Obscure; most authorities credit the name to Michael Adanson (1727 - 1806), who named the species after a friend M. Oft. The name was unexplained. (K3)
Africa, = Africa;
-anus, = belonging to, connected with, pertaining to, used to form adjectives from nouns, particularly from geographical and personal names.
africanus, = pertaining to Africa, African.
(from Africa) (BL, ld)