Folk classification as evidence of transformed landscapes and adaptative strategies: a case study in the semiarid region of northeastern Brazil

Abstract

How do people classify the living world? Solid theoretical and methodological foundations advocate for utilitarian or intellectual strategies. Some authors argue that people tend to classify natural resources that are necessary for their survival. However, in the case of landscapes, we do not know the true criteria that people use to classify their space. We present strong evidence that people name landscapes according to utilitarian (economic) criteria. We also seek to identify which factors and variables explain people’s knowledge about landscapes and how this knowledge can generate information about landscape modifications. This study was conducted in the Brazilian National Forest of Araripe (FLONA Araripe), NE Brazil, with local people who live near this forest. A total of 304 nomenclatural types of landscapes were recounted, and these landscapes were mainly associated with indicators of current or past use. The variables that best explained the knowledge about landscapes were useful species known and the number of categories of use, showing that utilitarian features are strongly associated with local forest classification. Our findings suggest an adaptive strategy in which people name the landscape based on past and current uses, either as a whole or with respect to particular features of certain areas. In addition, we interpret this finding as a mnemonic strategy for optimising the use of the landscape.