Studying how traditional knowledge regarding wild food plants and particularly wild vegetables changes over time and space is crucial for understanding which socio-ecological variables may have an influence on traditional foraging behaviors. Recent work has found that religious affiliation may play a central role since, in specific cultural contexts, religion shapes kinship relations and consequently the vertical transmission of traditional knowledge and practices. In order to further test this hypothesis, a field ethnobotanical study specifically focusing on wild vegetables was conducted among four religious communities (Shias, Sunnis, Christians, and Sikhs) in Kurram District, North-West Pakistan. Results show that a remarkable bio-cultural heritage comprising fifty-five folk wild food taxa survives today; most of the wild plants were however quoted by few informants, suggesting that this traditional knowledge system is possibly under threat. More than the half of the quoted wild vegetables were not yet reported so far in the Pakistan wild food ethnobotanical literature. The most commonly gathered wild vegetables were Amaranthus viridis L., Margarospermum officinale L., Malva neglecta Wallr., Portulaca oleracea L., and Rumex dentatus L. Most of the recorded wild vegetables were quoted by Shia and, to less extent, by Sunni community members, while Christians and Sikhs showed an extremely restricted wild plant food repertoire. These differences may be related to the different history and socio-economic conditions of the considered religious groups, to geographical/ecological factors and probably to the very specific origin of the Shia groups (Turi tribe) of the region, which moved from Western Asia a few centuries ago. Moreover, a remarkable portion of the quoted wild vegetables are perceived to have specific medicinal properties. A serious reconsideration of the recorded wild food plant resources, especially also within educational platforms, could be crucial for fostering culturally-appropriate food security strategies in marginal areas of Pakistan.

研究有关野生食用植物，尤其是野生蔬菜的传统知识如何随时间和空间变化，对于了解哪些社会生态变量可能会影响传统的觅食行为至关重要。最近的工作发现，宗教派系可能起着中心作用，因为在特定的文化背景下，宗教塑造了亲属关系，因此形成了传统知识和习俗的垂直传播。为了进一步检验该假设，在巴基斯坦西北部地区库拉姆地区的四个宗教社区（什叶派，逊尼派，基督教徒和锡克教徒）中进行了专门针对野菜的民族植物学研究。结果表明，如今，包括55种民间野生食品类群的非凡生物文化遗产得以幸存。然而，大多数野生植物被很少的举报人引用，这表明这种传统知识体系可能受到威胁。到目前为止，巴基斯坦野生食品民族植物学文献中尚未报告超过一半的野生蔬菜。最常见的野生蔬菜是Amaranthus viridis L. ，Margarospermum officinale L. ，Malva neglecta Wallr。，Portulaca oleracea L.和Rumex dentatusL.记录下来的大多数野生蔬菜被什叶派以及逊尼派社区成员引用的程度较小，而基督徒和锡克教徒则显示出极为受限制的野生植物食物种类。这些差异可能与所考虑的宗教团体的历史和社会经济状况不同，地理/生态因素有关，也可能与该地区的什叶派（图里部落）的起源非常特殊，这些什叶派从西亚迁至几个世纪前。此外，被引述的野生蔬菜中有很大一部分被认为具有特定的药用特性。认真重新考虑已记录的野生食用植物资源，特别是在教育平台内，对于在巴基斯坦边缘地区促进适合文化的粮食安全战略可能至关重要。