Indigenous Knowledge Of Dao Ethnic People On Using Medicinal Plants In Ba Vi Commune Ba Vi District Ha Noi

RểMINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Vietnam National University of Forestry

STUDENT THESIS

Title

INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE OF DAO ETHNIC PEOPLE ON

USING MEDICINAL PLANTS IN BA VI COMMUNE, BA VI

DISTRICT, HA NOI.

Major: Natural Resources Management

Code: D850101

Faculty: Forest Resources and Environmental Management

Student: Vu Thi Hong Trang. Student ID: 1253100987.

Class: K57 Natural Resources Management Course: 2012 – 2016

Advanced Education Program

Developed in collaboration with Colorado State University, USA

Supervisor: Assoc.Prof. Dr. Do Anh Tuan.

Ha Noi, 10/2016

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

To achieve this research, during the implementation process, in addition to my own

efforts, I have received the enthusiastic support of Assoc.Dr.Do Anh Tuan, other

organizations and departments. On this occasion, I would like to express a gratitude to

Assoc. Dr. Do Anh Tuan who has directly guided me to complete this Thesis. I also would

like to thank the teachers in Vietnam national university of forestry in the advanced

program. Thanks to Ba Vi commune People's Committee - Ba Vi district - Hanoi city,

garden of medicinal plant, the heads of the three villages Hop Son, Hop Nhat and Yen Son

of Ba Vi commune helping me to complete this thesis.

During preparing this thesis, even though I had a lot of effort, because of time and

professional qualifications is limited, and the initial unfamiliarity acquainted with the

scientific work, so my research have some shortcomings. I look forward to receiving some

comments from teachers and readers for my better thesis.

I sincerely thank you!

Ha Noi, October 2, 2016

Student

Vu Thi Hong Trang

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES

INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1

CHAPTER I. LITERATURE REVIEWS ................................................................ 2

1.1. Studies on using medicinal plants in the world ..................................................... 2

1.2. Studies on using medicinal plants in Vietnam ...................................................... 2

CHAPTER II. OBJECTIVES, CONTENTS AND METHODOLOGY.................. 7

2.1. Objectives ............................................................................................................ 7

2.2. Research limiations .............................................................................................. 7

2.3. Research contents ................................................................................................ 7

2.4. Methodology ........................................................................................................ 7

2.4.1. Field work ..................................................................................................... 8

CHAPTER III. DISCRIPTION OF THE STUDY SITE…………………………….11

3.1. History of Ba Vi commune ............................................................................. 11

3.2. Natural conditions ........................................................................................... 11

3.3. Other resources ................................................................................................ 12

CHAPTER IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS ................................................... 14

4.1. Medicinal plants in study area ............................................................................. 14

4.1.1. Diversity of medicinal plant phylum in Ba Vi commune ............................... 14

4.1.2. Diversity of medicinal plant species and genus in Ba Vi commune. .............. 15

4.1.3. Diversity of life form of medicinal plants in Ba Vi commune ....................... 16

4.2. Use value of medicinal plants in study area ......................................................... 17

4.2.1. The use of medicinal plants in Ba Vi Commune............................................ 17

4.2.2. Diversity of plant part use ............................................................................. 17

4.2.3. Medicinal plants used for treating different disease groups........................... 19

4.3. Some traditional medicines of Dao people in Ba Vi commune ............................ 21

CHAPTER V. CONCLUSION, LIMITATION AND RECOMMENDATION .... 26

5.1. Conclusions ........................................................................................................ 26

5.2. Limitations of this study ...................................................................................... 26

5.3. Recommendations ............................................................................................... 27

References

Appendix

LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1: Survey of medicinal plant species in Health stations of commune garden. ....... 8

Table 2.2: Results of transect survey................................................................................ 9

Table 2.3: The use of traditional medicine in community ................................................. 9

Table 2.4: List of medicinal plants in Ba Vi commune. .................................................. 10

Table 4.1. The diversity of medicinal plants in Ba Vi commune. ................................... 14

Table 4.2: Top 10 families which are rich species. ......................................................... 15

Table 4.3: Plant parts use of medicinal species in Ba Vi commune ................................ 16

Table 4.4: The use of medicinal plants of local community in Ba Vi Commune ............. 17

Table 4.5. The diversity of medicinal plant parts use ..................................................... 18

Table 4.6. The proportion of plant parts use ................................................................... 18

Table 4.7. The use of medicinal plant for each disease ................................................... 19

1

INTRODUCTION

Located in Southeast Asia, the territory of Vietnam stretches from Muc Nam

Quan to Ca Mau with S-shaped area of 33 thousand km2

. Viet Nam has 54 different

ethnic groups, and each ethnics has knowledge about their own traditional medicines.

Located in the tropical monsoon belt with hot and humid tropical climate,

Vietnam has high biodiversity and is ranked as one of the top 25 highest biodiversity

countries in the world. According to Pham Hoang Ho, Vietnam has 12,000 vascular plant

species. In which, there are about 3,800 medicinal plant species, accounting for 36% of

total 10,500 known species. In the world, there are about 35,000 medicinal plant species

(A. P. Van Seters, 1997), Vietnam accounted for 11%. Despite of large amount, it could

not confirm the exact number of medicinal plant species of all ethnic groups in Vietnam,

because each ethnic groups has different ways of using remedies plants.

The knowledge and popular experiences of each ethnic community was

transmitted orally to the next generations. Gradually, traditional drugs is uniqueness and

become common in health care in both internal and external ethnic groups. Therefore,

there has been a lot of research and conservation project on medicinal plants, traditional

medicine knowledge also was conducted and bring important results. However, the

conservation of remedy plants has faced many difficulties such as war, urbanization,

market economy, and so on. So the declining resources of these species is inevitable.

Moreover, the traditional treatment is being lost day by day because more and more the

old peoples die and the young members demonstrate little interest in learning the

traditional medicine plants. Therefore, it needs to take measures and specific plans to

conserve medicinal plant resources and traditional medicine knowledge.

Ba Vi commune is a mountainous area of Ba Vi district, Hanoi city. It has large forest

coverage, rich flora and fauna, especially the flora. However, the natural forest area have

been narrow significantly, the amount of medicinal herbs are being depleted because of

burning forest for cultivation. Additionally, Ba Vi commune is associated with many

ethnic groups. Dao ethnic people in Vietnam in general and particularly in Ba Vi

commune have a very unique local knowledge of using traditional medicinal plants which

have been believed by many people. To contributeto the conservation of traditional

knowledge and medicinal plant resources in Ba Vi commune, the author conducted this

thesis with the titile of ―Indigenous knowledge of Dao ethnic people on using medicinal

plants in Ba Vi commune, Ba Vi district, Hanoi city”.

2

CHAPTER I. LITERATURE REVIEWS

1.1. Studies on using medicinal plants in the world

In the development of human society, people always have to contend with illness.

The research for medicines have emerged in the beginning of human civilization. In the

process of searching for food, primitive people knew to select plants and animals which is

effective treatment to curve their illness. Until now lots of ancient medicinal plants are

extant. 5.000 years ago, Chiness people know the way for sweating to treat colds, Native

Americans used Quinquina bark for malaria treatment.

In ancient period, China and India were famous for ancient tradional medicine.

China published 2 famous books ―Than nong ban thao” and ―Hoang De Noi Kinh To

Van‖ (about 5000 years ago) which are the oldest of Eastern medicines, many drugs

recorded in this book was circulated today as ginseng, Rhubarb. At Han dynasty (year

165 BC) in ―Thu hau cap Phuong‖, introducing 52 medicinal plants. Additionally, there was

―Medicinal dictionary of China‖ att Minh dynasty, "Compendium of Materia Medica" by Li

Shizhen (1518-1593) were a encyclopedias collected, added 952 exhibits ancient sources in the

field of medicine. India had a sutra ―Vedas‖ which recorded many medicines.

In the first century, a Greek doctor – Dioscorides introduced 600 plant species. He

mainly focused on the description of medicinal plants. Several centuries BC the Greeks

were known cultivating plant species for medicines.

The French botanists are considered to be the first researchers of Southeast Asian

plants. In the early twentieth century, in Indochina research program, Perry announced

1.000 plant species and medicinal plant species in Southeast Asia which are proven and

aggregated recently (1985) into book "Medicinal of East and Southeast Asia".

Nowadays, the traditional medicine have been increasingly studied in developing

countries in order to serve for better medical treatment.

1.2. Studies on using medicinal plants in Vietnam

Over more than 4000 years of building and defending the country, Vietnamese

people discovered hundreds of medical remedies and accumulated a large range of

3

experience in health care, disease prevention and treatment and these form a basis of

Vietnamese traditional medicine. In fact, many of the courses of treatment and prevention

have remained useful until now such as eating ginger as an anti-cold and flu treatment,

anti-malaria plants such as Artermisia, tumeric for stomach issues and chewing betel and

dying teeth to prevent tooth decay and gum disease and to deaden or anesthetize the gums.

As early as the 2nd century BC, Vietnamese used hundreds of plant species for

medicinal purposes. Traditional Vietnamese Medicine (sometimes abbreviated as TVM)

has a long history starting in the Hung Vuong dynasty over 2,000 years ago. For

thousands of years, Traditional Vietnamese Medicine evolved and was influenced from

Traditional Chinese Medicine but also with distinct differences.

Traditional Vietnamese Medicine has a long history traced back to the Hung

Vuong dynasty over 2,000 years ago, people have known distillers wine, used mercury

for embalming. It has historical records of a physician named Thoi Vy who was known

cure tuberculosis, bubonic at An Duong Vuong (257-207).

From the Ly Dynasty (11th to 13th century), the Imperial Court had an organized

medical division, which was later changed to a medical institute - one of the first in

Vietnam. In the year 1136, Ly Than Tong king was crazy and folk doctor Nguyen Chi

Thanh used psychotherapy method and boil Sapindus saponaria for bathing to treat for king.

Under the Tran Dynasty (13th to 14th century) medicinal herbs were planted in an

organized fashion, nurtured, collected, managed and used for disease treatment. This

record is based on archeological and other records such as the Duoc Son historical

remains in Pha Lai- Quang Ninh province. This period was one in which many famous

medical doctors made significant contributions to the development of Vietnamese

traditional medicine, especially the great physician Tue Tinh, known as the founder of

Vietnamese traditional medicine. Normally, according to Vietnamese tradition and

custom, those who were considered as the most talented and successful men in any

specific field were named as the saints or fathers of their specialty. Tue Tinh was called

the saint and founder of Vietnamese traditional medicine. He was also the author of some

famous books such as the ―Miracle Vietnamese Pharmacy‖ and ―Great Morality In the

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Art of Medicine‖. He was the first person to give prominence to an idea of ―The need for

Vietnamese to be treated by Vietnamese medicines”.

In Ho Dynasty (1400 – 1406), as advocated expanding the cure for people with

acupuncture method. Nguyen Dai Nang was a famous physician, he was the author of

poetry related to acupuncture method to the people.

In Le Dynasty (1428 – 1876) has advances advocated in the care and protect the

health of the people. Jolin Institute responded for the health of king and army, provided

annual detection and prevention services and treatment for people. In this period, drugs in

rural villages Nghia Trai, Van Lam district develop until now. In particular, Hai Thuong

Lang Ong Le Huu Trac are known as the medical founders of Vietnam’s Traditional

Medicine. He was the author of a memorable work about Vietnamese traditional

medicine known as the encyclopedia of Vietnamese Traditional Medicine. This

encyclopedia has 28 episodes and makes up 66 volumes including ―Medical origins with

morality and skills‖.

The period from 1802 – 1883, Nguyen Dynasty also organized Jolin Institute

focused leprosy treatment which was opened in schools in Hue (1850). Nguyen Quang

Luong, Nguyen Kim are the famous physician of this period, contributing to development

of traditional medicine as ―Nam duoc tap Nghiem quoc am‖.

In French colonialists invaded period, traditional medicines in Vietnam had a

number of activities such as establishment of the Medical Association of North, Central

and South; Training for traditional medicines; opening treatment departments. By the

early 20th century, a number of traditional medicine books was published in the national

languages as ―Vietnam Pharmacological" by Pho Duc Thanh. At this time, there was

some French botanist came to Vietnam to study including Crévót, Pétélot. Pétélot

published "Catalogue des produits de L'Indochine" (1928 - 1935). In which, volume V

(Produits medicinaux, 1928) described 368 medicinal plants and herbs which are

flowering plant species. In 1952, he had to complement and build a set of ―Les plantes de

médicinales du Cambodge, du Laos et du Vietnam‖, consisting of 4 sets and listed of

1.482 herbal medicine in 3 Indochinese countries.