Ensete ventricosum, commonly known as the
Ethiopian banana,
Abyssinian banana,
false banana, or
ensete, is an herbaceous
species of
flowering plant in the
genus Ensete of the
banana family
Musaceae. The name
Ensete ventricosum was first published in 1948 in the
Kew Bulletin, 1947, p. 101. Its synonyms include
Musa arnoldiana De Wild.,
Musa ventricosa Welw. and
Musa ensete J.F.Gmel. It is
native to the eastern edge of the Great African Plateau, extending northwards from the Transvaal through Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania to Ethiopia, and west to the Congo, being found in high rainfall forests on mountains, and along forested ravines and streams.