Shillelagh (club) Shillelagh (club) A shillelagh ( or ; , "thonged willow") or blackthorn stick is a wooden walking stick and club or cudgel, typically made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob at the top. It is associated with Ireland and Irish folklore. Shillelaghs are traditionally made from blackthorn (sloe) wood ("Prunus spinosa") or oak. Wood from the root was prized as it was less prone to crack or break during use. The wood would be smeared with butter or lard, and placed up a chimney to cure, giving the shillelagh its typical black shiny appearance. Another method was
Prunus africana buttock", because the two lobes of the fruit resemble the human gluteus maximus muscles. In 1965, Cornelis Kalkman moved "Pygeum" to "Prunus", and this classification has the authority for now. However, a recent cladistic study notes of "Pygeum": "its relationships to "Prunus" remain to be tested by molecular cladistics." "Prunus africana" is known by the common names African cherry, pygeum (from its former scientific name, "Pygeum africanum"), iron wood, red stinkwood, African plum, African prune, and bitter almond. In other languages spoken where it grows, it is known as "tikur inchet" in Amharic, "mkonde-konde" in Chagga, "muiri" in Kikuyu, "entasesa"