Wester: The Breadfruit 



133 



VARIETIES 



The botanist, Solander, who accom- 

 panied Captain Cook noted some 

 twenty breadfruits in Tahiti, but his 

 variety Hst has never been pubHshed, 

 and curiously enough, in spite of the 

 interest aroused by the discovery of the 

 fruit, nearly a century passed before the 

 first comprehensive account of it (by 

 Seeman) appeared in print. Seeman, 

 writing from Fiji, recognized there the 

 following thirteen varieties: 



Balekana, Bokasi, Buko, Dina, Kala- 

 sai, Kio, Koko, Lolo, Varaka, Vonu, 

 Votovoto, Rokouta, and Sorena, all of 

 which, except the last, are said to be 

 seedless. Wilkes, of the United States 

 Exploring expedition, stated that there 

 were twenty breadfruit varieties in 

 Samoa, but did not give their names. 



Bennett, in "Gatherings of a Natur- 

 alist," gives an annotated list of the 

 breadfruits in Tahiti in which he 

 enumerates the following varieties: 



Afatti, Anuanu, Aravei, Buero, Faara, 

 lofai, Maire, Maohi, Ofatia, Opiha, 

 Otea, Oviri, Pafai, Pafara, Paea, Pehi, 

 Peiahuri, Piipiia, Rare, Raumae, Rau- 

 tia, Rom, Tao, Tatara. 



In "The Caroline Islands," 1899, 

 Christian enumerates the following 

 names of breadfruit varieties from 

 that Archipelago : 



Apil, Chai, Chaniak, En-chak, En- 

 charak, En-cherrichang, En-kaualik, En- 

 kotokot, En-machal, En-monei, En-pai- 

 pai, En-pakot, En-par, En-patak, En- 

 pon-chakar , En-po-te, En-put, En-uaou- 

 tak, En-ucher, Fanum, Impak, Katiu, 

 Kumar, Kalak, Lipet, Letam, Liiaihar, 

 Lukual, Nakont, Nan-umal, Niue, Nine, 

 Nue, Paimach, Peau, Pemanthau, Pon- 

 panui, Potopot, Pulang, Tagafei, Talk, 

 Takai, Tal, Ti, Uaka, Yae-reb, Yao-lei, 

 Yao-itat, Yeo-tui, Yoa-tathen, Yang, 

 Yu-goi, Yu-ngalu. 



Finally the same author in his book 

 about the Marquesas Islands published 

 in 1910 states that there are at least 

 thirtv-two varieties of breadfruit in 



that Archipelago, and enumerates the 

 following variety names: 



Auena, Aiiiea, Fafaua, Ilaapuau, 

 Iletiitii, Hinu, Hoi, Kakanokoe, Koka, 

 Koujaii, Kuuvahane, Knukou, Maoi, 

 Maie, Mapua, Movai, Mohomoho, On- 

 ape, Orihn, Otai, Piohe, Pipi, Pitaeatae, 

 Piti, Puahi, Pupupi, Takaha, Tapa, 

 Tataatoetoe, Teve, Tioe, Tona, Uea, 

 Vevee. 



In "Polynesian Researches" Ellis 

 states that the missionaries were ac- 

 quainted with nearly fifty varieties of 

 which he had the names, but unfor- 

 tunately he failed to enumerate them. 

 He says "In the Marquesas the bread- 

 fruit probably attains greater perfec- 

 tion than elsewhere." 



There are doubtless synonyms in 

 each of the above lists published by 

 Christian, and were varieties from the 

 different archipelagoes brought to- 

 gether it would probably be found that 

 some, at least, of those from different 

 island groups are also identical. Allow- 

 ing for errors and synonomy there are 

 probably some thirty-five distinct 

 breadfruit varieties in the Pacific 

 Archipelagoes.^ 



ORIGIN 



Where did these varieties originate, 

 and when? An interesting problem. 



The seedless breadfruit was first 

 seen in the Marquesas by Europeans 

 in 1595 and successively found in many 

 forms in the other Pacific Archipelagoes 

 as they were discovered. In the Malay 

 Archipelago the tree was first noted by 

 Rumphlius not earlier than 1653. At 

 that time the breadfruit was found 

 only in the east and southeast of the 

 Dutch East Indies. Even yet the 

 breadfruit is of but little importance 

 in that region, and in a recent work 

 Heyne records only two varieties (in 

 Madura). The earliest record of the 

 breadfruit in the Philippines, that of 

 Camello, who arrived there in 1688, 

 apparently refers to a fruit recently 



^ While this article was in press I received from Mr. Howard F. Withey, American Consul in 

 Tahiti, a list of 52 breadfruit varieties in the Society Islands, of which 27 are described, and a 

 descriptive list of 25 varieties from the Marquesas. Mr. Withey writes: "No other fruit in these 

 regions yields so much per acre. W^ith one exception all varieties are seedless. As a food there 

 seems to be but one criticism of the breadfruit, i. e., that it does not keep well. — "P. J. W. 



