Abstract
BackgroundKosovo represents a unique hotspot of biological and cultural diversity in Europe, which allows for interesting cross-cultural ethnobotanical studies. The aims of this study were twofold: 1) to document the state of traditional knowledge related to local (esp. wild) plant uses for food, medicine, and handicrafts in south Kosovo; and 2) to examine how communities of different ethnic groups in the region (Albanians, Bosniaks/Gorani, and Turks) relate to and value wild botanical taxa in their ecosystem.MethodsField research was conducted in 10 villages belonging to the Prizren municipality and 4 villages belonging to the Dragash municipality, located in the Sharr Mountains in the southern part of Kosovo. Snowball sampling techniques were used to recruit 139 elderly informants (61 Albanians, 32 Bosniaks/Gorani and 46 Turks), for participation in semi-structured interviews regarding the use of the local flora for medicinal, food, and handicraft purposes.ResultsOverall, we recorded the local uses of 114 species were used for medicinal purposes, 29 for food (wild food plants), and 20 in handicraft activities. The most important species used for medicinal purposes were Achillea millefolium L., Sambucus nigra L., Urtica dioica L., Tilia platyphyllos Scop. Hypericum perforatum L., Chamomilla recutita (L.) Rauschert, Thymus serpyllum L. and Vaccinium myrtillus L. Chamomilla recutita was the most highly valued of these species across the populations surveyed. Out of 114 taxa used for medicinal purposes, only 44 species are also included in the European Pharmacopoeia. The predominantly quoted botanical families were Rosaceae, Asteraceae, and Lamiaceae. Comparison of the data recorded among the Albanian, Bosniak/Gorani, and Turkish communities indicated a less herbophilic attitude of the Albanian populations, while most quoted taxa were quoted by all three communities, thus suggesting a hybrid character of the Kosovar plant knowledge.ConclusionCross-cultural ethnobiological studies are crucial in the Balkans not only for proposing ways of using plant natural resources, which could be exploited in sustainable local development projects (e.g. focusing on eco-tourism and small-scale trade of medicinal herbs, food niche and handicrafts products), but also for fostering collaboration and reconciliation among diverse ethnic and religious communities.
Highlights
Over the last decade, the Western Balkans have become the arena of a remarkable number of ethnobiological field studies, which have focused on territories of Bosnia and Herzegovina [1,2,3,4,5,6,7], Serbia [8,9,10,11,12], Montenegro [13], Albania [14,15,16,17,18,19], Macedonia [20,21,22,23,24], and Kosovo [25,26]
As part of our ongoing long-term project of documenting the ethnobotanical knowledge of diverse multicultural and religious areas in the Balkans, here we focused our attention on the Prizren and Dragash municipalities (South Kosovo), where traditionally diverse ethnic groups (Albanians, Turks, Bosniaks, Serbians, Gorani, Roma/Gypsies, Egyptians and Ashkali) have lived in close contact for many centuries
The study area In this study, we investigated traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) concerning the use of local plants in villages situated in the territory of Prizren, which lies in the southwestern part of the Sharr Mountains
Summary
The Western Balkans have become the arena of a remarkable number of ethnobiological field studies, which have focused on territories of Bosnia and Herzegovina [1,2,3,4,5,6,7], Serbia [8,9,10,11,12], Montenegro [13], Albania [14,15,16,17,18,19], Macedonia [20,21,22,23,24], and Kosovo [25,26]. A few of these studies addressed cross-cultural comparisons in an attempt to try to understand cultural concepts underpinning perceptions and uses of specific plants, especially among Albanian vs Slavic populations [10,15,21] Much of this focus on Balkan ethnobotany is linked to the long and ongoing history of gathering and trading local wild medicinal plants from this territory into Western European markets. Previous ethnobotanical and ethnolinguistic studies conducted in Kosovo have demonstrated that medicinal plants still play a crucial role in the sphere of human health, especially in isolated rural areas [25,26,27] Oftentimes, these mountainous communities have limited access to Western biomedical facilities, and they rely heavily on traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) to meet their dietary and medical needs. The aims of this study were twofold: 1) to document the state of traditional knowledge related to local (esp. wild) plant uses for food, medicine, and handicrafts in south Kosovo; and 2) to examine how communities of different ethnic groups in the region (Albanians, Bosniaks/Gorani, and Turks) relate to and value wild botanical taxa in their ecosystem
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