Karimkurinji / Yellow-Throated Bush-Violet
Barleria courtallica
- Habit
- Shrub
- Found in India
- Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu & more
- Flowering
- December-April
How to identify Karimkurinji
Identify Karimkurinji by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a shrub habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Yellow-throated purple flowers.
- Confirm leaf surface: Glabrous (smooth, hairless).
- Confirm flower colour: Purple.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: December-April.
- In India, compare location records such as Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra.
- Confirm it sits within the Acanthaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Karimkurinji.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Barleria courtallica
- Genus
- Barleria
- Family
- Acanthaceae
- Habit
- Shrub
- Habitat
- Evergreen and Shola forests
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Native to
- India
- Distribution
- India
- Found in India
- Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra
- Flowering & fruiting
- December-April
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf surface
- Glabrous (smooth, hairless)recorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Opposite
Characters marked “recorded” are for Karimkurinji itself; the rest are typical of the Acanthaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- PurplerecordedPurple or violet
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Spike
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Karimkurinji itself; the rest are typical of the Acanthaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Tamil
- பார்லேரியா கோர்டாலிகா
- Malayalam
- കരിങ്കുറിഞ്ഞി Karimkurinji, വെൺകുറിഞ്ഞി Venkurinji, വെൺകുറിഞ്ഞി
- Marathi
- कोर्ताली कोरांटी Kortali Koranti
About Karimkurinji
Yellow-Throated Bush-Violet (Barleria courtallica) belongs to the Acanthaceae family, where it grows as a shrub. In India it has been recorded in Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and 1 other states. It grows in evergreen and Shola forests. Flowering and fruiting run from December to April.
Acanthaceae
Acanthus family
Karimkurinji belongs to the Acanthaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Acanthaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Karimkurinji or any plant and SASYA identifies it instantly — on-device, offline, and private.
Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
All plant problem & care guides