When buying Paraiba / Copper Bearing Tourmaline / Cuprian Elbaite be sure to; 1) Ask if the stone is a Paraiba, Copper Bearing Tourmaline or Cuprian Elbaite.  The answer to this question must be yes for the stone to be considered a Paraiba tourmaline.  2)  Verify if possible the origin of the stone.  The Origin of ALL Paraiba tourmalines is form the countries of Brazil (Mined out and no longer producing material since 1990's), Nigeria (Mined out more recently) or Mozambique (The only remaining source of Paraiba Copper Bearing Tourmaline / Cuprian Elbaite.  If the stone is not from one of those 3 countries it CANNOT be a true Paraiba tourmaline. Now that also doesnt mean that if it is a Tourmaline from one of those 3 countries that it is automatically a Paraiba Tourmaline either as those countries all produce tourmaline that is not Copper Bearing.  There are many tourmalines out there that are called Paraiba color, Paraiba Blue or something close to that, however, the words Paraiba & Tourmaline must be adjoining for the seller to be liable to be selling a ture Paraiba tourmaline.   So if you see a description like; Paraiba Blue Tourmaline, thats Bad it is likely only describing the color of the stone, not what type of stone it is.  If you see a title like Paraiba Tourmaline, Copper Bearing Tourmaline or Cuprian Elbaite thats Good there is only one thing it can be.  It has been determined that all Cuprian Elbaite can now be called Paraiba Tourmaline and are all very similar with the exception of levels of some trace elements. I hope this helps more people make educated buying decisions and if anyone ever has a question I can answer I welcome the opportunity to help, Always.