Teak, tectona grandis, is a hardwood tree native to much of South and Southeast Asia, including Myanmar. Due to its natural water resistance, teak is sought out for a variety of uses including furniture-making and shipbuilding. Teak grows throughout much of Burma, but was first exploited in the Tenasserim (now Tanintharyi) region in the southeast of Burma on the Malay Peninsula Though it has long been used by locals, teak has been important to the economy of Myanmar since British Colonization and remains a political issue today.