Documenting traditional knowledge on plant use among ethnic groups has enabled researchers to obtain a better understanding of how indigenous flora is seen and used in daily life. Their therapeutic applications will also encourage future conservation and phytochemical research, potentially leading to the development of novel drugs. However, past ethnobotanical studies conducted in Ethiopia mainly focused on rural areas, and limited coverage to document the ethnobotanical knowledge at the rural‒urban interface. Therefore, this study was conducted to document and analyze traditional ethnobotanical knowledge on medicinal plants among three selected ethnic groups in peri-urban areas of south-central Ethiopia. In addition, we attempted to investigate the range of cultural similarity and disparity between the studied ethnic groups in relation to traditional medicinal plants and diseases treated. Data were collected using semistructured questionnaires and in-depth interviews of 189 key informants, floristic species inventories, and field observations. Several cultural importance indices and Rahman’s similarity indices were applied to analyze the relevance of medicinal plants and cultural similarity among the ethnic groups. A total of 189 therapeutic plants representing 159 genera and 69 families were identified and documented across the three studied ethnic groups. Of these, the Sidama, Gedeo, and Oromo ethnic groups reported 28, 34, and 38%, respectively. Most medicinal plants were represented by herbs (36%), followed by shrubs (31%), trees (27%), and herbaceous climbers (7%). Rahman's similarity index (RSI) revealed considerable ethnobotanical knowledge variation among ethnic groups. Oromo and Sidama showed the highest disparity (63.8%), followed by Gedeo and Oromo (63.2%). Of the total collected therapeutic plants, 78 most important medicinal plants were selected for the cultural importance analysis, which revealed that Croton macrostachyus Hochst. ex Delile scored the highest point in the Gedeo and Oromo ethnic groups and Zingiber officinale Roscoe in the Sidama ethnic group. Whereas Cinnamomum verum J.Presl, Psidium guajava L., and Melia azedarach L. are the least. The present study revealed the presence of cultural differences in medicinal plant knowledge practices and therapeutic plant use among the studied ethnic groups in rural–urban interface areas of south-central Ethiopia. The diverse healing potential of plants would support future pharmacological investigations, emphasizing the need for adequate documentation of indigenous knowledge and versatile flora to prevent their further loss.

中文翻译：

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埃塞俄比亚中南部城郊地区三个民族药用植物知识的民族植物学研究

记录各民族关于植物使用的传统知识使研究人员能够更好地了解如何在日常生活中看待和使用本土植物。它们的治疗应用也将鼓励未来的保护和植物化学研究，有可能导致新药的开发。然而，过去在埃塞俄比亚进行的民族植物学研究主要集中在农村地区，记录城乡交界处民族植物学知识的范围有限。因此，本研究旨在记录和分析埃塞俄比亚中南部城郊地区三个选定民族的药用植物传统民族植物学知识。此外，我们试图调查所研究的民族之间在传统药用植物和治疗疾病方面的文化相似性和差异范围。通过半结构化问卷、对 189 名关键知情人的深入访谈、植物物种清查和实地观察来收集数据。应用几种文化重要性指数和拉赫曼相似性指数来分析药用植物的相关性和民族之间的文化相似性。在三个研究种族群体中，共鉴定并记录了代表 159 属和 69 科的 189 种治疗植物。其中，Sidama、Gedeo 和 Oromo 族群的比例分别为 28%、34% 和 38%。大多数药用植物以草本植物（36%）为代表，其次是灌木（31%）、乔木（27%）和攀缘草本植物（7%）。拉赫曼相似指数（RSI）揭示了不同种族群体之间相当大的民族植物学知识差异。奥罗莫和西达玛的差距最大（63.8%），其次是吉德奥和奥罗莫（63.2%）。在收集的全部药用植物中，选择了 78 种最重要的药用植物进行文化重要性分析，结果显示巴豆巴豆 (Croton macrostachyus Hochst)。ex Delile 在 Gedeo 和 Oromo 族中得分最高，Zingiber officinale Roscoe 在 Sidama 族中得分最高。而 Cinnamomum verum J.Presl、Psidium guajava L. 和 Melia azedarach L. 的数量最少。本研究揭示了埃塞俄比亚中南部城乡交界地区的研究民族在药用植物知识实践和治疗植物使用方面存在文化差异。植物的多样化治疗潜力将支持未来的药理学研究，强调需要对本土知识和多功能植物群进行充分记录，以防止其进一步损失。