may be due to the ability to damage the genome or to the disruption of cellular metabolic processes...
. The media has reported that regular chewers of betel leaf and areca nut have a higher risk of damaging their gums and acquiring cancer of the mouth, pharynx, esophagus and stomach. Studies have found tobacco and caustic lime increase the risk of cancer from areca nut preparations.
Studies exist of the use of a "pure"
paan preparation: areca nut, betel leaf, and lime. One study found that unprocessed areca nuts, at high doses, displayed a very weak carcinogenicity. In contrast, since 1971 many studies have found areca nut extracts to cause cancer in rodents.
In 2003 the
International Agency for Research on CancerThe International Agency for Research on Cancer is an intergovernmental agency forming part of the World Health Organisation of the United Nations....
(IARC) reached the conclusion that there is sufficient evidence that the habit of chewing betel quid with or without tobacco is carcinogenic to humans. Support is provided by a recent study which found that paan without tobacco is a risk factor for oral cancer. They found paan with and without tobacco increased oral cancer risk by 9.9 and 8.4 times respectively.
Chewing areca nut alone has been linked to oral submucosal
fibrosisFibrosis is the formation of excess fibrous connective tissue in an organ or tissue in a reparative or reactive process. This is as opposed to formation of fibrous tissue as a normal constituent of an organ or tissue...
.
According to
Medline Plus, "Long-term use has been associated with oral submucosal
fibrosisFibrosis is the formation of excess fibrous connective tissue in an organ or tissue in a reparative or reactive process. This is as opposed to formation of fibrous tissue as a normal constituent of an organ or tissue...
(OSF), pre-cancerous oral lesions and
squamous cell carcinomaSquamous cell carcinoma , occasionally rendered as "squamous-cell carcinoma", is a histologically distinct form of cancer. It arises from the uncontrolled multiplication of malignant cells deriving from epithelium, or showing particular cytological or tissue architectural characteristics of...
. Acute effects of betel chewing include
asthmaAsthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...
exacerbation,
hypertensionHypertension or high blood pressure is a cardiac chronic medical condition in which the systemic arterial blood pressure is elevated. What that means is that the heart is having to work harder than it should to pump the blood around the body. Blood pressure involves two measurements, systolic and...
, and
tachycardiaTachycardia comes from the Greek words tachys and kardia . Tachycardia typically refers to a heart rate that exceeds the normal range for a resting heart rate...
. There may be a higher risk of cancers of the liver, mouth, esophagus, stomach, prostate, cervix, and lung with regular betel use. Other effects can include a possible effect on
blood sugarThe blood sugar concentration or blood glucose level is the amount of glucose present in the blood of a human or animal. Normally in mammals, the body maintains the blood glucose level at a reference range between about 3.6 and 5.8 mM , or 64.8 and 104.4 mg/dL...
levels, possibly increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Regular paan chewing causes the lips and tongue to be stained orange/red, an ancient equivalent of modern lipstick. In
TeluguAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
poetry, the slightly red-stained lips of a young woman chewing areca nut and betel are considered a mark of beauty. It is believed that regular chewing reduces the incidence of cavities, and toothpastes were once produced containing betel extracts, as mentioned in
James Joyce'sJames Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
UlyssesUlysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, and then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, in Paris. One of the most important works of Modernist literature,...
, set in 1904. However, the increase in mouth ulcers and gum deterioration caused by areca nut and betel chewing may outweigh any positive effects.
Use of areca nut has been associated with deterioration of
psychosisPsychosis means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality"...
in patients with preexisting psychiatric disorders
According to traditional Ayurvedic medicine, chewing areca nut and betel leaf is a good remedy against bad breath (
halitosisHalitosis is a term used to describe noticeably unpleasant odors exhaled in breathing. Halitosis is estimated to be the third most frequent reason for seeking dental aid, following tooth decay and periodontal disease.- General :...
).
Vernacular names
- Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
: Poogi phalam
- Sindhi
Sindhi is the language of the Sindh region of Pakistan that is spoken by the Sindhi people. In India, it is among 22 constitutionally recognized languages, where Sindhis are a sizeable minority. It is spoken by 53,410,910 people in Pakistan, according to the national government's Statistics Division...
:Sopari
- Are Are: Ota.
- Nepali
Nepali or Nepalese is a language in the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family.It is the official language and de facto lingua franca of Nepal and is also spoken in Bhutan, parts of India and parts of Myanmar...
: "Supadi"
- Assamese
Assamese is the easternmost Indo-Aryan language. It is used mainly in the state of Assam in North-East India. It is also the official language of Assam. It is also spoken in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other northeast Indian states. Nagamese, an Assamese-based Creole language is widely used in...
: Guwa (গুৱা) or Tamol (তামোল).., kʊ́ɴ ðí (areca nut) or , kʊ́ɴ jà (betel nut)
- Dzongkha: Doma.
- Chamorro
Chamorro is a Malayo-Polynesian language, spoken on the Mariana Islands by about 47,000 people Chamorro (Chamorro: Fino' Chamoru or simply Chamoru) is a Malayo-Polynesian (Austronesian) language, spoken on the Mariana Islands (Guam, Rota, Tinian, and Saipan) by about 47,000 people Chamorro...
: Pugua (areca nut), pupulu (betel), åfok (lime), måmå'on (the chewing or the preparation). .
- Divehi (Maldives): Fōh (Foah) or Fuvah (areca nut), bileiy (betel), huni (lime), dhu'fuň (the chewing or the preparation).
- Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
: Bua.
- Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
: Pugua.
- Gujarati
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...
: Sopari (સોપારી). (सुपारी), "Kasaili". (Sirih is basically the betel leaf).
- Javanese
Javanese language is the language of the Javanese people from the central and eastern parts of the island of Java, in Indonesia. In addition, there are also some pockets of Javanese speakers in the northern coast of western Java...
: Jambe.
- Khasi
Khasi is an Austro-Asiatic language spoken primarily in Meghalaya state in India by the Khasi people. Khasi is part of the Austroasiatic family of languages, and is fairly closely related to the Munda branch of that family, which is spoken in east&endash;central India.Although most of the 865,000...
: Kwai.
- Kannada
Kannada or , is a language spoken in India predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas and number roughly 50 million, is one of the 30 most spoken languages in the world...
: Adike(ಅಡಿಕೆ), Kangu(ಕಂಗು)
- Kapampangan
The Pampangan language, or Kapampangan , is one of the major languages of the Philippines. It is the language spoken in the province of Pampanga, the southern half of the province of Tarlac and the northern portion of the province of Bataan. Kapampangan is also understood in some barangays of...
: Lúyus (areca nut), Samat (betel leaf), Ápî (lime), Mamâ-n (the chewing)
- Konkani
KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...
: फोप्पळ (popphaL) or Mark (ໝາກ)
- Malayalam: Adakka
- Marathi
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
: Supari (सुपारी).
- Meiteilon - Manipuri: Kwa
- Mizo
The Mizo language is natively spoken by Mizo people in Mizoram, a state in the Indian Union; Chin State of Burma and in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh. The language is also known as Lushai , as Lusei people are the first clan who have an external exposure...
: Kuhva
- Mon
The Mon language is an Austroasiatic language spoken by the Mon, who live in Burma and Thailand. Mon, like the related language Cambodian—but unlike most languages in Mainland Southeast Asia—is not tonal. Mon is spoken by more than a million people today. In recent years, usage of Mon has...
: Sōd
- Motu
Motu is one of many Central Papuan Tip languages, and is spoken by the Motuans, native inhabitants of Papua New Guinea...
: Buatau.
- Oriya
Oriya , officially Odia from November, 2011, is an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family. It is mainly spoken in the Indian states of Orissa and West Bengal...
: Gua.
- Nanggu
*Baining family*North Bougainville family — Bougainville*South Bougainville family — Bougainville*Central Solomon family...
: Kertu (areca nut), pwe (betel), ndo (lime).
- Raga (North Pentecost)
Pentecost Island is one of the 83 islands that make up the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as Pentecôte in French and Pentikos in Bislama. The island was known in its native languages by names such as Vanu Aroaroa, although these...
: Niniu.
- Palau (Micronesia)
Palauan is one of the two nationally recognized official languages spoken in the Republic of Palau...
: Buuch.
- Tok Pisin
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
: Buai (areca nut),kambang (lime). (පුවක්) and Karunka (කරුංකා) (dried and peeled).
- Tagalog
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
: Bunga, Tempak Siri or Nga Nga.
- Taiwan
The language with the most native speakers in Taiwan is Taiwanese Hokkien, or "Taiwanese" for short. Hokkien is a topolect of the Chinese family of languages originating in southern Fujian and is spoken by many overseas Chinese throughout Southeast Asia...
: , pronounced pin-nn̂g in Hokkien. (பாக்கு)
- Telugu
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
: Poka,vakka
- Tetum: Bua (areca nut), malus (betel), ahu (lime), mama (the chewing or the preparation). (areca nut), plue (betel).
- Tokodede: Buo (areca nut), malu (betel), rapo (lime), mam (the chewing or the preparation).
- Tulu
The Tulu language |?]]]) is a Dravidian language spoken by 1.95 million native speakers mainly in the southwest part of Indian state Karnataka known as Tulu Nadu. In India, 1.72 million people speak it as their mother tongue , increased by 10 percent over the 1991 census...
:Bajjai.
- Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
: Chalia Supari.
Places like
GuwahatiGuwahati, Pragjyotishpura in ancient Assam formerly known as Gauhati is a metropolis,the largest city of Assam in India and ancient urban area in North East India, with a population of 963,429. It is also the largest metropolitan area in north-eastern India...
(গুৱাহটী) in
AssamAssam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
(অসম),
PenangPenang is a state in Malaysia and the name of its constituent island, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. It is bordered by Kedah in the north and east, and Perak in the south. Penang is the second smallest Malaysian state in area after Perlis, and the...
in
Malaysia,
Ko MakKo Mak is a small island of Trat Province, Thailand. This island is named after the Areca nut .-Geography:Ko Mak has 27 km coastline, many long sand beaches, a few hills and it is about 16 km² in area....
(เกาะหมาก) in
ThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and Fua Mulaku in
MaldivesThe Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
have been named after the areca nut.
Modern day consumption
In
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(the largest consumer of areca nut) and Pakistan the preparation of nut with or without betel leaf is commonly referred to as
paanPaan, from the word pān is an Indian, Pakistani, Uttarvarshi and Southeast Asian tradition of chewing betel leaf with areca nut and slaked lime paste, and katha brown powder paste, with many regional and local variations...
. It is available practically everywhere and is sold in ready-to-chew pouches called "Pan Masala" or supari, as a mixture of many flavors whose primary base is areca nut crushed into small pieces. Pan Masala with a small quantity of tobacco is called
gutkaGutka is a preparation of crushed areca nut , tobacco, catechu, paraffin, lime and sweet or savory flavorings. It is manufactured in India and exported to a few other countries...
. The easily-discarded small plastic supari or gutka pouches are an ubiquitous pollutant of the South Asian environment. Some of the liquid in the mouth is usually disposed of by spitting, producing bright red spots wherever the expectorate lands. The
Shimoga DistrictShimoga District is a district in the Karnataka state of India. A major part of Shimoga District lies in the Malnad region of the Western Ghats, a hilly area known for its green forests, plentiful rainfall, and as the source of many of the area's rivers. Shimoga City is the administrative centre...
in
KarnatakaKarnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
is presently the largest producer of betelnut in India.
In the
MaldivesThe Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
areca nut chewing is very popular, but spitting is frowned upon and regarded as an unrefined, gross way of chewing. Usually people prefer to chew thin slices of the dry nut, which is sometimes roasted. "Kili", a mixture of areca nut, betel, cloves, cardamom and sugar is sold in small home-made paper pouches. Old people who have lost their teeth keep "chewing" by pounding the mixture of areca nut and betel with a small mortar and pestle.
In
Papua New GuineaPapua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
and the
Solomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, fresh areca nut, betel leaf or 'fruit leaf' ("daka" in PNG) and lime are sold on street corners. In these countries, dried or flavoured areca nut is not popular. Areca nut chewing has recently been introduced into
VanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
where it is growing in popularity, especially in the northern islands of the country.
In
GuamGuam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, betel and areca nut chewing is a social pastime as a means to extend friendship, and can be found in many, if not most, large gatherings as part of the food display.
In
PalauPalau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
, betel nut is chewed with lime, piper leaf and nowadays, with the addition of tobacco (cigarette). Older and younger generations alike enjoy the use of betel nut, which is readily available at stores and markets. Unlike in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands where the inner areca nut is used, in
PalauPalau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
the areca nut's skin is chewed along with lime, leaf and tobacco and the juice is not swallowed but spat out.
In
TaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, bags of 20 to 40 areca nuts are purchased fresh daily by a large number of consumers. To meet the steady year-round demand, there exist two kinds of betel-nut shops, each of which sells cigarettes and drinks including beer in addition to their primary purpose of supplying betel and nuts. On one hand, there are small mom and pop shops that are often poorly maintained and often do not stand out from other stores nearby. On the other hand, the second provides a sight unique to Taiwan. Such a shop often consists of nothing more than a single free-standing room, or booth, elevated one meter above the street that measures less than 3 meters by 2 meters. Large picture windows comprise two or more of the walls, allowing those who pass by a complete view of the interior. The interior is often painted brightly. Within such a shop, a sexily dressed young woman can be seen preparing betel and areca nuts (see "
Betel nut beautyThe term Betel nut beauty refers to a common sight along roadsides in Taiwan: a young woman selling betel nuts and cigarettes from a brightly lit glass enclosure while wearing revealing clothing . The Mandarin term names the women after Xi Shi, the legendary beauty of imperial China's Spring and...
"). Shops are often identified by multicolored (commonly green)
fluorescent tubesA fluorescent lamp or fluorescent tube is a gas-discharge lamp that uses electricity to excite mercury vapor. The excited mercury atoms produce short-wave ultraviolet light that then causes a phosphor to fluoresce, producing visible light. A fluorescent lamp converts electrical power into useful...
or neon lights that frame the windows or that are arranged radially above a store. Customers stop on the side of the road and wait for the girls to bring their betel and areca nut to their vehicles. The habit of chewing betel nut is often associated with blue collar labor industries such a long-haul transportation, construction, or fishing. Workers in these labor-intensive industries use betel nut for its stimulating effect, but betel nut also becomes a tool for socializing with co-workers.For example, studies have showed that chewing betel nut is prevalent among taxi, bus and truck drivers, who rely on the stimulating effect of betel nut to cope with long work hours. For these reasons, oral cancer has been identified as a leading cause of death in professions that have high betel nut chewing rates.
In
HainanHainan is the smallest province of the People's Republic of China . Although the province comprises some two hundred islands scattered among three archipelagos off the southern coast, of its land mass is Hainan Island , from which the province takes its name...
and Hunan Province,
ChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, where
XiangtanXiangtan is a city in China's Hunan Province that is located on the lower reaches of Xiang river. The hometowns of several founding leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, including Mao Zedong, Liu Shaoqi, and Peng Dehuai are in the Xiangtan Municipal District, as well as the hometowns of Qing...
is a center of use and processing, a wide range of old and young people consume areca nut daily. Most however, consume the dried variety of the nut by itself, without the betel leaves. Some people also consume the areca nut in its raw, fresh form with or without the betel leaves. Betel nuts are sold mostly by old women walking around trying to sell it, but the dried version can be found in most shops where they sell tea, alcohol and cigarettes.
In Thailand the consumption of areca nut has declined gradually in the last decades. The younger generation rarely chews the substance, especially in the cities. Most of the present-day consumption is confined to older generations, that is mostly people above fifty. Even so, small trays of betel leves and sliced tender arecanut are sold in markets and used as offerings in Buddhist shrines.
In the Philippines, chewing the areca nut and betel leaf was a very widespread tradition in the past. Nowadays this tradition is almost dead among the urban people in the cities and big towns and has largely been replaced by chewing gum and cigarettes. Nowadays, the older populace are the only ones chewing betel nuts. But in rural areas betel nut-chewing is very much alive.
In the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, areca nut is not a controlled or specially taxed substance and may be found in some Asian grocery stores. However, importation of areca nut in a form other than whole or carved kernels of nuts
can be stopped at the discretion of US Customs officers on the grounds of food, agricultural, or medicinal drug violations. Such actions by Customs are very rare.
In the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
areca nut is readily available in Asian grocery stores and even in shredded forms from the World Food aisles of larger
TescoTesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
supermarkets.
Possession of betel nut or leaf is banned in the
UAEThe United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
and is a punishable offense.
External links