• Family : SAPOTACEAE
  (Sapodilla Family)
• Family (Hindi name) : CHIKOO FAMILY (चीकू फैमिली)
• Family (as per The APG System IV) : Sapotaceae
• Synonym(s) : Kaukenia elengi (L.) Kuntze; Diospyros longipes Hiern; Magnolia xerophila P.Parm.; Imbricaria perroudii Montrouz.; Kaukenia javensis (Burck) Kuntze; Kaukenia timorensis (Burck) Kuntze; Manilkara parvifolia (R.Br.) Dubard; Mimusops elengi f. longepedunculata (Bruck) H.J.Lam; Mimusops elengi var. longepedunculata Bruck; Mimusops elengi var. parvifolia (R.Br.) H.J.Lam; Mimusops erythroxylon Llanos ex Fern.-Vill.; Mimusops javensis Burck; Mimusops latericia Elmer; Mimusops lucida Poir.; Mimusops parvifolia R.Br.; Mimusops timorensis Burck
• Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Mimusops elengi L.
• Common name : Indian Medlar, Bullet wood Tree, Asian bulletwood, Bakul tree, Spanish cherry
• Vernacular name :
  • Bakul, Maulsari, Malsari (Hindi)
  • Renje mara, Pagadi mara, Baaglu mara (Kannada)
  • Makizham, Magizhamaram (Tamil)
  • Vakulamu, Pogada, Bogada, Pagada, Kesara (Telugu)
  • Bakul, Baula, Baulo, Bakulo Baula, Kirakuli (Oria)
  • Bakula (Sanskrit)
  • Bakulam, Elanchi, Elangi, Mukura (Malayalam)
• Habit : Tree
• Habitat : Tropical semi-evergreen forests, Tropical evergreen forests, also grown in homesteads
• Comments / notes : Commonly cultivated in plains and lower slopes of the Ghats for its flower.
• Key identification features : Trees, 15 - 25 m high; Leaves elliptic-Ianceolate, abruptly acuminate, glabrous, shining above; Flowers in axillary clusters or solitary, white, fragrant; pedicles and calyx rusty tomentose; Berries elliptic, yellow, 1-seeded.
• Flower, Fruit : December-September
• Distribution :
  • Andhra Pradesh : Anantapur district, Chittoor district, Y.S.R. Kadapa district, East Godavari district, Guntur district, Krishna district, Kurnool district, S.P.S. Nellore district, Prakasam district, Srikakulam district, Visakhapatnam district, Vizianagaram district, West Godavari district
  • Telangana : Nalgonda district, Khammam district, Mahbubnagar district
  • Karnataka : All districts of Karnataka
  • Kerala : All districts of Kerala
  • Odisha : Angul district, Balasore district, Bargarh district, Balangir district, Boudh district, Cuttack district, Deogarh district, Dhenkanal district, Gajapati district, Ganjam district, Kalahandi district, Kandhamal district, Kendrapara district, Kendujhar district, Khordha district, Koraput district, Malkangiri district, Mayurbhanj district, Puri district, Rayagada district, Sambalpur district, Sundargarh district
  • Tamil Nadu : Coimbatore district, Dindigul district, Dharmapuri district, Kancheepuram (Changalpattu-CGP) district, Karur district, Krishnagiri district, Madurai district, Namakkal district, Pudukkottai district, Sivaganga district, Salem district, Tiruchirapalli district, Tiruvannamalai district, Villipuram district, Vellore district
  • Sikkim : Sikkim
  • Arunachal Pradesh : Kameng
  • Meghalaya : Meghalaya
  • Assam : Assam
  • Nagaland : Nagaland
  • Delhi : Delhi
  • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
  • Punjab : Punjab
  • Mizoram : Mizoram
  • Andaman and Nicobar Islands : Andaman Islands
  • Manipur : Manipur
  • Tripura : Tripura
• Native : Andaman Islands, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Borneo, India, Jawa, Lesser Sunda Islands, Malaya, Maluku, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Thailand, Vanuatu
• Exotic/Native : Native
• World Distribution : Andaman Islands, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Borneo, India, Jawa, Lesser Sunda Islands, Malaya, Maluku, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Thailand, Vanuatu
• Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
• Literature :
  • Pullaiah et al., 2011 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 4
  • H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1995- Flora of Orissa Vol. 2
  • R. S. Rao and S. H. Sreeramulu, 1986 - Flora of Srikakulam District
  • Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
  • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI
  • Saldanha & Nicolson, 1976 – Flora of Hassan District
  • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2014 - Flora of South Kanara
  • Gowda, 2004 - Sringeri
  • Ramaswamy & Razi, 1973 - Flora of Bangalore district, Karnataka state
  • Seetharam et al., 2000 - Gulbarga
  • Rao & Razi, 1981 - Mysore
  • Keshava Murthy & Yoganarasimhan, 1990 - Flora of Coorg district, Karnataka state
  • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2003 - Udupi
  • G.S Giri., A.Pramanik., H.J. Chowdhery., G.D Pal and S.K. Das (2008). Materials for Arunachal Pradesh, Vol (2), Pg: 130
  • K.Ravikumar, A.C.Tangavelou, & Navendu Page. (2021). Seed plants of Karnataka, India: A concise dictionary. FRLHT-TDU, National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), Chennai.
• Read more :
  • GBIF Data Online (Access to herbarium specimens)
  • Plants of the World Online
  • World Flora Online
  • Global Plants on JSTOR
• Permalink : https://indiatrees-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Mimusops elengi
• Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Trees and Vegetation Types. Mimusops elengi. Downloaded on 3 October 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Line Drawings

Field Image(s)

Habitat

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

GBIF Distribution