Overcoming Tribal Boundaries: The Biocultural Heritage of Foraging and Cooking Wild Vegetables among Four Pathan Groups in the Gadoon Valley, NW Pakistan

Biology

卷:10

Hidayat Hussain¹  Wahid Hussain²  Sheharyar Khan³  Sikandar Shah³  Sulaiman³  Ahmed E. Altyar⁴  Mohamed L. Ashour⁵  Andrea Pieroni⁶ 

[1] Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Leibniz Institute of Plant Biochemistry, 6108 Halle, Germany;

[2] Department of Botany, Government Post Graduate College, Parachinar 26000, KP, Pakistan;

[3] Department of Botany, University of Peshawar, Peshawar 25120, KP, Pakistan;

[4] Department of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80260, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia;

[5] Pharmacy Program, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Batterjee Medical College, P.O. Box 6231, Jeddah 21442, Saudi Arabia;

[6] University of Gastronomic Sciences, Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II 9, 12042 Pollenzo, Italy;

关键词: ethnobotany;    wild vegetables;    Pathans;    Gadoon Valley;    Pakistan;   

DOI  :  10.3390/biology10060537

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The foraging and consumption of wild food plants is a long-standing tradition in many parts of the world and their importance in promoting food security has become more widely debated in recent years. The current study aimed to document, analyze, and interpret the traditional knowledge of non-cultivated vegetables among four Pathan tribes (Alisher Khel, Hadarzai, Haji Khel, and Umarzai) living in the Gadoon Valley, Swabi District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, NW Pakistan, and to evaluate how these practices vary among the considered tribal communities. A total of 104 informants were interviewed via a semi-structured, open-ended questionnaire and group discussions. The field survey was conducted from October 2018 to November 2020. Information about local names, growth habit, used plant parts, food/cooking details, medicinal perceptions, availability season, and market prices were collected. The field survey recorded 51 non-cultivated vegetables belonging to 24 botanical families, for which the frequently used plant parts included young leaves, stems, and flowers. The greatest number of use reports was recorded for Colocasia and the highest cultural index value was recorded for Rumex dentatus; the dominant botanical families were Asteraceae and Fabaceae (six species each). Seven species were found to be sold at local and regional markets. Cross-cultural analysis among the four considered tribes showed that the largest number of species was reported by members of the Hadarzai and Umarzai tribes, although most of the quoted wild vegetables were homogenously gathered among all considered communities, with some more idiosyncratic plant uses among the Umarzai group, who have likely been less affected by the erosion of traditional knowledge or possibly have had less access to traded cultivated vegetables. The novelty of the data was assessed by comparing it with the previously published wild food ethnobotanical literature of Pakistan, which showed fifteen new wild vegetables not yet reported in the NW of the country. The recorded food biocultural heritage should be seriously considered in future local development projects aimed at fostering environmental sustainability and food security.

【 授权许可】

Unknown