An Ethnobotanical Study in Ceylanlı Village (Kırıkhan/Hatay-Türkiye)

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the ethnobotanical characteristics of some plants distributed in Ceylanlı village (Kırıkhan/Hatay) on the slopes of Amanos Mountain. As a result of the field studies carried out between 2019 and 2021 and the interviews with the local people, it was determined that 75 taxa belonging to 41 families were used by the local people in the research area. The local names of the plants, the harvest season, the parts used, the usage purposes, and forms were determined by face-to-face interviews with different local people in their houses, farms, gardens or natural areas. The families having the highest number of using taxa in the area were determined to be Asteraceae and Lamiaceae (8 taxa each), Rosaceae (6 taxa), Amaryllidaceae, Brassicaceae, and Fabaceae (4 taxa each). In total 116 different uses belonging to the plants in the study area were determined, including uses for medical purposes such as wounds, respiratory tract, and stomachic diseases (47 taxa), food (20 taxa), daily items (6 taxa), spice (4 taxa), firewood (3 taxa), and for other different purposes (14 taxa). The obtained results were discussed by comparing them with the relevant literature. Our results show that most of the plants identified were collected by local people from their natural habitats. The local community in our study area was informed to reduce the collection of natural medicinal plants unconsciously and about the importance of cultivating medicinal and aromatic plants. It is believed that this study will contribute to all relevant studies at national and international scales.