Lemoine T. auteur aut IRD Rimlinger A. auteur aut IRD Duminil Jérôme auteur aut IRD Leclerc C. auteur aut IRD Labeyrie V. auteur aut IRD Tsogo M. auteur aut IRD Carrière Stéphanie M. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf reformatted digital access In Cameroon, the African plum tree (Dacryodes edulis [G. Don] H. J. Lam) is widely cultivated for its fruits, which contribute significantly to household food security and economy. In order to analyze the links between the social and ecological systems that result in the remarkable fruit diversity, we focused on how the important varietal diversity of African plums was perceived and named by tree owners. We conducted semi-structured interviews in Center-Cameroon with 142 people belonging to the Beti ethnic group, in urban (Yaounde), peri-urban and rural areas, and analyzed the data qualitatively and quantitatively. Along this urbanization gradient linking production to consumption regions, 158 different translated names were recorded. Most names (80%) were cited once, but some names based on fruit size and taste were common across the gradient. Although the highest total number of names was recorded in the rural site, many different names were also found along the urban-rural gradient. We did not detect difference in the number of named African plums between respondents with different characteristics. The local classification of African plums among the Beti was structured predominantly according to morphological and organoleptic criteria, but also to symbolic and practical criteria. African plums' names were based on people's fruit preferences, that favor large, oily, and blue to black fruits, and disregard pink-colored watery plums. This study is an entry point to explore the rising trade and thus ongoing domestication of the African plum tree from an often neglected perspective, that of local nomenclature. specialized Beti ethnic group Central Africa Dacryodes edulis Domestication Ethnobotany Local nomenclature CAMEROUN 076 082 51 721-736 2023 0300-7839 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010088298 10.1007/s10745-023-00427-8 0300-7839 [F B010088298] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010088298 https://horizon.documentation.ird.fr/exl-doc/pleins_textes/2023-09/010088298.pdf IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2023-09-22 2026-06-12 fdi:010088298 fre