[guitar hiro]

For a very long time I have wondered WHY do many Japanese guitar makers list Jacaranda as Brazilian (rosewood)?

So, the recent History/LS-320 thread got me wondering anew, why do Japanese guitar makers/sellers often list Jacaranda as Brazilian rosewood?

Here is a Digimart search for 'Tokai Jacaranda.'
https://www.digimart.net/search?category12Id=359&keywordAnd=jacaranda+tokai+&x=0&y=0
Notice many entries list the fingerboard material as "Jacaranda （Brazilian Rose wood)."


Here is a link for Jacaranda.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacaranda_mimosifolia
From the same link here is what Jacaranda looks like.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacaranda_mimosifolia#/media/File:Jacaranda_mimosifolia00.jpg
The sample photo for Jacaranda looks nothing like Brazilian rosewood aka Dalbergia Nigra.
Jacaranda is not even the same genus of plant as Dalbergia rosewoods.

So, this is actually more confusing than I had previously believed it was.

Why would Tokai, or any Tokai seller list guitar fingerboards as "Jacaranda (Brazilian rosewood)" when Jacaranda is a different genus than Brazilian & when many Jacaranda samples has no physical resemblance to many genus Dalbergia lumbers?

Does this lend more credence to fingerboards listed as Jacaranda/Brazilian & that actually look like a genus Dalbergia lumbar, as actually being Brazilian rosewood? I don't know.
What say ye?

Here is a Google search for 'Jacaranda lumber' in which some samples looks similar to Brazlian & then other samples are nearly white in color
https://www.google.com/search?biw=1366&bih=654&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=ZvK3W7W0FcWSjwSKj73YBw&q=jacaranda+lumber&oq=jacaranda+lumber&gs_l=img.3..0i24.26191.33999..34574...0.0..0.77.491.7......1....1..gws-wiz-img.......0j0i67j0i10i24.paDiZmYRiAA#imgrc=_

[wulfman]

I been down this road before. The term jacaranda IN JAPANESE, as in ハカランis a name for Brazilian Rosewood.　It does not equivalent to Jacaranda in English. When It is written as Jacaranda in catalogs it is referring to the Japanese meaning as a name for Brazilian Rosewood.

https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%96%E3%83%A9%E3%82%B8%E3%83%AA%E3%82%A2%E3%83%B3%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AD%E3%83%BC%E3%82%BA%E3%82%A6%E3%83%83%E3%83%89

[villager]

as wulfman says
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[Paladin2019]

In a recent thread we encountered the same issue with the word 'condenser' in the catalogue when the English version should be 'capacitor'.

Apparently the word condenser is close to what is used in other European languages but in English is is the thing you have in your clothes dryer to collect water vapour!

[HAMAMATSU]

the japanese guitar industry probably began with the classical guitars first historically. so the languages they use for the guitar making are often spanish/portuguese. "jacaranda" & "condenser" are the spanish/portuguese words.
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[jonah65]

I think we used to use the word condenser in the UK, before we used the word capacitor in electronic circuitry.

[jonah65]

In fact there was a company near me that was called Daly Condensers, that actually made capacitors.

[guitar hiro]

[wulfman]

Yes, correct.

[guitar hiro]

Thanks Harold for that clarification

[aroomstudios]

I have always wondered why Japanese companies call them condensers and not capacitors. I guess that answers it.

[Peter Mac]

Hi guys,

this is an interesting thread, I must say.
The reason they may list it as 'Jacaranda' and not Brazilian Rosewood could be because of Appendix III of the 1974 C.I.T.I.E.S. Treaty which virtually abolished the use and export of Brazilian Rosewood.
Thing is, from 1977 to 1986 the ONLY model to have Jacaranda listed as a fretboard material was the JB-120 Jazz Bass.
In a search for Jacaranda with a variety of Lumber Vendors, they all came back as Dalbergia nigra as the species. Cool, as we have shitloads of Jacaranda trees growing here in Australia.
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