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<p><i>Uncaria gambir</i> remains a culturally and economically important species for <i>Minangkabau</i> communities in West Sumatra, Indonesia, where its uses extend beyond medicinal applications to ritual, symbolic, and livelihood domains. This study combined semistructured interviews with 120 respondents, participant observation in five recurrent ritual contexts, and quantitative assessment using the relative frequency of citation (RFC) and cultural importance (CI) indices. The species was cited by 68% of respondents, with the highest RFC associated with latex-based treatment for diarrhea (RFC = 0.68). Ceremonial use differed significantly among ritual contexts (<i>H</i> = 218.0, <i>p</i> &lt; 0.001), and guest reception showed the highest CI contribution (0.52). The total CI of <i>Uncaria gambir</i> across five ceremonial contexts was 1.68 out of a theoretical maximum of 5.0. Knowledge differed significantly by age and occupation, whereas active use varied by occupation. Gender showed no significant effect, and education was marginally associated with use. The findings show that <i>Uncaria gambir</i> remains strongly embedded in <i>Minangkabau</i> ceremonial exchange, household medicine, and intergenerational learning, and that community responses to labor constraints, market instability, and knowledge loss continue to support its local persistence. These results show how a single cultivated species can connect ritual practice, household medicine, local knowledge transmission, and community responses to labor, market, and land use pressures in rural West Sumatra.</p>

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The Cultural and Ethnomedicinal Significance of Uncaria gambir in West Sumatra, Indonesia: Knowledge Transmission, Use Patterns, and Local Conservation Responses

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月21日

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  • Syamsuardi,
  • Yosephine Sri Wulan Manuhara,
  • Suprapto,
  • Adi Bejo Suwardi

摘要

Uncaria gambir remains a culturally and economically important species for Minangkabau communities in West Sumatra, Indonesia, where its uses extend beyond medicinal applications to ritual, symbolic, and livelihood domains. This study combined semistructured interviews with 120 respondents, participant observation in five recurrent ritual contexts, and quantitative assessment using the relative frequency of citation (RFC) and cultural importance (CI) indices. The species was cited by 68% of respondents, with the highest RFC associated with latex-based treatment for diarrhea (RFC = 0.68). Ceremonial use differed significantly among ritual contexts (H = 218.0, p < 0.001), and guest reception showed the highest CI contribution (0.52). The total CI of Uncaria gambir across five ceremonial contexts was 1.68 out of a theoretical maximum of 5.0. Knowledge differed significantly by age and occupation, whereas active use varied by occupation. Gender showed no significant effect, and education was marginally associated with use. The findings show that Uncaria gambir remains strongly embedded in Minangkabau ceremonial exchange, household medicine, and intergenerational learning, and that community responses to labor constraints, market instability, and knowledge loss continue to support its local persistence. These results show how a single cultivated species can connect ritual practice, household medicine, local knowledge transmission, and community responses to labor, market, and land use pressures in rural West Sumatra.