A tall coarse grass (Imperata cylindrica) native to Southeast Asia, used for thatching, fodder, and paper production in tropical regions.
From Malay 'alang-alang,' the native Southeast Asian name for this pervasive grass species, borrowed into English through colonial trade and botanical literature.
Alang grass is so tough and aggressive at spreading that it's considered invasive in many places—but in Southeast Asia, people have learned to use it for thatch, which is both practical AND environmentally sensible!
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