InJavanese, and particularly inBahasa Indonesia, it is calledgembili. InTagalog, it is known astugi, while inCebuano it is calledapali. It is cultivated inKerala, Goa, Konkan parts of Maharashtra India. InMalayalam, it is known asnana kizhangu ornheruvalli kizhangu or "Cheru Kizhangu". In Goa it is calledKaate Kanaga (काटे कणगा ), It is a climber which needs support and goes coiling around the support.
The lesser yam is the second most important yam crop among Austronesians. LikeD. alata, it requires minimal processing, unlike the other more bitter yam species. However, it has smaller tubers thanD. alata and is usually spiny. LikeD. alata it was introduced toMadagascar and theComoros by Austronesians, where it spread to theEast African coast.[5][6][7] They are also a dominant crop inNear Oceania, However, it did not reach to the furthest islands in Polynesia, being absent inHawaii andNew Zealand.[8][9][10]
Starch grains identified to be from the lesser yam have been recovered from archaeological sites of theLapita culture inViti Levu, Fiji, dated to around 3,050 to 2,500cal BP.[11]D. esculenta is believed to have been introduced by the Lapita culture into New Guinea, along with agricultural innovations likewet cultivation.[12][13] Traces ofD. esculenta (along withD. alata,D. bulbifera,D. nummularia andD. pentaphylla) yams have also been identified from the Mé Auré Cave site inMoindou,New Caledonia, dated to around 2,700 to 1,800BP.[14] Remains ofD. esculenta have also been recovered from archaeological sites inGuam, dated to around 1031CE.[15]
The plant's stems are round and thin, with big, black compound spines that are 2–4 cm long. The leaves are soft, heart-shaped, and 5–8 cm long and 6–8 cm wide.[16]
^White, Lynton Dove."Uhi".Na Meakanu o Wa`a o Hawai`i Kahiko: The "Canoe Plants" of Ancient Hawai`i. Retrieved21 January 2019.
^Horrocks, Mark; Nunn, Patrick D. (May 2007). "Evidence for introduced taro (Colocasia esculenta) and lesser yam (Dioscorea esculenta) in Lapita-era (c. 3050–2500cal.yrBP) deposits from Bourewa, southwest Viti Levu Island, Fiji".Journal of Archaeological Science.34 (5):739–748.doi:10.1016/j.jas.2006.07.011.
^Horrocks, M.; Grant-Mackie, J.; Matisoo-Smith, E. (January 2008). "Introduced taro (Colocasia esculenta) and yams (Dioscorea spp.) in Podtanean (2700–1800years BP) deposits from Mé Auré Cave (WMD007), Moindou, New Caledonia".Journal of Archaeological Science.35 (1):169–180.doi:10.1016/j.jas.2007.03.001.
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Media related toDioscorea esculenta at Wikimedia Commons
Data related toDioscorea esculenta at Wikispecies