Mayo ethnobotany : land, history, and traditional knowledge in northwest Mexico / David Yetman and Thomas R. Van Devender.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Yetman, David, 1941-

Contributor:

Van Devender, Thomas R.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mayo Indians--Ethnobotany.

Mayo Indians.

Ethnobotany--Mexico--Sonora (State).

Ethnobotany.

Ethnobotany--Mexico--Sinaloa (State).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (375 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Berkeley : University of California Press, c2002.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The Mayos, an indigenous people of northwestern Mexico, live in small towns spread over southern Sonora and northern Sinaloa, lands of remarkable biological diversity. Traditional Mayo knowledge is quickly being lost as this culture becomes absorbed into modern Mexico. Moreover, as big agriculture spreads into the region, the natural biodiversity of these lands is also rapidly disappearing. This engaging and accessible ethnobotany, based on hundreds of interviews with the Mayos and illustrated with the authors' strikingly beautiful photographs, helps preserve our knowledge of both an indigenous culture and an endangered environment. This book contains a comprehensive description of northwest Mexico's tropical deciduous forests and thornscrub on the traditional Mayo lands reaching from the Sea of Cortés to the foothills of the Sierra Madre. The first half of the book is a highly readable account of the climate, geology, and vegetation of the region. The authors also provide a valuable history of the people, their language, culture, festival traditions, and plant use. The second half of the book is an annotated list of plants presenting the authors' detailed findings on plant use in Mayo culture.

Contents:

Front matter

Contents

List of Illustrations

Preface

Acknowledgments

1. The People and the Land

2. A Brief Ethnography of the Mayos

3. Historical and Contemporary Mayos

4. Plant and Animal Life

5. Eight Plants That Make Mayos Mayos

6. Plant Uses

7. An Annotated List of Plants

Appendix A. Mayo Region Place Names and Their Meanings

Appendix B. Yoreme Consultants

Appendix C. Gazetteer of the Mayo Region

Appendix D. Mayo Plants Listed by Spanish Name

Appendix E. Mayo Plants Listed by Mayo Name

Appendix F. Glossary of Mayo and Spanish Terms

Notes

Works Cited

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (331-335) and index.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN:

9786612356346

9781282356344

1282356348

9780520926356

0520926358

9781597347396

1597347396

OCLC:

614632978