Bibliograph

Ethnobotany of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, Patricia Whereat Phillips ; foreword by Nancy J. Turner

Type

Label

Ethnobotany of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, Patricia Whereat Phillips ; foreword by Nancy J. Turner

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references (pages 127-141) and index

Illustrations

mapsillustrations

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

Ethnobotany of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

928613354

Responsibility statement

Patricia Whereat Phillips ; foreword by Nancy J. Turner

Summary

Myrtlewood is most often thought of as beautiful wood for woodworking, but to Native people on the southern Oregon coast it was an important source of food. The roasted nuts taste like bitter chocolate, coffee, and burnt popcorn. The roots of Skunk Cabbage provided another traditional food source, while also serving as a medicine for colds. In tribal mythology, the leaves of Skunk Cabbage were thought to be tents where the Little People sheltered. Ethnobotany of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians documents the use of plants by these closely-related coastal tribes, covering a geographical area that extends roughly from Cape Perpetua on the central coast, south to the Coquille River, and from the Coast Range west to the Pacific shore. With a focus on native plants and their traditional uses, it also includes mention of farming crops, as well as the highly invasive Himalayan blackberry, which some Oregon coast Indians called the "white man's berry." The cultures of the Coos Bay, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw are distinct from the Athabaskan speaking people to the south, and the Alsea to the north. Today, many tribal members are reviving ancient arts of basket weaving and woodworking, and many now participate in annual intertribal canoe events. Ethnobotany of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians contributes to this cultural renaissance by filling an important gap in the historical record

Table Of Contents

Indigenous languages -- Cultural background and history -- The ethnographers and their informants -- Plants and the traditional culture -- Trees -- Shrubs -- Forbs -- Ferns, fern allies, and moss -- Fungi and seaweeds -- Unidentified plants

Classification