Abstract
BackgroundEthnobotany in South-Eastern Europe is gaining the interest of several scholars and stakeholders, since it is increasingly considered a key point for the re-evaluation of local bio-cultural heritage. The region of Gollobordo, located in Eastern Albania and bordering the Republic of Macedonia, is of particular interest for conducting ethnobiological studies, since it remained relatively isolated for the larger part of the 20th Century and is traditionally inhabited by a majority of ethnic Macedonians and a minority of Albanians (nowadays both sharing the Muslim faith).MethodsAn ethnobotanical survey focused on local food, medicinal, and veterinary plant uses was conducted with 58 participants using open and semi-structured interviews and via participant observation.ResultsWe recorded and identified 115 taxa of vascular plants, which are locally used for food, medicinal, and veterinary purposes (representing 268 total plant reports). The Macedonian Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) was greater than the Albanian TEK, especially in the herbal and ritual domains. This phenomenon may be linked to the long socio-cultural and linguistic isolation of this group during the time when the borders between Albania and the former Yugoslavia were completely closed. Moreover, the unusual current food utilisation of cooked potatoes leaves, still in use nowadays among Macedonians, could represent the side effect of an extreme adaptation that locals underwent over the past century when the introduction of the potato crop made new strategies available for establishing stable settlements around the highest pastures. Additionally, the difference in use of Helichrysum plicatum, which is popular in the local Macedonian folk medicine but absent among Albanians, confirms the particular significance of this taxon as it relates to the yellow colour of its flowers in South Slavic folklore.ConclusionBotanical studies with an ethnographic approach are crucial for understanding patterns of use of plants within given cultures. Importantly, such studies can also allow for analysis of the dynamics of change in these TEK patterns over the time. The results of this study may be important as baseline data set to be used in rural development programs in Gollobordo, aimed at fostering community-based strategies of management of natural resources.
Highlights
Ethnobotany in South-Eastern Europe is gaining the interest of several scholars and stakeholders, since it is increasingly considered a key point for the re-evaluation of local bio-cultural heritage
Study area The current study was conducted in eight villages of the mountain of the Gollobordo area, in Eastern Albania, bordering the Republic of Macedonia (Figure 1); the focus was on three villages inhabited by ethnic Macedonians: Klenje (1,203 m.a.s.l), Gjinovec (1,252 m.a.s.l.), and Steblevë (1,200 m.a.s.l.) – this last village included within the newly established Shebenik–Jabllanice National Park, with an overall permanent population of approx. 300 inhabitants; and three villages inhabited by Albanians: Sebisht (915 m.a.s.l.), Borovë (940 m.a.s.l.), and Zabzun (1,028 m.a.s.l.), with an overall permanent population of approx. 300 inhabitants as well
Among the most uncommon uses, we have to mention the use of potato leaves, both for sarma and especially as filling for white corn-flour based pies, which is still very common among the Macedonians living in the highest villages of Gollobordo, while among Albanians this was remembered as a past use only
Summary
Ethnobotany in South-Eastern Europe is gaining the interest of several scholars and stakeholders, since it is increasingly considered a key point for the re-evaluation of local bio-cultural heritage. The portion of TEK concerning plants is nowadays increasingly considered crucial in South and South-Eastern Europe for fostering community-based strategies of management of natural resources It may represent the starting point for initiatives aimed at the reevaluation of local plants devoted to both small scale food and herbal markets and eco-touristic initiatives [30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37]. We wanted to further analyze the local botanical knowledge systems among Macedonians and Albanians living in the Gollobordo region, in Eastern Albania
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