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Hymenaea courbaril, the courbaril, is a tree about 20 meters high that occurs from Mexico to the Center-west of Brazil.

It is a hardwood that is used for furniture, flooring and decorative purposes. 

The wood is used in construction, in the manufacture of articles for sports, art objects and decorative items, as well as expensive and fancy furniture. Known in English as brazilian-cherry, the wood jatobá is listed in the group of the ten most valuable in the world, along with the ipe (brazilian walnut-) and domogno (mahogany).

The flesh of the vegetable is edible and very nutritious. It is also used as food for wildlife. The dispersion of seed - from two to four in each legume - occurs, in large part, by bats.

It is nominated for market for its medicinal purposes. As a medicinal plant, different parts are used by natives of Brazil, Guyana and Peru against diarrhea, cough, bronchitis, stomach problems and fungus on the feet. Recent studies indicate that ancient jatobás can produce substances effectively in fighting some cancers.

It has been used in the restoration of degraded forests and, to this end, its seeds are sold by official seed networks of their biomes of origin.