Scholarly vs. Traditional Knowledge: Effects of Sacred Natural Sites on Ethnobotanical Practices in Tuscany, Central Italy

Abstract

Sacred Natural Sites (SNSs), found in all inhabited continents, are cultural landscapes of spiritual significance for local communities. As they are believed to influence Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), we documented the use of wild and semi-domesticated plants for food and medicine in four villages located at different distances from SNSs in Central Italy. Results may indicate that SNSs, which have been managed and inhabited for centuries by monastic communities, have had a restrictive impact on local TEK, as the communities located near SNSs reported fewer traditional uses for plants than those living further from the same SNSs. One possible explanation is that the Scholarly Knowledge (SK) held by the monastic communities of SNSs competed with the TEK of the surrounding villages and this resulted in a smaller body of plant-related folk knowledge, practices and beliefs retained by the people living in the vicinity of SNSs. Further studies should address the past and current mechanisms of competition and/or osmosis between TEK and SK in terms of both daily practices and beliefs/theoretical knowledge.