Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 1, 2026

Embelia ribes

Embelia ribes, commonly known as false black pepper, white-flowered embelia, viḍaṅga, vaividang, vai vidang, or vavding is a species of flowering plant in the family Primulaceae. It was originally described by Nicolaas Laurens Burman in his 1768 publication Flora Indica. It is widely distributed throughout India. In Cambodia, it is called Chu Preuk or Sangkong [ជូរព្រឹក/សង្កុង). In Ayurveda and Siddha, it is considered widely beneficial in a variety of diseases In particular embelin isolated from dried berries of Embelia ribes has a wide spectrum of biological activities.

Last revised
Jul 1, 2026
Read time
≈ 2 min
Length
372 w
Citations
5
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Embelia ribes
Embelia ribes seeds
Flowers and leaves
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Embryophytes
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Spermatophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Primulaceae
Genus: Embelia
Species:
E. ribes
Binomial name
Embelia ribes

Embelia ribes, commonly known as false black pepper, white-flowered embelia, viḍaṅga (Sanskrit: विडङ्ग), vaividang, vai vidang, or vavding1 is a species of flowering plant in the family Primulaceae. It was originally described by Nicolaas Laurens Burman in his 1768 publication Flora Indica.2 It is widely distributed throughout India. In Cambodia, it is called Chu Preuk or Sangkong [ជូរព្រឹក/សង្កុង). In Ayurveda and Siddha, it is considered widely beneficial in a variety of diseases3 In particular embelin isolated from dried berries of Embelia ribes has a wide spectrum of biological activities.

Uses

Embelia ribes has been used in traditional medicine to treat:45

  • Intestinal worms. Used to treat various types of worm infestation in the gut.
  • Indigestion. Helps with digestive issues like vomiting, nausea and constipation.
  • Depression. Embelia ribes has antidepressant effects and is used to treat depression.
  • Throat infection. Effective in reducing cough and treating throat infections.
  • Obesity. Aids in weight loss and helps remove body toxins.
  • Skin disease. Used to treat skin diseases by purifying the blood.
References

References

  1. "Sorting Embelia names". Multilingual Multiscript Plant Database. The University of Melbourne. Retrieved 2009-08-11.
  2. "Embelia ribes". International Plant Names Index (IPNI). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries; Australian National Botanic Gardens. Retrieved 13 October 2009.
  3. http://results2.ap.nic.in/general/plants/plshow.jsp?scode=1084&pln=VIDANGA
  4. "Importance of Embelia Ribes: An Update | International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research". October 2013.
  5. Sharma, Vineet; Gautam, Dev Nath Singh; Radu, Andrei-Flavius; Behl, Tapan; Bungau, Simona Gabriela; Vesa, Cosmin Mihai (2022-07-13). "Reviewing the Traditional/Modern Uses, Phytochemistry, Essential Oils/Extracts and Pharmacology of Embelia ribes Burm". Antioxidants. 11 (7): 1359. doi:10.3390/antiox11071359. ISSN 2076-3921. PMC 9311956. PMID 35883850.
External links