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The
mango (Mangifera spp.; plural mangos or mangoes) is a
genus of about 35 species of tropical fruiting trees in
the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae, native to India
and Indo-China, of which the Indian Mango M. indica is
by far the most important commercially. Reference to mangos
as the "food of the gods" can be found in the
Hindu Vedas, written in about 4000 B.C. The name of the
fruit comes from the Tamil word man-kay, which was corrupted
to manga by the Portuguese when they explored western
India. The mango also features as a common motif, known
as the paisley, in Indian textiles. The mango is now widely
cultivated as a fruit tree in frost-free tropical and
subtropical climates in North, South and Central America,
the Caribbean, South and Central Africa, the Philippines
and Australia. It is easily cultivated and now there are
more than 1,000 cultivars, ranging from the turpentine
mango (from the strong taste) to the huevos de toro, generally
translated as "bull's testicles", from the shape
and size. |
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The
mango (Mangifera spp.; plural mangos or mangoes) is a
genus of about 35 species of tropical fruiting trees in
the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae, native to India
and Indo-China, of which the Indian Mango M. indica is
by far the most important commercially. Reference to mangos
as the "food of the gods" can be found in the
Hindu Vedas, written in about 4000 B.C. The name of the
fruit comes from the Tamil word man-kay, which was corrupted
to manga by the Portuguese when they explored western
India. The mango also features as a common motif, known
as the paisley, in Indian textiles. The mango is now widely
cultivated as a fruit tree in frost-free tropical and
subtropical climates in North, South and Central America,
the Caribbean, South and Central Africa, the Philippines
and Australia. |
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