Milled wood lignin (MWL) isolated from Phyllostachys makinoi was investigated by chemical and physical methods. The bamboo lignin is rich in syringyl units, which is indicated by a high methoxyl content and respective bands in the IR spectrum. The distinct absorption bands for aromatic ring vibrations are attributed to final p-coumaryl ester groups. In the UV spectrum the extinction maximum in the range of 280 nm is shifted to longer wavelengths as compared to wood lignin. With NaOH and TFA, mainly arabinoxylan with an Xyl : Ara ratio of 14 : 1 was extracted from bamboo saw dust. The Hgnin proportion in the NaOH extract derived mainly from the secondary walls has a lower methoxyl content, while the lignin proportion in the TFA extract derived from the compound middle lamellae has a higher methoxyl content than in the MWL.