Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used by the local population in and around Kozak Plateau (Bergama, İzmir, Türkiye)

This research was conducted between 2020 and 2022 in 21 villages located on the Kozak Plateau and its surroundings, in the Bergama district of İzmir province, Türkiye. The main aim of the study is to document the medicinal uses of plants by the local population and to contribute to the preservation and transmission of ethnobotanical knowledge—passed down through generations— to future generations before it disappears. Interviews were conducted with 159 informants, and the traditional medicinal uses of 126 plant taxa belonging to 54 families were identified. Among these, the therapeutic uses of 37 taxa were recorded for the first time. The scientific and local names of the identified taxa, and their methods and purposes of use were determined and compiled. The data were analyzed using statistical ethnobotanical methods including the Use Value, Informant Consensus Factor, Plant Part Value, Jaccard Index, and Sørensen Index as the statistical parameters. The selection of Kozak Plateau as the research area was influenced by the lack of prior ethnobotanical studies in the region and its significance in medical history. The findings of the study, and the newly recorded uses of particular plant species, will contribute to further ethnomedical research and may guide future studies in different disciplines.