Elaeis guineensis is a species of
palm commonly called
African oil palm or
macaw-fat. It is the principal source of
palm oil. It is native to west and southwest
Africa, specifically the area between
Angola and
the Gambia; the species name
guineensis refers to the name for the area,
Guinea, and not the
modern country which now bears that name. The species is also now naturalised in
Madagascar,
Sri Lanka,
Malaysia,
Sumatra,
Central America, the
West Indies and several islands in the
Indian and
Pacific Oceans. The closely related American oil palm
Elaeis oleifera and a more distantly related palm,
Attalea maripa, are also used to produce palm oil.