Try the URL below - this is the web site of the Royal Forestry Society - I have included three short extracts also for quick reading:

http://www.rfs.org.uk/thirdlevel.asp?ThirdLevel=164&SecondLevel=33

"The English name ash is derived from aesc the Anglo-Saxon name for a spear, once a common use for 'ground ash' as young slender saplings were called."

and

"Ash coppices freely if felled before maturity.The quick grown poles are valued for such purposes as tool handles."

and

"If a wood is required to take a shock or a strain and absorb it smoothly without risk of fracture, ash is the best choice."

A general site on coppicing can be found at:

http://www.coppice.org.uk/background.htm

I hope this is of help.

Legend has it that, due to the characteristic natural curve of the main trunk and primary branches of this tree, it was prized by shipwrights as far back as the early Spanish explorers, who were pleased to discover an indiginous source of naturally curved lumber for ship staves.

There are certainly many others especially in the unstudied annals of ethnographic weapons over countless years of cultural diffusion.

I really like the expansion of perspective these topics apply to the study of weapons! Outstanding example!

"Is this a dagger which I see before me with the dudgeon toward my hand, come let me clutch thee"

I always wondered where W.S. got that term.
Thanks Jim

First, I thought that Assegai was derived from "Azagaia" - which is Portuguese for spear. Mozambique, of course, was a Portuguese colony for centuries, which would explain the term coming into use in Southern Africa. It is possible that this word arrived in the Portuguese vocabulary from Africa, but I recall being told it was the other way around. Anybody know the definitive answer?

Second, I speak a little Welsh (I grew up in Wales), but could not find the word dygon in any of my references. It is possible that this is an ancient term, but this raised a flag for me. I would be interested to hear the source reference on that one.

On 'assegai':
Ref: American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed. 2000
1. a light spear or lance, especially one with a short shaft and long blade for close combat, used by Bantu peoples of southern Africa.
2.A southern African tree (curtisia dentata) having wood used for making spears and lances.

In reviewing this application it appears the term 'assegai' is not known nor used by Zulu or associated tribes for the stabbing spear nor the tree. The Zulu term for curtisia dentata, at least the bark, which is used medicinally, is 'lahleni'. The Zulu term for the spear was 'iklwa', apparantly onomatopoeic word resembling the sucking sound it made being withdrawn from wound.
("The Anatomy of the Zulu Army", Ian Knight, London, 1995, p.110).
As you note, the term assegai does have early Arab origins, 'al zaghayah'= spear (Berber) and this term likely entered the Andalusian sphere, then Portuguese and French and Italian versions, all certainly via trade contact. The Portuguese colonial activity then carried the term to Africa, and was applied colloquially to the spears and trees used for them, or so it would seem.
Skepticism is good! Although the illustration here may not have applied as intended being sort of backwards, I sure learned something in rechecking this.
Thanks Wyvern !

Jeff, you got your Shakespeare down pretty good! One kind of funny story I always think of is of John Wayne in a brief attempt at the Bard.
After one scene in MacBeth, the director tells John he needs awe in his lines. Without missing a beat, Wayne drawls "... Awwwwh! Is this here a dagger I see before me!"

Thanks for posting the detailed information - I enjoy adding a little good natured skepticism. Your added comments that Assegai has an Arabic root make perfect sense.

An additional factor in the word's adoption may have been the presence of Arab trading colonies up and down the Eastern Coast of Africa. If I remember correctly there was heavy trade between Arabia and Africa - the Dhows would sail down the coast with one set of winds in one season and back up in the next season. (Can't remember what the winds were called or which seasons though).

I believe that this went on as far south as Zimbabwe. It was certainly going on further north - the place names are evidence of that (e.g. Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania),

Just a thought!