Raphia farinifera
Raphia farinifera (Gaertn.) Hyl. is a tropical African palm tree occurring in lowland riparian and swamp forest, also around human habitations and cultivated locations, on stream banks and other moist situations at altitudes of 50-1000 m. Found in Angola, Benin, Burkina, Cameroon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, Réunion, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, and naturalised in Madagascar. Its genus is derived from 'raphis' = needle, probably in reference to the 4 mm long yellowish spines on the margins and main veins of the leaflets. The specific name refers to a type of starchy flour obtained from the trunk pith - 'farina' = starch, 'fera' = bearing. margins and main veins with yellowish spines up to 4 mm long
It is one of 26 species currently recognised, all endemic to Africa and Madagascar, with one species, R. taedigera found in Central and South America. Their fronds - botanically a single leaf - are among the longest in the plant kingdom, those of R. regalis reaching a length of 25 m.
Raphia
Raphia may refer to:
Rafah
Rafah (Arabic: رفح) is a Palestinian city and refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip. It is the district capital of the Rafah Governorate, located 30 kilometers (19 mi) south of Gaza City. Rafah's population of 152,950 (2014) is overwhelmingly made up of Palestinian refugees. Rafah camp and Tall as-Sultan camp form separate localities.
When Israel withdrew from the Sinai in 1982, Rafah was split into a Gazan part and an Egyptian part, dividing families, separated by barbed-wire barriers. The core of the city was destroyed by Israel and Egypt to create a large buffer zone.
Rafah is the site of the Rafah Border Crossing, the sole crossing point between Egypt and the State of Palestine. Gaza's only airport, Yasser Arafat International Airport, was located just south of the city. The airport operated from 1998 to 2001, until it was bombed and bulldozed by the Israeli military (IDF) after the killing of Israeli soldiers by members of Hamas.
Etymology
Over the ages it has been known as "Robihwa" by the ancient Egyptians, "Rafihu" by the Assyrians, "Ῥαφία, Rhaphia" by the Greeks, "Raphia" by Romans, רפיח "Rafiaḥ" by the Israelites, "Rafh" by the Arab Caliphate. The transliteration of the Hebrew name, "Rafiah", is used in modern English alongside "Rafah"
Raphia (moth)
Raphia is a genus of moths of the Noctuidae family. It is the only genus under subfamily Raphiinae.
Species
References
Podcasts:
