Mayo Ethnobotany: Land, History, And Traditional Knowledge In Northwest Mexico Land, History, And Traditional Knowledge In Northwest Mexico Project Muse Upcc Books

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.

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.

"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 Cortes 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 and discuss their language, culture, festival traditions, and plant use. The second half of the book is an annotated list of plants presenting the authors' findings on plant use in Mayo culture; it includes an unprecedented lexicon of Mayo plant terminology.". "A resource on the botanical riches of northwestern Mexico, this book is also the most comprehensive account of the Mayo people, their history, and their relationship with land. It compellingly bears out the author's conviction that the land and its resources play a major role in the development of culture."--BOOK JACKET. Contents List of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments Part One 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 Part Two 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