Ethnobotany of Pohnpei
Subtitle: plants, people, and island culture
By: compiled and edited by Michael J. Balick.
Contributors: Balick, Michael J., 1952-
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press; New York Botanical Garden
Published: 2009
Place of publication: Honolulu; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 585
ISBN-13: 9780824832933
Subjects: Ethnobotany -- Micronesia (Federated States) -- Pohnpei; Traditional medicine -- Micronesia (Federated States) -- Pohnpei; Plants, Useful -- Micronesia (Federated States) -- Pohnpei
Description: "Ethnobotany of Pohnpei examines the relationship between plants, people, and traditional culture on Pohnpei, one of the four island members of the Federated States of Micronesia. Traditional culture is still very strong on Pohnpei and is biodiversity-dependent, relying on both its pristine habitats and managed landscapes; native and introduced plants and animals; and extraordinary marine life. This book is the result of a decade of research by a team of local people and international specialists carried out under the direction of the Mwoalen Wahu Ileilehn Pohnpei (Pohnpei Council of Traditional Leaders). It discusses the uses of the native and introduced plant species that have sustained human life on the island and its outlying atolls for generations, including Piper methysticum (locally known as sakau and recognized throughout the Pacific as kava), which is essential in defining cultural identity for Pohnpeians. The work also focuses on ethnomedicine, the traditional medical system used to address health conditions, and its associated beliefs."--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Plants and people of Pohnpei: an overview / Michael J. Balick ... [et al.]; title: Yams and their traditional cultivation on Pohnpei / Bill Raynor, Adelino Lorens, and Jackson Phillip; title: Breadfruit and its traditional cultivation and use on Pohnpei / Diane Ragone and Bill Raynor; title: Banana: an essential traditional crop on Pohnpei / Lois Englberger ... [et al.]; title: Taro: an important Pohnpei staple food / Lois Englberger ... [et al.]; title: The sacred root: sakau en Pohnpei / Michael J. Balick and Roberta A. Lee; title: Traditional medicine, Pohnpei and its integration / Roberta A. Lee; title: Local uses of plants and fungi on Pohnpei: an ethnobotanical compendium / Elipiana Albert ... [et al.]; title: Checklist of the vascular plants of Pohnpei / David H. Lorence and Timothy Flynn.