Alangium salviifolium, often called sage-leaved alangium, is a member of the Cornaceae family of flowering plants. The plant is also known as Alanji in Tamil, Akola or Ankol in Hindi, Ankolam in Malayalam, and Ankola in Kannada. Western Africa, Madagascar, Southern and Eastern Asia (China, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, and Philippines), tropical Australia, the islands of the western Pacific Ocean, and New Caledonia are among the native habitats of the plant. Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal are among the Indian states that have it. Eastern Kenya, Eastern Tanzania, and the Comoros are all in Africa. The Malayalam name Alangi, which in Kerala corresponds to Alangium salviifolium, was translated into Latin to form the name Alangium.

 


Jean-Baptiste Lamarck gave it that name in his Encyclopédie Méthodique in 1783.
India's drier regions are home to ankol trees. It is a medicinal tree, and the Ayurvedic and Siddha systems of medicine use a variety of its parts to treat illness. The only therapeutic herb used in Ayurveda to cure rabies is called ankol. The root bark is applied both inside and externally for this reason.

A snake bite can also be treated with it. The ankol tree is also used to cure fever, ascites, skin conditions, diarrhoea, and stomach pain. Roots, bark, leaves, seeds, and fruits were all used medicinally in some capacity. These substances are categorised as flavonoids, glycosides, alkaloids, and saponins, which are all natural products.

Apart from the chemistry of the alangium compounds, significant advancement has been made in the last three decades on the medical uses and biological activity of alangium. It is regarded as a valuable source of organic materials for the creation of drugs to treat various illnesses.