Use of Capsicum on Kosrae Island, Federated States of Micronesia

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Abstract

I surveyed the nomenclature and usage of Capsicum, in particular C. frutescens on Kosrae Island, Kosrae State, Federated States of Micronesia, to identify the relationship between people and Capsicum. Three species of Capsicum are cultivated on Kosrae Island: C. annuum, C. frutescens, and C. chinense. Many cultivars of C. annuum and one accession of C. chinense are thought to have been introduced to Kosrae Island quite recently. In contrast to C. annuum and C. chinense, C. frutescens, especially the green type, is a common seasoning in the daily diet of locals and has become an important and indispensable condiment on Kosrae Island. People called it “Kosraen pepper,” “native,” or “local.” This terminology may imply that people on Kosrae Island are more attached to C. frutescens than they are to the other species of Capsicum. Capsicum peppers are called pwepuh on Kosrae Island, which seems to be related to pfeffer in German or pepper in English. Kosrae Island residents do not have any specific names for the various pungent types of Capsicum peppers. They view Capsicum peppers in various ways: as a condiment (fresh or salted fruits and hot sauces), vegetable (leaves of C. frutescens), and medicine (fruits and/or seeds for toothaches, fruits for diarrhea, and leaves for curing boils and wounds). However, the uses of Capsicum spp. as a medicine are very limited on Kosrae Island compared to other small and remote islands in the Pacific, and people there have been eating fewer C. frutescens leaves in recent years partly due to modernization of the culture.

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