Articles

Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plant species used by communities around Mabira Central Forest Reserve, Uganda

An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants was carried out in 14 villages adjacent to Mabira Central Forest Reserve (CFR) in Central Uganda between August 2013 and March 2014.

Authors: Patience Tugume, Esezah K. Kakudidi, Mukadasi Buyinza, Justine Namaalwa, Maud Kamatenesi, Patrick Mucunguzi and James Kalema

Forming a joint dialogue among faith healers, traditional healers and formal health workers in mental health in a Kenyan setting: towards common grounds

Qualitative evidence on dialogue formation and collaboration is very scanty in Kenya. This study thus aimed at the formation of dialogue and establishment of collaboration among the informal (faith and traditi...

Authors: Christine W. Musyimi, Victoria N. Mutiso, Erick S. Nandoya and David M. Ndetei

Comparative ethnobotany of the Wakhi agropastoralist and the Kyrgyz nomads of Afghanistan

The mountainous Wakhan and Pamir in northeastern Afghanistan is one of the most isolated yet inhabited places in Asia. It is home to the agropastoralist Wakhi and the last Afghan semi-nomadic Kyrgyz. We presen...

Authors: Jens Soelberg and Anna K. Jäger

Ethnoichthyology of the indigenous Truká people, Northeast Brazil

Historically, fishing is an important activity for riverine communities established along the São Francisco River, including indigenous communities. In the present study, we researched fishing activities in tw...

Authors: Carlos Alberto Batista Santos and Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves

Foodways in transition: food plants, diet and local perceptions of change in a Costa Rican Ngäbe community

Indigenous populations are undergoing rapid ethnobiological, nutritional and socioeconomic transitions while being increasingly integrated into modernizing societies. To better understand the dynamics of these...

Authors: Ugo D’Ambrosio and Rajindra K. Puri

Erratum to: Assessing human-bat interactions around a protected area in northeastern Brazil

Authors: Karlla Morganna Costa Rego, Caio Graco Zeppelini, Luiz Carlos Serramo Lopez and Rômuno Romeu Nobrega Alves

Fischer’s Lexicon of Slavic beliefs and customs: a previously unknown contribution to the ethnobotany of Ukraine and Poland

Historical ethnobotanical studies are important, even if they are only descriptive, because they help to throw light on the missing chains needed for diachronic analysis. However, the documentation of traditio...

Authors: Monika Kujawska, Łukasz Łuczaj and Joanna Typek

Children’s daily activities and knowledge acquisition: A case study among the Baka from southeastern Cameroon

The acquisition of local knowledge occurs through complex interactions between individual and contextual characteristics: as context changes, so it changes the acquisition of knowledge. Contemporary small-scal...

Authors: Sandrine Gallois, Romain Duda, Barry Hewlett and Victoria Reyes-García

Ethnobotanical survey of plants used in Afyonkarahisar-Turkey

The traditional knowledge about plants and their uses in Turkey is disappearing in recent years because the new generations of villagers migrate to big cities for a better life. Afyonkarahisar located at the i...

Authors: Süleyman Arı, Mehmet Temel, Mustafa Kargıoğlu and Muhsin Konuk

Scented grasses in Norway—identity and uses

Some grass species are richer in coumarin and thus more sweetly scented than others. These have been eagerly sought after in parts of Norway, but the tradition has been weakly documented, both in terms of the ...

Authors: Torbjørn Alm

The uses of Kenyan aloes: an analysis of implications for names, distribution and conservation

The genus Aloe is renowned for its medicinal and cosmetic properties and long history of use. Sixty-three Aloe species occur in Kenya, of which around 50 % are endemic. Several species of aloes are threatened wit...

Authors: Charlotte S. Bjorå, Emily Wabuyele, Olwen M. Grace, Inger Nordal and Leonard E. Newton

An ethnobotany of the Lukomir Highlanders of Bosnia & Herzegovina

This aim of this study is to report upon traditional knowledge and use of wild medicinal plants by the Highlanders of Lukomir, Bjelašnica, Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). The Highlanders are an indigenous commun...

Authors: Jonathan Ferrier, Lana Saciragic, Sabina Trakić, Eric C. H. Chen, Rachelle L. Gendron, Alain Cuerrier, Michael J. Balick, Sulejman Redžić, Emira Alikadić and John T. Arnason

Assessing human-bat interactions around a protected area in northeastern Brazil

Bats are key components to the Neotropical forests. Unfortunately, their bad reputation is a major obstacle in their conservation as it creates fear and hostility towards them. Understanding this reputation ac...

Authors: Karlla Morganna da Costa Rego, Caio Graco Zeppelini, Luiz Carlos Serramo Lopez and Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves

An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants used in the East Sepik province of Papua New Guinea

Rapid modernization in the East Sepik (ES) Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is resulting in a decrease in individuals knowledgeable in medicinal plant use. Here we report a synthesis and comparison of tradit...

Authors: Michael Koch, Dickson Andrew Kehop, Boniface Kinminja, Malcolm Sabak, Graham Wavimbukie, Katherine M. Barrows, Teatulohi K. Matainaho, Louis R. Barrows and Prem P. Rai

Processing insect abundance: trading and fishing of zazamushi in Central Japan (Nagano Prefecture, Honshū Island)

This article presents the links between technique, commerce and consumption in fishing for zazamushi, a mixture of aquatic insect larvae sold as food souvenirs in Japan. Since zazamushi are mainly collected fo...

Authors: Nicolas Césard, Seiji Komatsu and Akihisa Iwata

Farmers knowledge and perception on maize stem borers and their indigenous control methods in south western region of Cameroon

Agriculture is a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Cameroon, The South West region of Cameroon is known for its potential in the production of major agricultural commodities, but farmers...

Authors: Esther Obi Oben, Nelson Neba Ntonifor, Sevilor Kekeunou and Martin Nkwa Abbeytakor

Ræstur fiskur: air-dried fermented fish the Faroese way

Fish has played an important role in the diet of the population of the mid-Atlantic Faroe Islands. Dried and fermented fish in particular have been an essential storable protein source in an economy where weat...

Authors: Ingvar Svanberg

Bird naming systems by Akan people in Ghana follow scientific nomenclature with potentials for conservation monitoring

Studies on indigenous knowledge of fauna particular birds and its potential use in biodiversity conservation and management are rare globally. Characteristics used in creating indigenous bird names in many Gha...

Authors: Justus P. Deikumah, Vida Asieduwaa Konadu and Richard Kwafo

Impact of traditional culture on Camellia reticulata in Yunnan, China

Cha-hua (Camellia reticulata) is one of China’s traditional ornamental flowers developed by the local people of Yunnan Province. Today, more than 500 cultivars and hybrids are recogniz...

Authors: Tong Xin, Jan de Riek, Huijun Guo, Devra Jarvis, Lijuan Ma and Chunlin Long

Attitudes and use of medicinal plants during pregnancy among women at health care centers in three regions of Mali, West-Africa

Although, medicinal plants have been important for women’s health historically, the knowledge about such use during pregnancy in developing countries is limited. This is the first quantitative, ethnobotanical ...

Authors: Cecilie Sogn Nergard, Thi Phung Than Ho, Drissa Diallo, Ngolo Ballo, Berit Smestad Paulsen and Hedvig Nordeng

Plant species introduced by foreigners according to folk tradition in Norway and some other European countries: xenophobic tales or not?

In their quest to understand and interpret nature, people have frequently sought religious or divine origins for plant species and their characteristics. Less often, historical events or persons are involved. ...

Authors: Torbjørn Alm

Symbolism and ritual practices related to hunting in Maya communities from central Quintana Roo, Mexico

Some Mayan peasant-hunters across the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico still carry out a hunting ritual –Loojil Ts’oon, Loj Ts’oon or Carbine Ceremony– in which they renew the divine permission for hunting in order to...

Authors: Dídac Santos-Fita, Eduardo J. Naranjo, Erin I.J. Estrada, Ramón Mariaca and Eduardo Bello

Current use of wild plants with edible underground storage organs in a rural population of Patagonia: between tradition and change

Edible plants with underground storage organs (USOs) are neglected resources. We studied the local ecological knowledge edible plants with (USOs) in rural populations of North-Patagonia in order to establish h...

Authors: Juan José Ochoa and Ana Haydee Ladio

Medicinal plants used to treat the most frequent diseases encountered in Ambalabe rural community, Eastern Madagascar

Traditional medicine remains the only health care available in many rural areas in Madagascar like the rural community of Ambalabe, located in a very remote area in the eastern part of the country. With limite...

Authors: Nivo H. Rakotoarivelo, Fortunat Rakotoarivony, Aro Vonjy Ramarosandratana, Vololoniaina H. Jeannoda, Alyse R. Kuhlman, Armand Randrianasolo and Rainer W. Bussmann

An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in Trinidad

An ethnobotanical survey was conducted on the Caribbean island of Trinidad to identify medicinal plants commonly used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of medical conditions.

Authors: Y. N. Clement, Y. S. Baksh-Comeau and C. E. Seaforth

Integrated approach to the understanding of the degradation of an urban river: local perceptions, environmental parameters and geoprocessing

The use of interdisciplinary approaches such as the proposed report provides a broad understanding of the relationship between people and the environment, revealing reliable aspects not previously considered i...

Authors: Carolina A. Collier, Miguel S. de Almeida Neto, Gabriela MA Aretakis, Rangel E. Santos, Tiago H. de Oliveira, José S. Mourão, William Severi and Ana CA El-Deir

The use of Amerindian charm plants in the Guianas

Magical charm plants to ensure good luck in hunting, fishing, agriculture, love and warfare are known among many Amerindians groups in the Guianas. Documented by anthropologists as social and political markers...

Authors: Tinde van Andel, Sofie Ruysschaert, Karin Boven and Lewis Daly

An iconic traditional apiculture of park fringe communities of Borena Sayint National Park, north eastern Ethiopia

Traditional apiculture has been practised in Ethiopia over a long historical period and still remains a benign means to extract direct benefits from natural ecosystems. While its contribution to economic devel...

Authors: Hussien Adal, Zemede Asfaw, Zerihun Woldu, Sebsebe Demissew and Patrick van Damme

Ethnobotanical study of homegarden plants in Sebeta-Awas District of the Oromia Region of Ethiopia to assess use, species diversity and management practices

Homegardens in Ethiopia are currently facing different threats mainly due genetic erosion, loss of traditional knowledge on their use and management and drought. On the other hand, research and documentation w...

Authors: Tefera Mekonen, Mirutse Giday and Ensermu Kelbessa

An ethnomedicinal study of the Seri people; a group of hunter-gatherers and fishers native to the Sonoran Desert

Worldwide, coastal communities’ ethnomedicinal knowledge has been sporadically recorded and poorly understood. Based on the ethnomedicinal knowledge of the Seri people; a hunting-gathering and fishing society ...

Authors: Nemer E. Narchi, Luis Ernesto Aguilar-Rosas, José Jesús Sánchez-Escalante and Dora Ofelia Waumann-Rojas

The social context of wild leafy vegetables uses in Shiri, Daghestan

Shiri is a small mountainous village in the Republic of Daghestan, in the North Caucasus. Daghestan is Russia’s southernmost and most ethnically and linguistically diverse republic, a considerable part of whic...

Authors: Iwona Kaliszewska and Iwona Kołodziejska-Degórska

TEK, local perceptions of risk, and diversity of management practices of Agave inaequidens in Michoacán, Mexico

Mescal production is the main economic activity associated to agaves in Mexico, which involves 53 species mostly harvested from forests. The increasing mescal demand has influenced risk in both agave populatio...

Authors: Ignacio Torres, José Blancas, Alejandro León and Alejandro Casas

Medicinal plants sold in the markets of Antananarivo, Madagascar

This study focuses on the large outdoor markets of the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo. As the largest metropolitan area in Madagascar with a population of nearly two million, the region has great capacity...

Authors: Maria Nirina Randriamiharisoa, Alyse R. Kuhlman, Vololoniaina Jeannoda, Harison Rabarison, Nivo Rakotoarivelo, Tabita Randrianarivony, Fortunat Raktoarivony, Armand Randrianasolo and Rainer W. Bussmann

Motivations for food prohibitions during pregnancy and their enforcement mechanisms in a rural Ghanaian district

Food taboos are known from virtually all human societies and pregnant women have often been targeted. We qualitatively assessed food taboos during pregnancy, its motivating factors, and enforcement mechanisms ...

Authors: Samson K. Arzoaquoi, Edward E. Essuman, Fred Y. Gbagbo, Eric Y. Tenkorang, Ireneous Soyiri and Amos K. Laar

Plant selection for ethnobotanical uses on the Amalfi Coast (Southern Italy)

Many ethnobotanical studies have investigated selection criteria for medicinal and non-medicinal plants. In this paper we test several statistical methods using different ethnobotanical datasets in order to 1)...

Authors: V. Savo, R. Joy, G. Caneva and W. C. McClatchey

The changing role of a Vaidya (non-codified traditional doctor) in the community health of Kerala, Southern India: comparison of treatment-seeking behaviours between the Vaidya’s patients and community members

This study aimed at exploring the roles of a Vaidya – an uncodified traditional doctor – in a community in Kerala State, India. Special attention was paid to the characteristics of the Vaidya’s patients in com...

Authors: Sachi Matsuoka

Factors affecting home gardens ownership, diversity and structure: a case study from Benin

Home gardens (HGs) provide perspectives for conservation of plant genetic resources while contributing to improving livelihoods. However, knowledge of local factors shaping their ownership, plant diversity (PD...

Authors: Rodrigue Castro Gbedomon, Adandé Belarmain Fandohan, Valère Kolawolé Salako, Alix Franck Rodrigue Idohou, Romain Glèlè Kakaї and Achille Ephrem Assogbadjo

Explaining the resurgent popularity of the wild: motivations for wild plant gathering in the Biosphere Reserve Grosses Walsertal, Austria

Wild plant gathering becomes again a popular and fashionable activity in Europe after gathering practices have been increasingly abandoned over the last decades. Recent ethnobotanical research documented a div...

Authors: Christoph Schunko, Susanne Grasser and Christian R. Vogl

Ethnoveterinary of Sahrawi pastoralists of Western Sahara: camel diseases and remedies

Pastoral populations around the world hold complex and detailed ethnoveterinary knowledge, essential for the survival of their herds and securing their livelihood. In recent decades, several studies have given...

Authors: Gabriele Volpato, Saleh Mohamed Lamin Saleh and Antonello Di Nardo

Wild edible plant knowledge, distribution and transmission: a case study of the Achí Mayans of Guatemala

Knowledge about wild edible plants (WEPs) has a high direct-use value. Yet, little is known about factors shaping the distribution and transfer of knowledge of WEPs at global level and there is concern that us...

Authors: Nerea Turreira-García, Ida Theilade, Henrik Meilby and Marten Sørensen

From economic survival to recreation: contemporary uses of wild food and medicine in rural Sweden, Ukraine and NW Russia

There are many ethnobotanical studies on the use of wild plants and mushrooms for food and medicinal treatment in Europe. However, there is a lack of comparative ethnobotanical research on the role of non-wood...

Authors: Nataliya Stryamets, Marine Elbakidze, Melissa Ceuterick, Per Angelstam and Robert Axelsson

Cultural landscapes of the Araucaria Forests in the northern plateau of Santa Catarina, Brazil

The Araucaria Forest is associated with the Atlantic Forest domain and is a typical ecosystem of southern Brazil. The expansion of Araucaria angustifolia had a human influence in southern Brazil, where historical...

Authors: Anna Jacinta Machado Mello and Nivaldo Peroni

From Disease to Holiness: Religious-based health remedies of Italian folk medicine (XIX-XX century)

The relationship between spirituality, religion and medicine has been recognized since antiquity. Despite large differences in their history, society, economy and cultures human communities shared a common bel...

Authors: Nelide Romeo, Olivier Gallo and Giuseppe Tagarelli

Socio-cultural profile of Bapedi traditional healers as indigenous knowledge custodians and conservation partners in the Blouberg area, Limpopo Province, South Africa

Bapedi traditional healers of Blouberg are custodians of indigenous knowledge on medicinal plants of this region. They provide primary health care to a large number of people in the Blouberg area of South Afri...

Authors: Malehu K Mathibela, Bronwyn A Egan, Helena J Du Plessis and Martin J Potgieter

Contributions of medicinal plants to the Gross National Happiness and Biodiscovery in Bhutan

The medicinal plants and the associated Bhutanese traditional medicine (BTM) are protected by the country’s constitution and receive both government support and acceptance by the wider public. More than 1000 m...

Authors: Phurpa Wangchuk and Tashi Tobgay

Rats: if you can’t beat them eat them! (Tricks of the trade observed among the Adi and other North-East Indian tribals)

Since outside the tribal areas of North-East India it is not widely known, neither in the world nor in India itself, that rats are considered a delicious food item, this was one of several reasons why we decid...

Authors: Victor Benno Meyer-Rochow, Karsing Megu and Jharna Chakravorty

Ethnomedicinal plants used by traditional healers in Phatthalung Province, Peninsular Thailand

In rural communities of Thailand, traditional healers still play an important role in local health care systems even though modern medicine is easily accessible. Meanwhile, natural forests in Thailand which ar...

Authors: Katesarin Maneenoon, Chuanchom Khuniad, Yaowalak Teanuan, Nisachon Saedan, Supatra Prom-in, Nitiphol Rukleng, Watid Kongpool, Phongsura Pinsook and Winyu Wongwiwat

Ethnomedicinal survey of various communities residing in Garo Hills of Durgapur, Bangladesh

Garo Hills represents one of earliest human habitation in Bangladesh preserving its ancient cultures due to the geographic location. It is situated in the most northern part of Durgapur sub-district having bor...

Authors: Md. Arif Khan, Md. Khirul Islam, Md. Afjalus Siraj, Sanjib Saha, Apurba Kumar Barman, Khalijah Awang, Md. Mustafizur Rahman, Jamil A. Shilpi, Rownak Jahan, Erena Islam and Mohammed Rahmatullah

Knowledge and use of wild edible plants in rural communities along Paraguay River, Pantanal, Brazil

Wild plants are used as food for human populations where people still depend on natural resources to survive. This study aimed at identifying wild plants and edible uses known in four rural communities of the ...

Authors: Ieda Maria Bortolotto, Maria Christina de Mello Amorozo, Germano Guarim Neto, Jens Oldeland and Geraldo Alves Damasceno-Junior

Acknowledgement of manuscript reviewers 2014

The editors of Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine would like to thank all our reviewers who have contributed to the journal in Volume 10 (2014).

Authors: Andrea Pieroni