Social Sciences

Abstract Language represents the main aspect of culture and wisdom. Specialized or technical language is a form of language that is used by specialists and technicians. Technical Persian language is severed from people's language and highly affected by other languages in recent years. This paper demonstrates about 120 specialized terms that was found through participatory research among herders of eastern Alborz. These terms consist of words about: environment, rangeland, animal grazing, pastoral related places and buildings, and traditional rangeland and herd utilization systems. A Collection of these terms represents the way pastoralists categorize objects and Phenomena. For the reason that such a collection exists among the Iranian subcultures, passive research approach should be replaced by active approach.

Abstract Vulgar botany, a branch of ethnography of traditional sciences and technology, is a sub-division 01 ethnography. A combination of anthropology and botany, considered as enthnobotany or 'anthropology of botany" has been gaining importance in recent decades. This paper starts with theories of scholars and anthropologists, about the importance of this field in international level, and then focuses on the researches conducted in Iran in this area. In Iran studying plants from ethnographical approach, and of course from anthropological approach, is very new. On the other hand, this knowledge increasingly is being elapsed. The author, during his three to four decades of anthropological researches, interviews and memoirs in central province of Iran, has noticed the decline and elapse of such knowledge from the minds and conversations of people. which reveals the urgency of paying special attention to the field. This elapsing is seen in various grounds, from knowledge about plants, differentiating plants, and names of plants, to their uses and methods of their utilization. Moreover, in this paper the usefulness of collaboration among anthropologists, botanists, and linguists is discussed. After discussing some general points, the paper briefly explains ethno botany of wild plants of Kamareh.

Abstract As a branch of anthropology, Traditional or Indigenous knowledge has a unique position in infrastructural studies of persistent development. Beside discussing the global position of indigenous knowledge, this paper has tried to present a case research project of coal making in Mazandaran Province of Iran using traditional method. to do this, the researcher has carried out direct in depth observations, face to face and qualitative interviews, along with the use of documents. The Focus group solely consists of coal makers, meanwhile mule keepers, contractors and other locals people were also studied. Interviewed people were selected through snowball sampling in a longitudinal or multi periodic time course study in the research site. The study reveals how coal making process has passed down from generation to generation by the foresters through a special kind of natural environment coexistence resulting in forest preservation. In contrast, current companies carelessly exploit forest resources with no careful supervision leading to total destruction of this national property, so that the alarm ring for forest and biodiversity has already tolled.

Abstract This study investigates different kinds of non-wood forest products, which are used by Chitin's people, a village in Kojoor district, Mazandaran Province. The research method used was ethnography and participatory observation of rural people's practices while they do different jobs along with semi-structured and unstructured interviews. Non-wood products growing in forest are classified in two groups: products that are gathered for household use and those gathered for marketing. Each group is divided to edible, medicinal and ornamental goods, and some of their characteristics, such as local name, Persian name, scientific name, growing place, gathering period, parts of plants which are used, methods and kinds of use are mentioned. Moreover the social, ecological and economical relationships that were formed through gathering such products as well as the role of rural women and job organization of villager for gathering and processing of non-wood forest products are described.

Abstract Atlas of ethno botany in Iran has been one of the enacted projects of Ecological Anthropology department in Anthropology Research center of Iran Cultural Heritage, Handi Crafts and Tourism Organization Since 2005, which is carried out considering it's 5 years duration. This is on important subject, since indigenous knowledge concerning the use of herbal medicine by indigenous people and healers was considered as an non-material cultural heritage of Iran, a knowledge that is endangered now. In this project, with an anthropological view, we worked on this subject in all over Iran using monographic data. Since this is an interdisciplinary subject some anthropologists, botanists, physicians and pharmacists helped us to achieve the required standard We have considered 90 species belonging to 68 genera and 37 family for indigenous healing as part of herbal prototype that we have collected in our archives.

Abstract According to Pahlavi texts, one might say that rose Flower has been holy in ancient Iran and in Islamic era it has been still holy. Moslims attribute rose to their prophet, Mohammad (Peace be upon him). Iranians of ten use flowers in their cremonies and since flowers are short-Jived they produced rose-water, to substitute with rose flower. This paper is about the history of rose flower and rose-water in Iran and in the Islamic culture, geographical distribution of the flower and rose-water production centers, methods in producing rose-water, and utilization of rose-water in national and religious rituals.

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