Ethnobotanical Knowledge Through the Slovak Folk Songs as a Reflection of Intangible Biocultural Heritage

Zuzana Baránková

Abstract


Folk songs reflect a deep interrelationship between man and nature that developed over centuries and can be viewed as biocultural heritage. This study aims to present the most important plant and landscape elements in the traditional songs of Slovakia. In this study, 4,341 Slovak folk songs were analyzed. Songs carrying information about vascular plant species were analyzed according to the song type and the fragment of the song where plant species or landscape elements appeared. This information was used to create a dataset of all the mentioned vascular plants and their use. Plants were mentioned in 31% of Slovak folk songs, which corresponded to 1,354 songs. A total of 121 plant taxa were identified, of which 56 were wild, 50 were cultivated, 13 were exotic, and two were unidentified, corresponding to 50 plant families. The most cited from all mentioned plants (including both identified, or unidentified taxa) were rose (9%), grapevine (5.7%), rosemary (5.1%), rye (4.1%), maple (3.9%), and apple (3.9%). Landscape elements were mentioned in 26.4%, corresponding to 1,148 songs. The folk songs reflected the mainly mountainous character of Slovakia. Forests were the most mentioned, corresponding to 30.6% of landscape element citations. Folk songs contribute to the preservation of traditional ecological knowledge and help to better understand past relationship of our ancestors to land and nature.

Keywords


ethnobiology; song genre; plant use

Full Text:

PDF XML (JATS)

References


Agnoletti, M., Tredici, M., & Santoro, A. (2015). Biocultural diversity and landscape patterns in three historical rural areas of Morocco, Cuba and Italy. Biodiversity and Conservation, 24, 3387–3404. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-015-1013-6

Biscotti, N., & Pieroni, A. (2015). The hidden Mediterranean diet: Wild vegetables traditionally gathered and consumed in the Gargano area, Apulia, SE Italy. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae, 84(3), 327–338. https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.2015.031

Cardaño, M., & Herrero, B. (2014). Plants in the songbooks of Castilla y León, Spain. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 12, 535–549. https://doi.org/10.17348/era.12.0.535-549

Clark, E. (2004). The ballad dance of the Faeroese: Island biocultural geography in an age of globalisation. Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, 95, 284–297. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9663.2004.00308.x

Curran, G., Barwick, L., Turpin, M., Walsh, F., & Laughren, M. (2019). Central Australian Aboriginal songs and biocultural knowledge: Evidence from women’s ceremonies relating to edible seeds. Journal of Ethnobiology, 39, 354–370. https://doi.org/10.2993/0278-0771-39.3.354

di Tizio, A., Łuczaj, J. Ł, Quave, C. L., Redžić, S., & Pieroni, A. (2012). Traditional food and herbal uses of wild plants in the ancient south-Slavic diaspora of Mundimitar/Montemitro (Southern Italy). Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 8, Article 21. https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-8-21

Elbourne, R. (1976). A mirror of man? Traditional music as a reflection of society. Journal of American Folklore, 89, 463–468. https://doi.org/10.2307/539297

Elements on the lists of intangible cultural heritage. (2022). UNESCO. Retrieved February 11, 2022, from https://ich.unesco.org/en/state/slovakia-SK?info=elements-on-the-lists

Elscheková, A. (1995). Slovenské ľudové spevy = Slowakische Volksgesänge [Slovak folk songs]. Ústav hudobnej vedy Slovenskej akadémie vied.

Fedorowski, M. (1897). Lud białoruski na Rusi Litewskiej: materyały do etnografii słowiańskiej zgromadzone w latach 1877–1891 [Belarusian people in Lithuanian Ruthenia: Materials for Slavic ethnography collected in the years 1877–1894] (Vol. 1). Akademia Umiejętności. https://pbc.biaman.pl/publication/22440

Feráková, V., Maglocký, Š., & Marhold, K. (2001). Červený zoznam papraďorastov a semenných rastlín Slovenska [Red list of ferns and flowering plants of Slovakia]. Ochrana Prírody, 20(Supplement), 48–81.

Fernández-Llamazares, Á., & Cabeza, M. (2018). Rediscovering the potential of indigenous storytelling for conservation practice. Conservation Letters, 11, Article e12398. https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12398

Fernández-Llamazares, Á., & Lepofsky, D. (2019). Ethnobiology through song. Journal of Ethnobiology, 39(3), 337–353. https://doi.org/10.2993/0278-0771-39.3.337

Fišer, Ž. (2022). “I climbed a fig tree, on an apple bashing spree, only pears fell free”: Economic, symbolic and intrinsic values of plants occurring in Slovenian folk songs collected by K. Štrekelj (1895–1912). Plants, 11, 458–475. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030458

Galko, L. (1972). Slovenské spevy [Slovak songs] (2nd ed., Vol. 1). Opus.

Galko, L. (1973). Slovenské spevy [Slovak songs] (2nd ed., Vol. 2). Opus.

Galko, L. (1976). Slovenské spevy [Slovak songs] (2nd ed., Vol. 3). Opus.

Galko, L. (1978). Slovenské spevy [Slovak songs] (2nd ed., Vol. 4, Supplements 1–700). Opus.

Galko, L. (1981). Slovenské spevy [Slovak songs] (2nd ed., Vol. 5, Supplements 701–1400). Opus.

Galko, L. (1983). Slovenské spevy [Slovak songs] (2nd ed., Vol. 6, Supplements 1401–2153). Opus.

Garibaldi, A., & Turner, N. (2004). Cultural keystone species: Implications for ecological conservation and restoration. Ecology & Society, 9(3), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-00669-090301

Han, M. İ., & Gizem, B. (2015). The folk-medicinal plants of Kadişehri (Yozgat – Turkey). Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae, 84(2), 237–248. https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.2015.021

Herrero, B., & Cardaño, M. (2015). Ethnobotany in the folksongs of Castilla y León (Spain). Botanical Sciences, 93, 249–260. https://doi.org/10.17129/botsci.88

Holuby, J. L. (1891). Die gewöhnlichsten wildwachsenden Genusspflanzen des Trencsiner Comitates [The most common wild plants of the Trenčín County]. Verhandlungen des Vereins fűr Natur-und Heilkunde zu Pressburg, Neue Folge, 7, 91–105.

Holuby, J. L. (1896). Aus der Botanik slowakischer Kinder des Trentschiner Komitates in Ungarn [From the botany of Slovak children of Trenčín County in Hungary]. Deutsche Botanische Monatsschrift, 19(8–9), 126–131.

Ibarra, J. T., Barreau, A., & Altamirano, T. A. (2013). On feathers and folklore: Presence of birds in popular proverbs of Chile. Boletin Chileno de Ornitologia, 19, 12–22.

Ivanova, T., Ganeva, R. V., Bosseva, Y., & Dimitrova, D. (2021). Singing the nature – Ethnobotanical knowledge in Bulgarian folk songs. Botanical Sciences, 99(2), 321–341. https://doi.org/10.17129/botsci.2672

Končeková, L., Halmová, D., & Feher, A. (2020). Edible wild plants growing in adjacent spontaneous vegetation of energy plantations in southwest Slovakia. Potravinárstvo, 14, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.5219/1220

Łuczaj, Ł. (2012). Ethnobotanical review of wild edible plants of Slovakia. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae, 81(4), 245–255. https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.2012.030

Łuczaj, Ł., Köhler, P., Pirożnikow, E., Graniszewska, M., Pieroni, A., & Gervasi, T. (2013). Wild edible plants of Belarus: From Rostafiński’s questionnaire of 1883 to the present. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 9, Article 21. https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-9-21

Łuczaj, Ł., & Szymański, W. M. (2007). Wild vascular plants gathered for consumption in the Polish countryside: A review. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 3, Article 17. https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-3-17

Maffi, L. (2005). Linguistic, cultural, and biological diversity. Annual Review of Anthropology, 34, 599–617. https://doi.org/bbhg67

Markuš, M. (1975). Tenkeľ a jeho karpatsko-európske obmeny [Tenkel and its Carpathian-European variations]. Slovenský národopis, 23(1), 23–38.

Martin, G. J. (1995). Ethnobotany: A methods manual. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-2496-0

Miklós, L., Izakovičová, Z., Boltižiar, M., Diviaková, A., Grotkovská, L., Hrnčiarová, T., Imrichová, Z., Kočická, E., Kočický, D., Kenderessy, P., Mojses, M., Moyzeová, M., Petrovič, F., Špinerová, A., Špulerová, J., Štefunková, D., Válkovcová, Z., & Zvara, I. (2006). Atlas of representative geoecosystems of Slovakia. ILE SAS.

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic. (2021). Green report on the forest sector of the Slovak Republic. Expres tlač.

Nedelcheva, A., Pieroni, A., & Dogan, Y. (2017). Folk food and medicinal botanical knowledge among the last remaining Yörüks of the Balkans. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae, 86(2), Article 3522. https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.3522

Němcová, B. (1955). Národopisné a cestopisné obrazy ze Slovenska [Ethnographic and travelogue reflections from Slovakia]. Státní nakladatelství krásné literatury, hudby a umění.

Polfus, J., Simmons, D., Neyelle, M., Bayha, W., Andrew, F., Andrew, L., Merkle, B., Rice, K., & Manseau, M. (2017). Creative convergence: Exploring biocultural diversity through art. Ecology & Society, 22(2), Article 4. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-08711-220204

Popelková, K. (2006). Etnologické aspekty štúdia rodiny vo vinohradníckom prostredí (Modra, 1. polovica 20. storočia) [Ethnological aspects of family studies in the wine-growing environment (Modra, first half of the twentieth century)]. Slovenský národopis, 54(4), 443–444.

Rozborilová, E. (2019). Definitívne údaje o úrode poľnohospodárskych plodín a zeleniny v SR za rok 2018 [Definitive data on the yield of agricultural crops and vegetables in the Slovak Republic in 2018]. Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic.

Seskauskaite, D. (1995). Plants in Lithuanian folk songs. In Z. F. Ertug (Ed.), Proceedings of the IVth International Congress of Ethnobotany (pp. 601–604). Ege Yayinlari.

Sobotka, P. (1879). Rostlinstvo a jeho význam v národních písních, pověstech, bájích, obřadech a pověrách slovanských [Vegetation and its importance in Slavic national songs, legends, myths, ceremonies, and superstitions]. Matice česká.

Sõukand, R., Pieroni, A., Biró, M., Dénes, A., Dogan, Y., Hajdari, A., Kalle, R., Reade, B., Mustafa, B., Nedelcheva, A., Quave, C. L., & Łuczaj, Ł. (2015). An ethnobotanical perspective on traditional fermented plant foods and beverages in Eastern Europe. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 170, 284–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2015.05.018

Sõukand, R., Quave, C., Pieroni, A., Pardo-de-Santayana, M., Tardío, J., Kalle, R., Łuczaj, Ł., Svanberg, I., Kolosova, V., Aceituno-Mata, L., Menendez-Baceta, G., Kołodziejska-Degórska, I., Pirożnikow, E., Petkevičius, R., Hajdari, A., & Mustafa, B. (2013). Plants used for making recreational tea in Europe: A review based on specific research sites. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 9, Article 58. https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-9-58

Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic. (2021). Population and housing census. Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.scitanie.sk/

Štefunková, D., & Hanušin, J. (2019). Viticultural landscapes: Localised transformations over the past 150 years through an analysis of three case studies in Slovakia. Moravian Geographical Reports, 27, 155–168. https://doi.org/10.2478/mgr-2019-0012

Stoličná, R. (1997). Alternatívne zdroje rastlinnej stravy v Strednej Európe [Alternative sources of vegetable diet in Central Europe]. Slovenský národopis, 45(3), 285–294.

Stoličná, R. (2002). Od “nestráviteľného” jedla – k národnému ymbol [From “indigestible” food to the national symbol]. Etnologické rozpravy, 9(1), 5–19.

Stoličná, R. (2016). Possibilities of using wild plants in the traditional culinary culture of Slovakia. Slovenský národopis, 64(2), 241–250.

Svanberg, I. (1998). The use of rush (Juncus) and cotton-grass (Eriophorum) as wicks: An ethnobotanical background to a Faroese riddle. Svenska Landsmål och Svenskt Folkliv, 323, 145–157.

Svanberg, I., Sõukand, R., Łuczaj, Ł., Kalle, R., Zyryanova, O., Dénes, A., Papp, N., Nedelcheva, A., Šeškauskaitė, D., Kołodziejska-Degórska, I., & Kolosova, V. (2012). Uses of tree saps in northern and eastern parts of Europe. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae, 81(4), 343–357. https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.2012.036

Вархол [Varkhol], H [N.]. (2002). Рослини в народних повір’ях русинів-українців Пряшівщини [Plants in folk superstitions of Ruthenians – Ukrainians of eastern Slovakia]. EXCO.

Varga, F., Šolić, I., Jug Dujaković, M., Łuczaj, Ł., & Grdiša, M. (2019). The first contribution to the ethnobotany of inland Dalmatia: Medicinal and wild food plants of the Knin area, Croatia. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae, 88, Article 3622. https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.3622

Vierikko, K., Elands, B. H. M., Niemelä, J., Andersson, E., Buijs, A. E., Fischer, L. K., Haase, D., Kabisch, N., Kowarik, I., Luz, A. C., Olafsson Stahl, A., Száraz, L., Van der Jagt, A., & Konijnendijk van den Bosch, C. (2016). Considering the ways biocultural diversity helps enforce the urban green infrastructure in times of urban transformation. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 22, 7–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2017.02.006

Zhelev, P., Tsvetanov, N., Aneva, I., & Ivanov, D. (2020). Genetic resources of Tilia species in Bulgaria. Forestry Ideas, 26, 503–513.

Zięba, A., Różański, W., Bukowski, M., Ciesielska, B., & Szwagrzyk, J. (2019). Distribution and habitat conditions of Pinus cembra forests in the Tatra Mountains. Dendrobiology, 81, 86–96. https://doi.org/10.12657/denbio.081.010




DOI: https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.9116

Journal ISSN:
  • 2083-9480 (online)
  • 0001-6977 (print; ceased since 2016)
This is an Open Access journal, which distributes its content under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits redistribution, commercial and non-commercial, provided that the content is properly cited.
The journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and aims to follow the COPE’s principles.
The journal publisher is a member of the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association.
The journal content is indexed in Similarity Check, the Crossref initiative to prevent scholarly and professional plagiarism.
Publisher
Polish Botanical Society