Ethnobotany of chumash indians, California, Based on Collections by John P. Harrington

Abstract

At least 150 plant species were used for food, medicine, material culture, and religious practices by the Chumash Indians of southern California. A great deal of traditional Chumash plant knowledge survived into the present century, despite massive deculturation. The most significant source of information on Chumash ethnobotany is the extensive, unpublished field notes of John P. Harrington, based on interviews conducted from 1912 into the 1950s. Several hundred voucher specimens collected by some of Harrington's consultants have also been preserved, along with the original notes, at the Smithsonian Institution. Data are presented here on knowledge and uses of plants in this important California Indian culture, as reconstructed from the Harrington material. Changes in plant knowledge resulting from Euro-American contact are also discussed. © 1990 The New York Botanical Garden.