Abstract The essential oil from leaves of Cordia leucocephala Moric (Boraginaceae) from northeast of Brazil was obtained by hydrodistillation and subsequently analyzed by GC/MS and GC-FID. Twenty-one constituents, representing 98.4% of the oil were identified. The oil was characterized by high percentages of sesquiterpenes (92.7%) with Î²-caryophyllene (39.0%) and bicyclogermacrene (25.9%) as the main constituents. This is the first report on the chemical composition of the essential oil from C. leucocephala. Key Word Index: Cordia leucocephala Boraginaceaeessential oil compositionÎ²-caryophyllenebicyclogermacrene