BUBINGA

Botanical Names: Guibourtia demeusei of the family Leguminosae. Other species called bubinga include Guibourtia pellegriniana and Guibourtia tessmannii.

Common Names: African rosewood, Akume, kewasingo, kevazingo/kevazinga, Ebana, Essingang, Okweni, Ovang, Waka, Buvenga. The French call it Bois de Rose d'Afrique.

Bubinga has a resemblance to rosewood. It is used in fine furniture and cabinetwork, musical instruments, decorative veneers, fancy turnery, inlay work. The heartwood can be pink, vivid red, or red brown with purple streaks or veins, on exposure becomes yellow or medium brown with a reddish tint. The sapwood is whitish and clearly demarcated. The texture is fine and even and the grain can be either straight or interlocked.