gomuti

From Malay.

gomuti (uncountable)

1. (obsolete) The palm tree Arenga pinnata.

   Synonyms: ejoo, gomuti palm

   • 1820, John Crawfurd, History of the Indian Archipelago, volume I, Edinburgh: Archibald Constable, page 397:

     The gomuti is the thickest of all the palms, but shorter than the coconut. It is readily distinguished from all other palms by its rude and wild aspect.

2. A black, fibrous substance resembling horsehair, obtained from the leafstalks of palms of species Metroxylon sagu and Arenga pinnata (syn. Arenga saccharifera), of tropcial east Asia, and used for making cordage.

   Synonym: ejoo

   • 1875 January 2, The Sydney Mail, page 5, column 2:

     The Gomuti, from the trunks of the 'Arnaga Sacharifera,' [sic] is much used as a substitute for horsehair.

   • 1924 September 6, Smith's Weekly, Sydney, page 3, column 2:

     While he worked, I trussed the black's hands and feet with a piece of gomuti rope I found lying on the floor.