Contemporary Knowledge of Dye Plant Species and Na

Authors: Evan Mati Hugo de Boer

Publish Date: 2010/04/16

Volume: 64, Issue: 2, Pages: 137-148

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Abstract

Contemporary knowledge of dye plant species and natural dye use in Kurdish Autonomous Region Iraq In Kurdistan natural dyes once played an important role in the life of nomads as they wildcrafted and traded natural dyes for their survival They learned from their family how to find harvest process and dye with natural dyes Abandonment of weaving and the nomadic life and recent changes in the economy have contributed to significant changes in the natural dyeing culture Traditional knowledge of natural dyeing plants is no longer common among weavers This study documents the surviving knowledge of dye plant species and assesses the transmission of knowledge between elderly weavers and a younger generation of weavers’ apprentices Information on dyeing and dyeing plants was elicited through a species recognition task using picture cards a pilesorting task and through indepth interviews with nomads in the mountains of the Soran district as well as weaving teachers and students in the city of Erbil Kurdish Autonomous Region Iraq Consensus analysis of pilesorting data supports the hypothesis that informants belong to a single culture The results confirm the erosion of natural dyeing culture in Kurdistan and stress the need to stimulate knowledge transfer from the elderly empirical generation to the younger learning generation The study also uncovered the existence of a keen interest among the student informants in traditional herbal medicine If this trend is true for Kurdish urban youth in general then it could lead to a revival and perpetuation of traditional plant knowledgeAssistance from the following is sincerely acknowledged Ann Mati for help throughout the fieldwork as an interpreter guide and assistant Dylan Dersim for help with maps Sami Hessa for help with Kurdish linguistics Lolan Sipan Director of the Kurdish Textile Museum for the opportunity to work with him in Kurdistan The Kurdish Regional Government especially Ala Riani responsible for communication and Awni Ali head of media relations the three brothers Farid Maruf and Fazil Abdulla of Avesta bookshop in Erbil the Hussain Agha family leaders of the Balakî tribe Ashna Omar at the Ministry of Tourism in Erbil Derya Celil at the College of Science and Ghanim Ghaeb Qader from College of Languages Salahaddin University EM was supported by a grant from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency’s SIDA Minor Field Study program HdB is supported by SIDASAREC grant SWE2005338

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