» This article refers to the edible fruit. For the British construction company, see Persimmon plc; for the racehorse, see Persimmon (horse). A persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees of the genus Diospyros in the ebony wood family (Ebenaceae). The word persimmon is derived from putchamin, pasiminan, or pessamin, from Powhatan, an Algonquian language (related to Blackfoot, Cree and Mohican) of the eastern United States, meaning "a dry fruit". Persimmons are generally light… (More on Persimmon)