/ban"yeuhn/ , n.
1. Also called banyan tree . an East Indian fig tree, Ficus benghalensis, of the mulberry family, having branches that send out adventitious roots to the ground and sometimes cause the tree to spread over a wide area.
2. Also, bania, baniya . (in India)
a. a Hindu trader or merchant of a particular caste, the rules of which forbid eating flesh.
b. a loose shirt, jacket, or gown.
Also, banian .
[ 1590-1600;
vaniyo (sing.) or vaniya (pl.) member of the merchant caste (cf. Prakrit vaniaya, Skt vanija trader); the tree is said to have taken its name from a particular tree of the species near which merchants had built a booth; source of final nasal uncert. ]