Ethnic Knowledge System on 'Vild Dioscoreas (yams) by the Kanikkars of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala

Abstract

Indigenous people with historical background of traditional resource utilization and management possess a vast
assemblage of various knowledge systems on the complex behavioral pattern in relation to the ecological systems
existing in their own localities. Kanikkar, a group of South Indian tribes found in the extreme southern end of Western
Ghats has a traditional knowledge base transmitted from generation to generation. They acquired a sound knowledge
on the various aspects including uses of cultivated crops and their wild allies. They use a wide array of wild yams
for food. In this paper, an overview ofthe classification ofthese wild yams and their traditional uses by these indigenous
people are summarized. A good relationship exist between the folklore etymology and taxonomic epithets of all
the wild yams of the locality.