The Cultural History of Plants: How Kalgan ‘Alpinia spp.’ Became Kalgan ‘Potentilla erecta L. Raeusch.’

Abstract

The article studies the cultural history of septfoil Potentilla erecta (L.) Raeusch in Russia. In the first part of the paper, the transfer of phytonyms from the exotic plant galangal to septfoil, and changes in the plant uses in the 16th–20th centuries, are traced based on archives, dictionaries and published materials. We put forward the hypothesis that the reason for the transfer was the similar functions of both plants against the background of a decline in the import of galangal to Russia due to a number of political events in Europe and southwest Asia. The second part of the article discusses field materials from northwest Russia, in particular, differences in the use of septfoil among ethnic groups of Karelia and the Pskov region. We investigate the influence of magazines, popular books, and procurement offices on the folk tradition of the Soviet era. Nowadays, the list also includes internet publications and online trade. We trace how the information about the medicinal properties of septfoil is represented in various sources. The comparison has revealed new medicinal uses of septfoil that are emerging on online markets.