Tubuq

Tubu' is the generic term for plants in the ginger family (Zingiberaceae).

Apart from the common ginger (liyeh), there is a variety of wild gingers (genus zingiber) known to the Kelabits, used in their cooking or for other medicinal purposes.

The young shoots of Tubu' Berek Sia' (red pig ginger) for instance is eaten as a vegetable and the flower is used as medicine for dogs. But it was unknown to the scientific community until 1998 when Dr. Hanne Christensen together with Dr. Ida Theilade, a botanist specialising in gingers, described it scientifically and published it in the Edinburgh Journal of Botany. They named it the Zingiber Kelabitianum in honour of the Kelabit people. ⁽¹⁾ See external image

Wild Ginger Varieties Known to the Kelabits

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  Busak Luduh, Tubu' Terebak
  Photo by Richard Howard

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  Tubu' ?
  Photo by Richard Howard

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  Tubu' ?
  Photo by Richard Howard

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  Tubu' ?
  Photo by Richard Howard

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  Busak Tubu' Tesiluk (?)
  Photo by Wayne Kalang

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  Tubu' (?)
  Photo by Wayne Kalang

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  Tubu' Berek Sia'
  (Zingiber Kelabitianum)
  Photo by ?

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  Tubu' Berek Bata'
  (Zingiber Pseudopungens)
  Photo by ?

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  Tubu' Buen
  Photo by ?

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  Tubu' Kering Ebpa
  (Amomum Anomalum)
  Photo by ?

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  Tubu' Kering Buduk
  (Amomum Dimorphum)
  Photo by ?

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  Tubu' Inib
  (Etlingera Nasuta)
  See external image

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  Tubu' Tana'
  (Etlingera Punicea)
  See external image

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  Tubu' Abang
  (Zingiber Longipedunculatum)
  See external image

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  Tubu' Abang Buda'
  (Zingiber Martinii)
  See external image

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  Tubu' Berek Bata'
  (Zingiber Pseudopungens)
  See external image

References

1. Ethnobotany of the Iban & Kelabit by Hanne Christensen