This thesis describes Saramaccan Maroon medicinal plant knowledge, practices and beliefs in relation to local health care, education and biocultural conservation. The Saramaccan ethno-medical... Show moreThis thesis describes Saramaccan Maroon medicinal plant knowledge, practices and beliefs in relation to local health care, education and biocultural conservation. The Saramaccan ethno-medical system in the village Pikin Slee focused primarily on cure followed by health promotion, and disease prevention. People made a deliberated choice for traditional medicines, even though most health concerns could be treated in the village health center. Herbal bathing plays a significant role in providing local health care among Maroons. The geographical separation between the Saramaccan and Ndyuka Maroons have led to distinct plant use in their herbal bathing practices.Writing proper Saramaccan plant names and the translation of health issues from Saramaccan into Dutch is a challenge for pupils in Pikin Slee, indicating a gap between the official school curriculum (in Dutch), traditional knowledge and literacy in Saramaccan. The growing influence of Sranantongo interrupts the conservation of Saramaccan traditional ecological and cultural knowledge stored in plant names which are influenced by European, African and Indigenous languages. Central-African Bantu languages, especially Kikongo, contributed most to the names followed by West-African Kwa languages. As Saramaccan plant names store large amounts of traditional knowledge, they play an important role in the conservation of Saramaccan biocultural heritage. Show less
The research provides insight into disease behavior in both rural and semi-urban areas in Serengeti in Tanzania. It focuses on the motives and behaviors that patients exhibit when relying on local... Show moreThe research provides insight into disease behavior in both rural and semi-urban areas in Serengeti in Tanzania. It focuses on the motives and behaviors that patients exhibit when relying on local healthcare systems, classified as traditional, transitional or modern. It describes the availability, accessibility and patterns of use of these healthcare systems, in particular how they are embedded in the local cultural heritage. It shows that behavioral patterns are dominated by psycho-social and cultural factors. In addition, background characteristics, intervening factors and situation-dependent factors that influence usage patterns are described, analyzed and explained. The analytical model based on the school of "Ethnoscience" shows where the use of these medical systems is related to the historical, cultural and economic factors that determine the daily lives of the inhabitants. The analysis of the research data provides recommendations for education and training of local middle management staff in support of integrated transcultural public health policy, as initiated by the local government of Serengeti in collaboration with the local training institutions. The findings are used as input for the intended master course in Transcultural Public Health Management in the area, and elsewhere in similar circumstances. Special attention is paid to the local medical knowledge, beliefs and practices of the target population to improve public health. Show less
This research is organized in six chapters and ten appendices.Chapter one contains some introductory remarks on the reasons behind the choice of Bakhtiari for this research and the background... Show moreThis research is organized in six chapters and ten appendices.Chapter one contains some introductory remarks on the reasons behind the choice of Bakhtiari for this research and the background studies, as well as some explanations over the methods that were employed to carry out this study. Some ideas for further research are also suggested in the last section of this chapter (See 1.5 below).In chapter two the socio-historical background of the Bakhtiaris is critically reviewed by providing first hand observational and analytic facts that at times contradict the existing and mainstream notions on the subject. As an example, in section 2.2.2, a new etymology for lænɡ is proposed. This word is a crucial term in Bakhtiari but its meaning is ambiguous. In the last two hundred years, a number of hypotheses on its meaning have been repeated without substantial revision. Here, all the previous notions are reviewed critically and the proposed etymology incor-porates the ideas and suggestions of some prominent contemporary linguists specialized in Iranian studies. At the end of chapter two, parts of my M.A thesis are included. Although it was carried out around two decades ago, it is considered to this day as a pioneer socio-linguistic study on a modern Iranian language, subsequently, several articles, M.A. theses and PhD theses have been written at the Iranian universities based on this model. Chapter three presents a novel study for an Iranian language, viz. a semantic study of the vo-cabulary from an anthropological viewpoint. For this research I had no previous model to follow, so that it presented many challenges. The chapter contains two sections. In the first section the semantic fields of kinship terms (3.1.1) and body parts (3.1.3) are detailed studies based on exist-ing theories of language universals and word categories. The second part of the chapter three is a new study of the Bakhtiari fauna and flora. It investigates the ways in which Bakhtiari nomads classify their natural surroundings (Ethno-taxonomy). The study of ethnic taxonomies, or as it is usually referred to, Ethno-biology, is relatively new, and to this day it has not received due atten-tion among scholars working on the Iranian languages. Therefore, at the beginning of this chapter, this field of study is introduced very briefly and then several semantic fields of Bakhtiari are examined. The new findings are presented with tentative explanations that are rooted in the cul-tural history of the nomads.Chapters four to six constitute the linguistic part of the study. In chapter four a brief introduc-tion to the phonemic system of the present day Haftlang variety of Bakhtiari is provided. This chapter should be regarded as a guide to study the bulk of the words and sentences that are used throughout the book. For a more detailed study of the Bakhtiari phonology, the interested reader is encouraged to consult Anonby (2014).In chapter five a thorough discussion of noun morphology is presented. All the different cate-gories of nominal morphology are addressed, with detailed examples gathered through decades of research. Derivational morphology is not covered in the present volume; the relevant, extensive data must await a future opportunity to produce a more comprehensive description of the lan-guage.Chapter six is a thorough description of Bakhtiari verbs. An attempt is made to categorize dif-ferent verb classes using mainly synchronic data. In the description of the verbs, it was inevitable to resort to a historical explanation to deal with some minor grammatical issues.It should be noted that chapters five and six are modelled on the traditional grammars of Per-sian and other Iranian languages. I chose not to depart from the centuries-old tradition of Persian grammar writing in the case of the Bakhtiari grammar, also in order to maintain comparability with other grammars of Iranian languages and dialects. Therefore, at times, it may seem that the description is not strictly from within the language, as in the case of introducing some forms of subjunctive verbs separately under a heading as Imperatives. However, the synchronic state of matters can at all times be seen by the reader. The ten appendices contain word lists, the content of which are either partly (1, 9) or fully (3, 6, 7 and 10) discussed in the body of the research and they are represented as an appendix to be used as a quick vocabulary reference. Some other word lists 2, 4 and 5) have not been discussed in the book. These word lists, however, contain important data to be used in later anthropological or philological studies. Show less
We described a total of 4 species and 4 subspecies of Coelogyne and one species of Panisea from the Himalayan region as new species to science based on analysis of morphological characters and DNA... Show moreWe described a total of 4 species and 4 subspecies of Coelogyne and one species of Panisea from the Himalayan region as new species to science based on analysis of morphological characters and DNA sequences. Extrafloral nectar produced by Nepalese Coelogyninae was found to play a key role in attracting aggressive ants protecting flowers and leaves against herbivorous beetles. This nectar was found to be exudated by nectary-modified stomata positioned just below the pedicels on the inflorescence. Our ethnobotanical survey showed that a total of 60 species of wild orchids were found to be used as energizers, aphrodisiacs and treatments of burnt skin, fractured or dislocated bones, headaches, fever and wounds. The antibacterial screening carried out by us indicated that the majority of the medicinal orchid species used by local people in Nepal showed biological activity. A total of 10% of confiscated orchids remained sterile but could be identified to species level by applying DNA barcoding and chemical profiling. Our market surveys in central Nepal showed that many wild orchid species are involved in illegal trade and exported to China and India for preparation of herbal products and traditional Chinese medicines. Wild orchids were found to be immensely important to sustain local livelihoods in Nepal. Due to large scale ille_gal trade, many species are rapidly becoming endangered in the wild. Establishing sustainable orchid breeding enterprises could be a valuable alternative for the production of medicinal orchids for local communities. Critically endangered species should be placed on CITES Appendix I to prevent their extinc_tion from the wild. DNA barcoding and chemical profiling seem promising tools for a better control of cross-border illegal trade. Show less
The general aim of this ethno-botanical study is to document, describe and analyse the Balinese community members__ knowledge, belief and practices with regard to medicinal, aromatic and cosmetic ... Show moreThe general aim of this ethno-botanical study is to document, describe and analyse the Balinese community members__ knowledge, belief and practices with regard to medicinal, aromatic and cosmetic (MAC) plants in relation to community health and bio-cultural diversity conservation of MAC plants. This study has been conducted in four sample villages in the central-south-eastern part of Bali, Indonesia. The Ethnosystems Approach used in this study places the emic point of view central in studying the human-plant relations in Bali and focuses on the Knowledge-Belief-Practice complex of the health and healing practices. This study acknowledges the __inextricable link__ between nature, society, language and culture, conceptualised in the term bio-cultural diversity, expressing the relationship between biological and cultural diversity. The data collection and analyses using complementary qualitative and quantitative research techniques focuses on the community members__ reported use of fresh MAC plants as home remedies in the wider context of the Balinese pluralistic medical configuration. In addition, it seeks to explain whether their behaviour exhibits a sustainable character towards both the conservation of the diversity of MAC plants in terms of genes, species and ecosystems and to the conservation of the local knowledge, beliefs and practical applications of the MAC plants. Show less
