| Abstrak | The Ngaju, a Dayak tribe of Central Kalimantan, depend extensively on surrounding natural resources for their food, medicines, cosmetics, construction materials, and other uses. A field study was conducted amongst the Ngaju using direct observation and interviewing key persons including community leaders, traditional healers and local families. Based on the data collected in the field, we recorded 107 plant species belonging to 51 families and 86 genera, used as food (56 species), medicine (46 species), cosmetics (4 species), building material (9 species), and other uses (9 species). Several species with potential economic value will be discussed in this paper, and local customs relating to traditions agriculture knowledge will be elaborated. The potency of the plants in connecting to the culture of the Dayak Ngaju will be also be discussed in this paper. Three of the species studied considered endangered species: Alyxia reinwardtii (Widjaja 1992), Eurycoma longifolia (Rifai 1992) and Cinnamomum sintoc (Widjaja 1992). |
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