Ceratonia /ˌsɛrəˈtoʊniə/[1] is small genus of flowering trees in the pea family, Fabaceae, endemic to the Mediterranean region and the Middle East. Its best known member, the carob tree, is cultivated for its pods and has been widely introduced to regions with similar climates. The genus was long considered monotypic, but a second species, Ceratonia oreothauma, was identified in 1979 from Oman and Somalia.[2] It is in the tribe Umtizieae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae.
An obsolete name for Ceratonia was Acalis.
†Ceratonia emarginata fossils are known from the Miocene of Switzerland and Hungary.[3]
Ceratonia /ˌsɛrəˈtoʊniə/ is small genus of flowering trees in the pea family, Fabaceae, endemic to the Mediterranean region and the Middle East. Its best known member, the carob tree, is cultivated for its pods and has been widely introduced to regions with similar climates. The genus was long considered monotypic, but a second species, Ceratonia oreothauma, was identified in 1979 from Oman and Somalia. It is in the tribe Umtizieae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae.
An obsolete name for Ceratonia was Acalis.
