ʻĀnapanapa or Asiatic snakewood Polynesian Names: ʻĀnapanapa (Hawaiʻi); Fīhoa (Niue); Fīhoʻa (Tonga); Fīsoa (Samoa); Tutu (Tahiti); Vere (Fiji) Rhamnaceae Indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands Oʻahu (Cultivated)  The common name "latherleaf" comes from the fact that the leaves are lathery when crushed and added to water used by early Hawaiians as a soap. It is still used in some Polynesian islands as soap and sometimes in native medicines.  NPH00009 nativeplants.hawaii.edu/plant/view/Colubrina_asiatica