Please remember to cite the ethnobotanyR package if you
use it in your publications. Use citation("ethnobotanyR")
to get a citation for the latest version.
To cite package 'ethnobotanyR' in publications use:
Whitney C (2026). _ethnobotanyR: Ethnobotanical Analysis,
Decision-Framing, and TEK Modeling_. R package version 0.2.0, commit
9f92b4085baabfca7bbd78b62291d5ffcfec1c9e,
<https://github.com/CWWhitney/ethnobotanyR>.
A BibTeX entry for LaTeX users is
@Manual{,
title = {ethnobotanyR: Ethnobotanical Analysis, Decision-Framing, and TEK Modeling},
author = {Cory Whitney},
year = {2026},
note = {R package version 0.2.0, commit 9f92b4085baabfca7bbd78b62291d5ffcfec1c9e},
url = {https://github.com/CWWhitney/ethnobotanyR},
}The goal of ethnobotanyR is to provide an easy-to-use
platform for ethnobotanists to work with quantitative ethnobotany
assessments. It closely follows Tardio and
Pardo-de-Santayana (2008) and Whitney et
al. (2018).
Users of ethnobotanyR may find it useful to read the
background papers and books on ethnobotany theory. In particular Albuquerque et
al. (2019) offer helpful guidance to understanding theoretical
approaches in ethnobotany and developing meaningful research
questions.
| Quick Links |
|---|
| Installing ethnobotanyR |
| ethnobotanyR CRAN Version |
| Quantitative ethnobotany analysis with ethnobotanyR |
| Modeling with ethnobotanyR |
| ethnobotanyR Wiki |
| Question | Function | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| How likely is a use, with uncertainty? | ethno_beta() |
Default; small samples and rare uses |
| Is the sample large enough? | ethno_saturation() |
Rising curve means no |
| What is the consensus answer, and who knows most? | ethno_consensus() |
10+ informants; one shared answer key |
| Consensus with competence I set | ethno_bayes_consensus() |
Competence is an input |
| Uncertainty for any statistic | ethno_boot() |
Not for rare uses |
Install the released version of ethnobotanyR from CRAN with
install.packages("ethnobotanyR").
Install the working version of ethnobotanyR from GitHub with
devtools::install_github("CWWhitney/ethnobotanyR").
homegardens, homegardens_info and
homegardens_species are real survey data from 102
homegardens in southwestern Uganda. Please cite both papers when you use
them:
Whitney, C. W., Tabuti, J. R. S., Hensel, O., Yeh, C., Gebauer, J., and Luedeling, E. (2017). Homegardens and the future of food and nutrition security in southwest Uganda. Agricultural Systems, 154, 133-144. doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2017.03.009.
Whitney, C. W., Bahati, J., and Gebauer, J. (2018). Ethnobotany and agrobiodiversity: valuation of plants in the homegardens of southwestern Uganda. Ethnobiology Letters, 9(2), 90-100. doi.org/10.14237/ebl.9.2.2018.503.
Albuquerque, Ulysses Paulino, Patricia Muniz de Medeiros, Washington Soares Ferreira Junior, Taline Cristina da Silva, Rafael Ricardo Vasconcelos da Silva, and Thiago Goncalves-Souza. 2019. Social-Ecological Theory of Maximization: Basic Concepts and Two Initial Models. Biological Theory. doi.org/10.1007/s13752-019-00316-8.
Tardio, J., and M. Pardo-de-Santayana, 2008. Cultural Importance Indices: A Comparative Analysis Based on the Useful Wild Plants of Southern Cantabria (Northern Spain) 1. Economic Botany, 62(1), 24-39. doi.org/10.1007/s12231-007-9004-5.
Whitney, C. W., Bahati, J., and Gebauer, J. (2018), Ethnobotany and agrobiodiversity; valuation of plants in the homegardens of southwestern Uganda. Ethnobiology Letters, 9(2), 90-100. doi.org/10.14237/ebl.9.2.2018.503.
Whitney C (2022). ethnobotanyR: Calculate Quantitative Ethnobotany Indices. R package version 0.1.9, https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=ethnobotanyR.