Changes in the Perception of Plants in the Dictionary of the Siamese Language by D.B. Bradley: The Siamese Way of Life in Relation to Plants

Abstract

This article presents the results of document research using historical research methods to study the Siamese people's perception of plants as described in D.B. Bradley's book, Dictionary of the Siamese Language. The study had two objectives: firstly, to present the results of the research on the classification of plant species in the Dictionary of the Siamese Language; secondly, to present the value of the Dictionary of the Siamese Language as historical evidence of the relationship between 19^th century Siamese society and their perception of plants. The results of the study are as follows:

Firstly, the 19^th Century Siamese people classified plants into four categories: food plants, herbs, functional plants, and forest plants. Secondly, Dr. Bradley's Dictionary of the Siamese Language is valuable as historical evidence because it reflects the way of life of the Siamese people in the 19^th century, particularly in terms of their dependence on nature for livelihood, culture, and interregional trade following the Bowring Treaty of 1855. The descriptions of the plant entries reflect the worldview of the relationship between 19^th century Siamese society and vegetation during that time, as well as the Siamese people's perception of space namely, geographic space, plantation space, and geopolitical space.