''Syngonanthus nitens'' is a grass-like species of
Eriocaulaceae
The Eriocaulaceae are a family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the order Poales, commonly known as the pipewort family. The family is large, with about 1207 known species described in seven genera. They are widely distri ...
which exists in the region of
Jalapão, state of
Tocantins
Tocantins () is one of the 26 states of Brazil. It is the newest state, formed in 1988 and encompassing what had formerly been the northern two-fifths of the state of Goiás. Tocantins covers and had an estimated population of 1,496,880 in 2014 ...
, Brazil - the region is part of the Brazilian
cerrado
The Cerrado () is a vast ecoregion of Tropics, tropical savanna in central Brazil, being present in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Maranhão, Piauí, Bahia, Minas Gerais, São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Paraná ...
. Its main characteristic is the bright and gold color, hence their common name "capim dourado", which literally means "golden grass".
The making of handicrafts from ''S. nitens'' began in Jalapão, in the
Afro-Brazilian
Afro-Brazilians (; ), also known as Black Brazilians (), are Brazilians of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most multiracial Brazilians also have a range of degree of African ancestry. Brazilians whose African features are mo ...
community of
Mumbuca in the municipality of
Mateiros
Mateiros is the easternmost city in the state of Tocantins. It is the only city in Tocantins to border the state of Piauí.
The municipality is in the microregion of Jalapão.
Conservation
The municipality contains part of the Serra Geral do T ...
. Indigenous people, probably from the Xerente ethnic group, taught the art to local inhabitants when passing through the region around the 1930s. The handicrafts are made of coils of ''S. nitens'' scapes sewn tightly together with strips from the
Moriche Palm
''Mauritia flexuosa'', known as the moriche palm, ''ité'' palm, ''ita'', ''buriti'', ''muriti'', ''miriti'' (Brazil), ''canangucho'' (Colombia), ''morete or acho'' (Ecuador), ''palma real'' (Bolivia), or ''aguaje'' (Peru), is a palm tree. It gro ...
's (''Mauritia flexuosa'') young leaves. For decades the handicrafts were only made by women for household uses and/or sporadic selling. Today, there are at least 12 local community associations. The handicrafts are usually sold in small shops of local artisan associations.
[SCHMIDT, I. B.; FIGUEIREDO, I. B.; SCARIOT, A. 2007. Ethnobotany and harvesting effects on population ecology of Syngonanthus nitens (Bong.) Ruhland (Eriocaulaceae), a NTFP from Jalapão region, Central Brazil]
''Syngonanthus nitens flowering starts in July and seeds are produced from the beginning of September through October. The Tocantins State Government, through its Environmental Agency (Naturatins), established a regional law (Portaria 55/2004 and 092/2005) allowing scape harvesting only after September 20, and requiring flowerhead cutting and dispersal in the grassland areas just after scape harvesting. This regional law can be an efficient tool for contributing to the sustainability of ''S. nitens'' handicraft activities.
References
Schmidt, I. B.; Figueiredo, I. B.; Sampaio, M. B. 2007. ''Capim dourado e buriti: práticas para garantir a sustentabilidade do artesanato''. Brasília.
External links
Tocantins Government websiteNaturatins - Instituto Natureza do Tocantins (the state environmental agency) website
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5232259
Eriocaulaceae