Conhecimento etnobotânico de moradores da comunidade quilombola Itaboca, município de Inhangapi, estado do Pará

Abstract

The traditional knowledge about the use of medicinal plants in a quilombola community is the subject of this research, whose main objective is to describe the ethnobotanical knowledge of residents of the Itaboca quilombola community, Inhangapi municipality, northeastern Pará state, in the context of relations socio-cultural The study was developed from the quantitative and qualitative descriptive methodological approaches, applying semi-structured questionnaires, open interviews and direct observation. Twenty-four practitioners of folk medicine were interviewed and selected by non-random sampling using the snowball method, indicated by three people in the community called seeds A, B and C. Four representatives of the community were interviewed through open interviews. The results reveal a set of knowledge and practices using medicinal plants cultivated by families. However, due to their kinship relationship, it is the matriarchs and elders of the community who concentrate greater credibility for the practice of folk medicine, because they have greater knowledge and empirical experience with medicinal plants. This knowledge interferes with the social organization of the community, crossing healing practices and modifying the landscape of the community environment through anthropic processes of substitution of the floral for medicinal species grown in the backyards. Within the ethnobotanical knowledge of the inhabitants of Itaboca, 83 species were recorded, of which 41 were identified. The most cited plants were boldo (Plectranthus ornatus), peppermint (Menta pulegium L.), lemon balm (Lippia alba (Mill) .N.E.Br). Tea is the most common form of preparation. Treatment of digestive tract complications is the most appropriate. In this study, a religious syncretism of curative character was observed. The conclusion of the work points to the risk of ethnobotanical cultural losses resulting from the little interest of younger generations to maintain this knowledge, which requires policies to encourage the preservation of cultural knowledge of traditional populations and effective laws that guarantee recognition and appreciation of cultural heritage. of these communities. It is considered that the knowledge coming from this universe can provide relevant contributions to the conservation of traditional community cultural and biological traditions, as well as provide theoretical / practical support to cultural debates and laboratory scientific research in the academic sphere.