Cibe, cr. (palm tree, en.) – Borassus aethiopum

Cibe is the vulgar name in crioulo (gw.) for the palm tree Borassus aethiopum which is typical from the Northern and Eastern regions of Guinea-Bissau (Diniz, 2012). Cibe timber is mostly used in civil construction in the form of beams (rachas, pt). Its trunk can reach up to 5 meters hight (and even more) and its section allows to extract 4 to 8 squared-section beams that are used fo building structures such as roofs and/or porches. Cibe was one of the primary materials used to build the strategic villages during the liberation war in Guinea-Bissau (1963-1974), especially employed in roof making. Nevertheless, different ethnic groups made (and still make) use of cibe in vernacular architecture too (Blazejewicz et al., 1983).

Other vulgar names: bace (ba); buár (bf); eudá (bj); cibe (cr); dúbè, palmier-rônier, rônier (fc); dúbè (ff); cibedje (fu); cibô (md); n’bene, umbena (mj); buane, opane (pp) (Catarino et al., 2006).

Construction elements: roof and porch frames

Origin: local

Tags: vegetal material, strategic villages