Centuries of intense and involuntary migrations deeply impacted the development of the creolised cultures on the Dutch Caribbean islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. This volume describes... Show moreCenturies of intense and involuntary migrations deeply impacted the development of the creolised cultures on the Dutch Caribbean islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. This volume describes various forms of cultural heritage produced on these islands over time and whether these heritages are part of their ‘national’ identifications. What forms of heritage express the idea of a shared “we” (nation-building) and what images are presented to the outside world (nation-branding)? What cultural heritage is shared between the islands and what are some real or perceived differences? In this book, examples of cultural heritage on these three islands ranging from sports to questions of reparations, from museums to digital humanities, from archaeology to music, from language and literature to tourism, and from visual art to diaspora policies are compared to developments elsewhere in the Caribbean. Show less
Besides the official care for cultural heritage on Java, which in the 1920s and 1930s was under the responsibility of the Dutch Archeological Service, different attitudes towards heritage are... Show moreBesides the official care for cultural heritage on Java, which in the 1920s and 1930s was under the responsibility of the Dutch Archeological Service, different attitudes towards heritage are identified of which three are discussed more elaborately using three typical case studies. It will become clear how for the local population on Java statues and sites were still places of worship where offerings were made and rituals performed. This use of heritage often clashed with repairs undertaken by the Archeological Service, for instance, for constructional reasons, but which in practice sealed off the heritage for local people for whom it was a site of veneration still. On the other hand, local people sometimes also deliebrately destroyed heritage such as statues who would have had a negative agency. This chapter aims to contribute to how such responses and attitudes should be explained and what questions need to be addressed further to understand the meaning of cultural heritage for the people living nearby heritage sites to whom they are more than reminders of an ancient past. Show less
Imprint of Action investigates the sociocultural impact of archaeology through public activities. These activities provide an ideal setting for research, as they represent a structured point of... Show moreImprint of Action investigates the sociocultural impact of archaeology through public activities. These activities provide an ideal setting for research, as they represent a structured point of encounter between the public and archaeological heritage; in analysing them, aspects of people’s connections to the past are revealed. As such this research forms an integral part of the NEARCH project (2013-2018). As a basis for analysis, survey data from three large-scale case studies – ‘DOMunder’ (Netherlands), ‘You(R ) Archaeology’ (Cross-Europe), and ‘Invisible Monuments’ (Greece) was used. The analysis and interpretation of the case studies is based on a newly created methodological framework which finds its roots in the broader culture and arts sector. Results shows that activities encourage participation and interaction, which engenders sociocultural impacts on participants, most notably in knowledge increase, skill development, social relations, and happiness. Imprint of Action is the first large-scale study focussing entirely on sociocultural impact in archaeology and, as such, is explorative in nature; it provides unique insights into the workings of interaction and participation in archaeological events, and openly shares qualitative and quantitative research data with the expanding field. Show less
ABSTRACT In reflection upon the worthy work of Professor Shinya Konaka and his col- leagues, this contribution discusses the idea of “Localization of Humanitarian Assistance”. Several critical... Show moreABSTRACT In reflection upon the worthy work of Professor Shinya Konaka and his col- leagues, this contribution discusses the idea of “Localization of Humanitarian Assistance”. Several critical questions arise from a humanitarian situation where the needs are assessed: we have to know what people need and what they don’t need. We need to determine coping mech- anisms that need not substituted but rather facilitated. To not undermine and further marginal- ize we need to know what resources, skills and social capital East African pastoralists have and how they are activated, where and when. The discussion is organized in observations from on one hand, archaeological and heritage perspective and on the other, personal experience of refugees and IDP life in the East Africa. It concludes that people do not only need food and shelter to survive and that cultural heritage is a basic human need too. Without the traditional skills and coping mechanisms that are inherent in the cultural values that glue people together, it is difficult for East African pastoralists to survive. Violence and neglect against people and environment are related to the destruction and neglect of cultural and natural heritage, which are people’s means of livelihood and sources of identity and dignity. Show less
The existence of communities and peoples develops over time, in a diachronic line of heritage and cultural memory as well as in a synchronous coexistence with the cosmos, marked by a cyclically... Show moreThe existence of communities and peoples develops over time, in a diachronic line of heritage and cultural memory as well as in a synchronous coexistence with the cosmos, marked by a cyclically returning rituals. Under the pressure of “clock time” (“time is money”) these organic “other times” of identity are eroding rapidly. In these respects, modernity has come to be characterised by a deep, dramatic and often violent conflict between traditional values of societies that have their own cultures and the processes of colonisation, urbanisation and and industrialisation, which usually presented as “progress”. This volume brings together complementary reflections of archaeologists, historians, anthropologists, sociologists and social activists on this issue. Central to their work is the perception and representation of time, its different symbolic aspects and its social impact. Espousing a comparatist methodology, the case studies focus on Mexico and Guatemala and on southern Italy. Show less
