Research letter
Preliminary study of ethnobotany in xishuang banna, people's republic of china

https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(85)90001-7Get rights and content

Abstract

Xishuang Banna, a particularly rich area for ethnobotanical research, borders on Burma and Laos, and contains some of the last undisturbed tropical rainforests in China. Xishuang Banna is ethnically very diverse; the largest group is the Dai followed by the Hani (Aini) and various smaller national minorities. Since the various groups inhabit different parts of the environment (from river valleys to steep mountain slopes) their awareness of, and use of plants varies considerably. The Dai people for example, have a tradition of forest preserves for each village as well as family home gardens around each house. This study lists 218 plant species that are frequently used by the various nationalities included in the survey.

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There are more references available in the full text version of this article.

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This article was presented at the “Workshop on Ecology and Rural Development” held at Yunnan Province, China, on September 25–October 12, 1982, jointly sponsored by the East-West Centre for Environment and Policy Institute, Hawaii, and Ministry of Urban and Rural Construction and Environmental Protection, People's Republic of China.

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