Khaya is a genus of tropical African timber trees in the mahogany family Meliaceae, order Sapindales. The genus comprises five species native to sub-Saharan Africa — from Senegal in the west across to Sudan and Uganda in the east — with one species, Khaya madagascariensis, found in Madagascar.
Trees in the genus are large, typically reaching 13–30 metres in height, occasionally 45 metres, with a trunk diameter exceeding one metre. The base is frequently buttressed. Leaves are pinnate, bearing three to seven pairs of leaflets, each leaflet 8–17 cm long; the terminal leaflet is absent. Depending on the species, foliage may be deciduous or evergreen. Small flowers with four or five yellowish petals and ten stamens are borne in loose inflorescences. The fruit is a distinctive globose capsule, four- or five-valved, 5–8 cm in diameter, and packed with numerous winged seeds adapted for wind dispersal.
The genus is economically important as the primary source of African mahogany — timber whose properties are widely regarded as the closest available substitute for American mahogany (Swietenia). The reddish-brown wood of Khaya anthotheca, for example, is prized for dug-out canoes, structural beams, door frames, and shelving, and is notably resistant to termite and borer attack. Khaya senegalensis seeds yield an oil with a high oleic acid content (around 65%) and are used in traditional and commercial contexts across West Africa.
Distribution
Khaya is native to tropical Africa, ranging from Senegal in the west through to Sudan and Uganda in the east, with K. madagascariensis extending the range to Madagascar. Species are found in tropical moist and dry forests across this broad belt of sub-Saharan Africa.
Cultural Uses
The timber of Khaya species has been traded internationally as African mahogany since the colonial era and remains one of the most commercially significant hardwoods in tropical Africa. Khaya anthotheca wood is used locally for dug-out canoes (makoros), beams, door frames, and shelving, valued for its termite and borer resistance. The seeds of K. senegalensis contain approximately 52.5% oil — composed mainly of oleic acid — which is used in food and soap production across West Africa.
Conservation
Several Khaya species, particularly K. ivorensis and K. anthotheca, have been subject to heavy logging pressure for export as African mahogany. Overexploitation for the international timber trade has raised concerns about population viability across parts of their range in West and Central Africa.
