Rattan facts for kids

A rattan cane

Rattan (from the Malay rotan) is the name for about 600 species of old world climbing palms.

They belong to the subfamily Calamoideae.

Rattan is also known as manila, or malacca, after the ports of Manila and Malacca City, and as manau (from the Malay rotan manau, the trade name for Calamus manan canes in Southeast Asia).

The climbing habit comes with a flexible woody stem, got from a secondary growth. This makes rattan a liana rather than a normal or true wood. It grows much faster than most tropical wood.

'Dragon's blood' is a red resin used in dyes, varnishes and incense. It can come from the fruit of a rattan.

Images for kids

Calamus thwaitesii in southwestern India
Juvenile Calamus oblongus subsp. mollis in a forest understory in the Philippines
Close-up of the edible scaly fruits and the spiny stem of Calamus rotang in Thailand
Base of a clustering rattan palm in Sulawesi, Indonesia
Free-standing juvenile Plectocomia elongata in Indonesia
Worker harvesting rattan from an old-growth forest in the Philippines
Wiener Geflecht Chair, Josephinism style, typical Viennese, around 1780. The seat and back wickerwork panels are woven of rattan, while the frame is hardwood.
Sibat spears from the Philippines
Indonesians making rattan furniture, circa 1948
A rattan chair
A rattan ball of Sepak takraw
Craftsman in the Philippines heat bending rattan for furniture-making
Craftsman weaving a basket made from split rattan in Nigeria

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Rattan Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.