摘要：The ethnopharmacognosy is an acknowledged and modern trend when it comes to discovering new medicinal plants and broadening the field of use of the herbs that have been known for a long time. Throughout times, camomile has been the most widely used medicinal plant. It is also the most popular herb in the former Soviet Union and in Russia, and is also widely used in Germany, etc. In Estonia, two types of camomile can be found. The German camomile with white ligulate ray-florets (Chamomilla recutita (L.) Rauschert, syn. Matricaria recutita L., syn. M. chamomilla L.) grows only here and there in nature and the drug is mainly obtained from cultivating the plant. Pineapple weed without ray-florets (Chamomilla suaveolens (Pursh) Rydb., syn. M. suaveolens (Pursh) Buchen, syn. M. discoidea DC., syn. M. matricarioides (Less.) Porter p.p.) is a widely spread weed in the nature. The Pharmacopoeia of the Soviet Union, which was effective in Estonia for half a century, permitted the use of the inflorescence of pineapple weed as a substitute for the inflorescence of German camomile, but only for external use. According to the pharmacopoeia, the camomile inflorescence has an anti-inflammatory and spasmolytic effect. Different authors have different viewpoints as regards the internal use of the pineapple weed. It is also unclear whether pineapple weed could be used as a substitute for German camomile. The present article analyses the vitality of Estonian ethnopharmacognosy with the example of camomile as our most popular medicinal plant. The available folk medicinal data has enabled us to propose the following hypotheses: 1. The complex of biologically active substances is chemically and pharmacologically close in case of pineapple weed and German camomile. 2. The complex of biologically active substances of pineapple weed and German camomile is quantitatively similar in inflorescence, as well as in leaves and stalks. It is possible to use the drug instead of the inflorescence. 3. Pineapple weed can be used for internal purposes. The article gives an overview of the effect of the main components of the essential oil of German camomile; the process of working out the solubilisate of German camomile, the analysis of its toxicity and clinical research; the toxicity test of pineapple weed; the antimicrobial effect of the essential oils, herbal teas and powders of both German camomile and pineapple weed; the spasmolytic effect of the herbal teas of both plants. The article takes a closer look at the comparison of the chemical composition of both German camomile and pineapple weed. The article shows that besides the inflorescence of pineapple weed, it is pragmatic to use the drug of pineapple weed (top at the length of 2/3), which also is suitable to substitute the inflorescence of German camomile. The data from the pharmacognostic, phytochemical and pharmacological research introduced in this article has confirmed the experiences of our ancestors in every way. Corresponding research has been carried out by the authors in Estonia as well as in the former Soviet Union and other countries. The authors believe that these results give us a reason and courage to proceed with ethnopharmacognosy while planning pharmaceutical research also on other medicinal plants. This would help to propose hypotheses for studying them and save time and resources needed for pharmacognostic research. In a philosophical sense, the ethnopharmacognosy and pharmacognosy are opposites that do not exclude each other.
关键词：Estonian ethnopharmacognosy ; folk medicine ; pharmacy ; medicinal plants ; camomile
