"Traditional Georgian Ethnopharmacology: Historical Foundations, Medicinal Plant Cultivation Practices, and Knowledge Transmission Pathways"

This study explores the historical, practical, and oral foundations of traditional Georgian ethnopharmacology, enabling a scientific interpretation of this complexly structured knowledge system. Ethnopharmacology, as a discipline, integrates botanical, cultural, and semiotic analysis, and in this context, traditional Georgian medicine represents an original yet universally applicable model.

The research is based on qualitative methodology, primary source document analysis, and ethnographic hermeneutics of oral texts. It draws upon 19^th-20^th century Georgian monographs, folk remedies, incantations, songs, and botanical descriptions of plants. One of the aims was to reveal the link between plant use practices and ritual structures, which often define the cultural legitimacy of therapeutic action.

The study examined the ethnopharmacological profiles of four key plants (Valeriana officinalis, Aconitum spp., Symphytum spp., Sambucus nigra), which exhibit both bioactive effects and valuable ritual-semantic significance. Findings indicate that traditional uses frequently align with contemporary pharmacological practices, suggesting an empirical basis for traditional knowledge.

Mechanisms of oral knowledge transmission were analyzed, including knowledge protection, selectivity, and ritual-linguistic framing. Of particular significance were folk classification systems of plants (e.g., “hot/cold”, “silent/loud”), which point to an unconscious but structured cognitive framework. The study highlights threats such as the disruption of knowledge transmission, habitat loss, and disregard for traditional practices.

In conclusion, the paper offers recommendations for documenting and scientifically integrating ethnopharmacological heritage, emphasizing ethical principles and respect for local authorship. Traditional Georgian ethnopharmacology should not be seen merely as a cultural relic, but as a potential source of modern pharmacological innovation, provided it is studied in a complex, ethical, and interdisciplinary manner.