Community-based heritage in Africa : unveiling local research and development initiatives / Peter R. Schmidt.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Schmidt, Peter R. (Peter Ridgway), 1942- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Community archaeology--Tanzania--Rugomora Katuruka Site.

Community archaeology.

Cultural property--Protection--Tanzania--Rugomora Katuruka Site.

Cultural property.

Haya (African people)--Tanzania.

Haya (African people).

Ethnology--Tanzania.

Ethnology.

Cultural property--Protection.

Tanzania.

Rugomora Katuruka Site (Tanzania).

Tanzania--Rugomora Katuruka Site.

Physical Description:

xix, 267 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Routledge, 2017.

Summary:

This volume provides a powerful alternative to the Western paradigms that have governed archaeological inquiry and heritage studies in Africa. Community-based Heritage Research in Africa boldly shifts focus away from top-down community engagements, usually instigated by elite academic and heritage institutions, to examine locally initiated projects. Schmidt explores how and why local research initiatives, which are often motivated by rapid culture change caused by globalization, arose among the Haya people of western Tanzania. In particular, the trauma of HIV/AIDS resulted in the loss of elders who had performed oral traditions and rituals at sacred places, the two most recognized forms of heritage among the Haya as well as distinct alternatives to the authorized heritage discourse favored around the globe. Examining three local initiatives, Schmidt draws on his experience as an anthropologist invited to collaborate and co-produce with the Haya to provide a poignant rendering of the successes, conflicts, and failures that punctuated their participatory community research efforts. This frank appraisal privileges local voices and focuses attention on the unique and important contributions that such projects can make to the preservation of regional history. Through this blend of personalized narrative and analytical examination, the book provides fresh insights into African archaeology and heritage studies. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part I: Backdrop to heritage meanings

Prelude to the unexpected

Setting, place, and heritage

Part II: A biography of a local heritage initiative

Disorientation and recuperation: relearning heritage in Katuruka Village

Grassroots heritage work in action

Spitting pearls: agendas for community research and heritage performance are realized

Euphoria, cargo cult expectations, and hard reality

Commentary: fitting Buhaya into global perspectives

Part III: Community research findings

HIV/AIDS, the living, and memory

Intangible heritage: hope lost over erased ethical values

Commentary: reflections on human rights, senses of place, and heritage

Heritage lost, heritage regained

Androcentric perspectives, subaltern conundrums, and learning from snakes

Njeru, the "white sheep" and her snake

With Eudes Bambanza and Zuriat Mohamed

Part IV: Reflections on the Katuruka initiative

Progress while negotiating potholes

Harm by greed: "negotiating" heritage rights and land use

The future of Katuruka: is there hope?

Part V: Spreading to other communities and concluding thoughts

Heritage ephemeral, heritage hidden, and heritage revealed at Kanazi Palace

Kanazi Palace, King Kahigi II, and ethical conundrums in community heritage work

The "Cave of the dead": genocide, forgotten heritage, and education

Reflections and connections.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781611329537

1611329531

9781611329520

1611329523

OCLC:

956957099