[3] The Latin specific epithet of echinata refers to hedgehog, from echinus, and describes the thorns which cover all parts of the tree (including the fruits).

[11] When Portuguese explorers found Paubrasilia on the coast of South America, they recognised it as a relative of an Asian species of sappanwood already used in Europe for producing red dye.

In the bow-making business, it is usual to refer to some species other than Paubrasilia echinata as "brazilwood"; examples include pink ipê (Handroanthus impetiginosus), Massaranduba (Manilkara bidentata) and palo brasil (Haematoxylum brasiletto).

The brazilwood tree may reach up to 15 metres (49 ft) in height, and the dark brown bark flakes in large patches, revealing the lustrous blood-red sapwood underneath.

A related wood, sappanwood, coming from Asia was traded in powder form and used as a red dye in the manufacture of luxury textiles, such as velvet, in high demand during the Renaissance.

When Portuguese navigators landed in present-day Brazil, on April 22, 1500, they immediately saw that brazilwood was extremely abundant along the coast and in its hinterland, along the rivers.

The rich commerce which soon followed stimulated other nations to try to harvest and smuggle brazilwood contraband out of Brazil, and corsairs to attack loaded Portuguese ships in order to steal their cargo.

The trade of brazilwood is likely to be banned in the immediate future,[needs update] creating a major problem in the bow-making industry which highly values this wood.