What is "canavalia"

Canavalia \Canavalia\ n. a genus of herbs or woody vines of mainly American tropics and subtropics.

Syn: genus Canavalia.

Canavalia is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family ( Fabaceae) and comprises approximately 48 to 50 species of tropical vines. Members of the genus are commonly known as jack-beans. The species of Canavalia endemic to the Hawaiian Islands were named āwikiwiki by the Native Hawaiians. The name translates to "the very quick one" and comes from the Hawaiian word for "fast" that has also been appropriated into the name " Wikipedia". The genus name is derived from the Malabar word for the species, kavavali, which means "forest climber."