Spatio-temporal patterns in the history of colonial botanical exploration in India

Abstract

A study of Indian botany during the colonial period provides us with an interdisciplinary sphere covering science, politics, sociology, economics, and other associated domains. The presentation of this rich legacy to general readers often restricts itself to the descriptive accounts of explorers with little analysis of the intermingling of socio-political dynamics, landscape, and geography. We attempt to revisit the colonial plant exploration history through spatio-temporal analyses to understand how explorers with divergent interests traversed the country in different periods and directions. Our findings show that the Himalayas drove most of the explorations followed by the Deccan peninsula, the Western Ghats, and the Gangetic plain. In general, company/crown administered areas were better surveyed and documented than native states. Furthermore, through a prioritization exercise, we identify the centers of prominence, highlighting their political, economic, and social importance in contemporary India. In sum, this article shows the potential of applying Historical Geographic Information System (HGIS) mapping for spearheading future research and creating space for possible dialogs among historians, political scientists, and ecologists.