Dictionary

kanary tree en · NOUN

Etymology

From Malay kaneri (“tree of the genus Canarium”) + tree.

Meanings

1. (obsolete) The tropical tree Canarium indicum, found from the Malay Archipelago eastwards through New Guinea to the Pacific islands.
   • Notwithstanding the losses incurred by these terrific visitations, and the small size and isolated position of these little islands, they have been and still are of considerable value to the Dutch Government, as the chief nutmeg-garden in the world. Almost the whole surface is planted with nutmegs, grown under the shade of lofty Kanary trees (Kanarium commune). 1869, Alfred Russel Wallace, The Malay Archipelago, volume I, London: Macmillan and Co., page 452:

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