Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Mar 11:11:624710.
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2020.624710. eCollection 2020.

Ethnomedicinal Plants of Hasankeyf (Batman-Turkey)

Yeter Yeşil  1 , İlyas İnal  1
Affiliations

Ethnomedicinal Plants of Hasankeyf (Batman-Turkey)

Yeter Yeşil et al. Front Pharmacol. .

Abstract

Hasankeyf is an ancient city, dating back to more than 10,000 years, in the Southeast Anatolia Region of Turkey. The area is separated by the Tigris River on both sides and located in the Batman province. However, as a result of a dam project, in February 2020, this ancient city and some of its surrounding villages were totally flooded. The residents were moved to new settlements. This study aimed to prevent the possible loss of ethnomedicinal knowledge of plants due to migration as well as to pass on this knowledge to the future generations. The field studies were conducted between March 2017 and November 2019 in the city center and 22 rural settlements of Hasankeyf. Also, the areas where intensive migration was experienced were visited frequently. Interviews were conducted with a total of 131 participants (76 women and 55 men) while gathering plants with them. Information was collected through interviews and questionnaires. The results were analyzed by quantitative indices of information consensus factor (FIC) and use value (UV). A total of 94 plant taxa belonging to 40 families were identified in the study area. The most common medicinal plant families are Lamiaceae (13), Asteraceae (8), Rosaceae (6), Malvaceae (6), Amaryllidaceae (5), Brassicaceae (4), and Solanaceae (4). The most common preparations were infusion, fresh application, and crushing. The taxa having the highest count of use value (UV) were Teucrium polium, Matricaria aurea, Urtica dioica, Mentha longifolia, and Quercus brantii. Besides, the recorded ailments were grouped into categories based on information provided by the interviewees. The most important use categories among the informants were diabetes, gastrointestinal disorders, respiratory disorders, and dermatological disorders. The present study represents the first medical-ethnobotanical documentation and analysis of the traditional use of medicinal plants in Hasankeyf.

Keywords: anatolia; ancient city; ethnobotany; medicinal plants; mesopotamia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Hasankeyf center with historical construction remains 2013.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
A cave house in the ancient city, 2019.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
The old and new settelements April 2019.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
The map of the study area, and its location in Batman Province and in Turkey.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Two villages of Hasankeyf (A) Karaköy (B) Üçyol.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
The percentages of most used plant families in Hasankeyf.
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
The percentages of most used plant parts in Hasankeyf.
FIGURE 8
FIGURE 8
Some medicinal plants used as dried in Hasankeyf.
FIGURE 9
FIGURE 9
The most common ailments treated by plants in Hasankeyf.
FIGURE 10
FIGURE 10
The overlap in the medicinal plants by three close regions: (A) Hasankeyf (Batman); (B) Artuklu (Mardin); (C) Midyat (Mardin).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Afroz M., Akter S., Ahmed A., Rouf R., Shilpi J. A., Tiralongo E., et al. (2020). Ethnobotany and antimicrobial peptides from plants of the Solanaceae family: an update and future prospects. Front. Pharmacol. 11, 565. 10.3389/fphar.2020.00565 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ahunday Z., Balkız Ö. (2009). Outstanding universal value of Hasankeyf and the Tigris valley, Doğa derneği. Available at: https://goo.gl/qZ9tqX (Accessed September 12, 2020).
    1. Akan H., Aydoğdu M., Korkut M. M., Balos M. M. (2013). An ethnobotanical research of the Kalecik mountain area (Sanlıurfa, south-east Anatolia). Biol. Divers. Conserv. 6 (2), 84–90.
    1. Akgül A., Akgül A., Senol S. G., Yildirim H., Seçmen O., Dogan Y. (2018). An ethnobotanical study in Midyat (Turkey), a city on the silk road where cultures meet. J. Ethnobiol. Ethnomed. 14, 12. 10.1186/s13002-017-0201-8 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Altundag E., Ozturk M. (2011). Ethnomedicinal studies on the plant resources of east Anatolia, Turkey. Proc. Soc. Behav. Sci. 19, 756–777. 10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.05.195 - DOI