The Kalahari hunter-gatherers’ Sun (Bushman) study has had many achievements in cultural anthropology, social ecology, and ecological anthropology since the 1950s. From these results, the close relationship between hunter-gatherers and the natural environment has been widely recognized, especially on the topic of the diversity of plant knowledge and use. However, in recent years, reports have also been made on the high spatial cognitive ability of the Kalahari hunter-gatherers, and the application of topographical recognition and knowledge in their livelihood.
Therefore, from the method and viewpoint of physical geography, this paper aims to elucidate spatially the relationship between the people of the hunter-gatherer Khwe living in the northwestern part of Botswana and the surrounding natural environment in their living space.
As a result of participation observation and interviews by local residents, the people's recognition of the surrounding natural environment was determined, and the use of each recognized space was clarified. In addition, a topographical survey using UAV and a tree survey of vegetation revealed the topographical environment and vegetation structure of each space recognized by the people. From the results of these surveys, as a new finding in the research on the spatial recognition and memory of natural features of the Kalahari hunter-gatherers, not only was the memory of plants found, but also the variety of memory and recognition as a space of vegetation was shown.
Although the lives of the people from the hunter-gatherers Khwe in the northwestern of Botswana have changed in accordance with adjustments in their social environment, they still continue to recognize and use the deep knowledge and insight to the natural environment today.
Mots clés : kalahari hunter-gatherer|spatial recognition|spatial use|land use|vegetation
A104293AS