Palm trees in documentary sources: diversity, uses, practices and valuations in the northeast of Argentina

Backgrounds and aims: Palms (Arecaceae) are one of the most conspicuous elements of Northeast Argentina (NEA), occupying a central place in the landscapes and worldviews (M´bya, family farmers). The objective of this work is to survey the diversity of palms, uses, valuations and management practices...

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Autores principales: de la Cruz, Jaime Alejandro, Doumecq, María Belén, Stampella, Pablo Cesar
Formato: Artículo revista
Lenguaje:Español
Publicado: Sociedad Argentina de Botánica 2022
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Acceso en línea:https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/BSAB/article/view/37586
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Sumario:Backgrounds and aims: Palms (Arecaceae) are one of the most conspicuous elements of Northeast Argentina (NEA), occupying a central place in the landscapes and worldviews (M´bya, family farmers). The objective of this work is to survey the diversity of palms, uses, valuations and management practices of palms and palm groves recorded in documentary sources. Also, analyze the processes of change and continuity, in order to understand the construction of the landscape of palm groves in the region. M&M: From historical ethnobotany, three types of documentary sources were analyzed: diaries and manuscripts of the Jesuits (18th century), early traveler's diaries (first half of the 19th century) late traveler and naturalist diaries (late 19th century and early 20th century), who traveled through the NEA and surrounding areas. Results: Thirty-one local names of Arecaceae were registered corresponding to seven species and 37 categories of use (i.e. food, constructions) were surveyed. Some of the typical uses of the Guarani are relegated to the Jesuit bibliography, while those related to livestock are mentioned by travelers and naturalists. The valuation of palm trees is always positive among the different groups studied and that management practices (i.e. harvesting, harvesting by felling and tolerance) are linked to the main registered uses. Conclusions: The importance of palms for the local communities can be observed through the documentary sources, as well as some processes of change and continuity in the mentioned species, uses and practices according to the three types of sources.